El Paso International Airport

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El Paso International Airport

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Elpasoaaf-28jan1996.jpg
IATA: ELP – ICAO: KELP
Summary
Airport type Public
Operator City of El Paso
Location El Paso, Texas
Elevation AMSL 3,958 ft / 1,206 m
Coordinates 31°48′26″N 106°22′39″W / 31.80722°N 106.3775°W / 31.80722; -106.3775
Website http://www.elpasointernationalairport.com/
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
4/22 12,020 3,664 Asphalt
8R/26L 9,025 2,751 Asphalt
8L/26R 5,493 1,674 Asphalt

El Paso International Airport (IATA: ELP, ICAO: KELP, FAA LID: ELP) is a public airport located four miles (6 km) northeast of the central business district (CBD) of the City of El Paso, in El Paso County, Texas, USA.

Public transportation to and from the airport is provided by Sun Metro bus #33 and #57.

Contents

[edit] Facilities

El Paso International Airport covers 6,800 acres (2,752 ha) and has three runways:

  • Runway 4/22: 12,020 x 150 ft (3,664 x 46 m), Surface: Asphalt
  • Runway 8R/26L: 9,025 x 150 ft (2,751 x 46 m), Surface: Asphalt
  • Runway 8L/26R: 5,493 x 75 ft (1,674 x 23 m), Surface: Asphalt
The Airport security concourse from airside.
The airport terminal as seen from above.
The Don Juan de Oñate statue standing at the exit of the airport.

[edit] Airlines and destinations

El Paso International Airport has a total of 15 gates on 2 concourses.

[edit] Concourse A

Concourse A has 4 Gates: A1 - A4

Airlines Destinations
American Airlines Chicago-O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth

[edit] Concourse B

Concourse B has 11 Gates: B1 - B11

Airlines Destinations
Continental Airlines Houston-Intercontinental
Continental Express operated by Chautauqua Airlines Houston-Intercontinental
Continental Express operated by ExpressJet Airlines Houston-Intercontinental
Delta Air Lines Atlanta
Delta Connection operated by Skywest Airlines Salt Lake City
Southwest Airlines Albuquerque, Austin, Dallas-Love, Houston-Hobby, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Antonio, San Diego
United Express operated by SkyWest Airlines Chicago-O'Hare, Denver, Los Angeles
US Airways Phoenix
US Airways Express operated by Mesa Airlines Phoenix

[edit] Check-In at Ticket Counter - Escorted to plane

Airlines Destinations
New Mexico Airlines Alamogordo, Carlsbad, Albuquerque (one-stop)

[edit] History

The city of El Paso had originally constructed the El Paso Municipal Airport at a location close to the East Side of the Franklin Mountains in 1928. The airport was abandoned by 1965, and in more recent times has been home to the Jobe Concrete Products "Planeport" cement factory.

The El Paso International Airport was originally constructed as Standard Airport, constructed by Standard Airlines in 1929 for transcontinental air mail service. Standard Airlines became a division of American Airlines in the 1930s. In 1936, American Airlines "swapped" airports with the city of El Paso, and the El Paso International Airport was born.

In 1934, Varney Speed Lines (now known as Continental Airlines) operated its service in and out of the old El Paso Municipal Airport (now closed). In 1937, the airline moved to Denver, Colorado when Robert Six took over the airline.

During World War II, the airport was used by the United States Army Air Forces as a training base. Units which trained at El Paso Army Airfield were:

  • 385th Bombardment Group (Heavy) (B-17 Flying Fortress) December 21, 1942 – February 1, 1943
    • Served with the 8th Air Force in England.
  • 491st Bombardment Group (Heavy) (B-24 Liberator) November 11, 1943 – January 1, 1944
    • Served with the 8th Air Force in England.
  • 497th Bombardment Group (Very Heavy) (B-29 Superfortress) November 20 – December 1, 1943
    • Served with the 20th Air Force at Saipan.

At the end of the war the airfield was determined to be excess by the military and returned to the local government for civil aviation use.

Historically, Continental Airlines had a significant presence at the airport. It provided "Golden Jet" service to such cities as Phoenix, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Albuquerque, Midland-Odessa, Dallas Love Field, Austin, San Antonio and Houston. El Paso was the last stop of the first highjacking of a jetliner, a Boeing 707 owned by Continental Airlines. Before deregulation in the USA, El Paso was a focus city for Continental Airlines, however El Paso was soon demoted to a standard station in a hub-and-spoke system under Frank Lorenzo's leadership of the airline.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Paso_International_Airport"