St. George Regional Airport
St. George Regional Airport is a city-owned airport in St. George, Washington County, Utah. The airport opened on January 13, 2011, a replacement for smaller land-locked St. George Municipal Airport, atop a mesa in the city, which was declared unsuitable for expansion. It is served by SkyWest Airlines for American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines. SkyWest, one of the largest regional airlines in the world, is based in St. George. The former airport used SGU as the location identifier for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and International Air Transport Association (IATA). The  new airport was assigned a transitional identifier DXZ by the FAA, but retained the IATA designation SGU. On December 15, 2011, the FAA returned SGU to use at the new airport. History. The prospect of a new airport for the region had been considered for many years. The old airport had a small terminal with a single gate and a runway that was too small for larger aircraft. It had no room for expansion, as it was situated atop a mesa. With the growth of the area and tourism rapidly increasing, the need for a new airport became more urgent . A site was chosen about 6 miles southeast of downtown at an abandoned airfield which had not seen air traffic since 1961 and most recently had been used for vehicle drag racing and radio controlled aircraft. An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the present airport was completed in August 2006. The study concluded that the impact on the environment and noise pollution would be minimal. Plans for this new larger airport included a single 10,000 ft (3048m) runway suitable for regional jets and smaller mainline aircraft. The runway was initially planned to be oriented at about 010/190 degrees. It  was also initially planned to be with subsequent plans for the runway to be extended to . A 9,300 ft runway was eventually constructed. The new St. George Airport was partially funded by grants from the FAA totaling $123 million. The entire project was expected to cost about 159 million dollars. The city broke ground on the new site in October 2008 and the airport opened on January 13, 2011. SkyWest Airlines (operating as Delta Connection) announced that on January 13, 2011 the airline would begin nonstop daily services to Salt Lake City from the airport, using Canadair CRJ regional  jets. SkyWest subsequently initiated nonstop Canadair CRJ regional jet services to Denver operating as United Express. On July 13, 2015 the airport changed its name from St. George Municipal Airport to St. George Regional Airport in a bid to attract more airline services to the airport. Late in 2018, Allegiant Air announced flights from St. George to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport from November 9 of that year, which were the first mainline jets to St. George, as Allegiant operates Airbus A320 aircraft. Allegiant Air later suspended all flights to St. George Regional Airport. Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport  had 80,562 boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2020 (during COVID-19 pandemic), 102,297 in calendar year 2019 (during which the airport was closed for part of the year), 123,060 in calendar year 2018, 103,569 in 2017, 103,569 in calendar year 2017, 78,680 in calendar year 2016, 69,680 in calendar year 2015, and 59,321 in calendar year 2014. 2019 closure. The airport was closed in May 2019 for reconstruction of its lone runway. Officials found soil issues at the airport only a few years after its opening, and sealed cracks quickly became ubiquitous on the runway and tarmac. The airport was closed  through September 2019 as crews excavated as much as 17 feet of earth below the runway. During the closure, the nearest commercial service airports would be Cedar City Regional Airport, 60 miles northeast, or McCarran International Airport near Las Vegas, 129 miles southwest. Facilities. St. George Regional Airport covers ; its single runway, 1/19, is 9,300 by 150 feet (2,835 x 46 m). The airport has a terminal. In the 12 months ending August 4, 2020 the airport had 80,105 aircraft operations, average 219 per day: 86% general aviation, 3% air taxi, 8% airline, and 2% military. 195 aircraft were then  based at the airport: 150 single-engine, 20 multi-engine, 6 jet, 7 helicopter, 10 gliders and 2 ultralight. The airport is serviced by one fixed-base operator, Above View Jet Center, as well as two maintenance / service centers, Aviation Services Group and Kings Avionics. Aviation Services Group also provides flight instruction. Airlines and destinations. The old St. George Municipal Airport was served by Bonanza Air Lines which in the late 1950s began flying Douglas DC-3s to Salt Lake City via Cedar City and Provo, and to Phoenix via Prescott. By 1962 Bonanza had replaced its DC-3s with new Fairchild  F-27s and had quit flying to St George, instead serving Cedar City, Utah with the F-27. SkyWest Airlines started flying to Salt Lake City on June 19, 1972 via Cedar City. SkyWest later introduced Fairchild Swearingen Metroliners followed by Embraer EMB-120 Brasilias to the old airport before moving to the new airport. In November 2016 American Eagle (SkyWest Airlines) CRJ 200s began flying to St. George from Phoenix. Accidents and incidents. Between the St. George Municipal and Regional Airports there have been a total of 21 accidents and incidents in and around the airport since 1982. St. George Regional Airport