Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
Encyclopedia
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport
located 3 miles (4.8 km) southeast of the central business district
of the city of Phoenix, in Maricopa County
, Arizona
, United States
. It is Arizona's largest and busiest airport, and the largest commercial airport in the American Southwest
.
In 2010, the airport served 38,554,530 passengers, making it the ninth busiest in the United States
in terms of passengers and one of the top 15 busiest airports in the world
with a 90 million dollar daily economic impact. On a daily basis the airport handles about 1,252 aircraft that arrive and depart, along with 103,630 passengers daily, and more than 675 tons of cargo handled. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
records show the airport had 18,853,719 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year
2009 and 19,225,050 enplanements in 2010. As of July 2011 there were 12,006,447 enplanements.
The airport is the primary regional hub and gateway for Mexican and Hawaiian departures for Tempe
-based US Airways
and is the third-largest focus city for Southwest Airlines
. US Airways and Southwest are the airport's two largest carriers.
stock market crash. Acme Investment Company then owned the airport until 1935. During this time, American Airlines
began the first scheduled passenger and air mail service to the airport in 1930. The city of Phoenix purchased the airport from Acme for $100,000 in 1935, and TWA
began service to San Francisco in 1938.
After the war the airport began work on a new passenger terminal, as well as a new parallel runway and diagonal cross runway. Terminal 1 (originally called the "West Terminal") which also housed the airport's first control tower
, opened in 1952. It was torn down in 1990 and replaced by a cell phone waiting lot.
The April 1957 OAG shows 42 scheduled airline departures a day: 16 American, 11 TWA, 10 Bonanza and 5 Frontier.
The airport's master plan was redesigned in 1959 to eliminate the cross runway to allow more space for new terminals. American and TWA began jet service to Phoenix in 1960 and 1961 respectively, and Terminal 2 (originally called the "East Terminal") still in use today, opened in 1962. Terminal 3 opened in 1979, when the "East" and "West" names were dropped, since they were no longer the only two terminals.
Bonanza Airlines relocated its headquarters from Las Vegas to Phoenix in 1966. Bonanza merged with two other airlines to form Air West in 1968, which was renamed Hughes Airwest
after Howard Hughes
purchased it in 1970.
Following airline deregulation in 1978, former Hughes Airwest executive Ed Beauvais began forming a business plan for a new airline based in Phoenix. He founded America West Airlines
in 1981, which began service from Phoenix in 1983 and doubled in size during its first year of operations. By the end of the decade, America West had a nationwide route network from Phoenix and was lobbying for transpacific service as well.
In the meantime, Southwest Airlines
inaugurated its Phoenix operation in January 1982, with thirteen daily flights to twelve cities; by 1986 it had 64 daily flights from Phoenix and was running a crew base there. Southwest opened a maintenance facility at PHX in 1992 which was the largest in its network.
In 1990, the airport opened its largest terminal, Terminal 4. The terminal was originally built with four concourses: N2 and N3 on the north side and S3 and S4 on the south side. In 1994, the N4 International Concourse was opened, adding 10 new gates and a sterile walkway connecting it to the S4 concourse. In 1997, construction began on the 14-gate N1 concourse, for America West Airlines. It was completed in June 1998 at a cost of $50 million, completing the expansion of the north side of the terminal. On the south side of the terminal, construction began in 2002 on the eight-gate S2 concourse for Southwest Airlines. This project was completed in 2004 and features a different architectural design from the other six concourses. The eighth and final concourse for Terminal 4 will be built when needed. Terminal 4 is currently named after former Arizona Senator
and 1964 Presidential
candidate Barry M. Goldwater. After Goldwater's death in 1998, the mayor of Phoenix proposed renaming the entire airport in Goldwater's memory, but was quickly deluged with public support for maintaining the familiar "Sky Harbor" name.
America West filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1991 and sold its larger aircraft and Japanese route authority, but continued growing its domestic operations from Terminal 4 in cooperation with Continental Airlines
. Although AWA enjoyed further growth at Phoenix during the 1990s, the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks
strained its financial position. AWA ended its relationship with Continental and ultimately merged with US Airways
in 2005. US Airways moved its headquarters to the former AWA campus in Tempe, and retained many AWA managers to run the merged company.
In 2007, the Transportation Security Administration
introduced the first of its backscatter X-ray
machines at PHX.
Because of Phoenix's consistent wind patterns, Sky Harbor is one of the largest airports in the world to have all runways running parallel (in the east-west direction).
Sky Harbor's private airplane area also serves as one of eight service centers for the Medevac
airline Air Evac
.
. This is Sky Harbor's fourth control tower and is among the tallest control towers in North America
.
. In November 2006, a Military and Veterans Hospitality Room, sponsored by the Phoenix Military and Veterans Commission, was opened in Terminal 2.
Terminal 3 opened in 1979 and has 17 gates, separated into two concourses by a central building outside of security. The south concourse houses gates 2–9 and the north concourse houses gates 15-26. Its only lounge - Delta's Crown Room Club - was closed on April 30, 2008.
British Airways
provides the airport's only nonstop service outside of North America
to London-Heathrow
, as well as the only passenger flights on Boeing 747
involving the airport (America West
once operated Boeing 747's to Hawaii and Japan from Sky Harbor). US Airways and Hawaiian Airlines
offer non-stop service outside the Continental United States to Hawaii
. US Airways and Aeroméxico Connect offer non-stop service to cities in Mexico
and US Airways, Air Canada
, and WestJet
offer non-stop service to parts of Canada
, while US Airways alone, offers non-stop service to parts of Alaska
and Central America
.
A: AirTran Airways moved to Terminal 4, Concourse C on August 2.
Please Note: Passenger totals for the domestic flights are based on a 12 month scale ending August, 2011.
Sky Harbor has an average of 1,232 aircraft operations per day.
There are 75 aircraft based at Sky Harbor.
located 3 miles (4.8 km) southeast of the central business district
of the city of Phoenix, in Maricopa County
, Arizona
, United States
. It is Arizona's largest and busiest airport, and the largest commercial airport in the American Southwest
.
In 2010, the airport served 38,554,530 passengers, making it the ninth busiest in the United States
in terms of passengers and one of the top 15 busiest airports in the world
with a 90 million dollar daily economic impact. On a daily basis the airport handles about 1,252 aircraft that arrive and depart, along with 103,630 passengers daily, and more than 675 tons of cargo handled. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
records show the airport had 18,853,719 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year
2009 and 19,225,050 enplanements in 2010. As of July 2011 there were 12,006,447 enplanements.
The airport is the primary regional hub and gateway for Mexican and Hawaiian departures for Tempe
-based US Airways
and is the third-largest focus city for Southwest Airlines
. US Airways and Southwest are the airport's two largest carriers.
stock market crash. Acme Investment Company then owned the airport until 1935. During this time, American Airlines
began the first scheduled passenger and air mail service to the airport in 1930. The city of Phoenix purchased the airport from Acme for $100,000 in 1935, and TWA
began service to San Francisco in 1938.
After the war the airport began work on a new passenger terminal, as well as a new parallel runway and diagonal cross runway. Terminal 1 (originally called the "West Terminal") which also housed the airport's first control tower
, opened in 1952. It was torn down in 1990 and replaced by a cell phone waiting lot.
The April 1957 OAG shows 42 scheduled airline departures a day: 16 American, 11 TWA, 10 Bonanza and 5 Frontier.
The airport's master plan was redesigned in 1959 to eliminate the cross runway to allow more space for new terminals. American and TWA began jet service to Phoenix in 1960 and 1961 respectively, and Terminal 2 (originally called the "East Terminal") still in use today, opened in 1962. Terminal 3 opened in 1979, when the "East" and "West" names were dropped, since they were no longer the only two terminals.
Bonanza Airlines relocated its headquarters from Las Vegas to Phoenix in 1966. Bonanza merged with two other airlines to form Air West in 1968, which was renamed Hughes Airwest
after Howard Hughes
purchased it in 1970.
Following airline deregulation in 1978, former Hughes Airwest executive Ed Beauvais began forming a business plan for a new airline based in Phoenix. He founded America West Airlines
in 1981, which began service from Phoenix in 1983 and doubled in size during its first year of operations. By the end of the decade, America West had a nationwide route network from Phoenix and was lobbying for transpacific service as well.
In the meantime, Southwest Airlines
inaugurated its Phoenix operation in January 1982, with thirteen daily flights to twelve cities; by 1986 it had 64 daily flights from Phoenix and was running a crew base there. Southwest opened a maintenance facility at PHX in 1992 which was the largest in its network.
In 1990, the airport opened its largest terminal, Terminal 4. The terminal was originally built with four concourses: N2 and N3 on the north side and S3 and S4 on the south side. In 1994, the N4 International Concourse was opened, adding 10 new gates and a sterile walkway connecting it to the S4 concourse. In 1997, construction began on the 14-gate N1 concourse, for America West Airlines. It was completed in June 1998 at a cost of $50 million, completing the expansion of the north side of the terminal. On the south side of the terminal, construction began in 2002 on the eight-gate S2 concourse for Southwest Airlines. This project was completed in 2004 and features a different architectural design from the other six concourses. The eighth and final concourse for Terminal 4 will be built when needed. Terminal 4 is currently named after former Arizona Senator
and 1964 Presidential
candidate Barry M. Goldwater. After Goldwater's death in 1998, the mayor of Phoenix proposed renaming the entire airport in Goldwater's memory, but was quickly deluged with public support for maintaining the familiar "Sky Harbor" name.
America West filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1991 and sold its larger aircraft and Japanese route authority, but continued growing its domestic operations from Terminal 4 in cooperation with Continental Airlines
. Although AWA enjoyed further growth at Phoenix during the 1990s, the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks
strained its financial position. AWA ended its relationship with Continental and ultimately merged with US Airways
in 2005. US Airways moved its headquarters to the former AWA campus in Tempe, and retained many AWA managers to run the merged company.
In 2007, the Transportation Security Administration
introduced the first of its backscatter X-ray
machines at PHX.
Because of Phoenix's consistent wind patterns, Sky Harbor is one of the largest airports in the world to have all runways running parallel (in the east-west direction).
Sky Harbor's private airplane area also serves as one of eight service centers for the Medevac
airline Air Evac
.
. This is Sky Harbor's fourth control tower and is among the tallest control towers in North America
.
