Pensacola International Airport
| Pensacola International Airport | |||
|---|---|---|---|
IATA: PNS – ICAO: KPNS – FAA LID: PNS
 PNS
|
|||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Owner | City of Pensacola | ||
| Serves | Pensacola, Florida | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 121 ft / 37 m | ||
| Coordinates | 30°28′24″N 087°11′12″W / 30.47333°N 87.18667°W | ||
| Website | |||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| ft | m | ||
| 8/26 | 7,000 | 2,134 | Asphalt |
| 17/35 | 7,004 | 2,135 | Asphalt |
| Statistics (2008) | |||
| Aircraft operations | 101,498 | ||
| Based aircraft | 81 | ||
| Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1] | |||
Pensacola International Airport [2] (IATA: PNS, ICAO: KPNS, FAA LID: PNS) is a public airport located within the city of Pensacola in Escambia County, Florida.
Contents |
[edit] History
Pensacola International Airport was established in 1939 as Hagler Field. The first air service was to transport seafood from the Gulf Coast to northern cities. From 1940 to 1946, the airport was used as a Navy training base. It was returned to the city of Pensacola in 1947. The first jet air service out of Pensacola started in 1960. National Airlines began 727 service to Miami and New York. Eastern Air Lines inaugurated service to Atlanta, Mobile, and Birmingham. Other airlines quickly followed. Continental Airlines started service to Houston and Delta Air Lines started service to Atlanta, to compete against Eastern. National also picked up service to Mobile and New Orleans. In 1980, a new terminal with 6 gates was built. That same year, National was acquired by Pan Am. Pan Am continued the service. In 1991, both Eastern and Pan Am went bankrupt and only Continental and Delta remained at the airport. TWA began service to Atlanta and Kansas City. When TWA merged with American, the air service was discontinued. However, American did start service to Dallas and Miami. In 2000, the Delta subsidiary Song (airline) started service to Orlando. Gulfstream International Airlines began service to Tampa and Orlando under the Continental Connection brand. In 2002, AirTran Airways began service to Atlanta. In 2005, United Airlines inaugurated Express service to Chicago O'Hare and Washington Dulles. US Airways Express started service to Charlotte in 2007. In the future, US Airways Express partner Air Wisconsin will begin service to Washington Reagan. Southwest Airlines also plans to convert all of AirTran's operations to Southwest and add more flights out of the airport.
[edit] Facilities
Pensacola International Airport covers 1,211 acres (490 ha) and has two runways:
- Runway 17/35: 7,004 x 150 ft. (2,135 x 46 m), Surface: Asphalt
- Runway 8/26: 7,000 x 150 ft. (2,133 x 46 m), Surface: Asphalt
The Runway 17 approach is equipped with a full instrument landing system and approach light system, while the Runway 26 approach is equipped with a localizer approach. A 1,000 ft. extension to the east end of Runway 8/26 was completed in 2006. The airport hopes to extend Runway 17/35 to about 8,500 ft. in the future, to better accommodate heavy aircraft.
Runway 17/35 was originally designated 16/34, and Runway 8/26 was designated 7/25. A gradual shift in magnetic north necessitated their re-designation during the 1980s. The airport's two war-era diagonal runways were decommissioned in the 1960s.
[edit] Terminal
Pensacola has one passenger terminal consisting of 13 gates. The existing terminal was built in the early 1990s. Gates 12-13 are located on the ground floor and utilized by United Express (Silver Airways).
Gate Assignments:
AirTran: Gate 6
American: Gate 5
Delta: Gates 2, 4, and 8
United: Gate 1, 3 and 11
US Airways: Gate 7
[edit] Terminal Expansion
- Terminal Expansion [2]
[edit] Airlines and destinations
The following airlines fly these non-stop flights to Pensacola International Airport:
| Airlines | Destinations | Gates |
|---|---|---|
| American Eagle | Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami | 5, 9 |
| Delta Air Lines | Atlanta | 2,4,8 |
| Delta Connection operated by ExpressJet | Memphis | 2, 4, 8, 10 |
| Delta Connection operated by Pinnacle Airlines | Atlanta | 2, 4, 8, 10 |
| Southwest Airlines operated by AirTran Airways | Atlanta | 6 |
| United Express operated by ExpressJet | Chicago-O'Hare, Houston-Intercontinental, Washington-Dulles | 1, 3 |
| United Express operated by Silver Airways | Orlando, Tampa | 3, 11, 12 |
| US Airways Express operated by Air Wisconsin | Washington-National [begins March 25, 2012] | 7 |
| US Airways Express operated by Mesa Airlines | Charlotte | 7 |
| US Airways Express operated by PSA Airlines | Charlotte | 7 |
[edit] Renaming
Pensacola mayor Ashton Hawyard announced on November 9, 2011 that the airport would change its name from Pensacola Gulf Coast Regional Airport to Pensacola International Airport effective immediately.[3]
[edit] Future Airline service
US Airways Express partner Air Wisconsin will start air service to Washington's Ronald Reagan National Airport, DCA, on March 25, 2012. Southwest Airlines announced new service out of Pensacola. It has yet to specify which cities it will fly to, but it is almost guaranteed that the Atlanta service will be continued. There are some talks about JetBlue Airways coming to Pensacola.
[edit] Discontinued Air service
The Delta subsidiary, Song once had service to Orlando International Airport. Republic Airlines operated flights to Washington Reagan. American Eagle operated flights to Chicago O'Hare. Delta offered flights to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Cincinnati.
[edit] Cargo Airlines
UPS Airlines is the only cargo carrier at the airport currently.
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| UPS Airlines | Louisville |
[edit] Incidents
On May 8, 1978 National Airlines Flight 193 landed in Escambia Bay while approaching the east-west runway. Three of the 58 passengers and crew on board were killed.
On December 27, 1987, a Eastern Airlines DC-9-31 made a hard landing and split its fuselage open just aft of its wing root. No one was seriously injured[4] in the accident but the aircraft was written off.[5]
On July 6, 1996, Delta Air Lines Flight 1288, an MD-88, experienced an uncontained engine failure during takeoff on Runway 17. Fragments from the number one (left) Pratt & Whitney JT8D-219 turbofan engine penetrated the fuselage, killing two and seriously injuring one of the 148 people onboard.
[edit] References
- ^ FAA Airport Master Record for PNS (Form 5010 PDF), effective 2008-12-31
- ^ [1]
- ^ http://www.flypensacola.com/_files/contents/386/Airport%20Event%20110911.pdf
- ^ Eastern Jet's fuselage cracks wide open during bumpy landing in Pensacola
- ^ Aircraft McDonnell Douglas DC-9-31 N8948E Pensacola Regional Airport
[edit] External links
- Pensacola International Airport, official site
- Coordinates: 30°28′24″N 87°11′12″W / 30.4734°N 87.1866°W
- Resources for this airport:
- AirNav airport information for KPNS
- ASN accident history for PNS
- FlightAware airport information and live flight tracker
- NOAA/NWS latest weather observations
- SkyVector aeronautical chart for KPNS
- FAA current PNS delay information
- Petition to Bring Southwest Airlines to Pensacola
