Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport

The Birmingham International Airport (BHM/KBHM) is the major airport serving Birmingham and Central Alabama. It is located four miles northeast of downtown Birmingham, near the interchange of I-20 and I-59. The airport serves approximately 3.2 million passengers annually, and is the largest and busiest airport in the state, offering 80 daily departures to 25 cities nonstop and 35 cities direct.

History

On May 31, 1931, the Birmingham Airport, then a two-story Georgian-style brick terminal surrounded by open fields and a single runway, opened with day-long ceremonies and an air show. Hundreds came to witness the Birmingham debut of commercial passenger service with a stop by American Airways along its Atlanta, Georgia to Fort Worth, Texas route. With additional service from Eastern Airlines in 1934 a second runway was added.

During World War II the entire airport was leased to the Army Air Corps for $1 a year. The Corps improved the property by acquiring land, paving more taxiways, constructing an air traffic control tower, and building a complex of aircraft modification buildings, later sold to the Hayes International Corporation, a major employer which continued to work on military contracts after the war.

In August 1948 the Air Corp's lease was terminated and the facility returned to the city's control. Southern Airways and Capitol Airways began servicing the airport and runway 6/24 was extended to 10,000 feet to serve larger craft. When Capitol merged with United Air Lines, the first jet planes began landing at Birmingham. A new 87-foot-tall air traffic control tower was constructed in 1962 and went into service in 1964.

The present two-story terminal building was completed in 1973, with a total of 15 aircraft gates and a 1,600-space parking deck. Allegheny Air began service from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Birmingham in the late 1970s.

In June 1986 the Birmingham Airport Authority was created by the Birmingham City Council. At the time, the Birmingham Airport offered 38 daily departures. By December 1987, 43 cities could be reached by non-stop and/or direct service from one of eight airlines (American, Eastern, Piedmont, Northwest, USAir, Delta, Southwest and United). By October 1988, the Birmingham Airport offered 65 daily departures and served 1.9 million passengers.

In 1993, as the airport marked the completion of a $50.4 million terminal renovation, flights were up to 77 departures per day, serving nearly 2.1 million passengers that year. Direct service was added to destinations in Mexico and Canada and on October 20, 1993 the name was officially changed to Birmingham International Airport.

By 2000 air traffic was up to 81 daily departures with non-stop service to 28 cities and direct flights to 48 cities. That year a new 211-foot-tall brick-clad air traffic control tower was constructed at the south end of the terminal building and was placed into service in March 2001. The 1962 tower was demolished in 2004 by Tomlin Excavating of Tarrant. The cab of the tower was salvaged and utilized as part of an exhibit at the [[Southern Museum of Flight]

In 2005, the number of passengers rebounded from the effect of the 2001 terrorist attacks to once again cross the 3 million mark. In 2006, Birmingham International Airport celebrated its 75th year of serving the central Alabama region. An extension of runway 6/24 to 12,002 feet gives Birmingham International Airport the capacity to serve fully-loaded Boeing 747s.

Incidents

No general carrier crashed have occurred at the Birmingham International Airport. Two fatal incidents involving smaller commercial craft have taken place. The most significant occurred on July 10, 1991 when L'Express Airlines Flight 508 crashed, killing 13. Eight other fatal incidents involving private or military craft have occurred at the airport since 1962.

Expansions

There are currently several capital improvement projects underway or recently completed, including the 2,000 foot runway expansion to runway 6-24. The extension was dedicated on July 23, 2007 after five years of work, making the runway 12,000 feet in length. The extension now provides enough runway length for a fully-loaded and fueled Boeing 747 to land or take off in Birmingham.

Other projects currently underway include a $20 million Air Cargo Complex expansion as well as resurfacing of the Air Carrier Apron area. Recently officials announced a terminal expansion which includes adding another concourse and a new baggage screening area, with the possibility of accommodating a United States Customs inspection station. The estimated cost of the terminal expansion is $140 - $200 million. As of April, 2008 the design phase for the terminal modernization and expansion was about to begin.

Military Use

The airfield is capable of handling all aircraft types. The main runway is 12,000 feet long. The secondary runway is 7,100 feet long. A Category II instrument landing system allows operations in visibility as low as a quarter mile.

The Air National Guard has a base which includes a wing of KC-135R air tankers. In the past, the air guard unit operated reconnaissance aircraft. There is also an aviation support facility for the Army National Guard.

A large aircraft modification facility, originally built as the Betchel-McCone-Parsons Airplane Modification Plant for refitting B-34 and B-29 bombers during World War II, is presently operated by Alabama Aircraft Industries. There are also two fixed base operators and numerous corporate hangars.

Concourses

BHM has one terminal building and is divided into 2 concourses, B and C.

Concourse B

Gates B1-B6

• American Airlines Gate B1 (Dallas/Fort Worth)
• Continental Airlines Gate B2 (Houston-Intercontinental)
  • Continental Express operated by ExpressJet Airlines (Cleveland, Houston-Intercontinental, Newark)
• Northwest Airlines Gates B3 and B5 (Detroit, Memphis)
  • Northwest Airlink operated by Mesaba Airlines (Detroit, Memphis)
  • Northwest Airlink operated by Pinnacle Airlines (Detroit, Memphis)
• US Airways Gates B2, B4, and B6
  • US Airways Express operated by Mesa Airlines (Charlotte)
  • US Airways Express operated by PSA Airlines (Charlotte, Philadelphia)

Concourse C

• Gates C1 and C3, United Airlines
  • United Express operated by Mesa Airlines (Washington Dulles)
  • United Express operated by SkyWest (Chicago-O'Hare, Denver)
• Gates C2, C4, C6, and C8 Delta Airlines (Atlanta)
  • Delta Connection operated by Atlantic Southeast Airlines (Atlanta)
  • Delta Connection operated by Chautauqua Airlines (Orlando)
  • Delta Connection operated by Comair (Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, New York-LaGuardia, Washington-Reagan)
  • Delta Connection operated by Freedom Airlines (Orlando, Tampa)
• Gates C10, C12, and C14 Southwest Airlines (Baltimore/Washington, Chicago-Midway, Houston-Hobby, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Louisville, Nashville, Orlando, Phoenix, St. Louis, Tampa)
• Gates C5, C7, C9, and C11 are not currently in use. There is no gate C13.

Parking deck

The single largest source of revenue for the Birmingham Airport Authority is parking fees. The authority operates a 7-story, 5,600-space parking deck for long and short-term parking as well as a 900-space satellite lot with shuttle service to the terminal. Another small "cell phone lot" is used by people waiting to pick up arriving passengers.

In January 2008 the Authority voted to increase long-term parking fees from $8 to $10 per day beginning February 1. The increase is expected to add $2 million in annual revenue. The daily parking rate was last raised on April 1, 2002 from $7 to $8. Short term parking is $1 per hour.

See also

• 117th Air Refueling Wing
• Alabama International Airport Authority
• Southern Museum of Flight

External links

• Birmingham International Airport website

References

• "Birmingham International Airport (U.S.)." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 8 Apr 2008, 18:10 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 8 Apr 2008 [1].
• McCauley, Charles R. (November 7, 2003) "Old tower to be demolished." Birmingham News
• McCauley, Charles R. (July 24, 2007) "Longer runway credited with saving Air Guard unit." Birmingham News
• McCauley, Charles R. (April 8, 2008) "LBirmingham airport managers keep international flights in sight." Birmingham News
• NTSB Aviation Accident Data and Synopses database. National Transportation Safety Board - accessed December 2007
• "Featured Artists at the Airport," Birmingham News, Jan 9, 1993