. In November 2006, a Military and Veterans Hospitality Room, sponsored by the Phoenix Military and Veterans Commission, was opened in Terminal 2.
Terminal 3 opened in 1979 and has 17 gates, separated into two concourses by a central building outside of security. The south concourse houses gates 2–9 and the north concourse houses gates 15-26. Its only lounge - Delta's Crown Room Club - was closed on April 30, 2008.
British Airways
provides the airport's only nonstop service outside of North America
to London-Heathrow
, as well as the only passenger flights on Boeing 747
involving the airport (America West
once operated Boeing 747's to Hawaii and Japan from Sky Harbor). US Airways and Hawaiian Airlines
offer non-stop service outside the Continental United States to Hawaii
. US Airways and Aeroméxico Connect offer non-stop service to cities in Mexico
and US Airways, Air Canada
, and WestJet
offer non-stop service to parts of Canada
, while US Airways alone, offers non-stop service to parts of Alaska
and Central America
.
A: AirTran Airways moved to Terminal 4, Concourse C on August 2.
Please Note: Passenger totals for the domestic flights are based on a 12 month scale ending August, 2011.
Sky Harbor has an average of 1,232 aircraft operations per day.
There are 75 aircraft based at Sky Harbor.
located 3 miles (4.8 km) southeast of the central business district
of the city of Phoenix, in Maricopa County
, Arizona
, United States
. It is Arizona's largest and busiest airport, and the largest commercial airport in the American Southwest
.
In 2010, the airport served 38,554,530 passengers, making it the ninth busiest in the United States
in terms of passengers and one of the top 15 busiest airports in the world
with a 90 million dollar daily economic impact. On a daily basis the airport handles about 1,252 aircraft that arrive and depart, along with 103,630 passengers daily, and more than 675 tons of cargo handled. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
records show the airport had 18,853,719 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year
2009 and 19,225,050 enplanements in 2010. As of July 2011 there were 12,006,447 enplanements.
The airport is the primary regional hub and gateway for Mexican and Hawaiian departures for Tempe
-based US Airways
and is the third-largest focus city for Southwest Airlines
. US Airways and Southwest are the airport's two largest carriers.
stock market crash. Acme Investment Company then owned the airport until 1935. During this time, American Airlines
began the first scheduled passenger and air mail service to the airport in 1930. The city of Phoenix purchased the airport from Acme for $100,000 in 1935, and TWA
began service to San Francisco in 1938.
After the war the airport began work on a new passenger terminal, as well as a new parallel runway and diagonal cross runway. Terminal 1 (originally called the "West Terminal") which also housed the airport's first control tower
, opened in 1952. It was torn down in 1990 and replaced by a cell phone waiting lot.
The April 1957 OAG shows 42 scheduled airline departures a day: 16 American, 11 TWA, 10 Bonanza and 5 Frontier.
The airport's master plan was redesigned in 1959 to eliminate the cross runway to allow more space for new terminals. American and TWA began jet service to Phoenix in 1960 and 1961 respectively, and Terminal 2 (originally called the "East Terminal") still in use today, opened in 1962. Terminal 3 opened in 1979, when the "East" and "West" names were dropped, since they were no longer the only two terminals.
Bonanza Airlines relocated its headquarters from Las Vegas to Phoenix in 1966. Bonanza merged with two other airlines to form Air West in 1968, which was renamed Hughes Airwest
after Howard Hughes
purchased it in 1970.
Following airline deregulation in 1978, former Hughes Airwest executive Ed Beauvais began forming a business plan for a new airline based in Phoenix. He founded America West Airlines
in 1981, which began service from Phoenix in 1983 and doubled in size during its first year of operations. By the end of the decade, America West had a nationwide route network from Phoenix and was lobbying for transpacific service as well.
In the meantime, Southwest Airlines
inaugurated its Phoenix operation in January 1982, with thirteen daily flights to twelve cities; by 1986 it had 64 daily flights from Phoenix and was running a crew base there. Southwest opened a maintenance facility at PHX in 1992 which was the largest in its network.
In 1990, the airport opened its largest terminal, Terminal 4. The terminal was originally built with four concourses: N2 and N3 on the north side and S3 and S4 on the south side. In 1994, the N4 International Concourse was opened, adding 10 new gates and a sterile walkway connecting it to the S4 concourse. In 1997, construction began on the 14-gate N1 concourse, for America West Airlines. It was completed in June 1998 at a cost of $50 million, completing the expansion of the north side of the terminal. On the south side of the terminal, construction began in 2002 on the eight-gate S2 concourse for Southwest Airlines. This project was completed in 2004 and features a different architectural design from the other six concourses. The eighth and final concourse for Terminal 4 will be built when needed. Terminal 4 is currently named after former Arizona Senator
and 1964 Presidential
candidate Barry M. Goldwater. After Goldwater's death in 1998, the mayor of Phoenix proposed renaming the entire airport in Goldwater's memory, but was quickly deluged with public support for maintaining the familiar "Sky Harbor" name.
America West filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1991 and sold its larger aircraft and Japanese route authority, but continued growing its domestic operations from Terminal 4 in cooperation with Continental Airlines
. Although AWA enjoyed further growth at Phoenix during the 1990s, the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks
strained its financial position. AWA ended its relationship with Continental and ultimately merged with US Airways
in 2005. US Airways moved its headquarters to the former AWA campus in Tempe, and retained many AWA managers to run the merged company.
In 2007, the Transportation Security Administration
introduced the first of its backscatter X-ray
machines at PHX.
Because of Phoenix's consistent wind patterns, Sky Harbor is one of the largest airports in the world to have all runways running parallel (in the east-west direction).
Sky Harbor's private airplane area also serves as one of eight service centers for the Medevac
airline Air Evac
.
. This is Sky Harbor's fourth control tower and is among the tallest control towers in North America
.
. In November 2006, a Military and Veterans Hospitality Room, sponsored by the Phoenix Military and Veterans Commission, was opened in Terminal 2.
Terminal 3 opened in 1979 and has 17 gates, separated into two concourses by a central building outside of security. The south concourse houses gates 2–9 and the north concourse houses gates 15-26. Its only lounge - Delta's Crown Room Club - was closed on April 30, 2008.
British Airways
provides the airport's only nonstop service outside of North America
to London-Heathrow
, as well as the only passenger flights on Boeing 747
involving the airport (America West
once operated Boeing 747's to Hawaii and Japan from Sky Harbor). US Airways and Hawaiian Airlines
offer non-stop service outside the Continental United States to Hawaii
. US Airways and Aeroméxico Connect offer non-stop service to cities in Mexico
and US Airways, Air Canada
, and WestJet
offer non-stop service to parts of Canada
, while US Airways alone, offers non-stop service to parts of Alaska
and Central America
.
A: AirTran Airways moved to Terminal 4, Concourse C on August 2.
Please Note: Passenger totals for the domestic flights are based on a 12 month scale ending August, 2011.
Sky Harbor has an average of 1,232 aircraft operations per day.
There are 75 aircraft based at Sky Harbor.
* Sky Harbor's cargo terminal is located on the southwestern end of the airport near the Medevac
and Air Evac
terminal.
Info: http://www.skyharbor.com/about-sky-harbor/automated-train.html, http://www.skyharbor.com/about-sky-harbor/phx-sky-train-facts.html, http://skyharbor.com/pressreleases/SkyTrainStage1a.html
Info: http://www.skyharbor.com/about-sky-harbor/current-and-future-projects.html
has a stop at the nearby Washington at 44th Street station
, and free shuttle service connect the station with the Airport terminals themselves. Routes 1, 3, 13 and 44 serve the light rail station. In the future, the Sky Harbor Airport Automated People Mover will take over this function.
PHX is also home to Sky Harbor Air National Guard Base
and its host wing, the 161st Air Refueling Wing
(161 ARW), an Air Mobility Command
(AMC)-gained unit of the Arizona Air National Guard
. One of two flying units in the Arizona ANG, the 161 ARW currently flies the KC-135R Stratotanker
aircraft. In addition to its domestic role as a National Guard unit, answering to the Governor of Arizona, the 161 ARW also performs both a stateside and overseas role as a USAF organization, supporting air refueling and air mobility missions worldwide.
Located on the south side of the airport, the current Sky Harbor ANGB is a comparatively new facility. As a result of growth and on-going expansion programs at PHX, a new ANG base was planned at the airport to replace a smaller, outmoded facility that stood in the way of airport construction. Plans were finally approved in 1995 and the new base was built during the latter part of that decade. The current Sky Harbor ANGB includes over 275000 square feet (25,548.3 m²) of facilities, pavement, and infrastructure and is one of the most modern facilities of its kind in the Air National Guard.
Over 1000 Air National Guard
personnel are assigned to the 161 ARW, consisting of a combination of full-time Active Guard and Reserve (AGR) and Air Reserve Technician (ART) personnel, as well as part-time "traditional" air national guardsmen.
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 3 miles (4.8 km) southeast 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 the city of Phoenix, in Maricopa County
Maricopa County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*73.0% White*5.0% Black*2.1% Native American*3.5% Asian*0.2% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.5% Two or more races*12.7% Other races*29.6% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is Arizona's largest and busiest airport, and the largest commercial airport in the American Southwest
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
.
In 2010, the airport served 38,554,530 passengers, making it the ninth busiest in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in terms of passengers and one of the top 15 busiest airports in the world
World's busiest airports by traffic movements
The thirty world's busiest airports by aircraft movements are measured by total movements . One total movement is a landing or take off of an aircraft.- 2010 final statistics :-2009 final statistics:...
with a 90 million dollar daily economic impact. On a daily basis the airport handles about 1,252 aircraft that arrive and depart, along with 103,630 passengers daily, and more than 675 tons of cargo handled. Federal Aviation Administration (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...
records show the airport had 18,853,719 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year
Calendar year
Generally speaking, a calendar year begins on the New Year's Day of the given calendar system and ends on the day before the following New Year's Day. By convention, a calendar year consists of a natural number of days. To reconcile the calendar year with an astronomical cycle , certain years...
2009 and 19,225,050 enplanements in 2010. As of July 2011 there were 12,006,447 enplanements.
