Brazoria County Airport
Encyclopedia
Texas Gulf Coast Regional Airport , previously known as Brazoria County Airport, is a county-owned public-use airport
located four miles (6 km) southwest of the central business district
of Angleton
and north of Lake Jackson
, both cities in Brazoria County
, Texas
, United States
.
Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier
for the FAA
and IATA
, Brazoria County Airport is assigned LBX by the FAA and LJN by the IATA (which assigned LBX to Lubang
in the Philippines
).
On March 24, 2010, the Brazoria County Commissioners' Court voted to change the name of the airport to Texas Gulf Coast Regional Airport, effective October 1, 2010.
paved runway
(17/35) measuring 7,000 x 100 ft (2,134 x 30 m). For the 12-month period ending July 31, 2006, the airport had 60,000 aircraft operations, an average of 164 per day: 97% general aviation
, 3% air taxi
and 1% military. There are 92 aircraft based at this airport: 77% single-engine, 8% multi-engine, 7% jet and 9% helicopter
.
The airport's runway was closed in December 2009 for a major reconstruction project, in which the runway's former asphalt surface was replaced with concrete. During the runway closure, aircraft temporarily used the airport's main taxiway for takeoffs and landings. Larger aircraft, such as the Aerodynamics (ADI) Dynajet Airbus ACJ operated as a shuttle service for Dow Chemical, were diverted to William P. Hobby Airport
in Houston during the runway closure. The runway reconstruction project was completed in July 2010, and the airport is fully operational once again.
The airport had the Windsock Restaurant. It closed in 2011.
, Texas and the Clear Lake City STOL
port http://www.airfields-freeman.com/TX/Airfields_TX_Houston_SE.htm#clearlake served in between the regular schedules from Brazoria County to Houston Intercontinental Airport (IAH) as this airport was called prior to airline deregulation
. In the 1980's the airport was moved from the older shorter runway facilities close to Lake Jackson's town center to an area just north of the city limits of Lake Jackson. It is to this original former airport, in which the largest commercial airliner to visit the area a National Airlines (NA)
Boeing 727
http://policenewsonline.com/html/gcpnfeb07.pdf was hijacked in the early years of the 1970's.
After the airport was moved to its present location, Metro Airlines
occasionally and briefly used larger flight attendant
staffed Shorts 330
regional airliner
s later to be supplanted by the much smaller Twin Otters on "commuter" routes linking "Brazosport" to IAH. Other sorts of regional aircraft seen occasionally at LBX in scheduled airline serve were Royale Airlines
Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante
s and Beechcraft Model 99
s. Royale functioned as a feeder airline
for Continental Airlines
to IAH prior to its bankruptcy and the difficulties which small communities suffered affected by the post deregulation airline industry.
Other airline
s which more recently are seen regularly at the Texas Gulf Coast Regional Airport were Comair
s CRJ Regional jet
s and Aerodynamics Inc. (ADI), Fokker F28
s.http://google.com/search?q=cache:GXgaToirA3UJ:https://www.suncoastaviation.com/adi/graphics/ADI%2520in%2520AIN.pdf+ADI+Dow+Chemical&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us&ie=UTF-8 Both of these airlines had contracts doing scheduled corporate charters shuttling employees to Dow Chemicals Midland Michigan facilities.
Currently, Dow Chemical uses the services of Aerodynamics (ADI)- Dynajet and their European
built Airbus 319 Airbus equipment for the corporate shuttle to Michigan.
At present, no regularly scheduled commercial passenger service is offered from this underused airfield.
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
located four miles (6 km) southwest of the central business district
Central business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...
of Angleton
Angleton, Texas
Angleton is a city in and the county seat of Brazoria County, Texas, United States, within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. Angleton lies at the intersection of State Highway 288, State Highway 35, and the Union Pacific Railroad. The population was 18,130 at the 2000 census...
and north of Lake Jackson
Lake Jackson, Texas
Lake Jackson is a city in Brazoria County, Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. As of a 2006 U.S. Census Bureau estimate, the city population was 27,614....
