# Interesting Tiny Airports **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 16, 2015, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654 "2015-06-16T06:15:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/41 "2015-06-17T13:29:15Z")
Hay, in the western region of NSW. Morning flight out, which connects to Sydney via Wagga. The return flight lands after dusk in summer. Before landing the pilot buzzes the terminal, more correctly a pre-fab hut, and then the attendant drives down the runway firing a shotgun to scare off the kangaroos who come in numbers to feed on the green pick on the edges of the tarmac. Not sure what Plan B is if the terminal is unattended. ---
**Author:** ![kferr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/71e660/32.png) [@kferr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kferr)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/42 "2015-06-17T13:41:09Z")
I flew out of a small one somewhere (can’t remember the town) in Colorado. The check in desks looked just like the ones at big airports, except instead of the agent picking up my bag and putting it on a conveyor belt she picked it up, took it outside and put it on the plane. I half expected her to change hats and get in the cockpit later. ---
**Author:** ![tonyfop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/85f322/32.png) [@tonyfop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tonyfop)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/43 "2015-06-17T13:49:37Z")
When I was stationed in Guam in 2000 my wife and I flew Air Nauru to Sydney for the Olympics. We got to fly through Nauru going in both directions. The taxiway crosses the main street to get to the terminal, so they have a couple of traffic cops stop traffic long enough for the plane to get across. We all had to get off the plane and sit in the terminal while they re-fueled the plane. At the time, there were only 2 departures/week out of Nauru, as the airline had only one plane. The plane would fly out of Brisbane to Sydney to Melbourne to Nauru to Pohnpei to Guam to Manila and back, once per week. It would be serviced in Brisbane by Quantas. ---
**Author:** ![carlb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carlb/32/5930_2.png) [@carlb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlb)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/44 "2015-06-17T13:50:10Z")
I had to fly in and out of [Mason City, Iowa](http://flymcw.com/) once for business. I had the first flight out of the day, and the sun was just beginning to rise when I pulled up to the airport. It was completely dark. About 15 minutes after I got there, I saw lights starting to come on, so I got my stuff and got to the front door just as the staff person was unlocking it. I walked to the rental car counter, where this person processed my return. Then I walked to the check-in counter (American Eagle, maybe?), where the same person checked me in for my flight. Was pleasantly surprised to find out that this person was not _also_ the pilot. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/45 "2015-06-17T15:06:42Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > I live a few miles from the [College Park Airport](http://collegeparkairport.aero/index.html), “the world’s oldest continually operating airport.” There are no commercial flights, but it is a fully functioning airport. Ah, well if we’re talking about airports with no scheduled commercial flights, I’m maybe 3 miles from [Middleton Airport](http://www.ci.middleton.wi.us/index.aspx?NID=93), maybe 20 miles from [Sauk Prairie Airport](http://www.saukprairieairport.com/), and 40 miles from [Baraboo Airport](http://www.baraboodellsairport.com/), all of whiich are immediately alongside US 12, so in less than an hour you can roll past 3 airports. Dane County Airport, which does have commercial flights, is maybe 10 miles from me. The Baraboo airport advertises sailplane pilot training, but I’ve never seen one in the air anywhere around it. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/46 "2015-06-17T15:13:31Z")
> **[Stanton Airfield](https://stantonairfield.com/)** > > Historic Stanton Airfield is a privately-owned, public-use airport located 35 miles south of the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport. Pilots from all over the Midwest come to Stanton for the nostalgic feel, open skies, friendly atmosphere and... ---
**Author:** ![DrumBum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e79b87/32.png) [@DrumBum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrumBum)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/47 "2015-06-17T16:29:48Z")
The airport in Cabinda Provincehas come a long way since I first got there in 1984. The minefields have been removed, there is a fence to keep the cattle and other wildlife from interrupting the takeoff and landings, and there is an airconditioned waiting area in the terminal. You still have to carry your own bags however. ---
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/48 "2015-06-17T18:41:54Z")
