William P. Hobby Airport
Encyclopedia
William P. Hobby Airport is a public airport
in Houston, Texas
, located 7 miles (11.3 km) from Downtown Houston
. The airport covers 1304 acres (527.7 ha) and has four runway
s. Hobby Airport is Houston's oldest commercial airport and was the city's primary air terminal until the opening of Houston Intercontinental Airport (now George Bush Intercontinental Airport
) in 1969. Hobby serves the city as a secondary airport handling domestic service and is a regional center for corporate and private aviation. The airport is home of the 1940 Air Terminal Museum
which houses a collection
in the original art deco building which served as the first terminal for passenger flight in Houston. It currently serves as a focus city
for Southwest Airlines
.
Hobby Airport began service in 1927 as a private landing field in a 600 acres (242.8 ha) pasture known as W.T. Carter Field. The airfield was served by Braniff and Eastern Airlines. The site was acquired by the City of Houston and was named Houston Municipal Airport in 1937. The airport was renamed Howard R. Hughes Airport in 1938. Howard Hughes
was responsible for several improvements to the airport, including its first control tower, built in 1938.
The airport's name was changed back to Houston Municipal because Hughes was living at the time and regulations did not allow federal improvement funds for an airport named after a living person.
The City of Houston opened and dedicated a new air terminal and hangar in 1940.
In 1950, Pan Am
initiated a Houston–Mexico City flight. In 1954, a new and expanded terminal building was opened to support the 53,640 airline flights that carried 910,047 passengers. The airport was renamed to Houston International Airport the same year.
The April 1957 Official Airline Guide shows 26 weekday departures on Eastern, 20 Braniff (plus four departures a week to/from South America), 9 Continental, 9 Delta, 9 Trans-Texas, 4 National, 2 Pan American and 1 American. There were nonstops to New York and Washington, but not to Chicago or Denver or anywhere west of there. Later in 1957 KLM started DC-7C flights to Amsterdam
via Montreal; they later moved to Houston Intercontinental Airport (now George Bush Intercontinental Airport
), where they remain today.
In 1967, the airport was renamed after former Texas
governor William P. Hobby
.
Houston Intercontinental Airport (now George Bush Intercontinental Airport
) was built in 1969 because of expansion limitations at Hobby. All commercial aviation operations at Hobby were moved to Houston Intercontinental. The Civil Aeronautics Administration recommended years earlier that Houston begin to plan to replace Hobby, since the airport was inadequate for the new aviation travel market.
Hobby was reopened to commercial aviation in 1971. In 2008 the airport handled 8.8 million passengers http://www.fly2houston.com/houAbout. Only US destinations and international destinations with border preclearance are served.
Hobby Airport handles domestic service for six commercial airlines and is an international point of entry for general aviation activity between Texas and Mexico
. Hobby has multiple low cost carrier operations, as opposed to Bush Intercontinental Airport's hub operation with Continental Airlines
. As of March 2011, from Hobby Airport Southwest has 127 daily flights to 30 cities, and it uses 17 gates at the airport.
In a survey among travelers in the United States by J.D. Power and Associates
for an Aviation Week traveler satisfaction report, passengers have selected William P. Hobby Airport as the number one airport in the country for customer satisfaction in 2006 and again in 2007. Hobby ranked #2 in 2008.
Southwest Airlines
operated more than 80 percent of the total enplanements at Hobby in 2005 and an average of 10 flights per day per gate. Southwest Airlines plans to maintain Houston as a focus city
and is looking to serve new markets from Hobby.
Developments at Hobby in the 2000s include a new concourse to serve Southwest Airlines and the upgrade of Runway 4/22. In May 2009, a terminal renovation project was announced that will update the ticket counters, lobby area, and baggage claim.
The Houston Air Route Traffic Control Center
serves as the airport's ARTCC
.
The terminal includes an interfaith
chapel
.
, or METRO, stops at Curbzone 13.
Artists Paul Kittleson and Carter Ernst created "Take-off," a stainless steel bird's nest
showing interwoven branches created using industrial materials. The nest is 30 foot (0.009144 km) wide and is held 20 feet (6.1 m) above the ground by three steel tree trunks. The nest is depicted floating above a subtropical garden. The artists created the work to depict the spirit of Houston's industrial force along the coastal plain
. "Take-off" is located at Hobby's Broadway Street entrance.
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...
in Houston, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, located 7 miles (11.3 km) from Downtown Houston
Downtown Houston
Downtown Houston is the largest business district of Houston, Texas, United States. Downtown Houston, the city's central business district, contains the headquarters of many prominent companies. There is an extensive network of pedestrian tunnels and skywalks connecting the buildings of the district...
. The airport covers 1304 acres (527.7 ha) and has four runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
s. Hobby Airport is Houston's oldest commercial airport and was the city's primary air terminal until the opening of Houston Intercontinental Airport (now George Bush Intercontinental Airport
George Bush Intercontinental Airport
George Bush Intercontinental Airport, is a Class B international airport in Houston, Texas, serving the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area, the sixth-largest metropolitan area in the United States. Located north of Downtown Houston between Interstate 45 and U.S. Highway 59...
