Myrtle Beach International Airport

For the United States Air Force use of the facility before March 1993, see Myrtle Beach Air Force Base.
Myrtle Beach International Airport

Terminal at Myrtle Beach International Airport
IATA: MYR – ICAO: KMYR – FAA LID: MYR
Summary
Airport type Public
Owner Horry County
Operator Horry County Department of Airports[1]
Serves Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Focus city for
Elevation AMSL 25 ft / 8 m
Coordinates 33°40′47″N 078°55′42″W / 33.67972°N 78.92833°W / 33.67972; -78.92833Coordinates: 33°40′47″N 078°55′42″W / 33.67972°N 78.92833°W / 33.67972; -78.92833
Website FlyMyrtleBeach.com
Maps

FAA airport diagram
MYR

Location of airport in South Carolina

Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
18/36 9,503 2,897 Asphalt / Concrete
Statistics (2014)
Aircraft operations 145,347
Based aircraft 52
Passengers (2013) 1,664,917

Myrtle Beach International Airport (IATA: MYR[4], ICAO: KMYR, FAA LID: MYR) is a county-owned public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) southwest of the central business district of Myrtle Beach, in Horry County, South Carolina, United States. It was formerly known as Myrtle Beach Jetport (1974–1989) and is located on site of the former Myrtle Beach Air Force Base, which also includes The Market Common shopping complex.

The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2015-2019 categorized this facility as a primary commercial service airport.[5] In 2014, the airport served a total of 1,749,657 passengers.

Myrtle Beach is the third-busiest airport in South Carolina behind Charleston and Greenville-Spartanburg, with nearly 1.7 million passengers (arriving and departing) in 2013. The airport is a focus city for Spirit Airlines, which handles just over half of the total passengers using the airport.[6][7]

The airport's official website since 2006 is flymyrtlebeach.com,[8] which was previously an unofficial website owned by an airport employee.[9] In July 2012 the airport launched a redesigned website with a new logo.[10][11][12]

History

Joint use of Myrtle Beach Air Force Base was first agreed in 1955.[13] The airport and terminal was constructed in 1975 and opened in 1976. On April 20, 1977, an agreement between the City of Myrtle Beach and the U.S. Department of Defense was signed, which incorporated the area of Myrtle Beach Airport into the city. Until 1993, both MYR and Myrtle Beach AFB jointly used the main runway; this limited civil operations to 30 landings per day and led to a local business movement to build an entirely new airport.[14]

In the 1980s, the airport was served by Piedmont Airlines mainline aircraft (later acquired by USAir) and by Delta and Eastern commuter aircraft.[15]

In 1993, the Air Force closed the base as a result of BRAC 1991. The runway and other portions of the former military flight line were then turned over to the Horry County Department of Airports.

American Eagle became a major carrier at MYR in the early 1990s, operating multiple daily ATR 72 flights to the American Airlines hub at Raleigh-Durham International Airport. By late 1994 this route accounted for as much as 12% of the airport's passenger traffic; however, American abruptly ended its American Eagle hub at Raleigh-Durham in December 1994, cancelling all service to MYR and other secondary airports in the region.[16] American returned to Myrtle Beach in 2010 with a seasonal service to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.[17]

On April 1, 1996, Myrtle Beach Airport became an international airport. A new international terminal had its grand opening August 21 of that year, and a new logo was unveiled "to reflect the architectural design of the airport 's terminal and the influence of the beach by showing a pained window and a palm tree in blues and greens".[18]

The airport served as the main hub for Hooters Air from 2003 until 2006. The airport authority offered discounted hangar space and other undisclosed benefits to Hooters Air operator Pace Airlines in an effort to relocate its operating base from Smith Reynolds Airport in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.[19] However, Pace decided to keep its base (also used for charter operations) in Winston-Salem.[20]

In 2006 AirTran Airways discontinued its service to Atlanta; it was the fourth-largest airline serving Myrtle Beach International at the time.[21]

Direct Air connected a number of airports to Myrtle Beach from 2007 until 2012, when it abruptly filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and ceased operations.[22] The failure of Direct Air caused a slump in passenger traffic at Myrtle Beach,[23] which declined 16% in 2012 but rebounded in 2013. WestJet began service to Toronto in summer 2013 with a revenue guarantee from Horry County, but its passenger numbers fell short of expectations, forcing the county to pay WestJet around $570,000.[24]

The airport was a designated launch abort site for the Space Shuttle, but was never used.[25]

Renovations

In 2008 two renovations took place in the terminal building. In July 2010, the FAA approved a $4.50 passenger facilities charge on all airline tickets to and from MYR in order to defray part of the cost for the terminal upgrade.[26]

Facilities and aircraft

Myrtle Beach International Airport covers an area of 3,795 acres (1,536 ha) at an elevation of 25 feet (8 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 18/36 with an asphalt and concrete surface measuring 9,503 by 150 feet (2,897 x 46 m).[2] The airport's entrance is on Harrelson Boulevard.[27]

The Dr. W.L. Harrelson Terminal Building is named for Myrtle Beach's first mayor, Dr. W.L. Harrelson, who served from March 1938 to December 1939 and again from January 1942 to December 1943. The city purchased land for the municipal airport during his first term, and the terminal at the airport was named in his honor.