, both cities in Brazoria County
Brazoria County, Texas
Brazoria County[p] is a county in the U.S. state of Texas, located on the Gulf Coast within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. Regionally, parts of the county are within the extreme southern-most fringe of the regions locally known as Southeast Texas. Brazoria County is among a...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier
Location identifier
A location identifier is a symbolic representation for the name and the location of an airport, navigation aid, or weather station, and is used for manned air traffic control facilities in air traffic control, telecommunications, computer programming, weather reports, and related services.-ICAO...
for the FAA
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
and IATA
International Air Transport Association
The International Air Transport Association is an international industry trade group of airlines headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where the International Civil Aviation Organization is also headquartered. The executive offices are at the Geneva Airport in SwitzerlandIATA's mission is to...
, Brazoria County Airport is assigned LBX by the FAA and LJN by the IATA (which assigned LBX to Lubang
Lubang
Lubang may refer to:* Lubang Island, an island in the Philippines.* Lubang, Occidental Mindoro, a municipality in the Philippines....
in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
).
On March 24, 2010, the Brazoria County Commissioners' Court voted to change the name of the airport to Texas Gulf Coast Regional Airport, effective October 1, 2010.
Facilities and aircraft
Texas Gulf Coast Regional Airport covers an area of 674 acres (272.8 ha) which contains one concreteConcrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
paved runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
(17/35) measuring 7,000 x 100 ft (2,134 x 30 m). For the 12-month period ending July 31, 2006, the airport had 60,000 aircraft operations, an average of 164 per day: 97% general aviation
General aviation
General aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...
, 3% air taxi
Air taxi
An air taxi is an air charter passenger or cargo aircraft which operates on an on-demand basis.-Regulation:In the United States, air taxi and air charter operations are governed by Part 135 of the Federal Aviation Regulations , unlike the larger scheduled air carriers which are governed by more...
and 1% military. There are 92 aircraft based at this airport: 77% single-engine, 8% multi-engine, 7% jet and 9% helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
.
The airport's runway was closed in December 2009 for a major reconstruction project, in which the runway's former asphalt surface was replaced with concrete. During the runway closure, aircraft temporarily used the airport's main taxiway for takeoffs and landings. Larger aircraft, such as the Aerodynamics (ADI) Dynajet Airbus ACJ operated as a shuttle service for Dow Chemical, were diverted to William P. Hobby Airport
William P. Hobby Airport
William P. Hobby Airport is a public airport in Houston, Texas, located from Downtown Houston. The airport covers and has four runways. Hobby Airport is Houston's oldest commercial airport and was the city's primary air terminal until the opening of Houston Intercontinental Airport in 1969...
in Houston during the runway closure. The runway reconstruction project was completed in July 2010, and the airport is fully operational once again.
The airport had the Windsock Restaurant. It closed in 2011.
Airline History
Texas Gulf Coast Regional Airport in the late 1970's and early 80's once was linked to the national airway grid with regularly scheduled airline service. Among some of the more unusual routes were VictoriaVictoria Regional Airport
Victoria Regional Airport , formerly Foster Air Force Base, is a public airport located five miles northeast of the central business district of Victoria, in Victoria County, Texas, USA. The airport covers and has four runways and one helipad. It is mostly used for general aviation, but is also...
, Texas and the Clear Lake City STOL
STOL
STOL is an acronym for short take-off and landing, a term used to describe aircraft with very short runway requirements.-Definitions:There is no one accepted definition of STOL and many different definitions have been used by different authorities and nations at various times and for a myriad of...
port http://www.airfields-freeman.com/TX/Airfields_TX_Houston_SE.htm#clearlake served in between the regular schedules from Brazoria County to Houston Intercontinental Airport (IAH) as this airport was called prior to airline deregulation
Airline deregulation
Airline deregulation is the process of removing entry and price restrictions on airlines affecting, in particular, the carriers permitted to serve specific routes. In the United States, the term usually applies to the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978...
. In the 1980's the airport was moved from the older shorter runway facilities close to Lake Jackson's town center to an area just north of the city limits of Lake Jackson. It is to this original former airport, in which the largest commercial airliner to visit the area a National Airlines (NA)
National Airlines (NA)
National Airlines was an airline founded in 1934 and was headquartered on the grounds of Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States near Miami.- History :...
