Fairbanks International Airport

History

Early years

The airport opened in 1951 and took over existing scheduled airline traffic to Fairbanks, which had previously used Ladd Army Airfield. Alaska Airlines used Fairbanks as its main hub in the 1950s, with service to Seattle and Portland as well as intrastate service to Anchorage, Nome and other destinations. By 1967, however, the airline shifted its Alaska hub to Anchorage; its Anchorage-Fairbanks service continues to this day. In the mid-1970s, following the development of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, Alaska Airlines and Braniff International offered "interchange service" (see transport hub) between Fairbanks and Houston via Anchorage, Seattle and Dallas. In 1982, following airline deregulation, Alaska Airlines and American Airlines began a similar interchange service using Boeing 727s.

Pan American World Airways had also served Fairbanks since 1932. The station was originally opened after the acquisition of Pacific International Airways and used for short-haul services to Juneau, Seattle, Ketchikan, Whitehorse and other destinations. Pan Am intended to use Fairbanks as a stop for service to Asia as early as 1931, but initial difficulty in negotiating landing rights with the Soviet Union, followed by the outbreak of World War II, delayed these plans until decades later. Pan Am service to Fairbanks continued through the opening of FAI until 1965, when the Civil Aeronautics Board terminated Pan Am's rights to serve Alaska.

Pan American World Airways eventually used Fairbanks as a stopover for transpacific service from New York and Seattle to Tokyo starting in September 1969. In 1974, Pan Am agreed to transfer its Fairbanks-Seattle service to Western Airlines, and requested that the CAB allow its New York-Tokyo service to be suspended from April 1975. Other carriers such as Japan Airlines and Korean Air began to use Fairbanks as a technical stop for transpacific cargo flights in the late 1970s.

Development since the 2000s

Condor started a seasonal route to Frankfurt in May 2001. The inbound flight stopped in Whitehorse, Canada, and the outbound one was nonstop. On October 11, 2009, the airport completed a new terminal and began demolishing the old terminal which was built in 1948. The new terminal is built around the modern TSA standards. In addition to architectural design and better security, the main terminal now has six jet-bridges (up from the former five). The 2,700m2 of custom-unitized curtain wall was designed and supplied by Overgaard Ltd. Hong Kong. The special design incorporates double low-e triple glazing. The new building's footprint is smaller than the old building.

Facilities

Terminal

The terminal building, situated on the northwest side of the airport, contains eight gates: two for commuter carriers and six for larger carriers.

Runways

Fairbanks International Airport covers an area of 3,470 acres (1,404 ha) at an elevation of 439 feet (134 m) above mean sea level. It has four runways:

• Runway 2L/20R: 11,800 by 150 feet (3,597 x 46 m), surface: asphalt
• Runway 2R/20L: 4,510 by 75 feet (1,375 x 23 m), surface: asphalt
• Runway 2/20: 2,900 by 75 feet (884 x 23 m), surface: gravel/ski strip
• Runway 2W/20W: 5,400 by 100 feet (1,646 x 30 m), surface: water/winter ski strip

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

| Air North | Seasonal charter: Dawson City | | Alaska Airlines | Anchorage, Seattle/Tacoma Seasonal: Portland (OR) | | Delta Air Lines | Seattle/Tacoma Seasonal: Minneapolis/St. Paul, Salt Lake City, | | Everts Air | Anaktuvuk Pass, Arctic Village, Eagle, Fort Yukon, Galena, Huslia, Kaktovik/Barter Island, Kaltag, Nulato, Ruby, Venetie | | United Airlines | Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare, Denver | | Warbelow's Air Ventures | Beaver, Central, Circle, Manley Hot Springs, Minto, Rampart, Stevens Village | | Wright Air Service | Allakaket, Anaktuvuk Pass, Arctic Village, Bettles, Birch Creek, Chalkyitsik, Deadhorse/Prudhoe Bay, Fort Yukon, Galena, Healy Lake, Hughes, Huslia, Kaktovik/Barter Island, Kaltag, Koyukuk, Lake Minchumina, Nulato, Ruby, Tanana, Venetie |

Cargo

| Amazon Air | Portland (OR), Spokane | FedEx Feeder operated by Empire Airlines |Anchorage