MYR has a dedicated helipad primarily used by charter tour companies at the base of runway 36.

For the 12-month period ending March 20, 2014, the airport had 145,347 aircraft operations, an average of 248 per day: 75% air taxi, 11% scheduled commercial, 11% general aviation, and 3% military. At that time 57 aircraft were based at the airport: 73% single-engine, 18% multi-engine, and 9% helicopter.[2]

The airport has a dedicated air cargo building at the entrance of the airport.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

AirlinesDestinations
Allegiant Air Seasonal: Akron/Canton, Allentown, Cincinnati, Columbus-Rickenbacker, Clarksburg (WV), Fort Wayne, Harrisburg (begins May 19, 2016),[28] Huntington (WV), Indianapolis, Knoxville, Lexington, Newburgh (begins June 16, 2016),[29] Orlando/Sanford, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Toledo (begins June 3, 2016),[30] Youngstown/Warren
American Eagle Charlotte, Philadelphia
Seasonal: New York-LaGuardia (begins June 4, 2016),[31] Washington-National
Delta Air Lines Seasonal: Atlanta, Detroit
Delta Connection Atlanta
Seasonal: Boston, Detroit, New York-LaGuardia
Elite Airways Seasonal: Long Island/Islip (begins June 17, 2016)[32]
Porter Airlines Seasonal: Toronto-Billy Bishop
Spirit Airlines Atlantic City, Boston, Fort Lauderdale, New York-LaGuardia
Seasonal: Baltimore, Charleston (WV), Chicago-O'Hare, Cleveland, Dallas/Fort Worth, Detroit, Niagara Falls, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh/Latrobe, Plattsburgh
United Express Seasonal: Chicago-O'Hare, Newark
ViaAir Seasonal: Charlotte
WestJet Seasonal: Toronto-Pearson

Cargo

AirlinesDestinations
FedEx Feeder operated by Mountain Air Cargo Columbia (SC)
UPS Airlines operated by Air Cargo Carriers Columbia (SC)
Other airlines

Statistics

USGS 1994 orthophoto

Airline market share

Carrier shares: Jan. 2014 – Dec. 2014[6]
Carrier   Passengers (arriving and departing)
Spirit
886,000(52.30%)
Mesa
187,000(11.06%)
Delta
184,000(10.84%)
PSA
112,000(6.62%)
Allegiant
98,480(5.81%)
Other
226,000(13.37%)

Top destinations

Busiest domestic routes from MYR (Dec 2014 – Nov 2015)[6]
Rank City Airport name & IATA code Passengers
2015 2014
1 Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte Douglas International (CLT) 144,000 159,500
2 Atlanta, Georgia Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL) 126,000 120,000
3 New York–LaGuardia, New York LaGuardia (LGA) 102,000 104,000
4 Detroit, Michigan Detroit Metropolitan (DTW) 57,000 56,000
5 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia International (PHL) 51,000 57,800
6 Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City International (ACY) 51,000 50,000
7 Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International (FLL) 46,000 44,000
8 Chicago–O'Hare, Illinois O'Hare International (ORD) 43,000 42,000
9 Boston, Massachusetts Logan International (BOS) 42,000 42,000
10 Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore/Washington International (BWI) 35,000 32,000

Annual traffic

Annual passenger traffic at MYR, 2000 through 2015[33][34]
Year Enplaned Deplaned Total
2000 792,529 789,843 1,582,372
2001 711,520 709,561 1,421,081
2002 631,283 628,838 1,260,121
2003 668,951 666,545 1,335,496
2004 768,944 766,268 1,535,212
2005 785,321 781,088 1,566,409
2006 723,900 716,500 1,440,400
2007 844,373 839,450 1,683,823
2008 783,351 782,021 1,565,372
2009 742,187 743,206 1,485,393
2010 867,106 869,032 1,736,138
2011 878,180 881,694 1,759,874
2012 740,457 742,097 1,482,554
2013 831,349 833,568 1,664,917
2014 876,923 872,734 1,749,657
2015 913,351 916,720 1,830,071

