Salisbury-Ocean City: Wicomico Regional Airport

Salisbury Regional Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerWicomico County
OperatorWicomico County Department of Aviation
ServesSalisbury, Maryland, U.S.
LocationSalisbury, Maryland, U.S.
OpenedNovember 11, 1943 (1943-11-11)[1]
Elevation AMSL53 ft / 16 m
Coordinates38°20′24″N 75°30′34″W / 38.34000°N 75.50944°W / 38.34000; -75.50944
WebsiteSalisbury Regional Airport
Map
SBY is located in Maryland
SBY
SBY
Location of airport in Maryland
SBY is located in the United States
SBY
SBY
SBY (the United States)
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
14/32 6,400 1,951 Asphalt
5/23 5,000 1,524 Asphalt
Statistics (2018)
Enplanements64,393
Statistics: FAA passenger boarding data[2]

Salisbury-Ocean City: Wicomico Regional Airport (IATA: SBY, ICAO: KSBY, FAA LID: SBY), or, more succinctly Salisbury Regional Airport,[3] is located in unincorporated Wicomico County, Maryland, 5 miles (8.0 km) southeast from downtown Salisbury, Maryland, United States. Salisbury is the largest metropolitan area of Maryland's Eastern Shore with a population of 405,803[4] in the metropolitan statistical area, and is centrally located on the Delmarva Peninsula.

Since SBY Regional Airport is the only commercial airport with daily scheduled flights in the area, it also serves Delaware, the Eastern Shore of Virginia, and the Eastern Shore of Maryland, which include the other towns of Ocean City, Cambridge, and Easton. American Eagle operates three round trip flights per day to Charlotte Douglas International Airport, and one round trip flight per day to Philadelphia International Airport.

History

In 1940, Wicomico County and the City of Salisbury begun to construct the airport with the Works Progress Administration.[5] It originally encompassed 695 acres and cost $1.5 million. Officially opened on November 11, 1943,[1] Salisbury was originally leased to the U.S. Navy as a training base during World War II up through 1945.

After the war ended, Airfield Operating Corp. leased the airport beginning commercial activity to Easton, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C. Later, in 1949 the City and County resume management of the airport and All American Airways takes over for Chesapeake Airways, later superseded in 1950 by Allegheny Airlines. Numerous improvement projects including runway resurfacing and taxiway lights were installed in the 1960s. Henson Aviation, under contract with Allegheny Airlines and owned by Richard A. Henson, began scheduled commuter service in 1968 and operated with the idea of using "frequency" flights using small aircraft which would shuttle passengers to many airports along the east coast. However, Allegheny discontinued the service in 1969. In 1971, the City of Salisbury relinquishes its interest to the county. In 1978, the Maryland State Police establish a medevac helicopter base.

In 1983, Henson Aviation was purchased by Piedmont Airlines and began operating as Henson, The Piedmont Regional Airline. Henson Airways reigned as the primary air service provider in Salisbury until US Airways Express purchased Henson Aviation in 1993. After the merger, the airline was renamed Piedmont and it deemed Salisbury as its primary operating base and quickly grew into a large regional carrier. After opening the base, the airline operated flights to Philadelphia and Washington. A few years later, Piedmont opened a new hub in Charlotte, North Carolina which rapidly grew to become larger than its hub in Washington, D.C. The service to Washington was later cancelled and was replaced with service to Charlotte..

In 2017, the airport re-branded itself SBY Regional Airport.[3]

Airport construction and expansion

Several construction projects were recently completed in late 2011 to extend runway 14-32 an extra 1,000 feet (300 m) to a length of 6,400 feet (2,000 m). Along with the main runway being extended, the taxiways around the runway were extended and a new ILS system was installed with new approaches. These multimillion-dollar projects will allow flights using larger aircraft such as regional jets which had previously been unable to operate at the airport due to the short length of the runway. Today, the airport spans 1,081 acres (437 ha) and is the second-largest in the state of Maryland.[6] In 2016, a plan was announced to again extend runway 14-32 an additional 600 feet (180 m) to 7,000 feet (2,100 m).[5] In 2017, it was announced that the interior of the terminal would be updated with a coastal theme.[3]

Facilities

American Eagle gate area at Salisbury–Ocean City–Wicomico Regional Airport

The Richard A. Henson Terminal is a 26,000 square feet (2,400 m2) building opened in 1990. There is an American Eagle ticket counter and a TSA bag scanning area at the southeast part of the building. Two departure gates, one arrival gate, and security checkpoints are in the middle and northwest part of the terminal.[4]

The terminal is surrounded by 6 acres (2.4 ha) of parking apron which services the arriving and departing aircraft. Avis, Hertz, and Enterprise all operate automobile rental services in the arrival terminal.