The airport is the primary regional hub and gateway for Mexican and Hawaiian departures for Tempe
Tempe, Arizona
Tempe is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, with the Census Bureau reporting a 2010 population of 161,719. The city is named after the Vale of Tempe in Greece. Tempe is located in the East Valley section of metropolitan Phoenix; it is bordered by Phoenix and Guadalupe on the west, Scottsdale...
-based US Airways
US Airways
US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
and is the third-largest focus city for Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
. US Airways and Southwest are the airport's two largest carriers.
History
Sky Harbor was the fourth airport built in Phoenix. It was established with one runway in 1928 by Scenic Airways, an airline start-up which collapsed the following year after the Black ThursdayBlack Thursday
Black Thursday is a term used to refer to events which occurred on a Thursday. It has been used in the following cases:* February 6, 1851, Black Thursday, a day of devastating bushfires in Victoria, Australia...
stock market crash. Acme Investment Company then owned the airport until 1935. During this time, American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
began the first scheduled passenger and air mail service to the airport in 1930. The city of Phoenix purchased the airport from Acme for $100,000 in 1935, and TWA
Twa
The Twa are any of several hunting peoples of Africa who live interdependently with agricultural Bantu populations, and generally hold a socially subordinate position: They provide the farming population with game in exchange for agricultural products....
began service to San Francisco in 1938.
After the war the airport began work on a new passenger terminal, as well as a new parallel runway and diagonal cross runway. Terminal 1 (originally called the "West Terminal") which also housed the airport's first control tower
Control tower
A control tower, or more specifically an Air Traffic Control Tower , is the name of the airport building from which the air traffic control unit controls the movement of aircraft on and around the airport. Control towers are also used to control the traffic for other forms of transportation such...
, opened in 1952. It was torn down in 1990 and replaced by a cell phone waiting lot.
The April 1957 OAG shows 42 scheduled airline departures a day: 16 American, 11 TWA, 10 Bonanza and 5 Frontier.
The airport's master plan was redesigned in 1959 to eliminate the cross runway to allow more space for new terminals. American and TWA began jet service to Phoenix in 1960 and 1961 respectively, and Terminal 2 (originally called the "East Terminal") still in use today, opened in 1962. Terminal 3 opened in 1979, when the "East" and "West" names were dropped, since they were no longer the only two terminals.
Bonanza Airlines relocated its headquarters from Las Vegas to Phoenix in 1966. Bonanza merged with two other airlines to form Air West in 1968, which was renamed Hughes Airwest
Hughes Airwest
Hughes Airwest was an airline that was backed by Howard Hughes. Hughes Airwest flew routes around the western United States and to certain points in Mexico and Canada. The airline was purchased by Republic Airlines on October 1, 1980...
after Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
purchased it in 1970.
Following airline deregulation in 1978, former Hughes Airwest executive Ed Beauvais began forming a business plan for a new airline based in Phoenix. He founded America West Airlines
America West Airlines
America West Airlines corporate offices were in Tempe, Arizona and the main hub was at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The airline became part of the US Airways Group after a merger in 2005....
in 1981, which began service from Phoenix in 1983 and doubled in size during its first year of operations. By the end of the decade, America West had a nationwide route network from Phoenix and was lobbying for transpacific service as well.
In the meantime, Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
inaugurated its Phoenix operation in January 1982, with thirteen daily flights to twelve cities; by 1986 it had 64 daily flights from Phoenix and was running a crew base there. Southwest opened a maintenance facility at PHX in 1992 which was the largest in its network.
In 1990, the airport opened its largest terminal, Terminal 4. The terminal was originally built with four concourses: N2 and N3 on the north side and S3 and S4 on the south side. In 1994, the N4 International Concourse was opened, adding 10 new gates and a sterile walkway connecting it to the S4 concourse. In 1997, construction began on the 14-gate N1 concourse, for America West Airlines. It was completed in June 1998 at a cost of $50 million, completing the expansion of the north side of the terminal. On the south side of the terminal, construction began in 2002 on the eight-gate S2 concourse for Southwest Airlines. This project was completed in 2004 and features a different architectural design from the other six concourses. The eighth and final concourse for Terminal 4 will be built when needed. Terminal 4 is currently named after former Arizona Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
and 1964 Presidential
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
candidate Barry M. Goldwater. After Goldwater's death in 1998, the mayor of Phoenix proposed renaming the entire airport in Goldwater's memory, but was quickly deluged with public support for maintaining the familiar "Sky Harbor" name.
America West filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1991 and sold its larger aircraft and Japanese route authority, but continued growing its domestic operations from Terminal 4 in cooperation with 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...
. Although AWA enjoyed further growth at Phoenix during the 1990s, the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
strained its financial position. AWA ended its relationship with Continental and ultimately merged with US Airways
US Airways
US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
in 2005. US Airways moved its headquarters to the former AWA campus in Tempe, and retained many AWA managers to run the merged company.
In 2007, the Transportation Security Administration
Transportation Security Administration
The Transportation Security Administration is an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that exercises authority over the safety and security of the traveling public in the United States....
introduced the first of its backscatter X-ray
Backscatter X-ray
Backscatter X-ray is an advanced X-ray imaging technology. Traditional X-ray machines detect hard and soft materials by the variation in transmission through the target. In contrast, backscatter X-ray detects the radiation that reflects from the target...
machines at PHX.
Because of Phoenix's consistent wind patterns, Sky Harbor is one of the largest airports in the world to have all runways running parallel (in the east-west direction).
Sky Harbor's private airplane area also serves as one of eight service centers for the Medevac
MEDEVAC
Medical evacuation, often termed Medevac or Medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to the wounded being evacuated from the battlefield or to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of an accident to receiving medical facilities using...
airline Air Evac
Air Evac (airline)
AIR EVAC ARIZONA is a wholly owned subsidiary of Petroleum Helicopters, Inc. PHI Air Medical, is a Medevac operator that provides services across Arizona, United States, Canada, Mexico. A provider of 80 helicopters, Air Evac also uses five King Air B200 airplanes for long range stable emergencies....
.
Control tower
The airport's current 326-foot (99-meter) tall air traffic control tower began operations on January 14, 2007. The tower stands just east of the Terminal 3 parking garage, and also houses the Phoenix TRACONTerminal Control Center
A terminal radar approach control is an air traffic control facility usually located within the vicinity of a large airport. Typically, the TRACON controls aircraft within a 20-50 nautical mile radius of the major airport and a number of "satellite airports" between surface and up to between and...
. This is Sky Harbor's fourth control tower and is among the tallest control towers in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Terminals
The airport has over 120 aircraft gates in three Terminals (2, 3, 4). The airport administration states that the designation Terminal 1 has been "retired", and that it did not wish to renumber the other terminals since passengers were already familiar with the numbers in place. Free wireless internet access is available in all terminals.Terminal 2
Terminal 2 has 9 gates (numbered unconsecutively 1-13 and two additional lettered gates C & D) and three parking slots. It was designed by the Phoenix architectural firm, Weaver & Drover and opened in 1962. This terminal includes a mural by French-American artist Paul CozePaul Coze
Paul Coze was a French-American anthropologist, artist, and writer, most notable as a French authority on Native Americans, and for his public art in the 1960s....
. In November 2006, a Military and Veterans Hospitality Room, sponsored by the Phoenix Military and Veterans Commission, was opened in Terminal 2.
Terminal 3
Terminal 4 (Barry M. Goldwater Terminal)
Terminal 4 has more than 90 gates, divided into seven satellite concourses connected behind security. Three northern concourses (gates A1-A14, A17-A30, B1-B14) serve US Airways and US Airways Express exclusively. The northeastern concourse "B" houses the international gates (B23-B28). The three southern concourses (gates C1-C10, C11-C20, D1-D8) serve Southwest Airlines exclusively. Terminal 4 handles about 80% of the traffic at the airport.Airlines and destinations
British Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
provides the airport's only nonstop service outside of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
to London-Heathrow
London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...
, as well as the only passenger flights on Boeing 747
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
involving the airport (America West
America West Airlines
America West Airlines corporate offices were in Tempe, Arizona and the main hub was at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The airline became part of the US Airways Group after a merger in 2005....
once operated Boeing 747's to Hawaii and Japan from Sky Harbor). US Airways and Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. is a major airline of the United States. It is the largest airline based in the State of Hawai'i, and is the 11th largest commercial airline in the country. Based in Honolulu CDP, City and County of Honolulu, the airline operates its main hub at Honolulu International...
offer non-stop service outside the Continental United States to Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. US Airways and Aeroméxico Connect offer non-stop service to cities in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and US Airways, Air Canada
Air Canada
Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...
, and WestJet
WestJet
WestJet Airlines Ltd. is a Canadian low-cost carrier that provides scheduled and charter air service to 71 destinations in Canada, the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean. Founded in 1996, WestJet is currently the second largest Canadian air carrier, behind Air Canada, operating an average of...
offer non-stop service to parts of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, while US Airways alone, offers non-stop service to parts of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
.
- Note: All International arrivals (except flights with customs preclearanceUnited States border preclearanceThe United States operates border preclearance facilities at a number of ports and airports in foreign countries. They are staffed and operated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. Travelers pass through Immigration and Customs, Public Health, and Department of Agriculture inspections...
) are handled at Terminal 4, Concourse B.
A: AirTran Airways moved to Terminal 4, Concourse C on August 2.
