Pocatello Regional Airport Explained

Pocatello Regional Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport in the western United States, located in Power County, Idaho, seven nautical miles (13 km) northwest of central Pocatello.

The airport is built on the site of the Pocatello Army Airfield, a World War II training base. Many of the base facilities have been razed, although four large hangars remain; it is also home to the Pocatello office of the National Weather Service. Bounded on the south by Interstate 86, the airport is several miles southeast of American Falls Reservoir.

As per the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), this airport had 25,756 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008, 21,039 in 2009, and 20,825 in 2010. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a primary commercial service airport.

The airport is home to the Kizuna Garden, built to commemorate the bond between Pocatello and its sister city Iwamizawa, Japan.^[2]

Facilities and aircraft

Pocatello Regional Airport covers an area of 3374acres at an elevation of above sea level. It has two runways with asphalt surfaces: 3/21 is 9059by and 17/35 is 7150by.

For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2018, the airport had 27,317 aircraft operations, an average of 75 per day: 70% general aviation, 25% air taxi, 4% scheduled commercial, and 1% military. At that time there were 48 aircraft based at this airport: 35 single-engine, 7 multi-engine, 5 jet, and 1 helicopter.

History

• In 1943, the Pocatello Army Airfield was built as a Second Air Force heavy bomber (B-17, B-24) training base. By 1949, the new airfield had become a surplus property and was obtained by the city of Pocatello to build a commercial airport.
• while the starting date is unknown, Western Air Lines served Pocatello for a number of years, but discontinued all service by 1980.^[3] According to the airline's August 1, 1968 system timetable, Western operated Lockheed L-188 Electra turboprops into Pocatello. In September of 1973, this service was replaced with the new and more efficient Boeing 737-200, which offered nonstop flights to Salt Lake City, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. After discontinuing mainline flights, the airline subsequently served the airport as Western Express which was operated as code share service by SkyWest with commuter turboprop aircraft.^[4] Western merged with Delta Air Lines in 1987, and SkyWest continues to operate the code share service as Delta Connection.
• In the mid 1970s, Hughes Airwest served the airport with Douglas DC-9-10 and DC-9-30 jetliners, according to the February 1, 1976 edition of the North American Official Airline Guide.
• In the mid 1980s, Cascade Airways served Pocatello with British Aircraft Corporation BAC One-Eleven twin jets, according to the February 15, 1985 edition of the North American Official Airline Guide (OAG). The OAG also lists Cascade flights operated with smaller Fairchild Metro commuter turboprops.
• Horizon Air served Pocatello until January 7, 2006, originally with service to Salt Lake City in 1983. The airline canceled that service in favor of flights to Boise starting in 1984 operated with de Havilland Canada DHC-8 Dash 8 turboprops.^[5]
• Big Sky Airlines served Pocatello from the day Horizon canceled service until March 30, 2007.^{[6] [7] [8]}
• In 2014, a World War II-era mortar was found on the airport grounds while doing routine maintenance work. The mortar was safely removed by law enforcement.^{[9] [10]}

Airline and destination

Statistics

Top domestic destinations: (November 2021 - October 2022)^[11]

! Rank! Airport! Passengers! Airline

1

Salt Lake City International (SLC)

11,000

Delta Connection

See also

• Idaho World War II Army Airfields
• List of airports in Idaho

References

1. . Federal Aviation Administration. Effective February 4, 2017.
2. News: Kizuna Japanese Garden at the Pocatello Regional Airport - Pocatello.net. 2017-06-02. Pocatello.net. 2017-08-13. en-US.
3. http://airchive.com/html/timetable-and-route-maps/western Western Airlines: Historic Route Maps and Timetables
4. http://airchive.com/html/timetable-and-route-maps/western/1987-march-1/7544# 1987 Western Airlines: Route Map
5. News: March 25, 1984. Horizon to Add Flight Tying Boise, Pocatello. Eugene Register-Guard.
6. News: January 22, 2007. Pocatello hoping to keep Big Sky Airlines at airport. Deseret News. The Associated Press. https://web.archive.org/web/20121010112938/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/650224991/Pocatello-hoping-to-keep-Big-Sky-Airlines-at-airport.html?pg=all. dead. October 10, 2012.
7. Web site: OST-2005-23101 - Horizon Air - Intent to Discontinue Service Between Pocatello-Boise, Idaho. Airline Information Research. https://web.archive.org/web/20120425080108/http://www.airlineinfo.com/Sites/DailyAirline/web-content/ostdocket2005/ost0523101.html. April 25, 2012.
8. News: March 26, 2007. Pocatello loses airport manager, airline. Idaho Business Review.
9. News: April 15, 2014. Airport workers find WWII device. Local News 8.
10. News: April 15, 2014. WWII explosive device found at Pocatello Regional Airport. Idaho State Journal.
11. Web site: Pocatello, ID: Pocatello Regional (PIH) . . December 2013 . May 21, 2022 .

External links

• • Pocatello AvCenter, the fixed-base operator
• Aerial image as of June 1992 from USGS The National Map