Northern Maine Regional Airport at Presque Isle
Encyclopedia
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 one nautical mile
Nautical mile
The nautical mile is a unit of length that is about one minute of arc of latitude along any meridian, but is approximately one minute of arc of longitude only at the equator...
(2 km) northwest 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 Presque Isle
Presque Isle, Maine
Presque Isle is the commercial center and largest city in the sparsely populated Aroostook County, Maine, United States. The population was 9,692 at the 2010 census...
, a city in Aroostook County
Aroostook County, Maine
Aroostook County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maine. In 2010, its population was 71,870. In land area, it is the largest county in the state and the largest U.S. county east of the Mississippi River. Its seat is Houlton...
, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It serves the residents of Presque Isle, Maine, and a vast area of northern Maine and northwestern New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
with commercial and charter aviation services. Airline service is subsidized by the Essential Air Service
Essential Air Service
Essential Air Service is a U.S. government program enacted to guarantee that small communities in the United States, which, prior to deregulation, were served by certificated airlines, maintained commercial service. Its aim is to maintain a minimal level of scheduled air service to these...
program with daily service to Logan International Airport
Logan International Airport
General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport is located in the East Boston neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts . It covers , has six runways, and employs an estimated 16,000 people. It is the 19th busiest airport in the United States.Boston serves as a focus city for JetBlue Airways...
in Boston.
The airport is home to the second longest commercial runway in Maine (second only to Bangor International Airport
Bangor International Airport
Bangor International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport located west of the city of Bangor, in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. It is owned and operated by the City of Bangor and was formerly a military installation known as Dow Air Force Base. The airport possesses a single...
), and third longest overall (after the Loring Commerce Centre, formerly Loring Air Force Base
Loring Air Force Base
Loring Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base that was under the operational control of the Strategic Air Command for most of its existence. In 1992, it was transferred to the newly-established Air Combat Command, and it was finally closed as an active Air Force installation in...
) and is often advertised as the "Gateway to Northern Maine."
The airport was once hub to Aroostook Airways
Aroostook Airways
Aroostook Airways was an airline based in Presque Isle, Maine, USA, in the 1970s. It offered commuter airline service throughout Maine, Boston, and Hartford's Bradley International Airport...
, a commuter airline which operated in the 1970s, with service to several destinations throughout New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
.
World War Two
During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the federal government appropriated the airport, establishing an air base for planes bound to and from Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. Lane Construction of Hampden, Maine, was one of the contractors who worked on upgrading the airport for the military. Almost overnight, Presque Isle Army Airfield became a vital air transport installation and the city found itself a busy war center. During the Second World War, Clark Gable
Clark Gable
William Clark Gable , known as Clark Gable, was an American film actor most famous for his role as Rhett Butler in the 1939 Civil War epic film Gone with the Wind, in which he starred with Vivien Leigh...
was briefly stationed at Presque Isle before being sent to England. Operations during this period were described by Ernest K. Gann
Ernest K. Gann
Ernest Kellogg Gann was an American aviator, author, filmmaker, sailor, fisherman and conservationist.-Early life:...
, based upon his personal experiences in the Air Transport Command
Air Transport Command
Air Transport Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its mission was to meet the urgent demand for the speedy reinforcement of the United States' military bases worldwide during World War II, using an air supply system to supplement surface transport...
, in his book, Fate Is The Hunter
Fate Is the Hunter
Fate Is the Hunter , ISBN 0-671-63603-0, was a 1961 bestseller by aviation author Ernest K. Gann. Autobiographical, though reading at times like an adventure novel, it describes his years working as a pilot at American Airlines starting in DC-2s and DC-3s when civilian air transport was in its...
.