) in 1969. Hobby serves the city as a secondary airport handling domestic service and is a regional center for corporate and private aviation. The airport is home of the 1940 Air Terminal Museum
1940 Air Terminal Museum
The 1940 Air Terminal Museum is a museum located in Houston, Texas, United States at William P. Hobby Airport. Collections are housed in the original art deco building which served as the first terminal for passenger flight in Houston...
which houses a collection
Collection (museum)
A museum is distinguished by a collection of often unique objects that forms the core of its activities for exhibitions, education, research, etc. This differentiates it from an archive or library, where the contents may be more paper-based, replaceable and less exhibition oriented...
in the original art deco building which served as the first terminal for passenger flight in Houston. It currently serves as a focus city
Focus city
In the airline industry, a focus city is a location that is not a hub, but from which the airline has non-stop flights to several destinations other than its hubs...
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,...
.
History
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...
was responsible for several improvements to the airport, including its first control tower, built in 1938.
The airport's name was changed back to Houston Municipal because Hughes was living at the time and regulations did not allow federal improvement funds for an airport named after a living person.
The City of Houston opened and dedicated a new air terminal and hangar in 1940.
In 1950, Pan Am
Pan American World Airways
Pan American World Airways, commonly known as Pan Am, was the principal and largest international air carrier in the United States from 1927 until its collapse on December 4, 1991...
initiated a Houston–Mexico City flight. In 1954, a new and expanded terminal building was opened to support the 53,640 airline flights that carried 910,047 passengers. The airport was renamed to Houston International Airport the same year.
The April 1957 Official Airline Guide shows 26 weekday departures on Eastern, 20 Braniff (plus four departures a week to/from South America), 9 Continental, 9 Delta, 9 Trans-Texas, 4 National, 2 Pan American and 1 American. There were nonstops to New York and Washington, but not to Chicago or Denver or anywhere west of there. Later in 1957 KLM started DC-7C flights to Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
via Montreal; they later moved to Houston Intercontinental Airport (now George Bush Intercontinental Airport
George Bush Intercontinental Airport
George Bush Intercontinental Airport, is a Class B international airport in Houston, Texas, serving the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area, the sixth-largest metropolitan area in the United States. Located north of Downtown Houston between Interstate 45 and U.S. Highway 59...
), where they remain today.
In 1967, the airport was renamed after former Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
governor William P. Hobby
William P. Hobby
William Pettus Hobby was the publisher of the Houston Post and the 27th Governor of the U.S. state of Texas from 1917 to 1921....
.
Houston Intercontinental Airport (now George Bush Intercontinental Airport
George Bush Intercontinental Airport
George Bush Intercontinental Airport, is a Class B international airport in Houston, Texas, serving the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area, the sixth-largest metropolitan area in the United States. Located north of Downtown Houston between Interstate 45 and U.S. Highway 59...
) was built in 1969 because of expansion limitations at Hobby. All commercial aviation operations at Hobby were moved to Houston Intercontinental. The Civil Aeronautics Administration recommended years earlier that Houston begin to plan to replace Hobby, since the airport was inadequate for the new aviation travel market.
Hobby was reopened to commercial aviation in 1971. In 2008 the airport handled 8.8 million passengers http://www.fly2houston.com/houAbout. Only US destinations and international destinations with border preclearance are served.
Operations
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...
. Hobby has multiple low cost carrier operations, as opposed to Bush Intercontinental Airport's hub operation 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...
. As of March 2011, from Hobby Airport Southwest has 127 daily flights to 30 cities, and it uses 17 gates at the airport.
In a survey among travelers in the United States by J.D. Power and Associates
J.D. Power and Associates
J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services firm founded in 1968 by James David Power III. The firm conducts surveys of customer satisfaction, product quality, and buyer behavior for industries ranging from cars to marketing and advertising firms. The firm is best known for...
for an Aviation Week traveler satisfaction report, passengers have selected William P. Hobby Airport as the number one airport in the country for customer satisfaction in 2006 and again in 2007. Hobby ranked #2 in 2008.
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,...
operated more than 80 percent of the total enplanements at Hobby in 2005 and an average of 10 flights per day per gate. Southwest Airlines plans to maintain Houston as a focus city
Focus city
In the airline industry, a focus city is a location that is not a hub, but from which the airline has non-stop flights to several destinations other than its hubs...
and is looking to serve new markets from Hobby.
Developments at Hobby in the 2000s include a new concourse to serve Southwest Airlines and the upgrade of Runway 4/22. In May 2009, a terminal renovation project was announced that will update the ticket counters, lobby area, and baggage claim.
The Houston Air Route Traffic Control Center
Houston Air Route Traffic Control Center
Houston Air Route Traffic Control Center is located at George Bush Intercontinental Airport at 16600 JFK Boulevard, Houston, Texas, United States 77032...
serves as the airport's ARTCC
Area Control Center
In air traffic control, an Area Control Center , also known as a Center, is a facility responsible for controlling instrument flight rules aircraft en route in a particular volume of airspace at high altitudes between airport approaches and departures...
.
Terminal
William P. Hobby Airport consists of one Central Concourse terminal with 26 gates, all but 7 used by Southwest.The terminal includes an interfaith
Interfaith
The term interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels...
chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
.
