Branson Airport
| Branson Airport | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
|||
| IATA: BKG – ICAO: KBBG – FAA LID: BBG | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Owner | Branson Airport, LLC | ||
| Serves | Branson, Missouri | ||
| Location | |||
| Hub for | Branson AirExpress | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 1,302 ft / 397 m | ||
| Coordinates | 36°31′55″N 093°12′02″W / 36.53194°N 93.20056°W | ||
| Website | |||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| ft | m | ||
| 14/32 | 7,140 | 2,176 | Concrete |
| Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1] | |||
Branson Airport (IATA: BKG, ICAO: KBBG, FAA LID: BBG) is a public use airport located eight nautical miles (15 km) south-southeast of the central business district of Branson, a city in Taney County, Missouri, United States. It is privately owned by Branson Airport, LLC.[1]
Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier for the FAA and IATA, this airport is assigned BBG by the FAA and BKG by the IATA[2] (which assigned BBG to Butaritari Atoll Airport in Butaritari, Kiribati[3]).
The airport opened on May 11, 2009. It is currently the only privately owned, privately operated commercial service airport in the United States[4][5][6] as National Express Group Plc. reverted control of Stewart International Airport to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. As part of the negotiations to create the airport, obtain financing and reduce liability, Branson Airport, LLC had to "gift" the land they owned to Taney County, Missouri in order to lease and operate the airport privately.[6]
Contents |
[edit] Opening
Prior to construction of Branson Airport, the closest commercial service airport was Springfield-Branson National Airport 50 miles (80 km) northwest of Branson. That airport is owned by the city of Springfield, Missouri.
The formal grand opening was May 8–10, 2009 during which the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds performed during an air show.[7] The first flight arrived the following day, on May 11, 2009 from Minneapolis-St. Paul on a Sun Country Airlines scheduled commercial flight.[7]
There were two airlines operating at the time of Branson's opening, AirTran Airways and Sun Country Airlines. Sun Country Airlines stopped operations at Branson in March 2010 making AirTran Airways the only original airline that continues to serve the airport at the time.
Frontier Airlines also services this airport out of Denver and Milwaukee.
[edit] Expansion
Frontier Airlines launched flights to Branson Airport with daily service to Denver as well as seasonal less than daily service to Milwaukee, which was formally served from Branson through AirTran. Frontier's flights are operated by Republic Airlines.
ExpressJet also operated flights under an independent brand known as Branson AirExpress to several markets utilizing regional jets supporting point-to-point transit. Currently, Branson AirExpress is operated by Corporate Flight Managemnet BAe Jetstream 41 turboprops. For the year 2011, Branson AirExpress expects to service Dallas Executive Airport and Austin with less than daily service to both beginning April 4, 2011.
On February 23, 2011 Branson Airport's largest carrier, AirTran Airways announced they would be adding flights from Branson to Baltimore, Chicago-Midway and Houston-Hobby. All flights are year round.
As of November, 2011 Branson Airport offers 9 nonstop flights with over 100 one-stop connections. AirTran Airways, acquired by Southwest Airlines in May 2011, offers nonstop service to Atlanta, Baltimore-Washington, Chicago, Houston, and Orlando. Frontier Airlines offers nonstop service to Austin, Denver, Milwaukee and Phoenix. Branson AirExpress offers seasonal service and has completed their 2011 schedule.
[edit] Facilities and aircraft
Branson Airport covers an area of 922 acres (373 ha) at an elevation of 1,302 feet (397 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 14/32 with a concrete surface measuring 7,140 by 150 feet (2,176 x 46 m).[1]
[edit] Airlines and destinations
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| AirTran Airways | Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago-Midway, Houston-Hobby, Orlando |
| Branson Air Express operated by Corporate Flight Management | Seasonal: Austin, Dallas-Executive |
| Frontier Airlines | Denver |
| Frontier Express operated by Chautauqua Airlines | Seasonal: Milwaukee, Austin |
[edit] Top Destinations
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carrier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Atlanta, GA |
54,000 | AirTran |
| 2 |  Denver, CO |
27,000 | Frontier |
| 3 |  Orlando, FL |
4,000 | AirTran |
| 4 |  Chicago-Midway, IL |
3,000 | AirTran |
| 5 |  Houston-Hobby, TX |
3,000 | AirTran |
| 6 |  Milwaukee, WI |
3,000 | Frontier |
| 7 |  Baltimore, MD |
1,000 | AirTran |
| 8 |  Portland, OR |
1,000 | N/A |
| 9 | Austin, TX |
1,000 | Frontier |
[edit] Competition
There are some unusual consequences of the airport's private ownership. One such issue is the fact that competition is neither desired nor allowed. When an airline acquires a route to and from the airport, they will generally acquire an exclusive arrangement with Branson Airport, LLC, to serve that destination city. This however does not prevent a carrier from operating to a destination served by Springfield-Branson Airport to the north, for example AirTran flies to Atlanta competing with Delta Connection operations to Atlanta from the nearby airport.
