Modesto City-County Airport
Encyclopedia
Modesto City-County Airport , also known as Harry Sham Field, is located two miles (3 km) southeast of the central business district
Central business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...

 (CBD) of Modesto
Modesto, California
Modesto is a city in, and is the county seat of, Stanislaus County, California. With a population of approximately 201,165 at the 2010 census, Modesto ranks as the 18th largest city in the state of California....

, a city in Stanislaus County
Stanislaus County, California
Stanislaus County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. As the price of housing has increased in the San Francisco Bay Area, many people who work in the southern reaches of the Bay Area have opted for the longer commute and moved to Stanislaus County for the...

, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

History

Modesto City-County Airport (MOD) was the nation's first municipally-owned airport, opening for general aviation operation in 1918, At first the airport located southeast of downtown Modesto was only 82 acres (33 ha);and then relocated in 1929 to the current location. Over the years, it grew to its present size of 435 acres (176 ha). The airport started with only a single runway, but a second runway was added in the 1950s. During World War II, Modesto Airport was used as a military auxiliary airbase to train U.S. Air Corps pilots.

Originally, the airport was named Modesto Municipal Airport; and on May 25, 1955 when Stanislaus County and the City of Modesto became partners in the airport, the airport was renamed Modesto City-County Airport. In October 1974, Harry Sham Field was added to the name to honor the airport manager that served between 1949 and 1968.

Air carrier service was first offered to the community in 1946 when United Airlines opened its newly constructed terminal and began the Valley Queen service. Since 1946 Modesto has had continuous air service. United Airlines flew DC-3s, Convair 340s, DC-6s and B-737s until pulling out in 1979-80, after the airline industry had been deregulated. Since 1979, Modesto has had regional air carrier service to San Francisco bay area airports.

On October 12, 1991, the Modesto City Council and Stanislaus Board of Supervisors rededicated the remodeled passenger terminal that was enlarged to 8900 square feet (826.8 m²). The remodeling project upgraded the building originally built by United Airlines.

In the 1990s, corporate and business aviation became the fastest growing segment of activity for the airport. Corporate jets provide their owners with convenient point-to-point service. In 2001, Modesto was the base for at least eight corporate jets.

Mid-2006 saw a change to MOD Airport. United Express/SkyWest Airlines added four flights a day to/from LAX and an additional flight to SFO to total 5 flights a day to/from San Francisco. As a result, passenger counts have continued to grow. In 2002, passenger counts averaged 3,035 per month; over the first six months of 2007, that amount has grown to an average of 7,739 passengers per month.

In June 2008, Utah based Skywest Airlines (United Express) stopped service to Los Angeles citing high fuel prices as one reason for discontinuing service. In 2007 Modesto set a record number of boarding passengers with 51,587 taking flights from the airport.

In January 2010, the airport attracted periodic leisure charter flights, operated with 130-150 passenger B737-400 and MD80 jet airliners, to Laughlin and West Wendover, NV.

Facilities

Modesto City-County Airport has two runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...

s:
  • Runway 10L/28R: 5,911 x 150 ft (1,802 x 46 m) asphalt
    Asphalt
    Asphalt or , also known as bitumen, is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits, it is a substance classed as a pitch...

    , Pavements 60/200/400, HIRL, MALSR, PCL 9:00 p.m. - 7:00 a.m. (Freq 125.3) VASI
    Visual Approach Slope Indicator
    The visual approach slope indicator is a system of lights on the side of an airport runway threshold that provides visual descent guidance information during the approach to a runway...

     - RW 10L.
  • Runway 10R/28L: 3,459 x 100 ft (1,054 x 30 m) asphalt, Pavements 30/-/-, MIRL, not available when tower closed, PAPI
    Precision Approach Path Indicator
    Precision approach path Indicator is a visual aid that provides guidance information to help a pilot acquire and maintain the correct approach to an aerodrome or an airport. It is generally located beside the runway approximately 300 metres beyond the landing threshold of the runway...

     - RW 10R/28L.

Airline and destinations

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK