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St. George Regional Airport

Coordinates: 37°02′11″N 113°30′37″W / 37.03639°N 113.51028°W / 37.03639; -113.51028 (St. George Municipal Airport (2011-present))
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(Redirected from St George Municipal Airport)
For the former airport, see St. George Municipal Airport.
St. George Regional Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
Owner/OperatorCity of St. George
ServesSt. George, Utah
Elevation AMSL2,884 ft / 879 m
Coordinates37°02′11″N 113°30′37″W / 37.03639°N 113.51028°W / 37.03639; -113.51028 (St. George Municipal Airport (2011-present))
Websitewww.flysgu.com
Map
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
1/19 9,300 2,835 Asphalt
Statistics (2020)
Aircraft operations80,105
BASED aircraft195

St. George Regional Airport (IATA: SGU, ICAO: KSGU, FAA LID: SGU) is a city-owned airport in St. George, Washington County, Utah.[1]

The airport opened on January 13, 2011, a replacement for smaller land-locked St. George Municipal Airport, atop a mesa in the city, which was declared unsuitable for expansion. It is served by SkyWest Airlines with code sharing flights operated on behalf of American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines. SkyWest, one of the largest regional airlines in the world, is based in St. George.

The former airport used SGU as the location identifier for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and International Air Transport Association (IATA). The new airport was assigned a transitional identifier DXZ by the FAA, but retained the IATA designation SGU.[2] On December 15, 2011, the FAA returned SGU to use at the new airport.[citation needed]

History

[edit]

The prospect of a new airport for the region had been considered for many years. The old airport had a small terminal with a single gate and a runway that was too small for larger aircraft. It had no room for expansion, as it was situated atop a mesa. With the growth of the area and tourism rapidly increasing, the need for a new airport became more urgent. A site was chosen about 6 miles southeast of downtown at an abandoned airfield which had not seen air traffic since 1961 and most recently had been used for vehicle drag racing and radio controlled aircraft.

An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the present airport was completed in August 2006. The study concluded that the impact on the environment and noise pollution would be minimal. Plans for this new larger airport included a single 10,000 ft (3048m) runway suitable for regional jets and smaller mainline aircraft. The runway was initially planned to be oriented at about 010/190 degrees. It was also initially planned to be 9,300 by 150 feet (2,835 by 46 m) with subsequent plans for the runway to be extended to 11,500 by 150 feet (3,505 by 46 m). A 9,300 ft runway was eventually constructed.

The new St. George Airport was partially funded by grants from the FAA totaling $123 million. The entire project was expected to cost about 159 million dollars.[3] The city broke ground on the new site in October 2008 and the airport opened on January 13, 2011. SkyWest Airlines (operating as Delta Connection) announced that on January 13, 2011 the airline would begin nonstop daily services to Salt Lake City from the airport, using Canadair CRJ regional jets. SkyWest subsequently initiated nonstop Canadair CRJ regional jet services to Denver operating as United Express.[4]

On July 13, 2015 the airport changed its name from St. George Municipal Airport to St. George Regional Airport in a bid to attract more airline services to the airport.[5]

Late in 2018, Allegiant Air announced flights from St. George to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport from November 9 of that year,[6] which were the first mainline jets to serve St. George, as Allegiant operates Airbus A320 aircraft. However, Allegiant Air later suspended all flights to St. George Regional Airport.

Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 128,453 boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2022,[7] 153,00 in calendar year 2021,[8] 80,562 in calendar year 2020[9] (during COVID-19 pandemic), 102,297 in calendar year 2019 (during which the airport was closed for part of the year),[10] 123,060 in calendar year 2018,[11] 103,569 in 2017,[11] 103,569[12] in calendar year 2017, 78,680[13] in calendar year 2016, 69,680[14] in calendar year 2015, and 59,321[15] in calendar year 2014.

The St. George Regional Airport has been approved for the FAA Contract Tower Program in late 2022 or early 2023. If the city builds an air traffic control tower in the next 5 years, the FAA will staff it at no cost to the city or airport. The city requested $10 million from the Utah Legislature in 2023 to help with this and other airport projects. This is the first time in the airport's history where the city has requested funds from the state to help with an airport project.[16][17]

2019 closure

[edit]

The airport was closed in May 2019 for reconstruction of its lone runway. Officials found soil issues from expansive clay at the airport only a few years after its opening, and sealed cracks quickly became ubiquitous on the runway and tarmac. The airport was closed through September 2019 as crews excavated as much as 17 feet of earth below the runway.[18] The geotechnical considerations for the updated runway design are noteworthy and include a 5 ft thick compacted clay liner using conditioned clay from site, 12 feet of structural fill, and a bituminous geomembrane waterproofing layer.[19] During the closure, the nearest commercial service airports would be Cedar City Regional Airport, 60 miles northeast, or Harry Reid International Airport near Las Vegas, 129 miles southwest.