Statistics
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Denver, CODenver International Airport Denver International Airport , often referred to as DIA, is an airport in Denver, Colorado. By land size, at , it is the largest international airport in the United States, and the third largest international airport in the world after King Fahd International Airport and Montréal-Mirabel... |
917,000 | Continental, Frontier, Southwest, United, US Airways |
| 2 |  Las Vegas, NVMcCarran International Airport McCarran International Airport is the principal commercial airport serving Las Vegas and Clark County, Nevada, United States. The airport is located five miles south of the central business district of Las Vegas, in the unincorporated area of Paradise in Clark County. It covers an area of and... |
762,000 | Southwest, US Airways |
| 3 |  Los Angeles, CALos Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport is the primary airport serving the Greater Los Angeles Area, the second-most populated metropolitan area in the United States. It is most often referred to by its IATA airport code LAX, with the letters pronounced individually... |
704,000 | American Eagle, Delta, Southwest, United, US Airways |
| 4 | San Diego, CA San Diego International Airport San Diego International Airport , sometimes referred to as Lindbergh Field, is a public airport located northwest of the central business district of San Diego, California and from the Mexico – United States border at Tijuana, Mexico... |
660,000 | Southwest, US Airways |
| 5 |  Seattle/Tacoma, WASeattle-Tacoma International Airport The Seattle–Tacoma International Airport , also known as Sea–Tac Airport or Sea–Tac , is an American airport located in SeaTac, Washington, at the intersections of State Routes 99 and 509 and 518, about west of Interstate 5... |
612,000 | Alaska, Southwest, US Airways |
| 6 |  Chicago, IL (O'Hare)O'Hare International Airport Chicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop... |
605,000 | American, United, US Airways |
| 7 |  Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN |
604,000 | Delta, Southwest, Sun Country, US Airways |
| 8 |  Salt Lake City, UTSalt Lake City International Airport Salt Lake City International Airport is a major public airport in Utah. A joint civil-military facility, it is located in western Salt Lake City, approximately four miles from the central business district... |
576,000 | Delta, Southwest, US Airways |
| 9 |  Dallas/Fort Worth, TX |
574,000 | American, US Airways |
| 10 |  Atlanta, GAHartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport , known locally as Atlanta Airport, Hartsfield Airport, and Hartsfield–Jackson, is located seven miles south of the central business district of Atlanta, Georgia, United States... |
573,000 | AirTran, Delta, US Airways |
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  San José del Cabo, MexicoLos Cabos International Airport Los Cabos International Airport is the seventh busiest airport in Mexico, located at San José del Cabo, Baja California Sur, Mexico. The airport serves Los Cabos area: San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas. This airport has three terminals with 4 concourses... |
261,365 | US Airways |
| 2 | Puerto Vallarta, Mexico Lic. Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport Licenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport is an international airport located at Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco in Mexico. Located at the Pacific Ocean coast, it receives thousands of tourists all year. It handled 2,645,300 passengers in 2009 and 2,735,300 in 2010... |
189,535 | US Airways |
| 3 |  London, United Kingdom (Heathrow) |
171,024 | British Airways |
| 4 | Guadalajara, Mexico Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla International Airport Guadalajara International Airport , also known as Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla International Airport . It opened in 1966 and is located 16 km south of the city centre of Guadalajara. In 2010, the airport handled 6,953,900 passengers, representing a 7.8% increase from 2009... |
117,249 | US Airways |
| 5 | Mexico City, Mexico Mexico City International Airport Benito Juárez International Airport , in Venustiano Carranza, one of the sixteen boroughs into which Mexico's Federal District is divided, is a commercial airport that serves Mexico City, the capital of Mexico... |
114,263 | US Airways |
| 6 |  Calgary, CanadaCalgary International Airport Calgary International Airport, , is the international airport that serves Calgary, Alberta, Canada and the surrounding region; it is situated approximately northeast of downtown Calgary... |
113,850 | Air Canada, US Airways, WestJet |
| 7 | Cancún, Mexico Cancún International Airport Cancún International Airport is located in Cancún, Quintana Roo, on the Caribbean coast of Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. It is Mexico's second busiest airport, after Mexico City International Airport in Mexico City, but the biggest in Mexico and Latin America for International passengers... |
113,333 | US Airways |
| 8 | Toronto, Canada Toronto Pearson International Airport Toronto Pearson International Airport is an international airport serving Toronto, Ontario, Canada; its metropolitan area; and the Golden Horseshoe, an urban agglomeration that is home to 8.1 million people – approximately 25% of Canada's population... |
113,150 | Air Canada |
| 9 | Mazatlán, Mexico General Rafael Buelna International Airport General Rafael Buelna International Airport , also known as Mazatlán International Airport, is located in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico. This airport is the most important in Sinaloa for its international operations, and second to Culiacan International Airport for its domestic operations. It has one... |
97,209 | US Airways |
| 10 | Vancouver, Canada Vancouver International Airport Vancouver International Airport is located on Sea Island in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, about from Downtown Vancouver. In 2010 it was the second busiest airport in Canada by aircraft movements and passengers , behind Toronto Pearson International Airport, with non-stop flights daily to... |
92,550 | US Airways, WestJet |
Sky Harbor has an average of 1,232 aircraft operations per day.
| Commercial | Air Taxi | GA Transient | Military |
|---|---|---|---|
| 990 | 174 | 60 | 7 |
There are 75 aircraft based at Sky Harbor.
| Single-Engine | Multi-Engine | Jet | Helicopter | Military |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 14 | 23 | 9 | 8 |
Other services
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is a joint civil-military public airportAirport
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 3 miles (4.8 km) southeast 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 the city of Phoenix, in Maricopa County
Maricopa County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*73.0% White*5.0% Black*2.1% Native American*3.5% Asian*0.2% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.5% Two or more races*12.7% Other races*29.6% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is Arizona's largest and busiest airport, and the largest commercial airport in the American Southwest
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
.
In 2010, the airport served 38,554,530 passengers, making it the ninth busiest in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in terms of passengers and one of the top 15 busiest airports in the world
World's busiest airports by traffic movements
The thirty world's busiest airports by aircraft movements are measured by total movements . One total movement is a landing or take off of an aircraft.- 2010 final statistics :-2009 final statistics:...
with a 90 million dollar daily economic impact. On a daily basis the airport handles about 1,252 aircraft that arrive and depart, along with 103,630 passengers daily, and more than 675 tons of cargo handled. Federal Aviation Administration (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...
records show the airport had 18,853,719 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year
Calendar year
Generally speaking, a calendar year begins on the New Year's Day of the given calendar system and ends on the day before the following New Year's Day. By convention, a calendar year consists of a natural number of days. To reconcile the calendar year with an astronomical cycle , certain years...
2009 and 19,225,050 enplanements in 2010. As of July 2011 there were 12,006,447 enplanements.
The airport is the primary regional hub and gateway for Mexican and Hawaiian departures for Tempe
Tempe, Arizona
Tempe is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, with the Census Bureau reporting a 2010 population of 161,719. The city is named after the Vale of Tempe in Greece. Tempe is located in the East Valley section of metropolitan Phoenix; it is bordered by Phoenix and Guadalupe on the west, Scottsdale...
-based US Airways
US Airways
US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
and is the third-largest focus city for Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
. US Airways and Southwest are the airport's two largest carriers.
History
Sky Harbor was the fourth airport built in Phoenix. It was established with one runway in 1928 by Scenic Airways, an airline start-up which collapsed the following year after the Black ThursdayBlack Thursday
Black Thursday is a term used to refer to events which occurred on a Thursday. It has been used in the following cases:* February 6, 1851, Black Thursday, a day of devastating bushfires in Victoria, Australia...
stock market crash. Acme Investment Company then owned the airport until 1935. During this time, American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
began the first scheduled passenger and air mail service to the airport in 1930. The city of Phoenix purchased the airport from Acme for $100,000 in 1935, and TWA
Twa
The Twa are any of several hunting peoples of Africa who live interdependently with agricultural Bantu populations, and generally hold a socially subordinate position: They provide the farming population with game in exchange for agricultural products....
began service to San Francisco in 1938.
After the war the airport began work on a new passenger terminal, as well as a new parallel runway and diagonal cross runway. Terminal 1 (originally called the "West Terminal") which also housed the airport's first control tower
Control tower
A control tower, or more specifically an Air Traffic Control Tower , is the name of the airport building from which the air traffic control unit controls the movement of aircraft on and around the airport. Control towers are also used to control the traffic for other forms of transportation such...
, opened in 1952. It was torn down in 1990 and replaced by a cell phone waiting lot.
The April 1957 OAG shows 42 scheduled airline departures a day: 16 American, 11 TWA, 10 Bonanza and 5 Frontier.
The airport's master plan was redesigned in 1959 to eliminate the cross runway to allow more space for new terminals. American and TWA began jet service to Phoenix in 1960 and 1961 respectively, and Terminal 2 (originally called the "East Terminal") still in use today, opened in 1962. Terminal 3 opened in 1979, when the "East" and "West" names were dropped, since they were no longer the only two terminals.
Bonanza Airlines relocated its headquarters from Las Vegas to Phoenix in 1966. Bonanza merged with two other airlines to form Air West in 1968, which was renamed Hughes Airwest
Hughes Airwest
Hughes Airwest was an airline that was backed by Howard Hughes. Hughes Airwest flew routes around the western United States and to certain points in Mexico and Canada. The airline was purchased by Republic Airlines on October 1, 1980...
after Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
purchased it in 1970.
Following airline deregulation in 1978, former Hughes Airwest executive Ed Beauvais began forming a business plan for a new airline based in Phoenix. He founded America West Airlines
America West Airlines
America West Airlines corporate offices were in Tempe, Arizona and the main hub was at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The airline became part of the US Airways Group after a merger in 2005....
in 1981, which began service from Phoenix in 1983 and doubled in size during its first year of operations. By the end of the decade, America West had a nationwide route network from Phoenix and was lobbying for transpacific service as well.
In the meantime, Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
inaugurated its Phoenix operation in January 1982, with thirteen daily flights to twelve cities; by 1986 it had 64 daily flights from Phoenix and was running a crew base there. Southwest opened a maintenance facility at PHX in 1992 which was the largest in its network.
In 1990, the airport opened its largest terminal, Terminal 4. The terminal was originally built with four concourses: N2 and N3 on the north side and S3 and S4 on the south side. In 1994, the N4 International Concourse was opened, adding 10 new gates and a sterile walkway connecting it to the S4 concourse. In 1997, construction began on the 14-gate N1 concourse, for America West Airlines. It was completed in June 1998 at a cost of $50 million, completing the expansion of the north side of the terminal. On the south side of the terminal, construction began in 2002 on the eight-gate S2 concourse for Southwest Airlines. This project was completed in 2004 and features a different architectural design from the other six concourses. The eighth and final concourse for Terminal 4 will be built when needed. Terminal 4 is currently named after former Arizona Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
and 1964 Presidential
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
candidate Barry M. Goldwater. After Goldwater's death in 1998, the mayor of Phoenix proposed renaming the entire airport in Goldwater's memory, but was quickly deluged with public support for maintaining the familiar "Sky Harbor" name.
America West filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1991 and sold its larger aircraft and Japanese route authority, but continued growing its domestic operations from Terminal 4 in cooperation with 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...
