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Syracuse Hancock International Airport

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Syracuse Hancock International Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorCity of Syracuse Department of Aviation
ServesSyracuse, New York
Elevation AMSL421 ft / 128.3 m
Coordinates43°06′40.27″N 76°06′22.71″W / 43.1111861°N 76.1063083°W / 43.1111861; -76.1063083
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
10/28 9,003 2,744 Asphalt
15/33 7,500 2,286 Asphalt

Syracuse Hancock International Airport (IATA: SYR, ICAO: KSYR) is a public airport located 4 miles (6 km) northeast of Syracuse, in Onondaga County, New York, off of Interstate 81 near Mattydale, New York. The main terminal complex is located at the eastern end of Colonel Eileen Collins Boulevard.

History

In 1927 Syracuse mayor Charles Hanna felt that his city needed an airport. A location at Amboy in the town of Camillus, New York was purchased for $50,000, and by 1928, the "Syracuse City Airport at Amboy" was handling airmail. At the end of World War II the United States Army Air Corps leased their bomber base near Mattydale, New York to the city. On September 17, 1949, the Clarence E. Hancock Airport opened to the public in a renovated machine shop and replaced the airport at Amboy. American, Buffalo, Colonial and Robinson Airlines were the first airlines to operate at the airport, and American Airlines still does to this day.

In 1962 a new terminal opened, at the site of the present-day terminals. The location allowed the airport to be directly connected to Interstate 81, which was built shortly afterwards. In 1970 the airport was awarded international airport status by the International Civil Aviation Organization, and thus renamed Syracuse Hancock International Airport.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s the airport went through several expansions to meet increasing demand. Empire Airlines, which was founded in 1976, made Syracuse a hub, and over two million passengers a year were using the airport. Piedmont Airlines absorbed Empire in 1986 and kept the Syracuse hub. The mid-to-late 1980s were the best years in Hancock history, with a record 3.17 million passengers using the airport in 1987, second in Upstate New York only to Buffalo, and its 253 daily flights even made it the top Upstate New York airport in terms of flights. Hub-carrier Piedmont operated most of the gates in Terminal A, operating 58 jet flights and 12 commuter flights a day in 1987. Terminal A was expanded that year, adding more gates, a Piedmont Presidential Club (a US Airways Club until 2004), and a larger customs area.

With USAir's purchase of Piedmont in 1989, things started going sour for Hancock International. USAir closed the Syracuse hub, and Syracuse therefore lost its advantage over other upstate airports. A final terminal expansion was completed in 1996, along with an overall overhaul and renovation, which created two separate terminal areas with individual, checkin, security, and baggage claim. USAir still maintained a large presence at the airport but reduced flights throughout the 1990s, making Terminal A essentially a "ghost terminal." After the September 11, 2001 attacks, the now-renamed US Airways cut even more flights and did not renew its leases for many of its gates in Terminal A, upon which the airport essentially "boarded them up."

A United Airlines Boeing 737 at Hancock International Airport in 1993

However, a new era began on May 7, 2001 when JetBlue inaugurated low-cost service to Hancock. Mainly using the first gate of Terminal A, Gate 15, most of this terminal still remains asleep. In 2007, JetBlue also expanded its operation to include usage of gates 3 and 11. More discount carriers followed suit and began servicing Syracuse. Charter airline TransMeridian Airlines began its first scheduled routes ever when it started flying six weekly flights to Orlando Sanford International Airport in 2003. It flew the route until its bankruptcy in 2005. JetBlue began flying non-stop to Orlando International Airport daily in July 2006. Independence Air began flying eight daily roundtrips to Washington Dulles International Airport in 2004, but Independence Air's parent company filed for bankruptcy protection in November 2005 and flew its last flight in January 2006. US Airways announced on May 10, 2004 that it would increase service to Hancock, lower fares, and add seats by converting flights from turboprop to regional jet.

In 2004, Syracuse Mayor Matthew Driscoll created a Fly Syracuse television and internet campaign in an attempt to lower fares and increase passenger traffic at the airport. The airport has since experienced a period of growth thanks to the efforts of local politicians and business contributions toward the campaign.

In May 2005, American Eagle announced daily flights to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, that began that August. They are the longest flights from Hancock.

With the bankruptcies of TransMeridian Airlines and Independence Air, JetBlue is once again the only low-fare carrier at Hancock. It strengthened its position in 2006 by adding a Syracuse-Orlando route and increasing its frequency to New York City. JetBlue will also begin a Syracuse-Fort Lauderdale route on November 1, 2007.

If the ambitious plans of mall developer The Pyramid Companies to build DestiNY USA, a multi-billion dollar tourism attraction which could attract millions of new visitors by air, ever become reality, then Hancock would have to be expanded again. Its current capacity is estimated at about 3.35 million passengers a year. There has even been talk of a monorail to Hancock from Syracuse University via downtown and DestiNY USA (estimated cost $750 million).

There are also plans to lengthen runway 10/28 and to build a parallel runway on the north side of the airport. It would become runway 10L/28R. (The existing runway 10/28 would become 10R/28L).[citation needed]

Operations

An American Airlines Super 80 being deiced at Terminal B. In the background is a Northwest Airlines DC-9 parked at Terminal A.
FAA diagram of Syracuse Hancock International Airport (SYR)

The Syracuse region receives an average 114 inches (289.56 cm) of snow annually. The airport has a vast amount of snow removal devices, including the world's largest snowplow, which is 32 feet, 3 inches (9.83 meters) wide. On average, the airport is closed less than 24 hours annually due to snowfall. The airport has received the Balchen/Post Award for Excellence in the Performance of Snow and Ice Control a total of seven times, most recently in 2006.[1] Runway 10/28 has a Category II Instrument Landing System (ILS).

Terminals and destinations

Terminal A

Terminal B

Airline Share

Airline Percent of Total Passengers in 2006
US Airways 31.86
Delta 15.23
United 13.91
JetBlue 13.82
Northwest 9.64
Continental 7.77
American 7.47
Independence* 0.09
Charters 0.22

Note: Independence Air ceased operations January 5, 2006

Source: [2]

See also

External links

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