Facilities

[edit]

St. George Regional Airport covers 1,204 acres (487 ha); its single runway, 1/19, is 9,300 by 150 feet (2,835 x 46 m).[1] The airport has a 35,000-square-foot (3,300 m2) terminal.[3]

In the 12 months ending August 4, 2020 the airport had 80,105 aircraft operations, average 219 per day: 86% general aviation, 3% air taxi, 8% airline, and 2% military. 195 aircraft were then based at the airport: 150 single-engine, 20 multi-engine, 6 jet, 7 helicopter, 10 gliders and 2 ultralight.[citation needed]

The airport is serviced by two fixed-base operators: Million Air St. George and Sandstone Aviation.[citation needed]

Airlines and destinations

[edit]

The old St. George Municipal Airport was served by Bonanza Air Lines, which in the late 1950s, began flying Douglas DC-3s to Salt Lake City via Cedar City and Provo, and to Phoenix via Prescott.[20] By 1962, Bonanza had replaced its DC-3s with larger Fairchild F-27 turboprops; however, this airline had ceased all service to St George, instead serving Cedar City, Utah, with the F-27, as this aircraft was deemed too large for the old airfield.[21] SkyWest Airlines then started flying to Salt Lake City on June 19, 1972, via Cedar City.[22] SkyWest later introduced Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner propjets followed by Embraer EMB-120 Brasilia propjets to the old airport before moving to the new airport.

In November 2016, American Eagle operated by SkyWest Airlines CRJ 200 regional jets began flying between St. George and Phoenix.[23]

Passenger

[edit]
AirlinesDestinationsRefs
American Eagle Phoenix–Sky Harbor
Seasonal: Dallas/Fort Worth 		[24]
Delta Connection Salt Lake City [25]
United Express Denver, Los Angeles[26] [27]

Statistics

[edit]

Top destinations

[edit]
Busiest domestic routes from SGU
(July 2023 - June 2024)[28]
Rank Airport Passengers Carrier
1 Salt Lake City, Utah 73,190 Delta Connection
2 Phoenix–Sky Harbor, Arizona 31,790 American Eagle
3 Denver, Colorado 25,840 United Express
4 Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas 10,110 American Eagle

Annual Traffic

[edit]
Annual Passenger Traffic at SGU[29]
Year Passengers Year Passengers
2016 157,000 2020 160,000
2017 206,000 2021 302,000
2018 245,000 2022 253,000
2019 203,000 2023 269,000

Accidents and incidents

[edit]
  • On May 26, 2012 at around 1:30 a.m., four people were killed when a Cessna 172 crashed during take-off from St. George Municipal Airport. The airport is not staffed at night and uses an automated system, so the wreckage was not found until more than 4 hours later. A security camera captured the plane taking off. It was later found that the pilot was intoxicated and the aircraft was 160 lbs. overweight.[30][31]
  • On July 17, 2012 a SkyWest Airlines Bombardier CRJ200, Delta Connection aircraft, was stolen by SkyWest employee Brian Hedglin, and substantially damaged at the airport. The terminal and a jetway also were damaged. The plane was not put back in service.[32]

Between the St. George Municipal and Regional Airports there have been a total of 21 accidents or incidents in and around the airport since 1982 (less than one per year for 80K yearly operations).[33]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c FAA Airport Form 5010 for SGU PDF. Federal Aviation Administration. effective 30 June 2011.
  2. ^ "St. George Municipal Airport (IATA: SGU, ICAO: KSGU, FAA: SGU)". Great Circle Mapper. Retrieved 2 July 2011.
  3. ^ a b "About SGU - St. George Municipal Airport". FlySGU.com. Retrieved 12 January 2011.
  4. ^ http://www.united.com, Timetable
  5. ^ Kessler, Mori (July 11, 2015). "City approves airport name change, pursuing expanded service". Archived from the original on July 15, 2015. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
  6. ^ Posted 9:20 am, August 21, 2018, by Mark Green (2018-08-21). "Allegiant to offer nonstop flights from St. George to Phoenix". fox13now.com. Retrieved 2018-11-17.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ "Calendar Year 2022 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  8. ^ "Calendar Year 2021 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  9. ^ "Calendar Year 2020 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  10. ^ "Calendar Year 2019 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Calendar Year 2018 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  12. ^ "Calendar Year 2017 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  13. ^ "Calendar Year 2016 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  14. ^ "Calendar Year 2015 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  15. ^ "Calendar Year 2014 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  16. ^ "St. George leader says it's time to grow city's 'Goldilocks' airport".
  17. ^ https://le.utah.gov/interim/2023/pdf/00000586.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  18. ^ "St. George airport to close for repairs for part of 2019, with FAA picking up most of the tab". September 20, 2018. Retrieved September 25, 2018.
  19. ^ Ken Wysocky (February 2020). "Runway Rebuild at St. George Regional Requires Airport Closure & Massive Excavation". Airport Improvement. Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  20. ^ http://www.timetableimages.com, Jan. 4, 1959 Bonanza timetable
  21. ^ http://www.timetableimages.com, Jan. 16, 1963 Bonanza timetable
  22. ^ http://www.skywest.com, About, History, First Flight
  23. ^ "American adds Phoenix – St. George route from Nov 2016". Routesonline. Retrieved 2018-06-23.
  24. ^ "Flight schedules and notifications". American Airlines. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  25. ^ "Route Map". Delta Air Lines. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
  26. ^ "SkyWest Airlines resumes direct United Express flights between St. George and Los Angeles". Travel and Tour World. June 20, 2024. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  27. ^ "Timetable". United Airlines. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  28. ^ "St George, UT: St George Regional (SGU)". Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), U.S. Department of Transportation. December 2013. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  29. ^ "OST_R - BTS - Transtats". www.transtats.bts.gov.
  30. ^ "Small plane crashes at airport in southern Utah, killing 4". BNO News. 28 May 2012. Archived from the original on 18 January 2013. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  31. ^ "Accident description for N953SP at aviation-safety.net". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  32. ^ "Accident description for N865AS at aviation-safety.net". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  33. ^ "List of Utah plane crashes". PlaneCrashMap.com. Retrieved 2022-08-30.
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