. Although AWA enjoyed further growth at Phoenix during the 1990s, the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
strained its financial position. AWA ended its relationship with Continental and ultimately merged with US Airways
US Airways
US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
in 2005. US Airways moved its headquarters to the former AWA campus in Tempe, and retained many AWA managers to run the merged company.
In 2007, the Transportation Security Administration
Transportation Security Administration
The Transportation Security Administration is an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that exercises authority over the safety and security of the traveling public in the United States....
introduced the first of its backscatter X-ray
Backscatter X-ray
Backscatter X-ray is an advanced X-ray imaging technology. Traditional X-ray machines detect hard and soft materials by the variation in transmission through the target. In contrast, backscatter X-ray detects the radiation that reflects from the target...
machines at PHX.
Because of Phoenix's consistent wind patterns, Sky Harbor is one of the largest airports in the world to have all runways running parallel (in the east-west direction).
Sky Harbor's private airplane area also serves as one of eight service centers for the Medevac
MEDEVAC
Medical evacuation, often termed Medevac or Medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to the wounded being evacuated from the battlefield or to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of an accident to receiving medical facilities using...
airline Air Evac
Air Evac (airline)
AIR EVAC ARIZONA is a wholly owned subsidiary of Petroleum Helicopters, Inc. PHI Air Medical, is a Medevac operator that provides services across Arizona, United States, Canada, Mexico. A provider of 80 helicopters, Air Evac also uses five King Air B200 airplanes for long range stable emergencies....
.
Control tower
The airport's current 326-foot (99-meter) tall air traffic control tower began operations on January 14, 2007. The tower stands just east of the Terminal 3 parking garage, and also houses the Phoenix TRACONTerminal Control Center
A terminal radar approach control is an air traffic control facility usually located within the vicinity of a large airport. Typically, the TRACON controls aircraft within a 20-50 nautical mile radius of the major airport and a number of "satellite airports" between surface and up to between and...
. This is Sky Harbor's fourth control tower and is among the tallest control towers in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Terminals
The airport has over 120 aircraft gates in three Terminals (2, 3, 4). The airport administration states that the designation Terminal 1 has been "retired", and that it did not wish to renumber the other terminals since passengers were already familiar with the numbers in place. Free wireless internet access is available in all terminals.Terminal 2
Terminal 2 has 9 gates (numbered unconsecutively 1-13 and two additional lettered gates C & D) and three parking slots. It was designed by the Phoenix architectural firm, Weaver & Drover and opened in 1962. This terminal includes a mural by French-American artist Paul CozePaul Coze
Paul Coze was a French-American anthropologist, artist, and writer, most notable as a French authority on Native Americans, and for his public art in the 1960s....
. In November 2006, a Military and Veterans Hospitality Room, sponsored by the Phoenix Military and Veterans Commission, was opened in Terminal 2.
Terminal 3
Terminal 4 (Barry M. Goldwater Terminal)
Terminal 4 has more than 90 gates, divided into seven satellite concourses connected behind security. Three northern concourses (gates A1-A14, A17-A30, B1-B14) serve US Airways and US Airways Express exclusively. The northeastern concourse "B" houses the international gates (B23-B28). The three southern concourses (gates C1-C10, C11-C20, D1-D8) serve Southwest Airlines exclusively. Terminal 4 handles about 80% of the traffic at the airport.Airlines and destinations
British Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
provides the airport's only nonstop service outside of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
to London-Heathrow
London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...
, as well as the only passenger flights on Boeing 747
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
involving the airport (America West
America West Airlines
America West Airlines corporate offices were in Tempe, Arizona and the main hub was at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The airline became part of the US Airways Group after a merger in 2005....
once operated Boeing 747's to Hawaii and Japan from Sky Harbor). US Airways and Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. is a major airline of the United States. It is the largest airline based in the State of Hawai'i, and is the 11th largest commercial airline in the country. Based in Honolulu CDP, City and County of Honolulu, the airline operates its main hub at Honolulu International...
offer non-stop service outside the Continental United States to Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. US Airways and Aeroméxico Connect offer non-stop service to cities in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and US Airways, Air Canada
Air Canada
Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...
, and WestJet
WestJet
WestJet Airlines Ltd. is a Canadian low-cost carrier that provides scheduled and charter air service to 71 destinations in Canada, the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean. Founded in 1996, WestJet is currently the second largest Canadian air carrier, behind Air Canada, operating an average of...
offer non-stop service to parts of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, while US Airways alone, offers non-stop service to parts of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
.
- Note: All International arrivals (except flights with customs preclearanceUnited States border preclearanceThe United States operates border preclearance facilities at a number of ports and airports in foreign countries. They are staffed and operated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. Travelers pass through Immigration and Customs, Public Health, and Department of Agriculture inspections...
) are handled at Terminal 4, Concourse B.
A: AirTran Airways moved to Terminal 4, Concourse C on August 2.
Statistics
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denver, CO Denver International Airport Denver International Airport , often referred to as DIA, is an airport in Denver, Colorado. By land size, at , it is the largest international airport in the United States, and the third largest international airport in the world after King Fahd International Airport and Montréal-Mirabel... |
917,000 | Continental, Frontier, Southwest, United, US Airways |
| 2 | Las Vegas, NV McCarran International Airport McCarran International Airport is the principal commercial airport serving Las Vegas and Clark County, Nevada, United States. The airport is located five miles south of the central business district of Las Vegas, in the unincorporated area of Paradise in Clark County. It covers an area of and... |
762,000 | Southwest, US Airways |
| 3 | Los Angeles, CA Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport is the primary airport serving the Greater Los Angeles Area, the second-most populated metropolitan area in the United States. It is most often referred to by its IATA airport code LAX, with the letters pronounced individually... |
704,000 | American Eagle, Delta, Southwest, United, US Airways |
| 4 | San Diego, CA San Diego International Airport San Diego International Airport , sometimes referred to as Lindbergh Field, is a public airport located northwest of the central business district of San Diego, California and from the Mexico – United States border at Tijuana, Mexico... |
660,000 | Southwest, US Airways |
| 5 | Seattle/Tacoma, WA Seattle-Tacoma International Airport The Seattle–Tacoma International Airport , also known as Sea–Tac Airport or Sea–Tac , is an American airport located in SeaTac, Washington, at the intersections of State Routes 99 and 509 and 518, about west of Interstate 5... |
612,000 | Alaska, Southwest, US Airways |
| 6 | Chicago, IL (O'Hare) O'Hare International Airport Chicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop... |
605,000 | American, United, US Airways |
| 7 | Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN |
604,000 | Delta, Southwest, Sun Country, US Airways |
| 8 | Salt Lake City, UT Salt Lake City International Airport Salt Lake City International Airport is a major public airport in Utah. A joint civil-military facility, it is located in western Salt Lake City, approximately four miles from the central business district... |
576,000 | Delta, Southwest, US Airways |
| 9 | Dallas/Fort Worth, TX |
574,000 | American, US Airways |
| 10 | Atlanta, GA Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport , known locally as Atlanta Airport, Hartsfield Airport, and Hartsfield–Jackson, is located seven miles south of the central business district of Atlanta, Georgia, United States... |
573,000 | AirTran, Delta, US Airways |
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San José del Cabo, Mexico Los Cabos International Airport Los Cabos International Airport is the seventh busiest airport in Mexico, located at San José del Cabo, Baja California Sur, Mexico. The airport serves Los Cabos area: San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas. This airport has three terminals with 4 concourses... |
261,365 | US Airways |
| 2 | Puerto Vallarta, Mexico Lic. Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport Licenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport is an international airport located at Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco in Mexico. Located at the Pacific Ocean coast, it receives thousands of tourists all year. It handled 2,645,300 passengers in 2009 and 2,735,300 in 2010... |
189,535 | US Airways |
| 3 | London, United Kingdom (Heathrow) |
171,024 | British Airways |
| 4 | Guadalajara, Mexico Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla International Airport Guadalajara International Airport , also known as Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla International Airport . It opened in 1966 and is located 16 km south of the city centre of Guadalajara. In 2010, the airport handled 6,953,900 passengers, representing a 7.8% increase from 2009... |
117,249 | US Airways |
| 5 | Mexico City, Mexico Mexico City International Airport Benito Juárez International Airport , in Venustiano Carranza, one of the sixteen boroughs into which Mexico's Federal District is divided, is a commercial airport that serves Mexico City, the capital of Mexico... |
114,263 | US Airways |
| 6 | Calgary, Canada Calgary International Airport Calgary International Airport, , is the international airport that serves Calgary, Alberta, Canada and the surrounding region; it is situated approximately northeast of downtown Calgary... |
113,850 | Air Canada, US Airways, WestJet |
| 7 | Cancún, Mexico Cancún International Airport Cancún International Airport is located in Cancún, Quintana Roo, on the Caribbean coast of Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. It is Mexico's second busiest airport, after Mexico City International Airport in Mexico City, but the biggest in Mexico and Latin America for International passengers... |
113,333 | US Airways |
| 8 | Toronto, Canada Toronto Pearson International Airport Toronto Pearson International Airport is an international airport serving Toronto, Ontario, Canada; its metropolitan area; and the Golden Horseshoe, an urban agglomeration that is home to 8.1 million people – approximately 25% of Canada's population... |
113,150 | Air Canada |
| 9 | Mazatlán, Mexico General Rafael Buelna International Airport General Rafael Buelna International Airport , also known as Mazatlán International Airport, is located in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico. This airport is the most important in Sinaloa for its international operations, and second to Culiacan International Airport for its domestic operations. It has one... |
97,209 | US Airways |
| 10 | Vancouver, Canada Vancouver International Airport Vancouver International Airport is located on Sea Island in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, about from Downtown Vancouver. In 2010 it was the second busiest airport in Canada by aircraft movements and passengers , behind Toronto Pearson International Airport, with non-stop flights daily to... |
92,550 | US Airways, WestJet |
Sky Harbor has an average of 1,232 aircraft operations per day.
| Commercial | Air Taxi | GA Transient | Military |
|---|---|---|---|
| 990 | 174 | 60 | 7 |
There are 75 aircraft based at Sky Harbor.
| Single-Engine | Multi-Engine | Jet | Helicopter | Military |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 14 | 23 | 9 | 8 |
Other services
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is a joint civil-military public airportAirport
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 3 miles (4.8 km) southeast 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 the city of Phoenix, in Maricopa County
Maricopa County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*73.0% White*5.0% Black*2.1% Native American*3.5% Asian*0.2% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.5% Two or more races*12.7% Other races*29.6% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is Arizona's largest and busiest airport, and the largest commercial airport in the American Southwest
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
.
