Jackson Hole Airport (IATA: JAC, ICAO: KJAC, FAA LID: JAC) is a public airport located seven miles (11 km) north of Jackson, in Teton County, Wyoming. In 2014, it was the busiest airport in Wyoming by passenger traffic with 313,000 passengers. During peak seasons, Jackson Hole has nonstop airline service from 13 destinations throughout the United States including New York-JFK, Chicago O'Hare, and Los Angeles International Airport. During shoulder seasons, airline service is limited to the nearby hubs of Salt Lake City and Denver. The airport is served year-round by Delta and United and seasonally by American.
Jackson Hole Airport is the only commercial airport in the United States located inside a national park, in this case Grand Teton. (The Provincetown Municipal Airport in Massachusetts is on land leased from the National Park Service, but it is not in a national park.)
Jackson Hole Airport came third in a survey conducted by PrivateFly.com in 2011 to find the world's best airport approaches.
History
The airport was created in the 1930s as the best place to put an airport in Teton County. The airport was declared a national monument in 1943, and merged with Grand Teton National Park in 1950. The runway was extended to its current length in 1959. In the 1960s and 1970s a runway extension to 8,000 feet (2,400 m) to allow jets was considered; the National Park Service successfully opposed it. In the late 1970s jets began using the existing runway. The area is noise sensitive and the airport allows no jets louder than stage III. The airport is a popular mating ground for the rare Sage Grouse.
Airlines that previously served Jackson Hole include Horizon Air, Western Airlines Continental Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Big Sky Airlines and Northwest Airlines.
Facilities
Jackson Hole Airport covers 533 acres (216 ha); its one runway, 1/19, is 6,300 x 150 ft (1,920 x 46 m) asphalt. Jackson Hole Airport is noise sensitive and bans older, noisier aircraft with stage-II engines.
The airport once had an unusual terminal resembling a pioneer log cabin. The terminal was completely rebuilt between 2009 and 2014. The new terminal, designed by Gensler, still blends with the unique surroundings of the national park with exposed wood, fireplaces, and nature photography throughout. The terminal design received an American Institute of Architects Honor Award in 2014. The airport currently has 9 hard stand gates and 3 baggage carousels. Jackson Hole Airport does not have jet bridges so passengers board aircraft via airstairs. The airport terminal has three cafes and two gift shops.
Jackson Hole Airport is one of 16 airports that uses private screeners under contract with the Transportation Security Administration's Screening Partnership Program. Security screeners are employed by the Jackson Hole Airport Board rather than the TSA.
The largest aircraft seen regularly is the Boeing 757-200 operated by United Airlines and Delta Air Lines. Other aircraft typically seen include the Airbus A319 and A320, Boeing 737-700 and the Bombardier CRJ-700 regional jet. Due to its high altitude and short runway, Jackson Hole Airport does not typically see stretched versions of aircraft such as the Airbus A321 or Boeing 737-900ER.
Airlines and destinations
Traffic and statistics
In the year ending December 1, 2009 the airport had 30,865 aircraft operations, average 85 per day: 52% general aviation, 25% air taxi, 22% airline and <1% military. 52 aircraft are based at the airport: 69% single-engine, 6% multi-engine, 21% jet, 3% glider, and 1% cattle cargo.
Top Destinations
Access
Due to limited space inside Grand Teton National Park, only Avis, Enterprise and Hertz operate at the Jackson Hole Airport. Other rental car companies are located in the town of Jackson and offer free shuttles.
Teton County's public bus service, START Bus, does not currently serve the airport.
Accidents and incidents
On August 17, 1996, a U.S. Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft assigned to the 317th Airlift Group at Dyess AFB, Texas was unable to clear Sheep Mountain, crashing into it and killing all nine aboard. The aircraft was supporting the United States Secret Service as part of a POTUS visit to the area.
On December 20, 2000, actress Sandra Bullock survived the crash of a chartered business jet at Jackson Hole Airport. The aircraft hit a snowbank instead of the runway, shearing off the nose gear and nose cone and damaging the wings.
On June 27, 2005, John T. Walton died when his CGS Hawk Arrow homebuilt aircraft (registered as an "experimental aircraft" under FAA regulations) that he was piloting crashed in Jackson, Wyoming. Walton's plane crashed at 12:20 p.m. local time (1820 GMT) shortly after taking off from Jackson Hole Airport.
On December 29, 2010, An American Airlines Boeing 757 Flight 2253 from Chicago-O'Hare Overran the runway. There were no injuries.
Gallery
References
External links
- FAA Airport Diagram (PDF), effective May 28, 2015
- Resources for this airport:
- FAA airport information for JAC
- AirNav airport information for KJAC
- ASN accident history for JAC
- FlightAware airport information and live flight tracker
- NOAA/NWS latest weather observations
- SkyVector aeronautical chart, Terminal Procedures
Interesting Informations
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