Punta Gorda Airport (Florida)

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Punta Gorda Airport
(formerly Charlotte County Airport)
Charlotte County Airport - Florida.jpg
USGS 2006 orthophoto
IATA: PGD – ICAO: KPGD – FAA LID: PGD
Summary
Airport type Public
Owner Charlotte County Airport Authority
Serves Punta Gorda, Florida
Focus city for Allegiant Air
Elevation AMSL 26 ft / 8 m
Coordinates 26°55′08″N 081°59′27″W / 26.91889°N 81.99083°W / 26.91889; -81.99083Coordinates: 26°55′08″N 081°59′27″W / 26.91889°N 81.99083°W / 26.91889; -81.99083
Website www.FlyPGD.com
Map
PGD is located in Florida
PGD
Location of airport in Florida
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
4/22 7,193 2,192 Asphalt
15/33 5,688 1,734 Asphalt
9/27 2,636 803 Asphalt
Statistics (2010)
Aircraft operations 74,854
Based aircraft 291
Sources: FAA,[1] airport website[2]

Punta Gorda Airport[1][2] (IATA: PGD[3], ICAO: KPGD, FAA LID: PGD) is a public use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) southeast of the central business district of Punta Gorda, in Charlotte County, Florida, United States.[1] It is owned by the Charlotte County Airport Authority[1] and was formerly known as Charlotte County Airport.[4]

This airport is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a primary commercial service airport since it has over 10,000 passenger boardings (enplanements) per year.[5] As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 147,698 enplanements in calendar year 2011, an increase of 69.7% from 87,041 in 2010.[6]

The airport has mainly been used for deplanements of single engine and small jet aircraft, but has recently seen a heavy increase in scheduled commercial airline service. The airport is home to the Florida International Air Show,[7] an annual event which has featured various military demonstration teams, such as the United States Navy's Flight Demonstration Squadron, the "Blue Angels"; the "U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds"; and the United States Army's "Sky Soldiers" (173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team) Cobra helicopter team.

The 2013 Federal sequester will result in the closure of the airport's contract control tower and will require pilots to rely on air traffic controllers from other area airports.[8][9]

Contents

History [edit]

World War II [edit]

In 1941, just prior to the beginning of World War II, the US Army Corps of Engineers planned and constructed an airfield on the current airport property as a combat pilot training base for the US Army Air Forces' Third Air Force, naming the facility Punta Gorda Army Airfield. By 1944, the base reached its peak in housing 1,000 personnel, including two squadrons of student pilots.

The base initially had forty Curtis P-40 Warhawk aircraft assigned, later transitioning to the North American P-51 Mustang aircraft. Pursuit (i.e., "fighter") aircraft training in the P-40 and P-51 represented advanced phase training for Army Air Forces fighter pilots prior to their being deployed with USAAF operational units in the European and Pacific Theaters of Operation. Punta Gorda Army Airfield was a subordinate command of 3rd Air Force, 3rd Fighter Command at Drew Field (now Tampa International Airport), and also had C-45 Expeditor and C-47 Skytrain transport aircraft assigned for support purposes.

The 27th Service Group, an all-black unit, was moved from McDill Field near Tampa to provide training for support services to the air combat units.

All base officers and some senior non-commissioned officers lived in Punta Gorda, while all student officers and most enlisted men lived in tent structures on the base. Semi-permanent buildings included an operations headquarters, classrooms, supply building, fire station, dispensary, chapel and the control tower. The base also had nose dock hangars, where just the nose of the aircraft was under shelter for repairs.

Following the war, the US Government issued a Deed of Release transferring all of the fixtures and improvements situated on the property to the local jurisdiction of Charlotte County.[citation needed]

Commercial airline service [edit]

The airport has serviced several commercial airline tenants throughout its existence, but saw no major commercial operations after the early 1980s in the aftermath of the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978. Commercial operations again commenced at PGD in 2007 when both Skybus Airlines and DayJet began providing flights to and from the airport. Service by these airlines, however, proved to be temporary at best with Skybus and Dayjet ceasing operations on April 5, 2008 and September 19, 2008 (respectively).

Commercial service out of PGD once again resumed on November 22, 2008 when low-cost carrier Direct Air began twice weekly service to 10 destinations across the eastern US. On December 2, 2008 low-cost airline Allegiant Air also announced it would open a new focus city at PGD, and began service to Greenville, SC and Knoxville, TN on March 5, 2009. A third airline, Vision Airlines also commenced weekly flights to Northwest Florida Regional Airport in Destin on March 25, 2011. Vision has since allowed for ticketed flights from Punta Gorda to Atlanta, Savannah, and Asheville via the airline's Destin/Fort Walton Beach hub. Vision Airlines ended all service to PGD in 2012.

Facilities and aircraft [edit]

Punta Gorda Airport covers an area of 1,934 acres (783 ha) at an elevation of 26 feet (8 m) above mean sea level. It has three runways with asphalt surfaces: 4/22 is 7,193 by 150 feet (2,192 x 46 m), 15/33 is 5,688 by 150 feet (1,734 x 46 m), and 9/27 is 2,636 by 60 feet (803 x 18 m).[1]

For the 12-month period ending December 10, 2010, the airport had 74,854 aircraft operations, an average of 205 per day: 96% general aviation, 3% air taxi, 1% scheduled commercial, and <1% military. At that time there were 291 aircraft based at this airport: 81% single-engine, 10% multi-engine, 4% jet, 2% helicopter, and 2% ultralight.[1]

Airlines and destinations [edit]

The following airline provides scheduled passenger service:

Airlines Destinations
Allegiant Air Chicago-Rockford, Fort Wayne, Greenville/Spartanburg, Knoxville, Lexington, Niagara Falls, Peoria, Plattsburgh, South Bend, Springfield (IL), Toledo (OH)

See also [edit]

Portal icon United States Air Force portal
Portal icon Military of the United States portal
Portal icon World War II portal

References [edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f FAA Airport Master Record for PGD (Form 5010 PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Effective November 15, 2012.
  2. ^ a b "Punta Gorda Airport". Charlotte County Airport Authority. Retrieved January 5, 2013. 
  3. ^ "IATA Airport Code Search (PGD: Punta Gorda / Charlotte County)". International Air Transport Association. Retrieved January 5, 2013. 
  4. ^ "KPGD – Charlotte County Airport". FAA data republished by AirNav. February 11, 2010. Archived from the original on March 28, 2010. 
  5. ^ "2011–2015 NPIAS Report, Appendix A" (PDF, 2.03 MB). National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems. Federal Aviation Administration. October 4, 2010. 
  6. ^ "Enplanements for CY 2011" (PDF, 1.7 MB). CY 2011 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data. Federal Aviation Administration. October 9, 2012. 
  7. ^ Florida International Air Show
  8. ^ http://www.aaae.org/?e=showFile&l=TDDZKA
  9. ^ http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2013/03/22/faa-tower-closures/2009371/

External links [edit]


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