Eppley Airfield
Eppley Airfield | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||||||
| Owner/Operator | Omaha Airport Authority | ||||||||||||||||||
| Serves | Eastern Nebraska, western Iowa | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Omaha, Nebraska | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hub for | Suburban Air Freight | ||||||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 984 ft / 300 m | ||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 41°18′04″N 95°53′43″W / 41.3012°N 95.8954°W | ||||||||||||||||||
| Website | www.flyoma.com | ||||||||||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||||||||||
File:OMA - FAA airport diagram.gif  OMA | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Runways | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2009, 2010) | |||||||||||||||||||
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Eppley Airfield (IATA: OMA, ICAO: KOMA, FAA LID: OMA) is a medium hub airport three miles northeast of Omaha, Nebraska, in Douglas County, Nebraska. It is by far the largest airport in Nebraska, serving ten times more passengers than all other Nebraska airports combined, and is named for Eugene C. Eppley, the Eppley Hotel magnate of Omaha, from whose estate $1.0 million was used to convert Omaha Municipal Airport into a jetport in 1959/1960.[3]
The airport occupies 2,650 acres (1,070 ha) and handles about 75-80 airline flights per day to 19 daily and 3 seasonal non-stop destinations.[4]
History
The April 1957 OAG shows 42 scheduled airline departures a day: 23 United and 19 Braniff. The first jets were United 720s in Aug-Sept 1960.
On August 6, 1966 Braniff Airways Flight 250 left Kansas City Downtown Airport headed for Eppley and crashed near Falls City, Nebraska, killing all 42 on board. The flight was waiting for weather to clear in Omaha before descending when violent turbulence compromised the structural integrity of the plane.[citation needed]
Several films have used Eppley for a few scenes including the 2002 feature film About Schmidt which included scenes filmed inside and outside the terminal building, and the 2009 feature film Up in the Air which made use of the south end of the terminal building during filming.[citation needed]
The terminal building, opened in 1961, was designed by James C. Buckley, Inc.[5] Concourse B opened in 1970,[6] and it was remodeled in 1986 while Concourse A opened in 1986.[7]
Midwest Airlines, then known as Midwest Express, once had a focus city at Eppley Airfield with flights to Milwaukee, WI, Newark, NJ, Kansas City, MO, Los Angeles, CA, and Washington Reagan; nonstops to Milwaukee and Washington Reagan lasted until the merger with Frontier Airlines in 2010.[8] As of April 2015, Omaha has no international flights. The airport handled more than 4.1 million passengers in 2014. Southwest Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and American Airlines are the first-, second-, and third-largest carriers and serve about 33 percent, 22 percent, and 22 percent, respectively, of passengers.[2]
Expansion
Current
Parking Garage
On February 18, 2015, The Omaha Airport Authority board approved the plan for design work to begin on an approximately $71 million, six-story parking garage. The new garage is to be built north of the existing six-story garage, and construction on the first project would begin in about a year. The project will be expected to be completed in fall 2017. The first phase would provide 2,200 parking stalls, with 850 stalls for rental cars and 1,350 public stalls. [9]
Location
The airport is northeast of downtown Omaha in east Omaha. Although the airport is in Nebraska on the west side of the Missouri River, it is surrounded on the east, west and south by the state of Iowa: the Missouri River formerly formed an oxbow west of the land that became Eppley Airfield. The river cut off the oxbow during an 1877 flood, leaving behind Carter Lake on a portion of its former course; the Supreme Court ruled in 1893 that though the land cut off by the river's changed route now lay west of the Missouri, it remained part of Iowa. This land eventually became the city of Carter Lake, Iowa.[citation needed]
Terminals
Central Terminal
The Central Terminal contains the ground transportation center and rental car counters.
South Terminal and Concourse A
The South Terminal houses ticketing, baggage claim and security screening for airlines served by Concourse A (gates A1-A10). The airport's second and fourth largest carriers Delta and American operate out of Concourse A along with Alaska, Allegiant and Frontier.
Ownership of Gates:
A1: Alaska
A2-A5: Delta
A6-A7: American
A8: Frontier
A9: Allegiant
A10: None
North Terminal and Concourse B
The North Terminal houses ticketing, baggage claim and security screening for airlines served by Concourse B (gates B11-B20). The airport's largest operator Southwest is in Concourse B along with United and US Airways
Owners of Gates: B11: US Airways/American B12-B15: United B16-B19: Southwest B20: US Airways/American
The Gate System
The gate system of Eppley Airfield is a "running total system". This means that when a new concourse begins, the gate number does not reset to 1 with the prefix of the Concourse's letter. For example, in Omaha, the gates go from A10 to B11, there is no B1, as the running total keeps the number going with a different prefix.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger
| Airlines | Destinations | Concourse |
|---|---|---|
| Alaska Airlines operated by SkyWest Airlines | Portland (OR) (begins February 19, 2016),[10] Seattle/Tacoma | A |
| Allegiant Air | St. Petersburg/Clearwater Seasonal: Oakland | A |
| American Airlines | Dallas/Fort Worth | A |
| American Eagle | Dallas/Fort Worth, Chicago-O'Hare | A |
| Delta Air Lines | Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis/St.Paul Seasonal: Salt Lake City | A |
| Delta Connection | Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-LaGuardia, Salt Lake City, Washington-National | A |
| Frontier Airlines | Denver Seasonal: Orlando | B |
| Southwest Airlines | Chicago-Midway, Dallas-Love, Denver, Las Vegas, Phoenix, St. Louis Seasonal: Los Angeles, Orlando | B |
| United Airlines | Chicago-O'Hare, Denver | B |
| United Express | Chicago-O'Hare, Denver, Houston-Intercontinental, Newark | B |
| US Airways operated by American Airlines1 | Phoenix | B |
| US Airways Express2 | Charlotte, Phoenix | B |
^1 All US Airways flights will be rebranded as American Airlines effective October 17, 2015.
