Punta Gorda Airport (Florida)

Punta Gorda Airport
(Formerly Charlotte County Airport)

IATA: PGD – ICAO: KPGD – FAA LID: PGD
Summary
Airport type Public
Owner Charlotte County Airport Authority
Serves Punta Gorda, Florida
Focus city for Allegiant Air
Elevation AMSL 26 ft / 8 m
Coordinates 26°55′08″N 081°59′27″W / 26.91889°N 81.99083°W / 26.91889; -81.99083Coordinates: 26°55′08″N 081°59′27″W / 26.91889°N 81.99083°W / 26.91889; -81.99083
Website www.FlyPGD.com
Map
PGD

Location of Airport in Florida

Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
4/22 7,193 2,192 Asphalt
15/33 5,688 1,734 Asphalt
9/27 2,636 803 Asphalt
Statistics (2012)
Aircraft Operations 74,854
Based Aircraft 291
Passengers 149,141
Sources: FAA,[1] BTS,[2] Airport Website[3]

Punta Gorda Airport[1][3] (IATA: PGD[4], ICAO: KPGD, FAA LID: PGD) is a public airport three miles southeast of Punta Gorda, in Charlotte County, Florida.[1] It is owned by the Charlotte County Airport Authority[1] and was formerly called Charlotte County Airport.

The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a primary commercial service airport since it has over 10,000 passenger boardings (enplanements) per year.[5] Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 147,698 enplanements in calendar year 2011, an increase from 87,041 in 2010.[6]

The airport has mainly been used by single engine and small jet aircraft, but has recently seen more scheduled airline service. The airport is home to the Florida International Air Show,[7] an annual event which has featured various military demonstration teams, such as the United States Navy's Flight Demonstration Squadron, the "Blue Angels"; the "U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds"; and the United States Army's "Sky Soldiers" (173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team) Cobra helicopter team.

History

World War II

In 1941, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built an airfield on the current airport property as a combat pilot training base for the U.S. Army Air Forces' (USAAF) Third Air Force, naming the facility Punta Gorda Army Airfield. By 1944, the base reached its peak in housing 1,000 personnel, including two squadrons of student pilots.

The base initially had forty Curtis P-40 Warhawks assigned, later transitioning to the North American P-51 Mustang. Pursuit (i.e., "fighter") aircraft training in the P-40 and P-51 represented advanced phase training for Army Air Forces fighter pilots prior to their being deployed with USAAF operational units in Europe and the Pacific. Punta Gorda Army Airfield was a subordinate command of 3rd Air Force, 3rd Fighter Command at Drew Field (now Tampa International Airport), and also had C-45 Expeditor and C-47 Skytrain transports assigned for support.

The 27th Service Group, an all-black unit, was moved from MacDill Field in Tampa to provide training for support services to the air combat units.

All base officers and some senior non-commissioned officers lived in Punta Gorda, while all student officers and most enlisted men lived in tent structures on the base. Semi-permanent buildings included an operations headquarters, classrooms, supply building, fire station, dispensary, chapel and the control tower. The base had nose dock hangars, where just the nose of the aircraft was under shelter for repairs.

Following the war, the U.S. Government issued a Deed of Release transferring all of the fixtures and improvements situated on the property to Charlotte County.

Airline service

The airport saw no large airlines after the early 1980s in the aftermath of the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978. Airline flights resumed in 2007 when both Skybus Airlines and DayJet began flights at the airport. It didn't last: Skybus ceased operations on April 5, 2008 and DayJet on September 19, 2008.

Airline service resumed on November 22, 2008 when low-cost carrier Direct Air began twice weekly service to 10 cities in the eastern U.S. On December 2, 2008 low-cost airline Allegiant Air also announced it would open a new focus city at PGD and began McDonnell Douglas MD-80 flights to Greenville, South Carolina and Knoxville, Tennessee on March 5, 2009. A third airline, Vision Airlines also commenced weekly flights to Northwest Florida Regional Airport, collocated with Eglin Air Force Base (VPS) in Fort Walton Beach, on March 25, 2011. Vision then offered through ticketing for flights from Punta Gorda to Atlanta, Savannah, and Asheville via connections at the airline's Destin/Fort Walton Beach hub. Vision no longer has a hub at Destin/Fort Walton Beach.

