Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Explained

Iata:MSP
Icao:KMSP
Faa:MSP
Wmo:72658
Type:Public / Military
Owner-Oper:Metropolitan Airports Commission
City-Served:Minneapolis–Saint Paul
Location:Fort Snelling Unorganized Territory, Minnesota, U.S.
Elevation-F:841
Elevation-M:256
Coordinates:44.8819°N -93.2217°W
Image Map Caption:FAA airport diagram
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Zoom:9
Mapframe-Wikidata:yes
R1-Number:4/22
R1-Length-F:11,006
R1-Length-M:3,355
R1-Surface:Concrete
R2-Number:12R/30L
R2-Length-F:10,000
R2-Length-M:3,048
R2-Surface:Concrete
R3-Number:12L/30R
R3-Length-F:8,200
R3-Length-M:2,499
R3-Surface:Concrete
R4-Number:17/35
R4-Length-F:8,000
R4-Length-M:2,438
R4-Surface:Concrete
Stat-Year:2023
Stat1-Header:Passengers
Stat1-Data:34,770,800
Stat2-Header:Traffic Movements
Stat2-Data:323,929
Footnotes:Source: Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport[1] [2]

Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport, also less commonly known as Wold–Chamberlain Field, is a joint civil-military public international airport serving the Twin Cities in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is located in Fort Snelling Unorganized Territory. Although situated within the unorganized territory, the airport is centrally located within 10miles of both downtown Minneapolis and downtown Saint Paul. In addition to primarily hosting commercial flights from major American and some international airlines, the airport is also home to several United States Air Force and Minnesota Air National Guard operations. The airport is also used by a variety of air cargo operators. MSP is the busiest airport in the Upper Midwest.[3]

A joint civil-military airport, MSP is home to the Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Joint Air Reserve Station, supporting both Air Force Reserve Command and Air National Guard flight operations. Units stationed there include the 934th Airlift Wing (934 AW). The airport is located in Fort Snelling Unorganized Territory. Small sections of the airport border the city limits of Minneapolis and Richfield. However, under Minnesota state law, the parcel of land covered by the airport is not part of any city or school district.[4] MSP covers 2,930 acres (1,186 ha) of land.[5] [6] The airport generates an estimated $15.9 billion a year for the Twin Cities' economy and supports 87,000 workers.[7]

MSP is a major hub for Delta Air Lines.[8] It also serves as the home airport for Minnesota-based Sun Country Airlines.[9] Delta Air Lines and its regional affiliates account for about 70% of the airport's passenger traffic. The airport is operated by the Metropolitan Airports Commission, which also handles the operation of six smaller airports in the region.

History

What is now known as Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport started in 1919 as Speedway Field when several local groups came together to take control of the former bankrupt Twin City Speedway race track. The first hangar was a wooden structure, constructed in 1920 for airmail services.[10] The Minneapolis Park Board took possession of Speedway Field on June 1, 1928, and in 1929, passenger services began.[10] [11] In 1923, the airport was renamed "Wold–Chamberlain Field" for the World War I pilots Ernest Groves Wold and Cyrus Foss Chamberlain. In 1944 the site was renamed to "Minneapolis–St. Paul Metropolitan Airport/Wold-Chamberlain Field", with "International" replacing "Metropolitan" four years later. Today it is rare to see the Wold–Chamberlain portion of the name used anywhere.

Expansions

Ground was broken for the current Terminal 1 building on October 26, 1958.[12] The US $8.5 million, 600,000 square foot (56,000 m2) terminal with 24 gates on two concourses was designed by Lyle George Landstrom.[13] who worked for Cerny Associates. The terminal, then referred to as the New Terminal, was completed on January 13, 1962, and operations began on January 21.[14] Pier D (formerly the Gold Concourse, now Concourse G) was completed in 1971 and Pier A (formerly the Green Concourse, now Concourse C) was completed in 1972 as part of an expansion of the terminal designed by Cerny Associates.[15] This project also involved rebuilding the existing concourses into bi-level structures equipped with holding rooms and jet bridges. The Gold Concourse was expanded in 1986 and included the airport's first moving walkway. Concourses A and B opened on June 1, 2002, as part of a $250 million terminal expansion designed by Minneapolis-based Architectural Alliance.[16] The final component of the project included a $17.5 million extension of Concourse C consisting of six additional gates, which opened on October 31, 2002.[17]

Terminal 2 was first built in 1986 and then rebuilt in 2001. It is used mostly for charter and low cost airlines, including Minnesota-based Sun Country and Southwest, but is also used for Condor, Icelandair and JetBlue. The terminal has since been expanded and has a total of 14 gates. The colored labeling system for concourses in both terminals was replaced beginning in 2000 with the current system of lettered concourses.