^2 All US Airways Express flights will be rebranded as American Eagle flights effective October 17, 2015.
Cargo
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Ameriflight | Beatrice, Grand Island, Kearney, Norfolk |
| AirNet Express | Des Moines |
| FedEx Express operated by Baron Aviation Services | Grand Island, Kearney, North Platte |
| FedEx Express | Memphis, Indianapolis |
| DHL Aviation operated by Suburban Air Freight | Cincinnati |
| UPS Airlines | Billings, Louisville, Winnipeg |
Statistics
Top domestic destinations
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denver, CO | 316,000 | Frontier, Southwest, United |
| 2 | Chicago, IL (ORD) | 225,000 | American, United |
| 3 | Chicago, IL (MDW) | 198,000 | Southwest |
| 4 | Atlanta, GA | 191,000 | Delta |
| 5 | Dallas, TX (DFW) | 186,000 | American |
| 6 | Phoenix, AZ | 160,000 | Southwest, US Airways |
| 7 | Minneapolis/St Paul, MN (MSP) | 149,000 | Delta |
| 8 | Las Vegas, NV | 113,000 | Southwest |
| 9 | St. Louis, MO | 101,000 | Southwest |
| 10 | Houston, TX (IAH) | 71,000 | United |
Annual traffic
| Year | Passengers | Year | Passengers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 4,287,428 | ||
| 2009 | 4,217,718 | ||
| 2008 | 4,370,137 | ||
| 2007 | 4,421,274 | ||
| 2006 | 4,229,856 | ||
| 2005 | 4,193,046 | ||
| 2014 | 4,119,730 | 2004 | 3,868,217 |
| 2013 | 4,042,333 | 2003 | 3,667,190 |
| 2012 | 4,127,344 | 2002 | 3,608,231 |
| 2011 | 4,212,399 |
Ground transportation
MAT Line 16[13] provides weekday-only service southbound toward downtown and northbound toward the North Omaha Transit Center. Passenger access is located directly outside the central terminal.
Gallery
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Eppley Airfield terminal in Omaha. The houses just beyond are in Carter Lake, Iowa (with Carter Lake visible to the right). The bluffs are in Omaha. -
Eppley on June 16, 2011 during the 2011 Missouri River floods -
Eppley Airfield and downtown Omaha
References
- ^ FAA Airport Form 5010 for OMA PDF, effective 2007-10-25
- ^ a b Eppley Airfield, official web site
- ^ Eppley Grant of $1 Million Gives Omaha Jet Field - Lincoln Evening Journal, 1959-12-31
- ^ "http://www.flyoma.com/images/Route_Map_2-26-15.jpg". www.flyoma.com. Retrieved 2015-04-29.
{{cite web}}: External link in|title= - ^ American Aviation. Vol. 24. 1960.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ Mezzy, Dick (July 5, 1970). "Eppley Elevated Terminal Ready". Lincoln Star. p. 16. Retrieved January 22, 2015.
- ^ Airport Authority of the City of Omaha "Airport Facilities Revenue Bonds". Retrieved June 27, 2012.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ Frontier and Midwest airlines merge
- ^ Omaha World Herald. "Easing the Parking Crunch: 6-story, 2,200-stall Garage Coming to Eppley Airfield in 2017." Omaha.com. Omaha World Herald, 18 Feb. 2015. Web. 28 Apr. 2015. <http://www.omaha.com/money/easing-the-parking-crunch--story--stall-garage-coming/article_790a6390-b6d2-11e4-9734-039b1a169392.html>.
- ^ http://finance.yahoo.com/news/alaska-airlines-announces-daily-flying-120000995.html;_ylt=AwrC1Cj.yLpVkzEAJUjQtDMD;_ylu=X3oDMTBybGY3bmpvBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMyBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzcg--
- ^ http://www.transtats.bts.gov/airports.asp?pn=1&Airport=OMA&Airport_Name=Omaha,%20NE:%20Eppley%20Airfield&carrier=FACTS
- ^ Annual Traffic Statistics. Retrieved on Apr 3, 2015.
- ^ http://www.ometro.com/bus-system/bus-routes/east-omaha-north-16th-weekdays-only
External links
- Eppley Airfield, official site
- Eppley Airport Guide on Omaha.net
- FAA Airport Diagram (PDF), effective December 26, 2024
- FAA Terminal Procedures for OMA, effective December 26, 2024
- Resources for this airport:
- AirNav airport information for KOMA
- ASN accident history for OMA
- FlightAware airport information and live flight tracker
- NOAA/NWS weather observations: current, past three days
- SkyVector aeronautical chart for KOMA
- FAA current OMA delay information