Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (IATA: PHX, ICAO: KPHX, FAA LID: PHX) is a civil-military public airport 3 miles (5 km) southeast of downtown Phoenix, in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. It is Arizona's largest and busiest airport, and among the largest commercial airports in the United States. PHX covers 3,400 acres (1,376 ha).
In 2016, PHX served 43,383,528 passengers, making it the thirty-fourth busiest airport in the world. It handles more than 1,200 aircraft operations a day, 110,000 passengers and more than 800 tons of cargo. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records show that the airport had 20,169,926 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2012 and 20,211,799 in 2011.
The airport serves as the sixth-largest hub for American Airlines with 299 daily departures to 91 destinations in 4 countries. American carries nearly 48% of all passengers through PHX as of October 2016 (23 million passengers) and employs nearly 10,000 colleagues, making it the airport's largest carrier. Sky Harbor also serves as one of the largest focus cities for Southwest Airlines with 179 daily departures to 50 cities across the United States.
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History
Sky Harbor was the fourth airport built in Phoenix. It was built with one runway in 1928 by Scenic Airways, an airline start-up which collapsed the following year after the Black Friday stock market crash. Acme Investment Company then owned the airport until 1935. During this time, American Airlines began the airport's first scheduled passenger and air mail service 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 a diagonal runway. On the February 1953 C&GS diagram runways 8L and 8R are each 6,000 feet (1,800 m) long and runway 3 is 5,500 feet (1,700 m).
The $835,000 Terminal 1 (originally called the "West Wing") which also had the first control tower, opened in October 1952. It was torn down in 1991 and replaced by a cell phone waiting lot, with Terminal 1's parking lot now being the West Economy lot.
The April 1957 OAG shows 42 scheduled airline departures a day: 16 American, 11 TWA, 10 Bonanza and 5 Frontier. American began a nonstop DC-7 to New York (Idlewild) in summer 1959.
The airport's master plan was redesigned in 1959 to eliminate the cross runway to make room for new terminals. American and TWA began jet service to Phoenix in 1960 and 1961 respectively, and Terminal 2 (originally called the "East Wing") still in use today, opened in 1962. Terminal 3 opened in October 1979, when the "East" and "West" names were dropped, since they were no longer the only two terminals.
Bonanza Airlines moved its headquarters from Las Vegas to Phoenix in 1966. Bonanza merged with two other airlines to form Air West, which became Hughes Airwest after Howard Hughes bought it in 1970.
After airline deregulation in 1978 former Hughes Airwest executive Ed Beauvais formed a 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. By the end of the decade America West had a nationwide network and was lobbying for transpacific service.
In the meantime Southwest Airlines arrived at Phoenix in January 1982 with thirteen daily flights to twelve cities; by 1986 it had 64 daily flights from Phoenix and had a crew base there. Southwest opened a maintenance facility at PHX in 1992 which was its largest.
In October 1989 ground was broken for Terminal 4, the largest terminal. It opened on November 2, 1990 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 gates and a sterile walkway 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 has 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 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 airport in Goldwater's memory but was deluged with public support for 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 merged with US Airways in 2005. US Airways moved its headquarters to the 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.
Sky Harbor's private airplane area is also one of eight service centers for the Medevac airline Air Evac.
Phoenix Sky Harbor Ground Transportation Video
ATC 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 TRACON. This is Sky Harbor's fourth control tower and is among the tallest control towers in North America.
Terminals
The airport has 116 aircraft gates in three Terminals (2, 3, 4). Free ad-supported wireless internet access provided by Boingo Wireless is available in all terminals, with premium paid internet access with higher speeds and no advertisements also available to travelers.
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.
