Pensacola International Airport

Pensacola International Airport , formerly Pensacola Gulf Coast Regional Airport and Pensacola Regional Airport (Hagler Field), and temporarily branded Pensacola Intergalactic Airport each February in recognition of the local Pensacon convention, is a public use airport northeast of the central business district of Pensacola, in Escambia County, Florida, United States. It is owned by the City of Pensacola. As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 771,917 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008, 694,786 enplanements in 2009, and 729,748 in 2010. In 2018, the airport served 1.9 million passengers.

In 2024, the airport set an all-time record with 3,030,411 passengers served.

History

In 1935, a passenger terminal opened, and airline service began two years later. Atlantic and Gulf Airlines went out of business a few months later after failing to get an airmail contract. In 1938 National Airlines began flights to Mobile and Jacksonville. From 1940 to 1945, the airport was a U.S. Navy training facility; the Navy built a control tower and added a fourth runway. In 1947 Eastern Air Lines began service out of Pensacola, and in 1952 a modern terminal replaced the original one. The airport was then dedicated to L.C. Hagler, the former mayor of Pensacola. In 1968 Eastern began the first scheduled jet service from Pensacola.

In 1978, after deregulation of the airline industry, several airlines began serving Pensacola, including Continental and Delta. In 1978 a National Airlines Boeing 727 crashed into Escambia Bay while on approach for landing, the first fatal airline accident in the area. In 1979 US Airways, then called USAir, arrived at Pensacola. In 1990 the current terminal was built and AirTran Airways began jet service in 2001. In 2005 United Express began service out of Pensacola. After stopping service to Pensacola in the 1990s, American Airlines (operating as American Eagle) began service again in Pensacola in 2004. Southwest Airlines initiated service to Pensacola in 2013 after purchasing Airtran Airways. Frontier Airlines initiated service at Pensacola in 2018.

Pensacola mayor Ashton Hayward announced on November 9, 2011, that the airport would change its name from Pensacola Gulf Coast Regional Airport to Pensacola International Airport, effective immediately.

Facilities and aircraft

Pensacola International Airport covers an area of 1,211 acres (490 ha) at an elevation of 121 feet (37 m) above mean sea level. It has two runways: 17/35 is 7,004 by 150 feet (2,135 x 46 m) with a concrete surface; 08/26 is 7,000 by 150 feet (2,134 x 46 m) with an asphalt surface.

Runway 17 has an instrument landing system and approach lights, while the Runway 26 approach has a localizer approach. A 1,000 ft. extension to the east end of Runway 08/26 was completed in 2006. The airport hopes to extend Runway 17/35 to about 8,500 ft.

The airport's two war-era diagonal runways were decommissioned in the 1960s.

For the 12-month period ending January 31, 2024, the airport had 157,103 aircraft operations, an average of 430 per day: 58% general aviation, 19% military, 16% commercial and 8% air taxi. At the end of January 2024, there were 172 aircraft based at this airport: 141 single-engine, 10 multi-engine, 18 jet, and 3 helicopter. and Stoa Architects.

In 2022, it was announced that the city of Pensacola was beginning a $387 million concourse and parking expansion that would provide more space to handle the airport's rapid increase in passenger numbers and flights.

Management

The airport is operated as a self-funding department of the government of the City of Pensacola.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

thumb|[[Embraer ERJ family|Embraer ERJ 145LR at Pensacola (2006)]]