Mike Corthell, Editor
Aircraft and airports have evolved and continue to evolve. In the 1950s airplanes began to have a variety of uses for transportation and business. Airplanes were equipped with steerable tail wheels instead of tail skids so they could operate more easily on the ground. As airplanes got larger and heavier it became necessary for airports to have hard surface runways instead of the grass or gravel fields because such fields could not support the weight of heavier airplanes. (A Boeing 747 can weigh more than 800,000 pounds at takeoff.) Airports eventually began to offer more services for airplane operators and their increasing number of passengers. A modern large airport today has thousands of workers, accommodates tens of thousands of passengers, and loads or unloads hundreds of thousands of pounds of baggage and cargo daily.
There are many types of airports that exist today as part of the United States' air transportation system. These airports range from a single grass airstrip in an agricultural or rural area to the large airports serving major cities. These are the basic types of airports:
What separates one from the other depends upon the types of services it provides, the size aircraft it serves, the length of the runways with its complementary terminal facilities, and its proximity to a densely populated area.
Not all airports are located near towns and cities. Driving through agricultural regions, a single narrow strip of grass or pavement along the highway could indicate that there is an aerial operation based there. These are referred to as rural airstrips. There are several private communities in the United States with a small, common airstrip where homes with attached hangars allow owners to taxi from their hangar to a shared runway. An interesting note: in Alaska any public road can be used as a runway, however in the state of New York it is illegal to make an emergency landing on any highway.
Military airstrips or airports are usually restricted to military aircraft usage from flight testing to military training routes. These airports are designed to handle rotorcraft or fixed wing aircraft. Most of the runways of military airports can accommodate heavy, wide-body aircraft and have a runway length of 8,000 to 13,000 feet.
Many small communities have single airstrip airports where private and small business airplanes are based. These small community airports support general aviation flying. Most of these smaller airports do not have operating control towers. Often these regional community airports offer facilities for training student pilots. A few of these smaller airports near remote towns and cities have limited airline service. These services usually consist of small, propeller airplanes or small, regional jets that seat no more than 20 passengers. The airline service from a small community airport can provide service to a major city airport and a regional airport, and also to a regional community airport.
The regional community airports typically are larger than the small community airports, have airport control towers, and have facilities for operation in instrument conditions when visibility is poor. Commuter airlines using slightly larger jets (like 727s) provide service from these airports to other regional community airports, regional airports, and to major city airports.
Regional airports are supported by several communities. Working together these communities can have an airport with instrument facilities, a control tower, and airline service. These airports provide passenger and cargo service on a regular basis and support the larger passenger aircraft.
Airports can be privately owned or owned by counties, cities, or groups of cities. Some airports are owned by counties or small cities with the costs, profits, and rewards being shared by the citizens of the county or city. Fulton County-Brown Field (FTY) near Atlanta is a busy airport with all the services offered at major city airports. It has a control tower and instrument landing facilities. Many of these smaller city airports have two or more runways and facilities for making instrument approaches when the weather causes ceilings and visibilities below authorized minimums.
Airport "size" is judged either by the number of operations (takeoffs and landings) or the number of passengers who fly in or out of the facility. In 2008 for the United States, Hartsfield (ATL) in Atlanta, Chicago-O'Hare International (ORD), and the Los Angeles International (LAX) were the three largest airports as measured by passenger traffic. These major city airports handle most national and international flights and support mainly the much larger airliners such as 737s, 747s and 777s.
Characteristics of these major city airports include separate terminals for national and international flights, two or more long runways capable of handling the larger jet airliners, and fully functioning airport control towers with instrument landing capabilities.
In the United States, the primary means of travel between large cities at least 1,000 miles apart is by air. Airliners transport large numbers of passengers and vast quantities of luggage and freight over great distances in relatively short time frames.
The smaller general aviation aircraft provide passenger and cargo service to the less-populated communities. Overall, airports bring business and industry to every community they support. All airports regardless of their size, provide access to the air transportation network.
