Reno–Tahoe International Airport

Reno–Tahoe International Airport (IATA: RNO, ICAO: KRNO, FAA LID: RNO) is a public and military airport three miles (6 km) southeast of downtown Reno, in Washoe County, Nevada, United States.[1][3] It is the state's second busiest commercial airport after McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas. The Nevada Air National Guard has the 152nd Airlift Wing southwest of the airport's main terminal. The airport is named after both the City of Reno, Nevada and Lake Tahoe.[4] The airspace of Reno-Tahoe Airport is controlled by the Northern California TRACON and Oakland Air Route Traffic Control Center.[5]

"Reno Airport" redirects here. For the other airport serving Reno, see Reno Stead Airport.

Reno–Tahoe International Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
Owner/OperatorReno–Tahoe Airport Authority
ServesReno, Nevada
LocationReno, Nevada
Elevation AMSL4,415 ft / 1,346 m
Coordinates39°29′57″N 119°46′05″W
Websitewww.renoairport.com
Maps

FAA diagram
RNO
Location
RNO
RNO (the United States)
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
16R/34L 11,001 3,353 Concrete
16L/34R 9,000 2,743 Concrete
7/25 6,102 1,860 Concrete
Statistics (2020)
Aircraft operations85,520
Passengers2,006,420
Sources: FAA[1] and airport website[2]

History

Early years

The airport was built in 1929 by Boeing Transport Inc. and named Hubbard Field after Boeing Air Transport VP and air transport pioneer Eddie Hubbard.[6] It was acquired by United Airlines in 1936 and purchased by the City of Reno in 1953. The August 1953 OAG shows 15 scheduled departures each weekday; ten years later there were 28.

Jets (United 727s) arrived in June 1964; runway 16 (now 16R) was extended southward from 7800 to 9000 feet around that time. The airport didn't rate a nonstop to Los Angeles until 1969; a nonstop to Chicago began in 1970.

The first terminal building was completed in time for the 1960 Winter Olympics held in Squaw Valley, California in 1960. The present ticketing lobby and concourses were built in 1979.[7] The airport received its current name in 1994 (which honors both the city and the nearby popular tourist destination Lake Tahoe), when the terminal was named in honor of retired Air Force Reserve Major General and former U.S. Senator Howard Cannon.[8] Prior to that the airport itself was named Cannon International Airport.

Reno–Tahoe International was the hub of Reno Air, a now-defunct airline that had MD-80s and MD-90s to many cities until it was bought by American Airlines and later disposed of, in 2001. Reno Air's first flight was on July 1, 1992, and its last flight was August 30, 1999. On New Year's Eve of 2003, Continental Airlines completed the installation of self check-in in the continental United States at Reno International.[9]

Expansion

The terminal was remodeled in 1996, 2009 and 2013. In 1996, the baggage claim and ticketing area were updated with technology and decor similar to Las Vegas. In 2008, the airport began a $70 million project that enhanced the baggage screening equipment and remodeled the ticketing area with a modern Tahoe theme; the project was entirely completed in 2010. To complete the renovations, the TSA ordered the shutdown of the ticketing area, so the airport built a full service heated/a/c temporary ticketing tent, which took up three lanes out of six in front of the airport for taxi, pick up and drop off. In March 2013, a $24 million expansion of the airport was completed and focused on a new centralized TSA Security Checkpoint on the ground level, and above it, a shopping/dining promenade called "High Mountain Marketplace" which consists of CNBC News, InMotion Entertainment, Brighton and No Boundaries Outdoor Apparel. Dining options include McDonald's, Timber Ridge Restaurant, among others, in the two concourses. Giant windows in the dining areas allow expansive views of the mountains and runways. Leading major airport designers designed the new spaces. With the new security checkpoint, travelers can now access both concourses without having to go through security. Future projects may include updates to the concourses.

The airport celebrated 75 years of service in November 2003.