Boeing 727
Boeing 727
The Boeing 727 is a mid-size, narrow-body, three-engine, T-tailed commercial jet airliner, manufactured by Boeing. The Boeing 727 first flew in 1963, and for over a decade more were built per year than any other jet airliner. When production ended in 1984 a total of 1,832 aircraft had been produced...
http://policenewsonline.com/html/gcpnfeb07.pdf was hijacked in the early years of the 1970's.
After the airport was moved to its present location, Metro Airlines
Metro Airlines
Metro Airlines, originally Houston Metro Airlines, was a commuter airline that was originally headquartered in Houston, Texas, United States, while at a later time it was headquartered on the grounds of Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and in Grapevine, Texas...
occasionally and briefly used larger flight attendant
Flight attendant
Flight attendants or cabin crew are members of an aircrew employed by airlines primarily to ensure the safety and comfort of passengers aboard commercial flights, on select business jet aircraft, and on some military aircraft.-History:The role of a flight attendant derives from that of similar...
staffed Shorts 330
Shorts 330
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Barnes C.H. and James Derek N. Shorts Aircraft since 1900. London: Putnam, 1989. ISBN 0-85177-819-4.* Donald, David, ed. The Encyclopedia of Civil Aircraft. London: Aurum, 1999. ISBN 1-85410-642-2....
regional airliner
Regional airliner
A regional airliner or a feederliner is a small airliner designed to fly up to 100 passengers on short-haul flights, usually feeding larger carriers' hubs from small markets. This class of airliners are typically flown by the regional airlines that are either contracted by or subsidiaries of the...
s later to be supplanted by the much smaller Twin Otters on "commuter" routes linking "Brazosport" to IAH. Other sorts of regional aircraft seen occasionally at LBX in scheduled airline serve were Royale Airlines
Royale Airlines
Royale Airlines was a regional / commuter airline with headquarters on the grounds of Shreveport Regional Airport in Shreveport, Louisiana.Royale that operated in Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, Tennessee and Florida from the 1960s to the late 1980s. It flew mainly turboprop aircraft such as the...
Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante
Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante
The Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante is a general purpose 15-21 passenger twin-turboprop light transport aircraft suitable for military and civil duties...
s and Beechcraft Model 99
Beechcraft Model 99
|-See also:-External links:*...
s. Royale functioned as a feeder airline
Regional airline
Regional airlines are airlines that operate regional aircraft to provide passenger air service to communities without sufficient demand to attract mainline service...
for Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines was a major American airline now merged with United Airlines. On May 3, 2010, Continental Airlines, Inc. and UAL, Inc. announced a merger via a stock swap, and on October 1, 2010, the merger closed and UAL changed its name to United Continental Holdings, Inc...
to IAH prior to its bankruptcy and the difficulties which small communities suffered affected by the post deregulation airline industry.
Other airline
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
s which more recently are seen regularly at the Texas Gulf Coast Regional Airport were Comair
Comair
Comair is a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta Air Lines headquartered on the grounds of Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport in unincorporated Boone County, Kentucky, United States, west of Erlanger, and south of Cincinnati, Ohio...
s CRJ Regional jet
Regional jet
A Regional jet , is a class of short to medium-range turbofan powered airliners.-History:The term "Regional jet" describes a range of short to medium-haul turbofan powered aircraft, whose use throughout the world expanded after the advent of Airline Deregulation in the United States in...
s and Aerodynamics Inc. (ADI), Fokker F28
Fokker F28
The Fokker F28 Fellowship is a short range jet airliner designed and built by defunct Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker.-Design and development:...
s.http://google.com/search?q=cache:GXgaToirA3UJ:https://www.suncoastaviation.com/adi/graphics/ADI%2520in%2520AIN.pdf+ADI+Dow+Chemical&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us&ie=UTF-8 Both of these airlines had contracts doing scheduled corporate charters shuttling employees to Dow Chemicals Midland Michigan facilities.
Currently, Dow Chemical uses the services of Aerodynamics (ADI)- Dynajet and their European
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
built Airbus 319 Airbus equipment for the corporate shuttle to Michigan.
At present, no regularly scheduled commercial passenger service is offered from this underused airfield.