In 2010, the airport served 38,554,530 passengers, making it the ninth busiest in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in terms of passengers and one of the top 15 busiest airports in the world
World's busiest airports by traffic movements
The thirty world's busiest airports by aircraft movements are measured by total movements . One total movement is a landing or take off of an aircraft.- 2010 final statistics :-2009 final statistics:...
with a 90 million dollar daily economic impact. On a daily basis the airport handles about 1,252 aircraft that arrive and depart, along with 103,630 passengers daily, and more than 675 tons of cargo handled. Federal Aviation Administration (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...
records show the airport had 18,853,719 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year
Calendar year
Generally speaking, a calendar year begins on the New Year's Day of the given calendar system and ends on the day before the following New Year's Day. By convention, a calendar year consists of a natural number of days. To reconcile the calendar year with an astronomical cycle , certain years...
2009 and 19,225,050 enplanements in 2010. As of July 2011 there were 12,006,447 enplanements.
The airport is the primary regional hub and gateway for Mexican and Hawaiian departures for Tempe
Tempe, Arizona
Tempe is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, with the Census Bureau reporting a 2010 population of 161,719. The city is named after the Vale of Tempe in Greece. Tempe is located in the East Valley section of metropolitan Phoenix; it is bordered by Phoenix and Guadalupe on the west, Scottsdale...
-based US Airways
US Airways
US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
and is the third-largest focus city for Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
. US Airways and Southwest are the airport's two largest carriers.
History
Sky Harbor was the fourth airport built in Phoenix. It was established with one runway in 1928 by Scenic Airways, an airline start-up which collapsed the following year after the Black ThursdayBlack Thursday
Black Thursday is a term used to refer to events which occurred on a Thursday. It has been used in the following cases:* February 6, 1851, Black Thursday, a day of devastating bushfires in Victoria, Australia...
stock market crash. Acme Investment Company then owned the airport until 1935. During this time, American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
began the first scheduled passenger and air mail service to the airport in 1930. The city of Phoenix purchased the airport from Acme for $100,000 in 1935, and TWA
Twa
The Twa are any of several hunting peoples of Africa who live interdependently with agricultural Bantu populations, and generally hold a socially subordinate position: They provide the farming population with game in exchange for agricultural products....
began service to San Francisco in 1938.
After the war the airport began work on a new passenger terminal, as well as a new parallel runway and diagonal cross runway. Terminal 1 (originally called the "West Terminal") which also housed the airport's first control tower
Control tower
A control tower, or more specifically an Air Traffic Control Tower , is the name of the airport building from which the air traffic control unit controls the movement of aircraft on and around the airport. Control towers are also used to control the traffic for other forms of transportation such...
, opened in 1952. It was torn down in 1990 and replaced by a cell phone waiting lot.
The April 1957 OAG shows 42 scheduled airline departures a day: 16 American, 11 TWA, 10 Bonanza and 5 Frontier.
The airport's master plan was redesigned in 1959 to eliminate the cross runway to allow more space for new terminals. American and TWA began jet service to Phoenix in 1960 and 1961 respectively, and Terminal 2 (originally called the "East Terminal") still in use today, opened in 1962. Terminal 3 opened in 1979, when the "East" and "West" names were dropped, since they were no longer the only two terminals.
Bonanza Airlines relocated its headquarters from Las Vegas to Phoenix in 1966. Bonanza merged with two other airlines to form Air West in 1968, which was renamed Hughes Airwest
Hughes Airwest
Hughes Airwest was an airline that was backed by Howard Hughes. Hughes Airwest flew routes around the western United States and to certain points in Mexico and Canada. The airline was purchased by Republic Airlines on October 1, 1980...
after Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
purchased it in 1970.
Following airline deregulation in 1978, former Hughes Airwest executive Ed Beauvais began forming a business plan for a new airline based in Phoenix. He founded America West Airlines
America West Airlines
America West Airlines corporate offices were in Tempe, Arizona and the main hub was at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The airline became part of the US Airways Group after a merger in 2005....
in 1981, which began service from Phoenix in 1983 and doubled in size during its first year of operations. By the end of the decade, America West had a nationwide route network from Phoenix and was lobbying for transpacific service as well.
In the meantime, Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
inaugurated its Phoenix operation in January 1982, with thirteen daily flights to twelve cities; by 1986 it had 64 daily flights from Phoenix and was running a crew base there. Southwest opened a maintenance facility at PHX in 1992 which was the largest in its network.
In 1990, the airport opened its largest terminal, Terminal 4. The terminal was originally built with four concourses: N2 and N3 on the north side and S3 and S4 on the south side. In 1994, the N4 International Concourse was opened, adding 10 new gates and a sterile walkway connecting it to the S4 concourse. In 1997, construction began on the 14-gate N1 concourse, for America West Airlines. It was completed in June 1998 at a cost of $50 million, completing the expansion of the north side of the terminal. On the south side of the terminal, construction began in 2002 on the eight-gate S2 concourse for Southwest Airlines. This project was completed in 2004 and features a different architectural design from the other six concourses. The eighth and final concourse for Terminal 4 will be built when needed. Terminal 4 is currently named after former Arizona Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
and 1964 Presidential
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
candidate Barry M. Goldwater. After Goldwater's death in 1998, the mayor of Phoenix proposed renaming the entire airport in Goldwater's memory, but was quickly deluged with public support for maintaining the familiar "Sky Harbor" name.
America West filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1991 and sold its larger aircraft and Japanese route authority, but continued growing its domestic operations from Terminal 4 in cooperation with 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...
. Although AWA enjoyed further growth at Phoenix during the 1990s, the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
strained its financial position. AWA ended its relationship with Continental and ultimately merged with US Airways
US Airways
US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
in 2005. US Airways moved its headquarters to the former AWA campus in Tempe, and retained many AWA managers to run the merged company.
In 2007, the Transportation Security Administration
Transportation Security Administration
The Transportation Security Administration is an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that exercises authority over the safety and security of the traveling public in the United States....
introduced the first of its backscatter X-ray
Backscatter X-ray
Backscatter X-ray is an advanced X-ray imaging technology. Traditional X-ray machines detect hard and soft materials by the variation in transmission through the target. In contrast, backscatter X-ray detects the radiation that reflects from the target...
machines at PHX.
Because of Phoenix's consistent wind patterns, Sky Harbor is one of the largest airports in the world to have all runways running parallel (in the east-west direction).
Sky Harbor's private airplane area also serves as one of eight service centers for the Medevac
MEDEVAC
Medical evacuation, often termed Medevac or Medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to the wounded being evacuated from the battlefield or to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of an accident to receiving medical facilities using...
airline Air Evac
Air Evac (airline)
AIR EVAC ARIZONA is a wholly owned subsidiary of Petroleum Helicopters, Inc. PHI Air Medical, is a Medevac operator that provides services across Arizona, United States, Canada, Mexico. A provider of 80 helicopters, Air Evac also uses five King Air B200 airplanes for long range stable emergencies....
.
Control tower
The airport's current 326-foot (99-meter) tall air traffic control tower began operations on January 14, 2007. The tower stands just east of the Terminal 3 parking garage, and also houses the Phoenix TRACONTerminal Control Center
A terminal radar approach control is an air traffic control facility usually located within the vicinity of a large airport. Typically, the TRACON controls aircraft within a 20-50 nautical mile radius of the major airport and a number of "satellite airports" between surface and up to between and...
. This is Sky Harbor's fourth control tower and is among the tallest control towers in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Terminals
The airport has over 120 aircraft gates in three Terminals (2, 3, 4). The airport administration states that the designation Terminal 1 has been "retired", and that it did not wish to renumber the other terminals since passengers were already familiar with the numbers in place. Free wireless internet access is available in all terminals.Terminal 2
Terminal 2 has 9 gates (numbered unconsecutively 1-13 and two additional lettered gates C & D) and three parking slots. It was designed by the Phoenix architectural firm, Weaver & Drover and opened in 1962. This terminal includes a mural by French-American artist Paul CozePaul Coze
Paul Coze was a French-American anthropologist, artist, and writer, most notable as a French authority on Native Americans, and for his public art in the 1960s....
. In November 2006, a Military and Veterans Hospitality Room, sponsored by the Phoenix Military and Veterans Commission, was opened in Terminal 2.
Terminal 3
Terminal 4 (Barry M. Goldwater Terminal)
Terminal 4 has more than 90 gates, divided into seven satellite concourses connected behind security. Three northern concourses (gates A1-A14, A17-A30, B1-B14) serve US Airways and US Airways Express exclusively. The northeastern concourse "B" houses the international gates (B23-B28). The three southern concourses (gates C1-C10, C11-C20, D1-D8) serve Southwest Airlines exclusively. Terminal 4 handles about 80% of the traffic at the airport.Airlines and destinations
British Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
provides the airport's only nonstop service outside of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
to London-Heathrow
London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...
, as well as the only passenger flights on Boeing 747
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
involving the airport (America West
America West Airlines
America West Airlines corporate offices were in Tempe, Arizona and the main hub was at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The airline became part of the US Airways Group after a merger in 2005....
once operated Boeing 747's to Hawaii and Japan from Sky Harbor). US Airways and Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. is a major airline of the United States. It is the largest airline based in the State of Hawai'i, and is the 11th largest commercial airline in the country. Based in Honolulu CDP, City and County of Honolulu, the airline operates its main hub at Honolulu International...
offer non-stop service outside the Continental United States to Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. US Airways and Aeroméxico Connect offer non-stop service to cities in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and US Airways, Air Canada
Air Canada
Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...
, and WestJet
WestJet
WestJet Airlines Ltd. is a Canadian low-cost carrier that provides scheduled and charter air service to 71 destinations in Canada, the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean. Founded in 1996, WestJet is currently the second largest Canadian air carrier, behind Air Canada, operating an average of...
offer non-stop service to parts of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, while US Airways alone, offers non-stop service to parts of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
.
- Note: All International arrivals (except flights with customs preclearanceUnited States border preclearanceThe United States operates border preclearance facilities at a number of ports and airports in foreign countries. They are staffed and operated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. Travelers pass through Immigration and Customs, Public Health, and Department of Agriculture inspections...
) are handled at Terminal 4, Concourse B.