Airlines and destinations
Top destinations
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Dallas, TX |
559,000 | Southwest |
| 2 |  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... |
352,000 | AirTran, Delta |
| 3 |  New Orleans, LALouis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport is a Class B public use international airport in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is owned by the City of New Orleans and is located 10 nautical miles west of its central business district. The airport's address is 900 Airline Drive... |
270,000 | Southwest |
| 4 |  Chicago, IL |
212,000 | Southwest |
| 5 |  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... |
206,000 | Frontier, Southwest |
| 6 |  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... |
177,000 | Southwest |
| 7 |  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... |
159,000 | Southwest |
| 8 |  Orlando, FLOrlando International Airport Orlando International Airport is a major international airport located southeast of the central business district of Orlando. It is the second busiest airport in Florida, after Miami International Airport... |
156,000 | Southwest |
| 9 | Harlingen, TX Valley International Airport Valley International Airport is an airport located in northeast Harlingen, Texas, United States. The airport has three runways and is also known as Rio Grande Valley International Airport... |
155,000 | Southwest |
| 10 |  Baltimore, MD |
147,000 | Southwest |
Bus
The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, TexasMetropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Texas
The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County is a major public transportation agency based in Houston . It operates bus, light rail, future commuter rail, and paratransit service in the city as well as most of Harris County...
, or METRO, stops at Curbzone 13.
Courtesy vans
Courtesy vans are operated by various hotels and motels in and around the Houston Area. There are courtesy telephones in the baggage claim areas to request pick-up for most hotels and motels.Shuttle service
Shared-ride shuttle service is available at HOU. SuperShuttle takes reservations and picks-up travelers at their homes or businesses and transports them to the airport and vice versa. Additionally, regularly scheduled bus and shuttle service is provided by various carriers to locations from HOU to areas outside the Houston Metropolitan area and to Galveston and College Station. These services can be found in the baggage claim area.Artwork
There are several pieces located in and on the airport grounds:Artists Paul Kittleson and Carter Ernst created "Take-off," a stainless steel bird's nest
Bird's nest
Bird's nest may refer to:*Bird nest*Bird's nest soup, delicacy made from the salivary excretions of the swiftlet*Seafood birdsnest, southern Chinese dish made of taroPlants and fungi*Bird's nest plant, carrot...
showing interwoven branches created using industrial materials. The nest is 30 foot (0.009144 km) wide and is held 20 feet (6.1 m) above the ground by three steel tree trunks. The nest is depicted floating above a subtropical garden. The artists created the work to depict the spirit of Houston's industrial force along the coastal plain
Economy of Houston
The economy of Houston is primarily based on the energy industry , however, biomedical research and aerospace are a large sectors of the city's economy. The Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown area Gross Metropolitan Product in 2005 was $308.7 billion, up 5.4 percent from 2004 in constant dollars...
. "Take-off" is located at Hobby's Broadway Street entrance.
Accidents and incidents
The following involved flights departing or arriving at the airport:- 1959: Braniff Flight 542Braniff Flight 542Braniff Airways Flight 542, a Lockheed L-188 Electra, registration N9705C, was a scheduled domestic flight from Houston, Texas, bound for New York with scheduled stops in Dallas and Washington, D.C....
crashed in Buffalo, TexasBuffalo, TexasThis article is about the city in Leon County, Texas. A similarly named place exists in Henderson County, Texas, the settlement of John H. Reagan.Buffalo is a city in Leon County, Texas, United States...
, on September 29, 1959. It was en route to Dallas, TexasDallas, TexasDallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, from Houston, TexasHouston, TexasHouston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
. Twenty-nine passengers and five crew members died in the crash. The plane, a turboprop Lockheed L-188 ElectraLockheed L-188 ElectraThe Lockheed Model 188 Electra is an American turboprop airliner built by Lockheed. First flying in 1957, it was the first large turboprop airliner produced in the United States. Initial sales were good, but after two fatal crashes which prompted an expensive modification program to fix a design...
with the registration number N9705C, was eleven days old when it crashed. The Civil Aeronautics Board stated that the probable cause was "structural failure of the left wing resulting from forces generated by undampened propeller whirl mode." - 1968: Braniff Flight 352Braniff Flight 352Braniff International Airways Flight 352 was a scheduled domestic flight from William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas, United States to Dallas, Texas; on May 3, 1968 a Lockheed L-188A Electra flying on the route, registration N9707C, broke up in mid air and crashed near Dawson, Texas after...
: Broke into pieces during flight in a thunderstorm on Houston-Dallas route
External links
- Houston Airport System — William P. Hobby Airport
- Houston Airport System — Houston Airports Today television show
- The 1940 Air Terminal Museum at William P. Hobby Airport
- Gonzalez, J. R. "1941 photos show scenes at Houston Municipal Airport." Houston ChronicleHouston ChronicleThe Houston Chronicle is the largest daily newspaper in Texas, USA, headquartered in the Houston Chronicle Building in Downtown Houston. , it is the ninth-largest newspaper by circulation in the United States...
. May 10, 2010.