In 2022, airport parking was upgraded to an automated parking system, from the previous contractor staffed gate.[7]

Fixed-base operators

Bayland Aviation is the fixed-base operator at Salisbury.[8] Jet fuel and Avgas are handled and supplied by Bayland.[9] They also offer public flight training using a group of small Cessna and Piper aircraft.[10] Charter flights can be scheduled through Bayland to multiple destinations throughout the East Coast.[11]

Airlines and destinations

The airport is the operational headquarters for American Eagle carrier Piedmont Airlines. In 2012, Piedmont established a passenger record of 150,086 passengers.[12]

Passenger airlines

AirlinesDestinations
American Eagle Charlotte, Philadelphia[13]

Current destinations map

Top destinations

Busiest domestic routes (2021)[14]
Rank City Passengers
1 North Carolina Charlotte, North Carolina 31,320
2 Pennsylvania Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 27,210

Terminated passenger airline services

Piedmont previously served Salisbury with flights to Washington, D.C., and Baltimore. The service to Washington was on and off until 2008; the Baltimore service stopped in late 2009.

Allegiant Air began twice a week service to Orlando-Sanford International Airport in February 2012, using its McDonnell Douglas MD-80 jets, but ended the route less than a year later on January 5, 2013, due to the route's relatively small number of passengers.[15][16]

Cargo airlines

AirlinesDestinations
FedEx Feeder Baltimore

Local carriers

AirlinesDestinations
Bayland Aviation Charter

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "New Airport Is Dedicated: 5,000 To 7,000 Stand In Storms Near Salisbury To Witness Ceremony". The Baltimore Sun. November 12, 1943. p. 13.
  2. ↑ FAA Enplanements Archived 2017-07-15 at the Wayback Machine CY2016
  3. 1 2 3 "Salisbury airport jettisons 'Ocean City' in branding". Delmarva Daily Times. Retrieved 2017-07-08.
  4. 1 2 "Salisbury, MD-DE (MSA)". Retrieved 2017-10-13.
  5. 1 2 "Our History". SBY Regional Airport. Retrieved 2016-12-22.
  6. ↑ FAA Airport Form 5010 for SBY PDF, effective March 29, 2018.
  7. ↑ "SBY Airport -- at long last -- gets automated parking system". Bay to Bay News. Retrieved 2022-04-30.
  8. ↑ "Salisbury Regional Airport | Airport". Salisbury Regional Airport. Retrieved 2017-07-08.
  9. ↑ "FBO SERVICES". BAY LAND AVIATION, INC. Retrieved 2017-07-08.
  10. ↑ "AIRCRAFT RENTALS & FLIGHT INSTRUCTION". BAY LAND AVIATION, INC. Retrieved 2017-07-08.
  11. ↑ "CHARTER SERVICES". BAY LAND AVIATION, INC. Retrieved 2017-07-08.
  12. ↑ Wicomico County Archived 2013-03-05 at the Wayback Machine Salisbury-Ocean City-Wicomico Regional Airport Sets 2012 Records for Passenger Traffic and Military Aircraft Operations
  13. ↑ Powers, Kelly (October 26, 2020). "In leadership changes, pandemic impact, Salisbury airport keeps projects pushing forward". DelmarvaNow. Salisbury Daily Times. Retrieved January 18, 2022. The current length leaves Piedmont Airlines unable to fill summer flights to Charlotte, one of the two American Airlines hubs serves along with Philadelphia...
  14. ↑ "Transtats". Bureau of Transportation Statistics. July 31, 2022. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
  15. ↑ WMDT News Archived 2012-01-14 at the Wayback Machine Salisbury Airport Announces Non-Stop Service to Orlando
  16. ↑ The Daily Times Orlando just a flight away
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