A: AirTran Airways moved to Terminal 4, Concourse C on August 2.
Statistics
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denver, CO Denver International Airport Denver International Airport , often referred to as DIA, is an airport in Denver, Colorado. By land size, at , it is the largest international airport in the United States, and the third largest international airport in the world after King Fahd International Airport and Montréal-Mirabel... |
917,000 | Continental, Frontier, Southwest, United, US Airways |
| 2 | Las Vegas, NV McCarran International Airport McCarran International Airport is the principal commercial airport serving Las Vegas and Clark County, Nevada, United States. The airport is located five miles south of the central business district of Las Vegas, in the unincorporated area of Paradise in Clark County. It covers an area of and... |
762,000 | Southwest, US Airways |
| 3 | Los Angeles, CA Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport is the primary airport serving the Greater Los Angeles Area, the second-most populated metropolitan area in the United States. It is most often referred to by its IATA airport code LAX, with the letters pronounced individually... |
704,000 | American Eagle, Delta, Southwest, United, US Airways |
| 4 | San Diego, CA San Diego International Airport San Diego International Airport , sometimes referred to as Lindbergh Field, is a public airport located northwest of the central business district of San Diego, California and from the Mexico – United States border at Tijuana, Mexico... |
660,000 | Southwest, US Airways |
| 5 | Seattle/Tacoma, WA Seattle-Tacoma International Airport The Seattle–Tacoma International Airport , also known as Sea–Tac Airport or Sea–Tac , is an American airport located in SeaTac, Washington, at the intersections of State Routes 99 and 509 and 518, about west of Interstate 5... |
612,000 | Alaska, Southwest, US Airways |
| 6 | Chicago, IL (O'Hare) O'Hare International Airport Chicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop... |
605,000 | American, United, US Airways |
| 7 | Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN |
604,000 | Delta, Southwest, Sun Country, US Airways |
| 8 | Salt Lake City, UT Salt Lake City International Airport Salt Lake City International Airport is a major public airport in Utah. A joint civil-military facility, it is located in western Salt Lake City, approximately four miles from the central business district... |
576,000 | Delta, Southwest, US Airways |
| 9 | Dallas/Fort Worth, TX |
574,000 | American, US Airways |
| 10 | Atlanta, GA Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport , known locally as Atlanta Airport, Hartsfield Airport, and Hartsfield–Jackson, is located seven miles south of the central business district of Atlanta, Georgia, United States... |
573,000 | AirTran, Delta, US Airways |
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San José del Cabo, Mexico Los Cabos International Airport Los Cabos International Airport is the seventh busiest airport in Mexico, located at San José del Cabo, Baja California Sur, Mexico. The airport serves Los Cabos area: San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas. This airport has three terminals with 4 concourses... |
261,365 | US Airways |
| 2 | Puerto Vallarta, Mexico Lic. Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport Licenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport is an international airport located at Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco in Mexico. Located at the Pacific Ocean coast, it receives thousands of tourists all year. It handled 2,645,300 passengers in 2009 and 2,735,300 in 2010... |
189,535 | US Airways |
| 3 | London, United Kingdom (Heathrow) |
171,024 | British Airways |
| 4 | Guadalajara, Mexico Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla International Airport Guadalajara International Airport , also known as Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla International Airport . It opened in 1966 and is located 16 km south of the city centre of Guadalajara. In 2010, the airport handled 6,953,900 passengers, representing a 7.8% increase from 2009... |
117,249 | US Airways |
| 5 | Mexico City, Mexico Mexico City International Airport Benito Juárez International Airport , in Venustiano Carranza, one of the sixteen boroughs into which Mexico's Federal District is divided, is a commercial airport that serves Mexico City, the capital of Mexico... |
114,263 | US Airways |
| 6 | Calgary, Canada Calgary International Airport Calgary International Airport, , is the international airport that serves Calgary, Alberta, Canada and the surrounding region; it is situated approximately northeast of downtown Calgary... |
113,850 | Air Canada, US Airways, WestJet |
| 7 | Cancún, Mexico Cancún International Airport Cancún International Airport is located in Cancún, Quintana Roo, on the Caribbean coast of Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. It is Mexico's second busiest airport, after Mexico City International Airport in Mexico City, but the biggest in Mexico and Latin America for International passengers... |
113,333 | US Airways |
| 8 | Toronto, Canada Toronto Pearson International Airport Toronto Pearson International Airport is an international airport serving Toronto, Ontario, Canada; its metropolitan area; and the Golden Horseshoe, an urban agglomeration that is home to 8.1 million people – approximately 25% of Canada's population... |
113,150 | Air Canada |
| 9 | Mazatlán, Mexico General Rafael Buelna International Airport General Rafael Buelna International Airport , also known as Mazatlán International Airport, is located in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico. This airport is the most important in Sinaloa for its international operations, and second to Culiacan International Airport for its domestic operations. It has one... |
97,209 | US Airways |
| 10 | Vancouver, Canada Vancouver International Airport Vancouver International Airport is located on Sea Island in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, about from Downtown Vancouver. In 2010 it was the second busiest airport in Canada by aircraft movements and passengers , behind Toronto Pearson International Airport, with non-stop flights daily to... |
92,550 | US Airways, WestJet |
Sky Harbor has an average of 1,232 aircraft operations per day.
| Commercial | Air Taxi | GA Transient | Military |
|---|---|---|---|
| 990 | 174 | 60 | 7 |
There are 75 aircraft based at Sky Harbor.
| Single-Engine | Multi-Engine | Jet | Helicopter | Military |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 14 | 23 | 9 | 8 |
Other services
- Cutter Aviation (Fixed-Base Operator, General Aviation Services and Air Charter at Sky Harbor)
- Swift AirSwift AirSwift Air is an American airline based in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. It operates a fleet of business and commercial jets available for charter and private use. Its main base is Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. Not to be confused with Swift Air Malawi...
(Operates cargo and passenger charters out of Sky Harbor)
Cargo terminal
20% of Sky Harbor's cargo is shipped through individual passenger airlines and 80% is shipped via the following:- ABX AirABX AirABX Air, Inc., formerly Airborne Express, is a cargo airline headquartered at Wilmington Air Park in unincorporated Clinton County, Ohio, United States, near the City of Wilmington. ABX Air operates scheduled, ad hoc charter and ACMI freight services. It also provides flight support services and...
- AmeriflightAmeriflightAmeriflight LLC is an American cargo airline with its headquarters in Hangar 1 on the grounds of Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, California. It is the largest United States FAA Part 135 cargo carrier, operating scheduled and contract cargo services to destinations in 30 US states, Canada, Mexico, and...
- Astar Air CargoAstar Air CargoASTAR Air Cargo is an American cargo airline based in Miami, Florida, USA. It operates regularly scheduled cargo charter services to over 34 US airports and nine international airports, as well as worldwide charter freight services. It provides air freight services to six domestic and foreign...
- Capital Cargo International AirlinesCapital Cargo International AirlinesCapital Cargo International Airlines, Inc. is a cargo airline based in Orlando, Florida, USA. It provides on-demand and wet lease aircraft charter. Its main base is Orlando International Airport. It is owned by the Air Transport Services Group .- History :...
- Empire AirlinesEmpire AirlinesEmpire Airlines is a charter and cargo airline based in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, USA. It operates over 120 scheduled and charter cargo flights a day in 18 US states and Canada. Its main base is Coeur d'Alene Airport with a hub at Spokane International Airport....
- FedEx Express
- FedEx Feeder operated by Corporate AirCorporate AirCorporate Air is a airline based in Billings, Montana, United States. It was established in 1981 and operates primarily domestic scheduled cargo services, Feeder service on behalf of FedEx Express, as well as the United States Postal Service...
- Swift AirSwift AirSwift Air is an American airline based in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. It operates a fleet of business and commercial jets available for charter and private use. Its main base is Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. Not to be confused with Swift Air Malawi...
- UPS AirlinesUPS AirlinesUPS Airlines is an American cargo airline owned by United Parcel Service Inc. . The company is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. Its home airport is located at Louisville International Airport...
* Sky Harbor's cargo terminal is located on the southwestern end of the airport near the Medevac
MEDEVAC
Medical evacuation, often termed Medevac or Medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to the wounded being evacuated from the battlefield or to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of an accident to receiving medical facilities using...
and Air Evac
Air Evac (airline)
AIR EVAC ARIZONA is a wholly owned subsidiary of Petroleum Helicopters, Inc. PHI Air Medical, is a Medevac operator that provides services across Arizona, United States, Canada, Mexico. A provider of 80 helicopters, Air Evac also uses five King Air B200 airplanes for long range stable emergencies....
terminal.
PHX Sky Train
- The new Phoenix Sky Train is an automated people-mover, much like other airports, that will, by 2020, transport Sky Harbor passengers from the 44th Street and Washington Light Rail station to Sky Harbor's East Economy Parking lot, through all three terminals, then on to the Rental Car Center just west of the airport.
- Phase one, currently underway; will run from the 44th Street and Washington Light Rail station, to East Economy Parking and on to Terminal 4. This phase is scheduled to be completed in 2013.
- Phase 1A will shuttle passengers to terminal 3 and a walkway to terminal 2. Phase 1A is scheduled to be completed in 2015.
- Phase two will transport passengers to the Rental Car Center. Phase two is not expected to be completed anytime prior to 2020.
- Sky Harbor is the first airport in the world to have a Train track high enough for a Boeing 747Boeing 747The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
to pass underneath, standing above Taxiway R at 100 feet (30 meters).
Info: http://www.skyharbor.com/about-sky-harbor/automated-train.html, http://www.skyharbor.com/about-sky-harbor/phx-sky-train-facts.html, http://skyharbor.com/pressreleases/SkyTrainStage1a.html
Other projects
- A new 33 gate Terminal west of the current Terminal 2 *scheduled to be built after the conclusion of the Sky Train; when airlines demand warrants*
- Sky Harbor's southern-most runway (7R/25L) was fitted with three new safety features in October, 2010:
- Installation of runway status lights warning pilots of unsafe crossing.
- Two new runway exits.
- An extension of the runway's safety area in the event an airplane over-runs the runway.