Source: NASA
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| Eastern Slope Regional Airport |
Aircraft and airports have evolved and continue to evolve. In the 1950s airplanes began to have a variety of uses for transportation and business. Airplanes were equipped with steerable tail wheels instead of tail skids so they could operate more easily on the ground. As airplanes got larger and heavier it became necessary for airports to have hard surface runways instead of the grass or gravel fields because such fields could not support the weight of heavier airplanes. (A Boeing 747 can weigh more than 800,000 pounds at takeoff.) Airports eventually began to offer more services for airplane operators and their increasing number of passengers. A modern large airport today has thousands of workers, accommodates tens of thousands of passengers, and loads or unloads hundreds of thousands of pounds of baggage and cargo daily.
There are many types of airports that exist today as part of the United States' air transportation system. These airports range from a single grass airstrip in an agricultural or rural area to the large airports serving major cities. These are the basic types of airports:
- Rural airstrip
- Private airport
- Military airports
- Small community airport
- Regional community airport
- Regional airportt
- Major city airport
What separates one from the other depends upon the types of services it provides, the size aircraft it serves, the length of the runways with its complementary terminal facilities, and its proximity to a densely populated area.
Not all airports are located near towns and cities. Driving through agricultural regions, a single narrow strip of grass or pavement along the highway could indicate that there is an aerial operation based there. These are referred to as rural airstrips. There are several private communities in the United States with a small, common airstrip where homes with attached hangars allow owners to taxi from their hangar to a shared runway. An interesting note: in Alaska any public road can be used as a runway, however in the state of New York it is illegal to make an emergency landing on any highway.
Military airstrips or airports are usually restricted to military aircraft usage from flight testing to military training routes. These airports are designed to handle rotorcraft or fixed wing aircraft. Most of the runways of military airports can accommodate heavy, wide-body aircraft and have a runway length of 8,000 to 13,000 feet.
Many small communities have single airstrip airports where private and small business airplanes are based. These small community airports support general aviation flying. Most of these smaller airports do not have operating control towers. Often these regional community airports offer facilities for training student pilots. A few of these smaller airports near remote towns and cities have limited airline service. These services usually consist of small, propeller airplanes or small, regional jets that seat no more than 20 passengers. The airline service from a small community airport can provide service to a major city airport and a regional airport, and also to a regional community airport.
The regional community airports typically are larger than the small community airports, have airport control towers, and have facilities for operation in instrument conditions when visibility is poor. Commuter airlines using slightly larger jets (like 727s) provide service from these airports to other regional community airports, regional airports, and to major city airports.
Regional airports are supported by several communities. Working together these communities can have an airport with instrument facilities, a control tower, and airline service. These airports provide passenger and cargo service on a regular basis and support the larger passenger aircraft.
Airports can be privately owned or owned by counties, cities, or groups of cities. Some airports are owned by counties or small cities with the costs, profits, and rewards being shared by the citizens of the county or city. Fulton County-Brown Field (FTY) near Atlanta is a busy airport with all the services offered at major city airports. It has a control tower and instrument landing facilities. Many of these smaller city airports have two or more runways and facilities for making instrument approaches when the weather causes ceilings and visibilities below authorized minimums.
Airport "size" is judged either by the number of operations (takeoffs and landings) or the number of passengers who fly in or out of the facility. In 2008 for the United States, Hartsfield (ATL) in Atlanta, Chicago-O'Hare International (ORD), and the Los Angeles International (LAX) were the three largest airports as measured by passenger traffic. These major city airports handle most national and international flights and support mainly the much larger airliners such as 737s, 747s and 777s.
Characteristics of these major city airports include separate terminals for national and international flights, two or more long runways capable of handling the larger jet airliners, and fully functioning airport control towers with instrument landing capabilities.
In the United States, the primary means of travel between large cities at least 1,000 miles apart is by air. Airliners transport large numbers of passengers and vast quantities of luggage and freight over great distances in relatively short time frames.
The smaller general aviation aircraft provide passenger and cargo service to the less-populated communities. Overall, airports bring business and industry to every community they support. All airports regardless of their size, provide access to the air transportation network.
Source: NASA
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