Once as I was getting ready to fly out of Gainesville, FL, the pilot announced “we are first in line for departure.” I thought, is anyone ever second in line for departure? That’s also the place where I saw a young woman (riot grrl type) wearing a t-shirt that said “I’d rather be masturbating.” Tough to disagree with that. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/49 "2015-06-17T19:34:05Z")
I suspect there were a lot more airports 50 years ago than today. I have a picture of a little airport located about 6 blocks from my house - a shopping center is there now. When I first lived in Princeton there was a Princeton airport, with actual commercial service to Newark. Six seater prop plane. They weighed you and your baggage. One pilot was about 350 pounds and took up both pilot positions in the front of the plane. Whenever I had him I kept hoping he wouldn’t pick now to have a heart attack. The Airport was replaced by more productive things. I wonder if deregulation hurt small commercial airports. Once when I was on them my wife picked me up at Newark to start a trip. When I tried to get a refund for the ticket (a long time ago you could do that) I found that there was some discount for the connection which was greater than the prices of the ticket from Newark to Princeton, so the connecting flight was cheaper than two single flights. Probably kept them in business. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/50 "2015-06-17T19:39:06Z")
Princeton Airport is still there and still apparently healthy. I used to work near there myself, and it was great being able to leave my desk literally 10 minutes before flight time and still easily make the shuttle to Newark or Boston. I remember the 350 pound guy with Princeton Airways too. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/51 "2015-06-17T19:40:10Z")
> [@DrumBum](#): > > The airport in Cabinda Provincehas come a long way since I first got there in 1984. The minefields have been removed For the win. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2015, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/52 "2015-06-18T03:01:12Z")
All of the air-base scenes in the Mel Gibson film _Air America_ were shot at Mae Hong Son Airport in northern Thailand. It was a quirky little place. The airport is still small, but it’s a bigger building now. The old building is closed up next to it, looking like some sort of storage shed. Just about any of the little airports on the outer Hawaiian Islands have a cool, laid-back vibe. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2015, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/53 "2015-06-18T05:46:29Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Princeton Airport is still there and still apparently healthy. I used to work near there myself, and it was great being able to leave my desk literally 10 minutes before flight time and still easily make the shuttle to Newark or Boston. I remember the 350 pound guy with Princeton Airways too. That’s great. I must have missed it the last time I was back. I’m sure Princeton Aviation is gone - they couldn’t afford the security stuff any more if nothing else. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2015, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/54 "2015-06-18T13:46:37Z")
My personal tiny airport growing was the grandly named John Murtha Johnstown- Cambria County Airport (JST). Rep. Murtha got his name on it in part due to managing to get the Marines to base an attack helicopter squadron there. They’re all set if the North Koreans ever decide to paradrop troops into western Pennsylvania. First planes I ever saw as a kid were on that windswept hilltop, and I remember going to see an air show featuring the Blue Angels there sometime around 1960. As long as I can remember, you could only go one place from JST. For a long time it was Pittsburgh, but nowadays it’s: [Quote=JMJ-CCA web site] Three flights daily to Washington-Dulles International Airport on weekdays, with weekend travel available as well. [/quote] They seem rather non-committal on the weekend thing, don’t they? Last time I flew out of there (to PIT, so it’s been a while), I managed to spot my parent’s house as we climbed out, so there’s that. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2015, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/55 "2015-06-18T16:32:26Z")
In the NYC vicinity, there’s Islip /Macarthur airport. [aerial view](http://cdn.newsday.com/polopoly_fs/1.8118713.1406040705!/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/display_600/image.JPG). When I flew from there to Atlanta in or around 1987, a few days before Christmas, I checked in at the desk. Not “the desk specific to the airline I’d be flying on”, mind you: THE desk. “You just sit right over there in the waiting area, we’ll call you when boarding begins”. Which they did. Not over a PA system with an announcement such as “Attention all passengers tickets for American Airlines Flight 824 departing at 7:21 for Atlanta: 1st class and disabled passenger boarding is now beginning…” , nope, uh uh. The person at the desk glanced over at my (where I sat 25 feet away, reading my book) and said “There’s your flight now. You can go out that door over there, Marie will take your ticket”. After Marie took my ticket, I stepped through the door to find myself facing a set of rollaway steps