Air Travel on Here and Now

Airports and Aviation Fast Facts

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport | Chandler Municipal Airport | Glendale Municipal Airport | Deer Valley Airport | Goodyear Airport | Mesa Falcon Field Airport Location | Scottsdale Airport and Commerce Airpark | Williams Gateway

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport

• Sky Harbor International Airport is the fifth busiest airport in the world based on the number of take offs and landings.
• In 2003, 37.4 million people flew in and out of Sky Harbor.
• A study of the economic impact of Sky Harbor shows a direct economic impact of $6.5 billion.
• In 2003, 31,000 people worked at Sky Harbor with a payroll of $1.5 billion.
• More than 1,300 aircraft land and take off daily from Sky Harbor.
• More than 102,000 people arrive and depart daily.
• 788 tons of air cargo are shipped by air carriers each day.
• The economic impact of Sky Harbor is $72 million a day.

Chandler Municipal Airport

• Chandler Airpark has two lighted parallel runways, 4,840 feet long and 4,401 feet long, a heliport, and a new 7,000 square foot terminal.
• The airport feature 116 hangers, 12 T-shades and 182 tie-downs.
• A business park is in development.

Glendale Municipal Airport

• 380 based aircraft at Glendale Municipal Airport in 2005.
• 118,000 total aircraft operations at Glendale Municipal Airport in 2004.
• More than $7.0 million spent in federal, state and local capital improvements at Glendale Municipal Airport in the past three years.
• The total economic impact of Glendale Municipal Airport is $19.9 million per year.
• Glendale Municipal Airport is extending its 5,350' runway and will add new taxiways and new corporate hangers.
• A newly paved, 18-acre parcel at the airport's northwest corner will soon accommodate up to 170 new hangars, nearly tripling the number currently available.
• A new business park is being planned for the east side of the landing field.

Deer Valley Airport

• Deer Valley Municipal Airport was built in 1960 as a private airfield with a single runway.
• In 1971, the City of Phoenix purchased the 482 acre site.
• Over the years, the city has invested $17 million, building a new control tower, terminal and runways, making the airport a modern full-service facility.
• Deer Valley has two fixed-based operators and is home to more than 1,277 aircraft. With over 378,000 takeoffs and landings in 2005, it is the 22nd busiest of all U.S. airports, and the 2nd busiest General Aviation Airport in the nation.
• The airport offers a complete range of services including fuel, avionics repair, maintenance, parts, flight training, new and used aircraft sales, aircraft rentals, a pilot shop and a restaurant.
• The airport offers a complete range of services including fuel, avionics repair, maintenance, parts, flight training, new and used aircraft sales, aircraft rentals, a pilot shop and a restaurant.

Goodyear Airport

• Phoenix Goodyear Airport before it became a part of the City of Phoenix airport system was the Goodyear Municipal Airport which had a long history of military service.
• The Goodyear Aerospace Corporation offered land to the U.S. Defense Plant Corporation in 1941.
• The U.S. Navy used the land to build aircraft flight decks and established a U.S. Naval Air Facility which would test fly and deliver aircraft.
• This necessitated the construction of a landing field, hangar and runway.
• After the war ended, the naval facility remained operational to preserve and store aircraft from 1945 to 1965.
• At one point, more than 5,000 aircraft were in storage.
• In 1968, the City of Phoenix purchased the property to relieve the volume of general aviation aircraft using Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport.
• A master plan was crafted for the airport in 1986 that called for a new terminal building, hangars and support facilities.
• To date, Goodyear Airport's improvements have included a new terminal, T-hangars, ramp space, tie downs and an airport maintenance facility.

Mesa Falcon Field Airport Location

• Falcon Field Airport, operated by the City of Mesa, is one of the ten largest airports in the United States in terms of based aircraft.
• The economic impact generated from the airport is more than two million dollars a day.
• The 70 plus businesses at the airport employ more than 4,000 people.
• The largest tenant located at the airport is The Boeing Company.
• Boeing has a $40 million assembly plant and testing facility they build the world's most advanced combat helicopter, the AH-64D Apache Longbow.
• The world's quietest helicopters utilizing the patented NOTAR system are the airport.
• The airport dates back to the early stages of World War II, when the United States agreed to help train combat pilots for the British Royal Air Force.

Scottsdale Airport and Commerce Airpark

• In 2004, there were more than 450 aircraft based at Scottsdale Airport, from single engine recreational planes to numerous corporate jets.
• Approximately 200,000 takeoffs and landings occurred, making Scottsdale one of the busiest single-runway airports in the country, and the busiest corporate jet facility in the state.
• In 2005, the Scottsdale airpark area was headquarters to more than 30 national/regional corporations and home to nearly 2,200 small and medium sized businesses with more than 42,000 jobs.
• The regional economic contributions of aviation activities generated at Scottsdale Airport is approximately $180 million per year.
• Scottsdale Airport began in June 22, 1942, as Thunderbird Field II, a basic training facility for World War II Army Air Corps pilots.
• Since its inception, Thunderbird II graduated more than 5,500 students, a total three times greater than the entire total contemplated by the Air Forces' original expansion program.

Williams Gateway

• The airport's three expansive runways (10,401 feet; 10,201 feet; and 9,301 feet) allow for excellent access for every type of aircraft operation from a single-engine Cessna to the Boeing 747-400.
• Williams Gateway Airport (WGA) is developing as an international aerospace center with aircraft manufacturing, maintenance, modification, testing and pilot training.
• WGA now has more than 1,000 jobs and is on its way to becoming a major employment hub for high paying jobs in the East Valley.
• The airport's current annual economic impact on the community is more than $251 million and continues to grow exponentially as development progresses.
• The airport originally served as the Advanced Flying School for the Army Air Corp, breaking ground in Southeast Mesa on July 16, 1941.
• In February 1942, the growing military base's name was changed to Williams Field to honor Charles Linton Williams, an Arizona-born pilot. Six years later the name was changed to Williams Air Force Base.
• Williams AFB provided training for a variety of fighter and bomber aircraft including the AT-9, AT-17, P-38, AT-6, B-17, B-24, P-51, P-47, F-86, F-100, T-37 and T-38.
• Over a span of 52 years, more than 26,500 men and women earned their wings at Williams.
• Williams AFB was closed in 1993 resulting in a loss of more than 3,800 jobs and $300 million in annual economic activity.
• Williams Gateway Airport opened in 1994.
• More than 20 aviation companies currently operate on the facility, with 1,000 acres still available for aviation company locations.