International service

On February 2014, the airport announced that Volaris planned to start operating non-stop service flights to Guadalajara, Mexico sometime in 2015. Since the DOT approved the route, it is Reno's first international non-stop service since 1999. On October 7, 2014, the DOT and the airport announced that Volaris would start a twice weekly flight to Guadalajara, Mexico from Reno on December 16, 2014.[10]

In November 2014, Thomas Cook Airlines announced that it planned to introduce twice weekly, non-stop flights from London–Gatwick to Reno starting in December 2015. It would have been the first transatlantic route from Reno Airport.[11] However, Thomas Cook Airlines canceled these plans in May 2015 stating insufficient border control capacities at the airport to handle their Airbus A330.[12][13]

Facilities

Overview
Reno Airport

Reno/Tahoe International Airport covers 1,450 acres (587 ha) at an elevation of 4,415 feet (1,346 m). In the year ending June 30, 2018 the airport had 93,636 aircraft operations, average 256 per day: 47% airline, 38% general aviation, 13% air taxi, and 3% military. At that time 123 aircraft were based here: 74 single-engine, 18 multi-engine, 17 jet, 9 military, and 5 helicopter.[1] The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems categorized it as a primary commercial service airport (more than 10,000 enplanements per year).[14]

It has three concrete runways: 16R/34L is 11,001 by 150 feet (3,353 x 46 m); 16L/34R is 9,000 by 150 feet (2,743 x 46 m); 7/25 is 6,102 by 150 feet (1,860 x 46 m).[1] In fall 2010 the airport opened a new 200-foot (61-meter) ATCT to replace the 70-foot (21-meter) control tower that had been used for more than 50 years. It was designed by the Parsons Design Firm, responsible for the design of many other ATCT towers. The cost of the new tower was about 30 million dollars.

The passenger terminal is named after the late US Senator Howard Cannon.[15] The lobby of the terminal has an exhibit with the bust of Nevada State Senator (and Nevada State Senate Minority Leader) William J. "Bill" Raggio. Raggio is described in the exhibit as being "The Father of the Airport Authority."

Military facilities

The airport is also host to Reno Air National Guard Base, an approximately 60-acre (24 ha) complex which was established on the west side of the airport in 1954 when Air National Guard units relocated from the former Stead Air Force Base in Reno.

The base is home to the 152d Airlift Wing (152 AW), a Nevada Air National Guard unit operationally gained by the Air Mobility Command (AMC) and equipped with C-130H Hercules aircraft.

Terminals
Terminal interior

Reno–Tahoe International Airport provides two concourses designated B and C with an overall 23 jet bridge gates.

Airlines serving Reno have around 140 flights daily to and from the airport, providing service to 22 cities non-stop and about 31 cities with a same plane one-stop flight. Each terminal used to have its own security area on the concourse level, but were replaced in March 2013 with a combined security area on the first floor for both terminals.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 being pushed back
AirlinesDestinations
Alaska Airlines Los Angeles, Portland (OR), Seattle/Tacoma
Seasonal: Palm Springs
Allegiant Air Las Vegas, Orange County (begins February 18, 2021)[16]
Seasonal: Jackson Hole (begins June 4, 2021)[17]
American Airlines Dallas/Fort Worth, Phoenix–Sky Harbor
American Eagle Phoenix–Sky Harbor
Delta Air Lines Salt Lake City
Seasonal: Atlanta, Minneapolis/St. Paul
Delta Connection Los Angeles,[18] Salt Lake City
Frontier Airlines Denver, Las Vegas
JetBlue Los Angeles, New York–JFK
JSX Burbank, Orange County
Southwest Airlines Chicago–Midway, Dallas–Love, Denver, Las Vegas, Long Beach (begins March 11, 2021),[19] Los Angeles, Oakland, Phoenix–Sky Harbor, San Diego, San Jose
United Airlines Denver, San Francisco
Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare
United Express Denver, Houston–Intercontinental, Los Angeles, San Francisco
Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare
Volaris Guadalajara
International destinations from Reno-Tahoe International Airport
Red = Year-round destination

Cargo
AirlinesDestinations
Ameriflight Los Angeles
DHL Aviation Denver
FedEx Express Boise, Great Falls, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Memphis, Oakland
UPS Airlines Denver, Des Moines, Louisville, Omaha, Portland (OR), Sacramento–Mather, Seattle–Boeing
Seasonal: Kahului, Lubbock, Oakland, Ontario, Philadelphia