Info: http://www.skyharbor.com/about-sky-harbor/current-and-future-projects.html
Airline lounges
- Terminal 2:
- United AirlinesUnited AirlinesUnited Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
Red Carpet Club
- United Airlines
- Terminal 4:
- British AirwaysBritish AirwaysBritish Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
Executive Club Lounge - US AirwaysUS AirwaysUS Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
Club (3 locations - Concourses A1, A2, and B1)
- British Airways
Incidents and accidents involving Sky Harbor
- On November 15, 1964; Bonanza Air Lines Flight 114Bonanza Air Lines Flight 114Bonanza Air Lines Flight 114 was a Fairchild F-27 turboprop airliner flying out of Phoenix, Arizona to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada, on the evening of November 15, 1964....
, a Fairchild Hiller FH-227Fairchild Hiller FH-227The Fairchild F-27 and Fairchild Hiller FH-227 were versions of the Fokker F27 Friendship twin-engined turboprop passenger aircraft manufactured under license by Fairchild Hiller in the United States...
, flying from Phoenix to Las VegasMcCarran International AirportMcCarran International Airport is the principal commercial airport serving Las Vegas and Clark County, Nevada, United States. The airport is located five miles south of the central business district of Las Vegas, in the unincorporated area of Paradise in Clark County. It covers an area of and...
crashed into the side of a hill in open desert 10 miles (16 km) southwest of Las VegasLas Vegas, NevadaLas Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
. All aboard (26 passengers and 3 crew) died on impact when the plane exploded.
- On August 16, 1987, Northwest Airlines flight 255Northwest Airlines Flight 255Northwest Airlines Flight 255 was a flight that originated at MBS International Airport in Saginaw, Michigan, and was scheduled to terminate at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California, with intermediate stops at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport in Romulus, Michigan, near Detroit,...
, a McDonnell Douglas MD82 flying from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County AirportDetroit Metropolitan Wayne County AirportDetroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport , usually called Detroit Metro Airport, Metro Airport locally, or simply DTW, is a major international airport covering in Romulus, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. It is Michigan's busiest airport....
in Detroit, MIDetroit, MichiganDetroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
to John Wayne AirportJohn Wayne AirportJohn Wayne Airport is an airport in an unincorporated area in Orange County, California, with its mailing address in the city of Santa Ana, which is also the county seat, hence the International Air Transport Association airport code. The main entrance to the airport is off of MacArthur Blvd in...
in Orange County, CAOrange County, CaliforniaOrange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
, with an intermediate stop at Sky Harbor, crashed on take-off in DetroitDetroit, MichiganDetroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
killing all but one passenger on board.
- On January 5, 1999, Miami Air InternationalMiami Air InternationalMiami Air International is an American charter airline based in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It operates worldwide passenger charter flights for diverse groups including cruise operators, professional sports teams and the United States military...
, a Boeing 727-225ABoeing 727The 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...
headed for Nashville, TNNashville International AirportNashville International Airport is a joint civil-military airport in southeastern Nashville, Tennessee. The IATA Airport Code BNA is derived from the early name of the facility—Berry Field, NAshville. Berry Field was the name of the airport until 1988, when the name was changed to reflect...
took off with the rear cargo door unlatched. The cargo door opened during takeoff, therefore; the flight crew declared an emergency and landed without incident. No injuries occurred.
- On August 28, 2002, America West Airlines flight 794, an Airbus A320 veered off the side of the runway onto the dirt infield and lost its nose gear due to the pilot failing to maintain directional control. Some passengers sustained minor injuries.
- On July 10, 2009, British AirwaysBritish AirwaysBritish Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
flight 288, a Boeing 747-400 bound for London Heathrow AirportLondon Heathrow AirportLondon Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...
filled with smoke just before gate push-back, causing all passengers and crew to evacuate the plane. A few days later, a British Airways maintenance crew was sent to Phoenix to investigate the problem. No problems were ever revealed. No serious injuries or fatalities occurred.
- On July 18, 2009, a US AirwaysUS AirwaysUS Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
Airbus A319 bound for Las VegasMcCarran International AirportMcCarran International Airport is the principal commercial airport serving Las Vegas and Clark County, Nevada, United States. The airport is located five miles south of the central business district of Las Vegas, in the unincorporated area of Paradise in Clark County. It covers an area of and...
had to turn around and land back in Phoenix because the aircraft's landing gear bay doors wouldn't shut, causing hydraulic issues. There were no injuries.
- On September 24, 2010, a US AirwaysUS AirwaysUS Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
Airbus A320, arriving in Phoenix from Dallas-Fort Worth, TX, made an emergency landing at Sky Harbor because of a front tire blow-out just after take-off in Dallas. The plane landed smoothly at Sky Harbor, was pulled to the gate and no injuries occurred.
- On September 24, 2010; an American AirlinesAmerican AirlinesAmerican Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
McDonnell Douglas MD82 flight 806, from Phoenix to Dallas-Fort Worth, TX had an engine failure during take-off roll and aborted the departure, which in turn, closed the airport's runway 25R; allowing the airport to use only one runway for departures and arrivals, as one runway was already closed for maintenance. There were no injuries.
- On Thursday, December 30, 2010, Delta Air LinesDelta Air LinesDelta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
flight 1921, a Boeing 757-300 flying from Detroit, MIDetroit Metropolitan Wayne County AirportDetroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport , usually called Detroit Metro Airport, Metro Airport locally, or simply DTW, is a major international airport covering in Romulus, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. It is Michigan's busiest airport....
to Phoenix was forced to make an emergency landing in Colorado Springs, COColorado Springs AirportColorado Springs Airport , also known as the City of Colorado Springs Municipal Airport, is a city-owned, public-use, joint civil-military airport located six miles southeast of the central business district of Colorado Springs, a city in El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the second...
due to an engine problem recognized by a light in the cockpitCockpitA cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft, from which a pilot controls the aircraft. Most modern cockpits are enclosed, except on some small aircraft, and cockpits on large airliners are also physically separated from the cabin...
. Because one of the plane's engines was out, extreme pressure was applied to the brakes once the plane landed causing a fire to break out in the wheel well of the plane. The plane did, however, land safely; emergency exit inflatable slides were deployed and all passengers and crew were evacuated onto the tarmac. Some passengers sustained minor injuries.
- On Friday, April 1, 2011, Southwest AirlinesSouthwest AirlinesSouthwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
flight 812 from Phoenix to Sacramento, CASacramento International AirportSacramento International Airport is a public airport located 10 miles northwest of the central business district of Sacramento, in Sacramento County, California, USA. It is run by Sacramento County...
made an emergency landing in Yuma, AZYuma International AirportYuma International Airport , a shared-use airport together with Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, is located three nautical miles south of the central business district of Yuma, a city in Yuma County, Arizona, United States...
after a large hole (about 3 feet wide, 1 foot tall) appeared in the Boeing 737-300's fuselage about 35 minutes into flight. The pilot immediately descended the plane rapidly to avoid too much pressure loss. The plane landed with no incident and only one minor injury was recorded in someone's inner ear due to the rapid descent. An investigative crew was scheduled to arrive the following Saturday to investigate the issue.
Ground transportation
As of June 2010, Valley Metro route 13 serves the airport terminals. The METRO Light RailMETRO Light Rail (Phoenix)
Metro Light Rail is a 32 km light rail line operating in the U.S. state of Arizona. Part of the Valley Metro public transit system, it serves the cities of Phoenix, Tempe, and Mesa. Construction began in March 2005; operation started December 27, 2008...
has a stop at the nearby Washington at 44th Street station
Washington at 44th Street (Valley Metro Rail station)
44th Street and Washington Street is a station on METRO, the light rail line in Phoenix, Arizona, USA.-Ridership:-Notable places nearby:* Sky Harbor International Airport* Pueblo Grande Museum...
, and free shuttle service connect the station with the Airport terminals themselves. Routes 1, 3, 13 and 44 serve the light rail station. In the future, the Sky Harbor Airport Automated People Mover will take over this function.
Military facilities
Sky Harbor Air National Guard Base
Sky Harbor Air National Guard Base is the home base of the Arizona Air National Guard 161st Air Refueling Wing.-Overview:Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is owned and operated by the City of Phoenix and is home to the Arizona Air National Guard 161st Air Refueling Wing, co-located at the...
and its host wing, the 161st Air Refueling Wing
161st Air Refueling Wing
The United States Air Force's 161st Air Refueling Wing is an Air National Guard aerial refueling unit located at Sky Harbor International Airport, Arizona.-History:...
(161 ARW), an Air Mobility Command
Air Mobility Command
Air Mobility Command is a Major Command of the U.S. Air Force. AMC is headquartered at Scott AFB, Illinois, east of St. Louis....
(AMC)-gained unit of the Arizona Air National Guard
Arizona Air National Guard
The Arizona Air National Guard is the branch of the United States Air National Guard operating within the state of Arizona. It was founded by Barry Goldwater, and was integrated two years before President Truman's military integration order.-Units:...
. One of two flying units in the Arizona ANG, the 161 ARW currently flies the KC-135R Stratotanker
KC-135 Stratotanker
The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an aerial refueling military aircraft. It and the Boeing 707 airliner were developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype. The KC-135 was the US Air Force's first jet-powered refueling tanker and replaced the KC-97 Stratotanker...
aircraft. In addition to its domestic role as a National Guard unit, answering to the Governor of Arizona, the 161 ARW also performs both a stateside and overseas role as a USAF organization, supporting air refueling and air mobility missions worldwide.
Located on the south side of the airport, the current Sky Harbor ANGB is a comparatively new facility. As a result of growth and on-going expansion programs at PHX, a new ANG base was planned at the airport to replace a smaller, outmoded facility that stood in the way of airport construction. Plans were finally approved in 1995 and the new base was built during the latter part of that decade. The current Sky Harbor ANGB includes over 275000 square feet (25,548.3 m²) of facilities, pavement, and infrastructure and is one of the most modern facilities of its kind in the Air National Guard.
Over 1000 Air National Guard
Air National Guard
The Air National Guard , often referred to as the Air Guard, is the air force militia organized by each of the fifty U.S. states, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia of the United States. Established under Title 10 and...
personnel are assigned to the 161 ARW, consisting of a combination of full-time Active Guard and Reserve (AGR) and Air Reserve Technician (ART) personnel, as well as part-time "traditional" air national guardsmen.
External links
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, official site
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) at Arizona DOT airport directory
- Phoenix Military & Veterans Hospitality Room
- Sky Harbor Airport Parking