Statistics

Airline market share

Annual traffic

Accidents and incidents

• On December 30, 1951, Transocean Air Lines Flight 501, a Curtiss C-46 Commando and a cargo flight, crashed on approach to FAI due to not following radio procedures and spatial disorientation. All four occupants were killed. The wreckage was found on January 3, 1952.
• On February 16, 1975, a Pacific Alaska Airlines DC-6, a cargo flight, crashed attempting to return to Fairbanks Int'l Airport. Three engines lost power after takeoff from runway 10 and crashed 2 km short of runway 19 attempting to return to the airport possibly due to fuel contamination. All three occupants were killed.
• On February 28, 1994, during takeoff for a ferry flight to Miami, a Lockheed L-1011-1 Tristar of Rich International Airways (registered N303EA) experienced a mechanical power loss on the number 3 and number 1 engines and an internal fire on the number 1 engine. The takeoff was aborted, and during the taxi back, the fire on the number 1 engine was extinguished. None of the 3 occupants on board were injured.
• On April 23, 2024, approximately six minutes after takeoff, an Alaska Air Fuel Douglas C-54D, (registered N3054V), suffered an engine explosion and crashed along the Tanana River 7 mi southwest of Fairbanks. Two occupants were onboard the plane, and both were killed.

References

References

1. "2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: South Van Horn CDP, AK". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
2. {{FAA-airport
3. "Alaska Int'l Airport System (ANC&FAI)-AIAS Data-Fiscal Year 2025 Report".
4. It is located in the [[South Van Horn, Alaska. Condor]] offered weekly flights to [[Frankfurt]] during the summer tourist season.[http://www.gov.state.ak.us/trade/International_Transporation.pdf International Transportation Fact Sheet] {{webarchive. link. (2008-07-08 , [[State of Alaska]] Governor's Office of International Trade)
5. (2011). "History of Fairbanks International Airport". Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities.
6. (June 7, 1953). "Alaska Airlines system schedule". Timetable Images.
7. (June 1, 1967). "Alaska Airlines system schedule". Timetable Images.
8. (February 1, 1975). "Alaska Airlines System Wide Routes". Departed Flights.
9. (June 2015). "History of American Airlines". American Airlines.
10. (September 19, 1978). "Pan Am to stop Alaska flights, closes chapter in aviation history". Ellensburg Daily Record.
11. Kiffer, Dave. (December 29, 2006). "Pan Am: Once Ketchikan's Link to the Outside World". Stories in the News.
12. (August 5, 1969). "Pan Am introduces the first nonstop service from Fairbanks to Tokyo". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.
13. (February 1, 1972). "Pan Am route map". Departed Flights.
14. (April 29, 1973). "Pan Am World Routes". Departed Flights.
15. (February 14, 1975). "Pan Am route sale to Western okayed by CAB". Eugene Register-Guard.
16. (July 27, 2015). "Explore Fairbanks and Condor celebrate 15 Years of Seasonal Service to Fairbanks". Condor.
17. "Archived copy".
18. "FAI airport data at skyvector.com".
19. (15 January 2024). "Canada's Air North loses big contract over USCBP understaffing". ch-aviation.
20. (11 October 2025). "With tourism season in the rearview mirror, Alaska’s airline calendar begins to shift". Anchorage Daily News.
21. (28 January 2025). "Alaska Airlines to add more flights at PDX starting in mid-May: 'We're so excited'". KGW.
22. (12 November 2024). "More Direct Lower 48 Flights Coming to Fairbanks Airport". Alaska Business Magazine.
23. (7 July 2023). ""Pilotless" plane flies test runs to Alaska villages". KUAC.
24. (10 December 2021). "United Is Resuming Flights to Alaska and Montana for 2022". AFAR Media.
25. (January 18, 2024). "United Airlines Adds New Alaska and Canada Routes".
26. "Scheduled Service". Warbelow's Air Ventures.
27. "Archived copy".
28. (15 October 2021). "StackPath".
29. "Empire Airlines begins ATR 72-600F ops".
30. "BTS Transtats". Bureau of Transportation.
31. "N68963".
32. "N77DG".
33. "Accident description". Aviation Safety Network.
34. "Accident description for N3054V at Aviation Safety Network".