Statistics

Top destinations
Busiest domestic routes from RNO (November 2019 - October 2020)[20]
Rank City Passengers Carriers
1 Las Vegas, Nevada 229,000 Allegiant, Southwest
2 Phoenix–Sky Harbor, Arizona 154,000 American, Southwest
3 Denver, Colorado 135,000 Frontier, Southwest, United
4 Los Angeles, California 107,000 American, Southwest, United
5 Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas 103,000 American
6 Salt Lake City, Utah 86,000 Delta
7 Seattle/Tacoma, Washington 66,000 Alaska
8 San Francisco, California 51,000 United
9 San Diego, California 48,000 Southwest
10 Portland, Oregon 34,000 Alaska

Airline market share
Largest airlines at RNO (August 2019 – July 2020)[21]
Rank Airline Passengers Share
1 Southwest Airlines 1,184,000 39.96%
2 American Airlines 440,000 14.85%
3 Skywest Airlines 346,000 11.70%
4 United Airlines 260,000 8.77%
5 Horizon Air 155,000 5.23%

Annual traffic
Annual passenger traffic (enplaned + deplaned) at RNO, 2006–present[2]
Year Passengers Change Year Passengers Change
20065,000,663–20163,650,8306.3%
20075,044,0870.87%20174,015,30510.0%
20084,434,63812.08%20184,210,0954.8%
20093,755,93515.30%20194,450,6735.7%
20103,822,4851.8%20202,006,42054.9%
20113,754,1551.8%
20123,479,1227.3%
20133,431,9861.4%
20143,298,9153.9%
20153,432,6573.9%

Ground transportation

Car rental

The airport provides convenient access to nine different rental car agencies with rental car pick up available right outside the terminal building. All nine rental car counters are located in the baggage glaim. After completing the rental agreement inside, vehicles may be collected from the parking structure located just outside the baggage claim.

Taxis and limousines

The passenger waiting area for taxis and limousines is located outside of the D Doors located north of the baggage claim.

Bus

Public transportation to/from the airport is available via RTC Ride:

  • Route No. 12, takes passengers either to Downtown 4th Street Station or Meadowood Mall and stops at Terminal Way & Villanova Street, which is a short walk from the north baggage claim via the marked pedestrian walkway.
  • Route No. 19 takes passengers to Downtown 4th Street Station and stops outside the baggage claim. This route operates only on weekdays.

Shuttles

Complimentary hotel shuttles stop along the curb, outside the D Doors located north of the baggage claim, to pick up passengers.

Accidents and incidents
  • At 10:15 pm on November 24, 1971 a Northwest Orient Airlines Boeing 727 landed at the airport with the aft airstair still deployed after the aircraft had been hijacked by an unidentified man who is only known as D.B. Cooper. The aircraft had been hijacked by Cooper between Portland, Oregon and Seattle, Washington earlier that day. After landing in Seattle, the passengers were released. Cooper and the crew of the 727 were allowed to depart from Seattle to Mexico City with a fuel stop in Reno. The crew reported that the aft airstair had been deployed while over southern Washington. Upon landing in Reno, the aircraft was surrounded by law enforcement. An armed search quickly confirmed that Cooper was gone. The identity of the hijacker and his whereabouts remain a mystery to this day.
  • In the early morning hours of January 21, 1985, Galaxy Airlines Flight 203, a Lockheed L-188 Electra, took off from the airport for Minneapolis, Minnesota and crashed 1.5 miles (2.4 km) southwest of the airport while the pilots were attempting an emergency landing after experiencing an unexpected vibration from under the wing. An investigation attributed the crash to pilot error for failing to maintain proper control over the aircraft while investigating the cause of the vibration. The vibration was later found to be caused by an open air start service door which the ground crew failed to secure before departure. All but one of the 71 passengers and crew on board were killed.
  • Also in 1985, Roger Stockham, who would later be arrested for attempting to blow up a mosque in Michigan, was arrested at the airport for planting a pipe bomb and carrying an unregistered weapon.[22]
  • On April 13, 2011, a Piper Cheyenne air ambulance flight landed uneventfully at Reno–Tahoe International Airport without a clearance, after the single overnight air traffic controller fell asleep. Federal Aviation Regulations state that if a control tower is not in operation (a condition satisfied by the fact that the controller was asleep), it is considered an "uncontrolled airport" with flight and ground movement becoming the responsibility of the pilot. The incident was minor in nature and safety was never compromised; however, it led to the resignation of Air Traffic Organization chief executive Hank Krakowski.[23] The Federal Aviation Administration announced that 27 airports, including RNO, would subsequently be staffed with two air traffic controllers during graveyard shifts.[24]