References

  1. ↑ "Horry County Department of Airports page on Horry County Government Website". Horry County, South Carolina. Retrieved August 15, 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 FAA Airport Master Record for MYR (Form 5010 PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. Effective July 24, 2014.
  3. ↑ "About Myrtle Beach International Airport". Horry County Department of Airports. Retrieved February 26, 2014.
  4. ↑ "IATA Airport Code Search (MYR: Myrtle Beach)". International Air Transport Association. Retrieved August 7, 2014.
  5. ↑ "2015-2019 NPIAS Report, Appendix A" (PDF, 7.89 MB). faa.gov. Federal Aviation Administration. September 30, 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 "Myrtle Beach, SC: Myrtle Beach International (MYR)". Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA), U.S. Department of Transportation. December 2014. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
  7. ↑ Spring, Jake (December 31, 2010). "Flier breaks Myrtle Beach International Airport record". The Sun News (Myrtle Beach, S.C.). Retrieved December 31, 2010.
  8. ↑ "Myrtle Beach International Airport". FlyMyrtleBeach.com. Archived from the original on October 22, 2006.
  9. ↑ "UNOFFICIAL site of Aviation in the Myrtle Beach". FlyMyrtleBeach.com. Archived from the original on November 5, 2005.
  10. ↑ "Myrtle Beach International Airport (old website and logo)". FlyMyrtleBeach.com. Archived from the original on June 30, 2012.
  11. ↑ "Myrtle Beach International Airport (new website and logo)". FlyMyrtleBeach.com. Archived from the original on July 31, 2012.
  12. ↑ "Myrtle Beach International Airport Launches New Website" (PDF) (Press release). Horry County Department of Airports. August 8, 2012.
  13. ↑ "Ruling Due in About 2 Months on Myrtle Beach Air Base Use". Charleston, S.C.: The News and Courier. January 26, 1956. Retrieved July 13, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Task force calls for 'international airport' in Myrtle Beach". Wilmington Morning Star. September 18, 1987. Retrieved July 13, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Two Carriers Want To Land Large Jets in Myrtle Beach". Charleston, S.C.: The News and Courier. February 2, 1989. Retrieved July 13, 2014.
  16. ↑ "Airport officials aren't sweating airline's decision to end service". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. December 12, 1994. Retrieved July 13, 2014.
  17. ↑ "American Eagle Airlines Launches Nonstop Jet Service Between Myrtle Beach, S.C., and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport". PR Newswire. April 6, 2010. Retrieved July 13, 2014.
  18. ↑ Merx, Katie (August 22, 1996). "Airport Has Global Outlook: International Terminal Open for Business". Myrtle Beach, S.C.: The Sun News.
  19. ↑ "Myrtle Beach woos N.C. airline". Wilmington Morning Star. February 27, 2003.
  20. ↑ "Hooters Air flying to Myrtle Beach". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. December 29, 2002.
  21. ↑ Bryant, Dawn (December 22, 2006). "AirTran Departs Myrtle Beach". The Sun News (Myrtle Beach, S.C.: AviationPros.com).
  22. ↑ Wren, David (November 13, 2013). "Bank going after Myrtle Beach-based Direct Air's former owners for $25 million debt". The Sun News (Myrtle Beach, S.C.). Retrieved December 10, 2013.
  23. ↑ "Myrtle Beach Int'l Airport lands new Canadian carrier". StarNews. February 11, 2013. Retrieved December 10, 2013.
  24. ↑ Bryant, Dawn (November 19, 2013). "Rebound continues at Myrtle Beach International Airport, momentum expected to continue into 2014". The Sun News (Myrtle Beach, S.C.). Retrieved December 10, 2013.
  25. ↑ "Space Shuttle Emergency Landing Sites". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved July 13, 2014.
  26. ↑ "Myrtle Beach airport ticket fee to increase: Cash will help fund expansion". The Sun News (Myrtle Beach, S.C.). January 12, 2011.
  27. ↑ Bryant, Dawn; Saldinger, Ava; Spring, Jake (January 2, 2011). "Top business stories to watch in 2011 in Myrtle Beach area". The Sun News (Myrtle Beach, S.C.). Retrieved January 2, 2011.
  28. ↑ https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/allegiant-unveils-22-new-routes-422834/
  29. ↑ https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/allegiant-unveils-22-new-routes-422834/
  30. ↑ https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/allegiant-unveils-22-new-routes-422834/
  31. ↑ http://airlineroute.net/2016/01/17/aa-domestic-s16/
  32. ↑ http://wbtw.com/2016/04/22/elite-airways-to-offer-non-stop-flights-to-myrtle-beach/
  33. ↑ MYR Passenger Enplanements. Retrieved on Apr 3, 2015.
  34. ↑ MYR Passenger Deplanements. Retrieved on Apr 3, 2015.

External links

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