Vision Airlines and Direct Air ended all service to PGD in 2012. Shortly after the collapse of Direct Air, Allegiant grew their PGD presence from three to seven cities and started basing aircraft full-time at the airport. Allegiant continues to grow at PGD; by the end of 2015, Allegiant served 29 destinations from PGD.

Facilities

Punta Gorda Airport covers 1,934 acres (783 ha) at an elevation of 26 feet (8 m). It has three asphalt runways: 4/22 is 7,193 by 150 feet (2,192 x 46 m), 15/33 is 5,688 by 150 feet (1,734 x 46 m), and 9/27 is 2,636 by 60 feet (803 x 18 m).[1]

In the year ending December 30, 2012 the airport had 74,854 aircraft operations, average 205 per day: 96% general aviation, 3% air taxi, 1% airline, and <1% military. 291 aircraft were then based at the airport: 81% single-engine, 10% multi-engine, 4% jet, 2% helicopter, and 2% ultralight.[1]

Airline and destinations

Allegiant Air, operating McDonnell Douglas MD-80s, schedules flights to 12 states in the eastern and midwestern U.S., many served via smaller airports much like PGD. In 2010 the average fare was $44.87 for a one way domestic fare. A recent one-way trip from Punta Gorda to Des Moines was priced at about $110 giving people in Florida an option to travel almost anywhere in the U.S. for a low fare. In 2007 the airport built a new terminal for the growing number of passengers. It was named the Bailey Terminal for the seven Bailey brothers who were from Punta Gorda, and served in WWII and the Korean War. The terminal will soon be expanded.

The number of airline passengers using the airport has grown significantly in the last few years:[8]
2010 - 182,000
2011 - 292,000
2012 - 219,000
2013 - 334,000
2014 - 628,000
2015 - 836,000

Passenger

AirlinesDestinations
Allegiant Air Akron/Canton, Allentown, Asheville, Belleville/St. Louis (begins February 18, 2016),[9] Cedar Rapids, Chicago/Rockford, Cincinnati, Columbus-Rickenbacker, Des Moines, Fort Wayne, Grand Rapids, Greenville/Spartanburg, Harrisburg (begins February 18, 2016),[10] Huntington (WV), Indianapolis, Kansas City, Knoxville, Lexington, Moline/Quad Cities, Niagara Falls, Peoria, Pittsburgh, Plattsburgh, Portsmouth (NH), Raleigh/Durham, South Bend, Springfield (IL), Springfield/Branson, Toledo, Youngstown/Warren
Raven Air Key West [11]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 FAA Airport Master Record for PGD (Form 5010 PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Effective November 15, 2012.
  2. ↑ http://www.transtats.bts.gov/Data_Elements.aspx?Data=1, PGD Passenger Origin & Destination Numbers.
  3. 1 2 "Punta Gorda Airport". Charlotte County Airport Authority. Retrieved January 5, 2013.
  4. ↑ "IATA Airport Code Search (PGD: Punta Gorda / Charlotte County)". International Air Transport Association. Retrieved January 5, 2013.
  5. ↑ "2011–2015 NPIAS Report, Appendix A" (PDF, 2.03 MB). faa.gov. Federal Aviation Administration. October 4, 2010.
  6. ↑ "Enplanements for CY 2011" (PDF, 1.7 MB). faa.gov. Federal Aviation Administration. October 9, 2012.
  7. ↑ Florida International Air Show
  8. ↑ http://www.flypgd.com/airport-statistics/
  9. ↑ http://ir.allegiantair.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=197578&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=2113862
  10. ↑ http://ir.allegiantair.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=197578&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=2113862
  11. ↑ http://www.winknews.com/2015/11/30/raven-air-to-offer-flights-from-punta-gorda-to-key-west/

External links


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