Sound levels

Sound levels have been analyzed for over two decades at this airport, with one of the first studies being a comprehensive production of aircraft sound level contour maps.[25] Later analysis was conducted to analyze sound levels at Kate Smith School and provide retrofitting to reduce sound levels through a Federal Aviation Administration grant.[26]

See also

References
  1. FAA Airport Form 5010 for RNO PDF. Federal Aviation Administration. effective November 15, 2012.
  2. "Statistics". Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority. January 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  3. "Cannon International Airport". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved May 3, 2009.
  4. https://centreforaviation.com/data/profiles/airports/reno-tahoe-international-airport-rno
  5. https://www.airnav.com/airport/KRNO
  6. "William Boeing and Eddie Hubbard make first U.S. delivery of international airmail on March 3, 1919". www.historylink.org.
  7. "2007–08 budget of the Reno–Tahoe Airport Authority (RTAA)" (PDF). nsla.nevadaculture.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 31, 2014.
  8. "Airport Fact Sheet" (PDF)., Reno/Tahoe International Airport
  9. "Continental Airlines Self-Check-In Kiosk Network Expanded to All Domestic U.S. Airports". Continental Airlines. PR Newswire. January 8, 2004. Retrieved March 22, 2017.
  10. "10-07-2014 – New International Service to Guadalajara Pending Customs Approval". Reno-Tahoe International Airport.
  11. "Thomas Cook Airlines to Launch London Gatwick – Reno Service starting December 2015". airlineroute.net.
  12. "Nonstop Reno-London flights scrapped". Reno Gazette Journal. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
  13. "05-07-2015 - London Flight on Thomas Cook is Cancelled". www.renoairport.com.
  14. "2011–2015 NPIAS Report, Appendix A" (PDF, 2.03 MB). National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems. Federal Aviation Administration. October 4, 2010.
  15. "Reno/Tahoe International Airport Information - HotelsByCity.net". hotelsbycity.net. Archived from the original on February 12, 2009. Retrieved December 27, 2008.
  16. https://ir.allegiantair.com/news-releases/news-release-details/allegiant-announces-major-service-expansion-15-new-nonstop
  17. https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/airline-news/2021/01/12/allegiant-air-flight-expansion-portland-jackson-hole-key-west/6631129002/
  18. Liu, Jim. "Delta resumes Los Angeles – Reno service from Dec 2020". Routesonline. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  19. "Southwest Airlines Spring And Summer Schedules Take Off".
  20. "Reno–Tahoe, NV: Reno–Tahoe International (RNO)". Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  21. "RITA | BTS | Transtats". Transtats.bts.gov. Retrieved June 2, 2016.
  22. "Terror charges filed in plot to blow up Islamic Center".
  23. Sonner, Scott (April 14, 2011). "FAA official resigns after sleeping controllers". Associated Press. Washington, D.C.: Google News. Retrieved April 14, 2011.
  24. Hidalgo, Jason (April 13, 2011). "FAA two-controller-at-night policy in Reno changed shortly after it was put in place". Reno Gazette-Journal. Reno, Nevada. Retrieved April 14, 2011.
  25. Vegelatos, Reno Cannon International Airport Contour Maps, prepared for the Reno Cannon International Airport (1985)
  26. C.Michael Hogan and Ballard George, Aircraft Sound Insulation Study for the Kate Smith School, Sparks, Earth Metrics, prepared for the FAA, January 8, 1988
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