Recent history

Due in part to aircraft noise in south Minneapolis, the Highland Park neighborhood in St. Paul, and surrounding suburbs, proposals were made in the 1990s to build a new airport on the fringes of the Twin Cities metro in Dakota County to handle larger jets and more international traffic.[18] Minneapolis, St. Paul, and other neighboring cities were concerned that such a move would have a negative economic impact, so an arrangement was made where the Metropolitan Airports Commission would outfit many homes in the vicinity of the airport with sound insulation and air conditioning so that indoor noise could be reduced. A citizen group named ROAR (Residents Opposed to Airport Racket) was created in 1998 and helped push the MAC to make these concessions. Later, in 2004, the MAC voted to reduce funding for the soundproofing projects, saying in part that the economic climate had turned in the wake of the September 11 attacks. Minneapolis Mayor R. T. Rybak, who had been a founding member of ROAR, promised that the city would challenge the changes. In 2005, the cities of Minneapolis, Eagan, and Richfield and the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority filed a lawsuit against the MAC, which was settled with a Consent Decree in 2007. The terms in the Consent Decree specified levels of sound insulation for homes within a fixed boundary of projected aircraft noise exposure around MSP. Upon the completion of the noise mitigation program in 2014, more than 15,000 single-family homes and 3,303 multi-family units around MSP were provided noise mitigation at cost of $95 million.[19]

A 2022 J.D. Power survey concluded that with ranking the largest US and Canadian airports on a 1,000 point scale based on traveler satisfaction, the airport received a score of 800, ranking it the best airport in the US and Canada. MSP's high ranking was accredited to its recently updated facilities.[20]

In 2023, MSP was recognized by Cirium as the world's most on-time international airport, having an on-time departure rate of 84.44% and on-time arrival rate of 84.62%.

Facilities

Terminals

Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport has two terminals with a total of 131 gates.[21]

International arrivals are processed in Concourse G in Terminal 1, and in Terminal 2.

The two terminals are located about 1miles apart and accessed from separate exits of Minnesota State Highway 5. The arrangement can be confusing for some drivers, as the terminals are not connected within the airport facilities, meaning that taking the wrong exit can cause a delay of several minutes, and require the use of lightrail public transit or the roadway to travel between terminals. In 2010, signage along Highway 5 was updated to make it more clear which airlines serve each terminal.[23] [24]

Terminal 1 is named after aviator Charles Lindbergh, who was raised in Minnesota and Terminal 2 is named after vice president Hubert Humphrey, who also had represented Minnesota in Congress.

Ground transportation

The terminal buildings are directly located off of Minnesota State Highway 5. Several other major highways that border the airport are Minnesota State Highway 62, Minnesota State Highway 77, and Interstate 494.

Metro Transit, the region's public transportation provider, operates the Blue Line, a light rail route, on the airport grounds. Travelers can use the line to connect between the two terminals. No fare is charged for passengers only travelling between Terminal 1 and 2, and service between the terminals operates all day (the rest of the line shuts down for about four hours overnight).[25] Beyond the airport, the Blue Line travels to downtown Minneapolis and the Mall of America in nearby Bloomington. Metro Transit also operates bus route 54 to St. Paul.

Military facilities

The Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Joint Air Reserve Station at MSP is home to the 934th Airlift Wing (934 AW), an Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) unit and the 133d Airlift Wing (133 AW) of the Minnesota Air National Guard. Both units fly the C-130 Hercules and are operationally-gained by the Air Mobility Command (AMC). The 934th consists of over 1,300 military personnel, of whom approximately 250 are full-time Active Guard and Reserve (AGR) and Air Reserve Technician (ART) personnel. The 133rd is similarly manned, making for a total military presence of over 2,600 full-time and part-time personnel.

The 934 AW serves as the "host" wing for the installation, which also includes lodging/billeting, officers club, Base Exchange (BX) and other morale, welfare and recreation (MWR) facilities for active, reserve/national guard and retired military personnel and their families.

Runways

Runways at MSP [26]
Runway Length / width RWY class="text" Runway !SurfaceEquipment
04 →11006by← 22Concrete Runway 04/22: Medium intensity runway edge lighting [AN(TE HI)]. Both equipped with a precision approach path indicator (PAPI) system.
RWY22 : RNAV, RNP, NDB // RWY04 : ILS, RNAV, RNP, NDB, VOR/DME|-! style="font-size:150%;" | 17 →|8000by! style="font-size:150%;" | ← 35| style="text-align:left;" | Concrete |Runway 17/35: Touchdown and Centerpoint lights and a PAPI system. Runway 35: ILS CAT I-III.
RWY35 : RNAV, RNP, NDB // RWY17 : RNAV, RNP|-! style="font-size:150%;" | 12R →|10000by! style="font-size:150%;" | ← 30L| style="text-align:left;" | Concrete |Runway 12R/30L: a PAPI system. 12R: ILS CAT I-III. 30L: ILS CAT II.
RWY30L : RNAV, RNP, NDB // RWY12R : ILS, RNAV, RNP, NDB, VOR/DME|-! style="font-size:150%;" | 12L →|8200by! style="font-size:150%;" | ← 30R| style="text-align:left;" | Concrete|30R: medium intensity runway edge lighting [AN(TE HI)].
12L: ILS CAT I-III
Both: a PAPI system.
RWY30R : RNAV, RNP, NDB // RWY12L : ILS, RNAV, RNP, NDB, VOR/DME|}