“We don’t want suicide fares, two or three airlines bashing each other over the head until someone says ‘uncle’ and leaves,” said [CEO Steve] Peet, explaining why the airport agreed to protect the airlines from competition. “We want to build real service, sustainable service.”[4]
[edit] Development and construction
Branson Airport is located in the Communities of Branson Creek development, a golf/residential complex land formerly belonging to Tennessee Ernie Ford. The land was originally purchased by Glenn Patch, a publisher of Computer Shopper and other magazines, in 1990 when he bought 7,000 acres (28 km2) in the area to develop the Branson Creek complex. Patch sold the 922 acres to Branson Airport, LLC in 2007. [9] Patch also owns the franchise for the Dick Clark American Bandstand Theatre in Branson.
The owners have put the naming rights for the FBO, the terminal, and the entire airport up for sale.[10]
The construction of the airport, which involved the flattening of several Ozark Mountains, is claimed to be the largest earthmoving project in Missouri history. A press release noted that between groundbreaking in July 2007 and May 2008 11 million cubic yards of earth had been moved.[11]
The $155 million project includes a 7,140-foot (2,180 m) by 150-foot (46 m) runway, numbered 14/32, and a 58,000-square-foot (5,400 m2) terminal designed to accommodate 1.4 million passengers a year. The $155 million cost of the building the terminal included $38 million in private equity and $117 million in tax free bonds underwritten by Citigroup.[12] The high-risk, high-yield bonds (top rate of 6.5%) were issued by the Branson Regional Airport Transportation Development District.[13] The City of Branson will pay a subsidy of $8.24 to Branson Airport LLC for each arriving visitor with an annual cap of $2 Million.[9] Given the rates at which the bonds are financed, this subsidy could amount to 20% of the total costs of financing the airport's construction.
The overall developer was AFCO. The master designer was Burns and McDonnell Engineering. McAninch Corporation handled the earth moving operations.[14]
Plans also call for the construction of an 8,000-seat arena and 15,000-seat amphitheater near the airport.[9]
[edit] See also
[edit] Nearby General Aviation Airports
[edit] Nearest Commercial Airports
[edit] References
- ^ a b c FAA Airport Master Record for BBG (Form 5010 PDF), effective 2 July 2009
- ^ Great Circle Mapper: KBBG / BKG - Branson, Missouri (Branson Airport)
- ^ Great Circle Mapper: NGTU / BBG - Butaritari Atoll, Kiribati
- ^ a b Negroni, Christine (April 20, 2009). "In Missouri, Investors Seek a Profit in Branson Airport". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/21/business/21branson.html.
- ^ Negroni, Christine (May 11, 2009). "Branson opening nation's only privately funded commercial airport". Dallas Morning News. http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/DN-branson_11bus.State.Edition1.c23c71.html.
- ^ a b "Branson's Privately Financed Airport: Branson Airport CEO on obtaining financing" (Video and transcript). FOX Business News. April 24, 2009. http://www.foxbusiness.com/search-results/m/22152279/branson-s-privately-financed-airport.htm.
- ^ a b Honey, Mindy (May 2009). "New airport takes off". Branson Daily News. http://www.bransondailynews.com/story.php?storyID=11887.
- ^ http://www.transtats.bts.gov/airports.asp?pn=1&Airport=BKG&Airport_Name=Branson,%20MO:%20Branson%20Airport&carrier=FACTS
- ^ a b c "Branson breaks ground on first private commercial airport; Completion scheduled for 2009" (PDF). News Release. City of Branson. July 20, 2007. http://www.cityofbranson.org/news/newspdfs/Airport%207-07.pdf.
- ^ http://articles.directorym.net/AT_BRANSON_UP_GOES_A_TERMINAL_Seattle_WA-r906317-Seattle_WA.html[dead link]
- ^ http://www.flybranson.com/branson-airport-awards-contract-to-build-terminal[dead link]
- ^ http://www.flybranson.com/construction[dead link]
- ^ Cooke, Jeremy R. (June 12, 2009). "Illinois, Cleveland, Branson Sales Lead Municipal Bond Market". Bloomberg.com. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601009&sid=aYd3BKzB9dKU&refer=bond.
- ^ http://www.flybranson.com/aviation[dead link]
[edit] External links
- FlyBranson.com, official site
- FAA Airport Diagram for Branson Airport (BBG) (PDF), effective 12 January 2012
- FAA Terminal Procedures for Branson Airport (BBG), effective 12 January 2012
- Resources for this airport:
- AirNav airport information for KBBG
- FlightAware airport information and live flight tracker
- NOAA/NWS latest weather observations
- SkyVector aeronautical chart, Terminal Procedures
