Dictionary Thesaurus Word Dynamo Quotes Reference Translator Spanish

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. It is currently the only airport with commercial airline service in the Wasatch Front and its surrounding counties and is the closest commercial airport for more than 2.5 million people living in the area.

The airport is the second largest hub for Delta Air Lines and Delta Connection carrier SkyWest Airlines with over 350 daily departures, accounting for a 71.36% market share at 2007 year's end. Following Delta and Delta Connection, the remaining of the top five largest carriers serving the airport are Southwest Airlines (13.48 % market share), United Airlines and United Express (3.92% market share), American Airlines (2.77 % market share), and Frontier Airlines (2.14% market share). JetBlue Airways recently surpassed Frontier in number of passengers as the airline continues to expand in Salt Lake City.

A total of 22,029,488 passengers flew through Salt Lake City International Airport in 2007, representing a 2.19 % increase over 2006. The airport currently ranks as the twenty-second busiest airport in the United States in terms of total passengers. There were 422,010 recorded aircraft operations (takeoffs and landings) in 2007, representing approximately 1,156 operations per day. The airport currently ranks fifteenth busiest airport in the United States and nineteenth in the world based on aircraft operations.

As of June 2008, there were over 450 scheduled airline departures per day to 109 non-stop destinations throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico, as well as daily non-stop service to Paris, France. The airport currently has non-stop service to all of its top 45 destinations based on the U.S. Department of Transportation origin and destination survey.

Salt Lake City International ranked number one among U.S. airports in on-time departures and arrivals in 2006 through July 2007 and from January 2008 through July 2008. Salt Lake City International also had the fewest flight cancellations among U.S. airports.

History

In 1911, a site for an air field was chosen in a location known as Basque Flats, named for Spanish-French sheep herders who worked the fields in the then desolate area of the Salt Lake Valley. A cinder-covered landing strip was created, far better than the small fields at the Utah State Fairpark, which had previously been used by aircraft visiting the city. The Great International Aviation Carnival was held the same year and brought aviation pioneers representing Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company and a team representing the Wright Brothers to Salt Lake City. World-famous aviator Glenn H. Curtiss brought his newly-invented Seaplane to the carnival, a type of airplane which had never been demonstrated to the public before. Curtiss took off from the nearby Great Salt Lake, awing the 20,000 spectators and making international headlines.

For several years after its creation, the new field was used for primarily for training and aerobatic flights rather than economic purposes. That would change in 1920, when the United States Postal Service began air mail service to Salt Lake City. The airport was expanded and hangars and other buildings began to appear. During the same year the airfield was given the name Woodward Field, named for John P. Woodward, a local aviator.

In 1925, the postal service began awarding contracts to private companies. Western Air Express, the first private company to carry U.S. mail, began flying from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles via Las Vegas. Less than one year later, Western Air Express would begin flying passengers along the same route. Western Air Express later evolved into Western Airlines, which operated a large hub in Salt Lake City.

Charles Lindbergh visited Woodward Field in 1927 drawing many spectators to see The Spirit of St. Louis. During the next few years, the airport would gain an additional runway, and would span over 400 acres (1.6 km²). In 1930, the airport was renamed Salt Lake City Municipal Airport.

The first official terminal and airport administration building was built in 1933 at a cost of $52,000. By then, United Airlines had also begun serving Salt Lake City as one of its stops between New York and San Francisco.

As air travel became more popular and the United States Air Force established a base at the airport during World War II, a third runway was added. A new terminal was also needed and work began on the west side of the airport to build Terminal 1, which was dedicated in 1960 after seven years of work and a cost of $8 million. In 1968, the airport was given its current name of Salt Lake City International Airport.

Once airline deregulation occurred in 1978, the need for hub airports became prevalent. Western Airlines, which had ties to Salt Lake City since its inception, naturally chose the airport as one of its hubs and took advantage of its geographical location to connect passengers throughout the country. Terminal 2 was built solely for Western and featured several murals by artist LeConte Stewart.

During the 1980s, the airport saw further expansion to both terminals as well as runway extension. In 1987, Western Airlines merged with Delta Air Lines. Salt Lake City would continue to serve as a major airline hub and would continue to grow.

In 1991, the airport opened a new short-term parking garage. The airport opened a new runway in 1995 along with the International Terminal and E concourse for SkyWest Airlines. A new 328 foot tall control tower, new approach control facility, and a new fire station were opened in 1999.

Concourse E was expanded in 2001 for additional gates. SkyWest Airlines opened its new maintenance hangar and training facility during the same year. In 2002, the airport saw heavy crowds as Salt Lake City welcomed over one million visitors for the Winter Olympics.

Recently, the airport has completed upgrading its main access roads and parking facilities in preparation for a new terminal. Additionally, the airport has completed several minor upgrades to the current airport terminals and concourses including the expansion of baggage claim facilities.