Airlines and destinations

Cargo

Statistics

Top domestic destinations

Busiest domestic routes from MSP (June 2023 – May 2024)[27] ! Rank! Airport! Passengers! Carriers
1Denver, Colorado932,000Delta, Frontier, Southwest, Sun Country, United
2Phoenix–Sky Harbor, Arizona632,000American, Delta, Frontier, Southwest, Spirit, Sun Country
3Chicago–O'Hare, Illinois619,000American, Delta, Sun Country, United
4Atlanta, Georgia601,000Delta, Spirit
5Las Vegas, Nevada585,000Delta, Frontier, Southwest, Spirit, Sun Country
6Orlando, Florida541,000Delta, Frontier, Southwest, Spirit, Sun Country
7Los Angeles, California489,000Delta, Spirit, Sun Country
8Seattle/Tacoma, Washington478,000Alaska, Delta, Sun Country
9Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas451,000American, Delta, Sun Country
10Boston, Massachusetts377,000Delta, JetBlue, Sun Country

Top international destinations

Busiest international routes from MSP (2022)[28] ! Rank! Airport! Passengers! Carriers
1 Amsterdam, Netherlands390,147Delta, KLM
2 Cancún, Mexico357,781Delta, Frontier, Sun Country
3 Paris, France210,044Air France, Delta
4 Toronto, Canada157,637Air Canada, Delta
5 Calgary, Canada130,822Delta
6 Winnipeg, Canada110,721Delta
7 London Heathrow, United Kingdom92,220Delta
8 Reykjavík, Iceland88,649Delta, Icelandair
9 Puerto Vallarta, Mexico80,051Delta, Sun Country
10 Vancouver, Canada76,599Delta, Sun Country

Airline market share

Largest airlines at MSP (June 2023 – May 2024)[29] !Rank!Airline!Passengers!Market Share
118,508,00057.95%
2SkyWest Airlines (operates for Alaska Airlines, Delta Connection and United Express)2,703,0008.57%
3Sun Country Airlines1,794,0005.63%
4Southwest Airlines1,777,0005.56%
5United Airlines1,359,0004.26%
6American Airlines1,185,0003.71%
7All other airlines4,613,00014.50%

Annual traffic

Annual passenger traffic (emplaned + deplaned) at MSP, (2001–2023)[30] ! Year ! Passengers! Year ! Passengers ! Year! Passengers
200133,733,725201133,118,499202125,202,120
200232,629,690201233,170,960202231,241,822
200333,201,860201333,897,335 202334,770,800
200436,713,173201435,152,460 2024
200537,663,664201536,582,854 2025
200635,612,133201637,517,9572026
200735,157,322201738,034,4312027
200834,056,443201838,037,3812028
200932,378,599201939,555,036 2029
201032,839,441202014,851,2892030

Accidents and incidents

  • On March 7, 1950, Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 307, a Martin 2-0-2 diverted from Rochester International Airport crashed 5 km northwest of MSP after first hitting a 70 foot high flagpole with its left wing on final approach, 8/10 of a mile from the touchdown point, in blinding snow. The left wing eventually detached and the aircraft dived and crashed into a house. All 13 passengers and crew and two children in the house were killed. A loss of visual reference to the ground on approach was the probable cause.
  • On May 10, 2005, Northwest Flight 1495, a McDonnell Douglas DC-9, suffered a valve fracture and lost hydraulic pressure in its right engine shortly after takeoff from John Glenn Columbus International Airport en route to MSP. The aircraft performed a successful emergency landing at MSP, but began experiencing steering problems and a loss of the brakes while taxing to the gate, resulting in it colliding with the wing of an Airbus A319-114 at approximately 16 mph. Eight injuries were reported among the crew and passengers of both planes and the ground crew.[31]