Terminal 2
Terminal 2 has 17 gates (numbered consecutively 1-15 and two additional lettered gates C & D) and three parking slots. It was designed by the Phoenix architectural firms of Weaver & Drover and Lescher & Mahoney and opened in 1962. Currently, the terminal is used primarily by United Airlines and Alaska Airlines. Terminal 2 also includes a mural by French-American artist Paul Coze in the main lobby area. In November 2006, a Military and Veterans Hospitality Room, sponsored by the Phoenix Military and Veterans Commission, was opened in Terminal 2. It has since relocated to Terminal 4 as the new USO. This terminal has undergone two renovation projects. The first was completed in 1988. The second project, which cost $24 million and was designed by DWL Architects + Planners, Inc., was completed in 2007.
Terminal 2 is expected to close after the completion of the Terminal 3 South Concourse expansion. The Terminal 3 South Concourse expansion will add nine additional gates to the concourse, fully replacing Terminal 2.
Terminal 3 (John S. McCain III Terminal)
The 880,000-square-foot (82,000 m2), $35 million Terminal 3, designed by DWL Architects + Planners, Inc., broke ground in January 1977 and opened in October 1979 and has 23 gates, separated into two concourses by a central building outside of security. The south concourse houses gates 1-14 (Gate 3 is missing) and the north concourse houses gates 15-26 (Gates 21 and 22 are missing). The terminal was remodeled in 1997. Its only lounge - Delta's Crown Room Club - was closed on April 30, 2008.
A future three-part construction and renovation project is underway and will combine Terminal 2 and Terminal 3, and update the facilities. Part One has created a consolidated security checkpoint, new airline ticket counters, a Museum Gallery and a West Arrival Plaza (outdoor area with Animal Relief area). Part Two will be a brand new Terminal 3 South as a 15 gate, linear terminal. Part Three will provide additional concession space for Terminal 3 North, expand the curbside area, and separate ticketing and baggage claim, moving ticketing to the second level of the terminal while expanding the baggage claim on the first level. This would discontinue all operations from Terminal 2 as it would be phased out. The project began in 2015 and is expected to be completed by 2020.
Terminal 4 (Barry M. Goldwater Terminal)
Terminal 4, also designed by DWL Architects + Planners, Inc., opened in 1990 and has 86 gates, divided into seven satellite concourses connected behind security.
Airlines and destinations
British Airways provides the airport's only transatlantic flight, with nonstop service to London-Heathrow, as well as the only passenger flights on a Boeing 747 to the airport. This is the only service outside North or Central America. Lufthansa had operated another transatlantic flight to Frankfurt Airport, and America West once operated trans-Pacific Boeing 747 flights to Hawaii and Japan, but these services have since ended. However, several airlines offer non-stop service outside the Continental United States to Hawaii, Costa Rica, cities in Mexico, parts of Canada, and to parts of Alaska.
While Phoenix is one of the busiest airports in the world, the lack of international destinations has initiated the Air Service Development Marketing Program. The Aviation Department is offering an international air service development program to encourage new air service between Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) and qualified, unserved, international destinations. Airlines that launch new service to qualifying, unserved international markets during the program period will be eligible for marketing reimbursements and landing fee waivers. The proposed program is open to all airlines. To qualify for the funds the airline must maintain at least three new, weekly round-trips for one consecutive year. Up to $1 million will be awarded, depending on the frequency and destination. As well as intercontinental routes, they will fund airlines who increase or create new flights to North American destinations such as Mexico City, Toronto, and Boston, among others.
The strategy began to pay off when, on June 22, 2017, Condor announced it would begin flying to Phoenix during 2018, marking the return of a German airline to Sky Harbor.
Passenger
Cargo
Statistics
Top destinations
Annual traffic
PHX has an average of 1,183 aircraft operations per day.
There are 69 aircraft based at PHX.
Airport development
PHX Sky Train
- The Phoenix Sky Train is an automated people-mover, much like other airports', that transports Sky Harbor passengers from the 44th Street and Washington Light Rail station to Sky Harbor's East Economy Parking lot, through all three terminals.
- Phase 1 opened on April 8, 2013 and runs from the 44th Street and Washington Light Rail station, to East Economy Parking and on to Terminal 4.
- Phase 1A shuttles passengers to Terminal 3 with a walkway to Terminal 2. Phase 1A opened on December 8, 2014.
- Phase 2 will transport passengers to the Rental Car Center. Phase two is not expected to be completed anytime prior to 2022.
- Sky Harbor is the first airport in the world to have a train track high enough for aircraft to pass underneath, standing above Taxiway R at 100 feet (30 meters).
Other projects
- Sky Harbor has initiated a three-component "Terminal 3 Modernization Plan" which is anticipated to accommodate the current carriers at Terminal 3 as well as carriers at Terminal 2, which is to be phased out.
- Component 1 began in April 2015, and consolidated the two undersized security checkpoints with a single large security checkpoint. Also included in this component are additional ticket counters, baggage carousels, upgrades to the HVAC system, and new interior and exterior finishes. This phase was completed in December 2016. (status: Complete)
- Component 2 will demolish the existing South Concourse and replace it with a new 15-gate linear concourse, and will allow for the closure of Terminal 2.(status: In-progress)
- Component 3 will renovate the North Concourse, with expanded concessions and new interior and exterior finishes. (status: Not started)
- Eighth and final concourse at Terminal 4 to provide 8 additional gates for Southwest Airlines to be completed by 2021.
- $40 million in investments from Southwest Airlines to double its maintenance facilities as well as add an additional hangar.
- 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.
- On November 12, 2013, Phoenix City Council approved a $27 million project to renovate the international facilities in Terminal 4. The renovation will increase the amount of passengers that can be processed per hour from 600 to 800+. Other enhancements will include:
- New stairs
- Faster and larger elevators
- Increased queuing space with a reconfigured primary processing queue and entry
- Enlargement of baggage carousels
- 12 automated Passport Control kiosks
- New quieng area for special screening
Airline lounges
- Terminal 2:
- United Airlines United Club
- Terminal 4:
- American Airlines Admirals Club (3 locations - Concourses A1, A2, and B1)
- The Club at PHX, used as a contract lounge for afternoon British Airways flights.
Ground transportation
Travelers can access East Economy Parking from the PHX Sky Train at Terminal 4. Shuttle bus service connecting the terminals and the economy parking lots was discontinued when the Terminal 3 extension of the PHX Sky Train opened, however, the airport continues to provide shuttle bus service between the terminals and the rental car center with separate routes serving each terminal.
Valley Metro bus route 13 serves all of the airport terminals as a link to the rest of the Valley Metro bus system. The Valley Metro Rail has a stop at the nearby 44th St/Washington light rail station. A moving sidewalk bridge over Washington Street allows light rail passengers to arrive at the nearby PHX Sky Train station and then onward to stations at the East Economy Parking Lot and Terminal 4. Valley Metro bus routes 1 and 44 serve the PHX Sky Train station at 44th Street & Washington with route 3 stopping at the street corner near light rail.
A number of taxi, limousine, and shuttle companies provide service between each airport terminal, the Phoenix metropolitan area, and other communities throughout the state.
Accidents and incidents
- On June 27, 1969, N3150Y, a Cessna 182 Skylane, flying from Hawthorne Airport in Hawthorne, CA to Sky Harbor, hit the high-tension power lines east of the airport and crashed at 10:48 pm in the Salt River bed while attempting to land on Runway 26R, knocking out power to the airport and killing all three passengers on board.
Air National Guard base
The airport is also home to the 161st Air Refueling Wing (161 ARW), an Air Mobility Command (AMC)-gained unit of the Arizona Air National Guard. The military enclave is known as the Goldwater Air National Guard Base. 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 approved in 1995 and the new base was built during the latter part of that decade. The current Sky Harbor ANGB includes over 275,000 square feet (25,500 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.
In popular culture
The airport is part of the story in the movie Ground Control but many scenes involving an airport were recorded at California airports instead.
Arizona band Jimmy Eat World released a song titled "Goodbye Sky Harbor" on their 1999 album Clarity.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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