International Service

In addition to domestic flights, Delta Air Lines and Frontier Airlines operate scheduled flights to cities in Canada, Mexico, and France. From 2002 through 2005, AeroMexico offered non-stop service to Hermosillo and Mexico City. Service to Mexico City has since been replaced by Delta Air Lines which has a codeshare agreement with AeroMexico. From 2006 through 2007, Air Canada operated by Air Canada Jazz offered non-stop service to Toronto.

In June 2008, Delta Air Lines began daily non-stop service to Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris, France. This marked the first scheduled transoceanic route from Salt Lake City.

In November 2008, AeroMexico will restart its non-stop service to Mexico City.

Terminals, airlines and destinations

There are two passenger terminals at the airport consisting of five concourses with 90 gates total. The International Terminal has U.S. Customs facilities for arriving international flights. Various stores and restaurants are located throughout the terminals.

Terminal 1

Concourse A

Concourse A has 8 gates: 1-8

American Airlines Gate 1 (Chicago-O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth)
Continental Airlines Gate 6 (Houston-Intercontinental)

Continental Express operated by ExpressJet Airlines (Houston-Intercontinental)

Frontier Airlines Gate 5 (Cancún, Denver)
JetBlue Airways Gate 7 (Las Vegas, Long Beach, New York-JFK, San Diego)
Northwest Airlines Gate 4 (Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul)

Northwest Airlink operated by Compass Airlines (Minneapolis/St. Paul)

US Airways Gate 2 (Phoenix)

US Airways Express operated by Mesa Airlines (Phoenix)

Gates 3 & 8 multi-use

Concourse B

Concourse B has 18 gates: 1-18

Delta Air Lines Gates 1 - 4, 6, 8, 10 - 12 (See also Concourse C)

Delta Connection operated by SkyWest Airlines (See Concourse E)

Southwest Airlines Gates 11, 13 - 18 (Albuquerque, Baltimore/Washington, Boise, Chicago-Midway, Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Oakland, Orlando, Phoenix, Portland (OR), Reno/Tahoe, St. Louis, San Diego, Seattle/Tacoma, Spokane)
United Airlines Gates 5, 7, 9 (Chicago-O'Hare, Denver, San Francisco)

United Express operated by SkyWest Airlines (Chicago-O'Hare, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco)

Terminal 2 - Delta Air Lines

Concourse C

Concourse C has 13 gates: 1-13

Delta Air Lines Gates 1 - 13 (Anchorage, Atlanta, Baltimore/Washington, Boise, Boston, Cancún, Charlotte [seasonal], Chicago-O'Hare, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Cleveland [seasonal], Columbus (OH) [seasonal], Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Detroit, Fairbanks [seasonal], Fort Lauderdale [seasonal], Guadalajara, Honolulu, Houston-Intercontinental [seasonal], Jackson Hole [seasonal], Kahului, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Los Cabos [seasonal], Mexico City, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New Orleans, New York-JFK, New York-LaGuardia [seasonal], Newark, Oakland, Ontario, Orange County, Orlando, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland (OR), Puerto Vallarta, Raleigh/Durham, Reno/Tahoe, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose (CA), Seattle/Tacoma, Spokane, Tampa, Toronto-Pearson [seasonal], Washington-Dulles, Washington-Reagan)

Concourse D

Concourse D has 13 gates: 1-13

AeroMexico (Mexico City) [begins November 13]
Delta Air Lines Gates 1 - 13 (See Concourse C)

Concourse E

Concourse E has 25 gates: 60-85

Delta Air Lines Gates 60-85

Delta Connection operated by SkyWest Airlines (Albuquerque, Arcata/Eureka, Aspen [seasonal], Austin, Billings, Boise, Bozeman, Burbank, Butte, Calgary, Casper, Cedar City, Cleveland [seasonal], Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Cody, Colorado Springs, Columbus (OH) [seasonal], Cranbrook [begins December 17], Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Edmonton, Elko, Eugene, Fresno, Gillette, Grand Junction, Great Falls, Guadalajara, Gunnison-Crested Butte [begins December 17], Hayden/Steamboat Springs [seasonal], Helena, Houston-Intercontinental, Idaho Falls, Jackson Hole, Kalispell, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Lewiston, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Los Cabos, Mazatlán, Medford, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Missoula, Montrose/Telluride [seasonal], Oakland, Oklahoma City, Omaha, Ontario, Orange County, Palm Springs, Pasco, Phoenix, Pocatello, Portland (OR), Puerto Vallarta, Rapid City, Redmond/Bend, Reno/Tahoe, Rock Springs, Sacramento, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose (CA), Santa Barbara, Seattle/Tacoma, Spokane, St. George (UT), St. Louis, Sun Valley, Tucson, Tulsa, Twin Falls, Vancouver, West Yellowstone [seasonal])

International Terminal

This terminal handles all international arrivals except those from airports (mainly in Canada) with US border preclearance. Three gates are used for international arrivals.

Aeroméxico (Mexico City) [begins November 13]
Delta Air Lines (Cancún, Guadalajara, Los Cabos [seasonal], Mexico City, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Puerto Vallarta)

Delta Connection operated by SkyWest Airlines (Cranbrook [begins December 17], Guadalajara, Los Cabos, Mazatlán, Puerto Vallarta)

Frontier Airlines (Cancún)

Other Airport Information

The airport spans over and has four runways. The runways are generally oriented in a NNW/SSE magnetic direction due to consistent prevailing winds in this direction.

Cargo Operations

The airport handled 172,817 metric tonnes of cargo in 2007.

Scheduled Cargo Operators:

Ameriflight
DHL

FedEx Express

FedEx Feeder operated by Corporate Air
FedEx Feeder operated by Empire Airlines

UPS Airlines

General Aviation

Despite being the nineteenth busiest airport in the world in terms of aircraft operations, the airport still maintains a large general aviation presence. In 2007, 19% of aircraft movements at the airport came from general aviation traffic. This is in contrast to most large airports, which encourage general aviation aircraft to use smaller or less busy airports in order to prevent delays to commercial traffic. The airport is able to effectively handle both commercial and general aviation traffic largely in part to the airport's layout and airspace structure. Nearly all general aviation operations are conducted on the east side of the airport, away from commercial traffic. Additionally, smaller and relatively slower general aviation aircraft arrive and depart the airport in ways which generally do not hinder the normal flow of arriving or departing commercial aircraft.

2007 data shows there are 388 general aviation aircraft based at the airport. The airport has two Fixed Base Operators, both located on the east side of the airport. The airport has facilities for Air Ambulance, Law Enforcement, as well as state and federal government aircraft. Additionally, the airport is home to several flight training facilities, including one operated by Westminster College.

Military Facilities

The Utah Air National Guard operates Salt Lake City Air National Guard Base on the east side of the airport. The host wing for the installation is the 151st Air Refueling Wing (151 ARW), an Air Mobility Command (AMC)-gained unit operating the KC-135R Stratotanker.

Additional Facilities

Wingpointe, an 18 hole golf course, is located on the south end of the airport.

Delta Air Lines has a maintenance facility at the airport where heavy-duty maintenance and inspections are performed. Delta also operates a call center for reservations and sales as well as regional corporate offices.

SkyWest Airlines opened a new maintenance and training facility at the airport in 2001 where the company has its largest maintenance base. It is also where training is conducted for pilots, flight attendants, and other employees.

Continental Airlines operates a call center located near the airport.

In addition to the 328 foot tall Air Traffic Control Tower, TRACON is also located on the airport with the Salt Lake Air Route Traffic Control Center located adjacent to the airport. The Salt Lake ARTCC covers the largest geographical area in the continental United States and controls airspace as far north as the Canadian border.

Financial

April 30, 2008 marked a significant date for the airport, as it is now the only airport to be debt free, having retired its remaining bonds, for a payout of nearly US$50 Million. This was done in response to spiking interest rates, but also put the Salt Lake Dept. of Airports in an excellent position for future expansion plans.

Airport Expansion

A revised master plan was released in May 2006 for the airport and is available for the public to view at the airport's website. Future plans call for runway 17/35 to be realigned to more precisely parallel runways 16L/34R and 16R/34L. Plans also call for runway 16L/34R to be lengthened to 15,100 feet. Plans for a fourth parallel runway west of current 16R/34L are also shown but is more than fifteen years away.

In addition to runway reconfigurations, the airport will construct a new terminal and two new concourses. Plans call for a single terminal with an attached concourse consisting of 31 mainline gates and an additional paralleling satellite concourse consisting of 15 mainline gates and 44 regional jet gates. The two concourses would be attached with an underground automated train. The existing terminal and concourses would be demolished and would leave room for additional expansion onto the two new concourses in the future.

Other plans call for a new parking garage and expanded cargo facilities. Construction of a UTA TRAX light rail line from the airport to downtown will begin in Fall 2008.

Notable Incidents

On November 11, 1965, United Airlines Flight 227, operated with a Boeing 727, crashed just short of the runway at Salt Lake City International Airport, killing 43 of the 91 people on board.

On January 15, 1987, SkyWest Airlines Flight 1834, operated with a Fairchild Metro collided with a Mooney aircraft while on final approach to Salt Lake City International Airport. All ten people on board the SkyWest aircraft as well as the student and flight instructor aboard the Mooney were killed.

On August 31, 1988, Delta Air Lines Flight 1141, which was bound for Salt Lake City from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport , crashed after takeoff. Two of seven crew members and twelve of 101 passengers were killed.

In the 1970s a Frontier Airlines flight scheduled to land at the airport is alleged to have accidentally landed at Salt Lake City Municipal Airport II (U42), a smaller airport directly south and with a runway of the same heading as one at the main airport.

Popular culture

The 1974 film Airport 1975 was filmed at Salt Lake City International Airport.

In the 1994 comedy film Dumb and Dumber, Lloyd Christmas, portrayed by Jim Carrey, is seen running to gate B2 and falling off the jetway at Salt Lake City International Airport.

Portions of the 2006 film Unaccompanied Minors were filmed at Salt Lake City International Airport's International Terminal, as well as the Salt Lake City Library.