See also

References

[32]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Operations Reports. Metropolitan Airports Commission. Minneapolis. January 2019. April 26, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190411215216/http://www.mspairport.com/about-msp. April 11, 2019. live.
  2. Web site: MSP Airport Data for 2023. mspairport.com. February 6, 2024.
  3. Web site: List of Top 40 Airports in US - World Airport Codes. World Airport Codes. October 22, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190430025443/https://www.world-airport-codes.com/us-top-40-airports.html. April 30, 2019. live.
  4. Web site: 2012 Minnesota Statutes. MN Revisor's Office. St. Paul. 2012. June 24, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131103152321/https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=473.625. November 3, 2013. live.
  5. , effective July 11, 2024.
  6. Web site: MSP airport data at skyvector.com. skyvector.com. August 24, 2022.
  7. News: Minneapolis–St. Paul International Airport named Best Airport in North America for second consecutive year. Squire. Trevor. Star Tribune. Minneapolis. March 6, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180306210925/http://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-st-paul-international-airport-named-best-airport-in-north-america-for-second-consecutive-year/476012933/. March 6, 2018. live.
  8. Web site: Lora . Sara . and Aeromexico launch new service between Queretaro, Mexico, and Detroit . Delta . February 9, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190209124154/https://news.delta.com/delta-and-aeromexico-launch-new-service-between-queretaro-mexico-and-detroit . February 9, 2019 . live .
  9. Web site: Airline Hub Guide: Which U.S. Cities Are Major Hubs and Why it Matters. airfarewatchdog.com. Radka. Ricky. February 28, 2022. December 23, 2021.
  10. Web site: MinneapolisHistory. Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport. en. January 17, 2021.
  11. Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan Airports Commission History, Volume I: Early Aviation, Metropolitan Area, 1911-1943
  12. Web site: Fun Facts. Metropolitan Airports Commission. June 25, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120609090625/http://mspairport.com/social-media/fun-facts.aspx. June 9, 2012. dead.
  13. Web site: Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport, Lindbergh Terminal, 4300 Glumack Drive, Minneapolis, Minnesota. October 22, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20180729230512/http://www.placeography.org/index.php/Minneapolis-Saint_Paul_International_Airport,_Lindbergh_Terminal,_4300_Glumack_Drive,_Minneapolis,_Minnesota. July 29, 2018. live.
  14. 2002. Architecture Minnesota. Architecture Minnesota. 28. 1. 49. Minnesota Society American Institute of Architects.
  15. Web site: Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport: Looking Back and Moving Forward. Patrick. Hogan. Metropolitan Airports Commission. 2013. May 28, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20170712062310/http://www.airtap.umn.edu/events/forum/2013/documents/hogan.pdf. July 12, 2017. live.
  16. News: Two New Concourses to Debut at Minneapolis–St. Paul International Airport. Eric. Torbenson. St. Paul Pioneer Press. May 31, 2002. July 1, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304023523/http://archives.californiaaviation.org/airport/msg21574.html. March 4, 2016. live.
  17. News: New Concourse Opens at Minneapolis Airport's Main Terminal. Dan Jr.. Wascoe. Star Tribune. Minneapolis. November 1, 2002. July 1, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20081204222826/http://archives.californiaaviation.org/airport/msg23770.html. December 4, 2008. live.
  18. Web site: MSP Intl. Airport Final ROD . February 2, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170501014158/https://www.faa.gov/airports/environmental/records_decision/media/rod_minneapolis.pdf . May 1, 2017 . live .
  19. 2020 Annual Noise Contour Report . Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) . 2 . February 2021.
  20. Web site: Marnie Hunter . Study reveals the North American airports that travelers find the most -- and least -- satisfying . September 21, 2022 . CNN . September 21, 2022 . en.
  21. Web site: Terminal 1 Map . March 27, 2021.
  22. Web site: MSP Terminal 2 Map . March 27, 2021.
  23. Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport Long Term Comprehensive Plan Update . The Metropolitan Airports Commission . July 26, 2010.
  24. News: July 20, 2009 . A case of terminal confusion at Minn. airport . . Associated Press . September 23, 2022.
  25. Web site: These routes will change May 18 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130715174842/http://www.metrotransit.org/routes-change-may-18 . July 15, 2013 . May 22, 2013 . Metro Transit.
  26. Web site: MSP Runways. October 20, 2021.
  27. Web site: Minneapolis–St Paul International (MSP) Summary Statistics. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, US Department of Transportation. August 16, 2024.
  28. Web site: International_Report_Passengers Department of Transportation - Data Portal. July 26, 2021. data.transportation.gov.
  29. Web site: RITA | BTS | Transtats . Transtats.bts.gov . March 3, 2024.
  30. Web site: About MSP . December 31, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190101002739/http://www.mspairport.com/about-msp . January 1, 2019 . live .
  31. National Transportation Safety Board . April 25, 2007 . Aviation Accident Final Report - CHI05MA111A .
  32. Web site: Frontier Airlines will double presence at MSP Airport with five new nonstop routes. .