Palm Springs International Airport

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Palm Springs International Airport
Palm Springs International Airport - USGS topo.jpg
US Geological Survey orthophoto
IATA: PSPICAO: KPSPFAA LID: PSP
PSP is located in California
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PSP
Location of the Airport in California
Summary
Airport type Public
Operator City of Palm Springs
Serves Palm Springs / Inland Empire
Location Palm Springs, California
Elevation AMSL 477 ft / 145.4 m
Coordinates 33°49′46.8″N 116°30′24.1″W / 33.829667°N 116.506694°W / 33.829667; -116.506694
Website Palm Springs International Airport
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
13R/31L 10,001 3,048 Asphalt
13L/31R 4,952 1,509 Asphalt

Palm Springs International Airport (IATA: PSPICAO: KPSPFAA LID: PSP) is a public airport located two miles (3 km) east of the central business district (CBD) of Palm Springs, California, serving the Inland Empire Metropolitan Area of Southern California. The airport covers 940 acres (380 ha) and utilizes two runways. It is highly seasonal, in that many flights do not operate during the summer.

Contents

[edit] Airlines and destinations

Airlines Destinations
Alaska Airlines San Francisco, Seattle/Tacoma
Seasonal: Portland (OR)
Alaska Airlines operated by Horizon Air Sacramento
Seasonal: San Jose (CA)[1]
Allegiant Air Stockton
Seasonal: Bellingham
American Airlines Dallas/Fort Worth
Seasonal: Chicago-O’Hare
Delta Air Lines Seasonal: Minneapolis/St. Paul
Delta Connection operated by SkyWest Airlines Salt Lake City
Frontier Airlines Seasonal: Denver
Sun Country Airlines Seasonal: Minneapolis/St. Paul
United Airlines Seasonal: Chicago-O’Hare, Denver
United Express operated by SkyWest Airlines Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco
Seasonal: Houston-Intercontinental
US Airways Phoenix
US Airways Express operated by Mesa Airlines Phoenix
US Airways Express operated by SkyWest Airlines Phoenix
Virgin America Seasonal: San Francisco
WestJet Calgary
Seasonal: Edmonton, Toronto-Pearson, Vancouver, Winnipeg

[edit] Top Destinations

Top ten busiest domestic routes out of PSP
(July 2010 - June 2011) [2]
Rank City Passengers Carriers
1 Texas Dallas-Fort Worth, TX 106,000 American
2 California San Francisco, CA 96,000 Alaska, United, Virgin
3 Washington (state) Seattle, WA 91,000 Alaska
4 Arizona Phoenix, AZ 87,000 US Airways
5 Colorado Denver, CO 57,000 United
6 California Los Angeles, CA 52,000 United
7 Illinois Chicago O’Hare, IL 40,000 American, United
8 Utah Salt Lake City, UT 35,000 Delta
9 Oregon Portland, OR 26,000 Alaska
10 Washington (state) Bellingham, WA 22,000 Allegiant

[edit] History

PSP was originally constructed as a United States Army Corps as an emergency landing field in 1939 on land owned by the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians due to its clear weather and its proximity to March Field and the Los Angeles area.

In March 1941, the War Department certified improvements to the existing airport in Palm Springs as essential to National Defense. The airport was approved to serve as a staging field by the Air Corps Ferrying Command 21st Ferrying Group in November 1941. Land was acquired to build a major airfield one half miles from the old airfield site. The new airfield, designated Palm Springs Army Airfield[3] was completed in early 1942, and thereafter the old air field was used only as a backup landing site.

Many of the field's Air Transport Command 560th Army Air Forces Base Unit personnel stayed at the comfortable Lapaz Guest Ranch nearby. Training conducted at the airfield was by the 72d and 73d Ferrying Squadrons in long-distance over-water flying and navigation. Later, training was also provided to pursuit pilot training by IV Fighter Command 459th Base Headquarters and Air Base Squadron. Training was conducted with P-51 Mustang; P-40 Warhawk and P-38 Lightning aircraft.

On 1 June 1944 training operations moved to Brownsville Army Airfield, Texas and the airfield was used for military (Army and Navy) air transport flights until the end of April 1945. The auxiliary field or backup field was declared surplus on 12 May 1945 and the main airfield was declared excess and transferred to the War Assets Administration for disposal in 1946 and it was sold to private buyers.

The City of Palm Springs purchased the land in 1961 and converted it for commercial use, which began in 1964 as the Palm Springs Municipal Airport.

On December 30, 2006, a U.S. Air Force Presidential Boeing VC-25 left Palm Springs International Airport with the body of the 38th President of the United States, Gerald R. Ford and delivered to Washington, D.C., for official federal services.

Palm Springs International Airport

[edit] See also

[edit] References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

[edit] External links

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