leading down to the tarmac. No walking through a connected tube and into the belly of the beast for me, nope, out into the sunshine and then up another ladder to climb up into my plane. I got off in Atlanta (major contrast, huge international airport) and didn’t see my folks, who I expected to be waiting for me to whisk me away to my grandparents’ home. After 10 minutes’ waiting I go to customer service to see if the gate was changed at the last minute and my prents might have missed the gate change and be waiting for me elsewhere. “Let me see your ticket stub”, he says. I hand it over. His eyebrows rise. “This ticket is for tomorrow, I thought you said you just got off the plane?!” Yeah, I did. The nice friendly folks at Islip-Macarthur didn’t bother checking the date, I guess. (Never mind how I managed to think my flight was one day earlier than it actually was). I’d imagine they run a tighter ship these days but it’s still a cute little airport. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2015, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/56 "2015-06-18T17:16:38Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > Our local airport is like the one the OP describes - 3 “gates” (really, one large room with 3 doors), a few rental car companies, and (sometimes) a snack bar. The snack bar comes and goes, I suspect it doesn’t make any real money so someone runs it for a while, then gives up, then someone else gives it a go until they, too, decide it’s not worth while. > > But flying out of there is wonderful. I can leave an hour before my flight and have plenty of time, and 25-35 minutes of that is driving. Pretty sure I could push that to 45 minutes before the flight and be fine. Parking is $5/day, and you park right in front of the airport. No walking for hours through parking garages or huge lots. > > Bonus: it’s also a repair hub, so if/when something goes wrong with the plane, they fix it right there, no waiting for parts to be flown in or whatever. Very handy. I need to point out that while the terminal may be small, the airport is not. The runway is 12,366’ x 150’ (with 75’ paved shoulders on each side). It was an Air Force base used for B-52s [http://www.sawyerairport.com/history.html](http://www.sawyerairport.com/history.html) Brian ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2015, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/57 "2015-06-18T17:43:22Z")
That’s the story at Portsmouth (NH) International Airport, the former Pease AFB. It does have a terminal, with two, _two_ gates and actual jetways, that sometimes even get used by charters. I flew commercial out of there once, on the short-lived Skybus, but they were too cheap to rent the jetway and herded us out onto the 1950’s style push-stairs instead. It was a designated emergency runway for the Shuttle, too. Weird place to land a light plane, though - the runway edges and the trees and buildings are all so far away that it messes up your peripheral vision. But you can get in half a dozen landings in one pass. ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2015, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/58 "2015-06-18T22:04:49Z")
I think by most standards of commercial airports, the airport in Oklahoma City would be considered small. I has the distinction of being 1 of 2 airports in Oklahoma named after people who died in a plane crash: Will Rogers World Airport. (The other one is Wiley Post Airport who died in the same crash) What’s also interesting about Will Rogers World Airport is the only airport to use the designation “World” but has no international flights. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/59 "2015-06-19T00:23:44Z")
> [@kopek](#): > > … What gets me is how some have raised security since 9/11 but others have not. One I was basically roaming around the hangers for an hour and no one seemed really concerned or asked me what I was doing. I’m not saying its a bad thing but it is something that catches you attention these days. Pretty much all the Fed / TSA requirements only apply to airports with commercial service. At the Fed level nobody cares about an airport full of Cessnas. ---
**Author:** ![AbbySthrnAccent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/eb9ed0/32.png) [@AbbySthrnAccent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AbbySthrnAccent)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654/60 "2015-06-19T09:32:20Z")
For small airports with commercial service my favorite is Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It is a beautiful airport in a beautiful setting. Spectacular views as you approach or depart as well as boarding or deplaning by short walk out to the plane and boarding by stairs with lovely views of the mountains. We’ve flown into West Yellowstone as well and while it is even smaller and has great views; the airport at Jackson is one of those buildings where the architecture suits the surroundings and culture of the area, whereas West is just a very small airport, so small baggage claim is on the curb out front. I’ve flown into tinier airports but they were not commercially served. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-tiny-airports/722654.md?page=2)