Post war
When the United States Air ForceUnited States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
closed Presque Isle Air Force Base
Presque Isle Air Force Base
Presque Isle Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base, located in the city of Presque Isle, Maine.-History:Presque Isle Air Force Base was originally built in 1930 by the Civilian Conservation Corps as Presque Isle Airport, a commercial airport located west of the "business center."...
in 1961, the former Air Force Base was redeveloped. Presque Isle is home the University of Maine
University of Maine
The University of Maine is a public research university located in Orono, Maine, United States. The university was established in 1865 as a land grant college and is referred to as the flagship university of the University of Maine System...
at Presque Isle, as well as the Northern Maine Community College
Northern Maine Community College
Northern Maine Community College is a community college in Presque Isle, Maine and one of the seven colleges in the Maine Community College System. The campus was founded in 1961 on the grounds of the former Presque Isle Air Force Base.-Academics:...
. Scheduled commercial air service is available through Northern Maine Regional Airport in Presque Isle. General aviation services are available through both Northern Maine Regional Airport and Caribou Municipal Airport
Caribou Municipal Airport
Caribou Municipal Airport is a general aviation airport located 1 mile northwest of the city of Caribou in Aroostook County, Maine, USA.- Facilities :Caribou Municipal Airport covers and has two runways:...
.
In addition, the Skyway Industrial Park sits adjacent to Northern Maine Regional Airport which offers commercial airline as well as general aviation services to the entire region. FedEx
FedEx
FedEx Corporation , originally known as FDX Corporation, is a logistics services company, based in the United States with headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee...
and United Parcel Service
United Parcel Service
United Parcel Service, Inc. , typically referred to by the acronym UPS, is a package delivery company. Headquartered in Sandy Springs, Georgia, United States, UPS delivers more than 15 million packages a day to 6.1 million customers in more than 220 countries and territories around the...
augment park accessibility by air to and from major markets.
Skyway Industrial Park, owned by the city of Presque Isle and administered by the Presque Isle Industrial Council, has been attractive to a variety of new businesses. To date, over 40 companies have located on the park. The park consists of 440 acres (1.8 km²), of which 175 is prime industrial land served by all utilities, streets, subdivided and available for further development. Located adjacent to the airport and within 1.5 miles (2.4 km) of downtown, the park has become a dominant feature in the local and regional economy.
Facilities and aircraft
Northern Maine Regional Airport at Presque Isle covers an area of 1489 acres (602.6 ha) at an elevationElevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
of 534 feet (163 m) above mean sea level. It has two asphalt
Asphalt
Asphalt or , also known as bitumen, is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits, it is a substance classed as a pitch...
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...
s: 1/19 measuring 7,439 by 150 feet (2,267 by 46 m) and 10/28 measuring 5,994 by 150 feet (1,827 by 46 m).
For the 12-month period ending July 31, 2007, the airport had 4,684 aircraft operations, an average of 12 per day: 49% 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...
, 42% scheduled commercial
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...
, 7% 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 2% military
Military aviation
Military aviation is the use of aircraft and other flying machines for the purposes of conducting or enabling warfare, including national airlift capacity to provide logistical supply to forces stationed in a theater or along a front. Air power includes the national means of conducting such...
. At that time there were 22 aircraft based at this airport: 77% single-engine
Aircraft engine
An aircraft engine is the component of the propulsion system for an aircraft that generates mechanical power. Aircraft engines are almost always either lightweight piston engines or gas turbines...
and 23% multi-engine.
Aircraft servicing Presque Isle include: Saab 340
Saab 340
The Saab 340 is a discontinued Swedish two-engine turboprop aircraft designed and initially produced by a partnership between Saab and Fairchild Aircraft in a 65:35 ratio...
operated by US Airways Express; Cessna 208 Caravan
Cessna 208
The Cessna 208 Caravan is a single turboprop engine, fixed-gear short-haul regional airliner and utility aircraft built in the United States by Cessna. The airplane typically seats nine passengers, with a single person crew, although with a FAR Part 23 waiver, it can seat up to fourteen passengers...
and Beechcraft C99 operated by Wiggins Airways; and Embraer 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...
operated by AirNow
AirNow
AirNow is an American cargo airline based in Bennington, Vermont. It operates scheduled and charter cargo services throughout the northeast. Its main base is William H. Morse State Airport in Bennington. -Fleet:...
.