Jacksonville International Airport

Jacksonville International Airport (IATA: JAX, ICAO: KJAX, FAA LID: JAX) is a civil-military public airport 13 miles (21 km) north of Downtown Jacksonville, in Duval County, Florida. It is owned and operated by the Jacksonville Aviation Authority.

Jacksonville International Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic / Military
Owner/OperatorJacksonville Aviation Authority
ServesJacksonville metropolitan area
Locationwithin Jacksonville city-county limits
OpenedSeptember 1, 1968; 56 years ago (1968-09-01)
Elevation AMSL30 ft / 9 m
Coordinates30°29′39″N 081°41′16″W / 30.49417°N 81.68778°W / 30.49417; -81.68778
Websitewww.flyjax.com
Maps
FAA airport diagram
FAA airport diagram
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
08/26 10,000 3,048 Concrete
14/32 7,701 2,347 Concrete
Statistics (2023/2024)
Aircraft operations (year ending 2/28/2023)99,616
Passengers (fiscal year 2022/2023)7,306,171
Based aircraft (2023)72
Sources: FAA,[1] airport website[2][3]

History

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An overhead photo of Jacksonville International Airport circa 1968 showing separate areas for departing and arriving passengers on different sides of the terminal

Construction started in 1965 on a new airport to handle travel to nearby naval bases. The new airport was dedicated on September 1, 1968, replacing Imeson Field which carried the same IATA code of JAX.[4] Terrain precluded lengthening the runways at Imeson, a necessity with the inception of commercial jet airliners. A new idea at JIA was separating departing and arriving passengers on different sides of the terminal. This is no longer the case, and the airport now uses the more typical layout with departing passengers on an upper level with an elevated roadway, and arriving passengers on the lower level.

The new airport was slow to expand, only serving two million passengers a year by 1982, but it served over five million annually by 1999 and an expansion plan was approved in 2000. The first phase, which included rebuilding the landside terminal, the central square and main concessions area, as well as consolidating the security checkpoints at one location, and more parking capacity was completed in 2004–2005. In 2007, 6,319,016 passengers were processed.

 
Concourse C

The second phase of the expansion program[5] was carried out over three years, commencing in mid-2006 and projected to cost about $170 million. Concourses A and C were completely rebuilt; the former concourses have been demolished. Work on Concourse B was given a low priority because the capacities of the rebuilt Concourses A and C were more than adequate for existing demand. The expansion was designed by Reynolds, Smith & Hills (RS&H).[6]

The economic downturn of 2009 caused a decrease in passengers and flights. This led the JAA to commence the demolition of Concourse B in June 2009 because it was safer and easier for the contractor. After the debris was removed, asphalt was laid to provide space for ground equipment parking. The concourse will be rebuilt when passenger traffic increases, which the JAA had originally projected would occur in 2013 but did not materialize.[7][8] A section of the old concourse eventually became part of an airline club lounge which opened in 2019.

Expansion

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In 2018, the airport handled 6,460,253 passengers, breaking the previous record set in 2007.[9] 7,186,639 passengers were handled in 2019.[10] This increase in traffic prompted the JAA to revive the plan to rebuild concourse B.[11] On May 10, 2024, ground was broken on a new Concourse B. The concourse will have six additional gates, with the ability to expand to up to 10 additional gates. The design of concourses A and C also allow them to be extended to accommodate additional gates. In 2019, RS&H and Jacobs Engineering were chosen to perform the design, while Balfour Beatty was selected as the construction manager for the concourse B project.[12] By 2022 traffic recovered to over 6.5 million passengers annually and the expansion project was restarted. Concourse B is anticipated to be completed by the end of 2026. [13]

Operations

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Facilities

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The airport covers 7,911 acres (3,201 ha) and has two concrete runways: 08/26, 10,000 x 150 ft (3,048 x 46 m) and 14/32, 7,701 x 150 ft (2,347 x 46 m).[1][14] The terminal at JIA is composed of a baggage claim area, on the first floor and a ticketing area on the second floor, at the front of the structure. Past baggage claim and ticketing is the mezzanine, where shops, restaurants and the security checkpoint are located. Beyond the mezzanine are the airport's Concourses A and C, which include 10 gates each (for a total of 20), along with other shops and restaurants.[15]

The airport also has a Delta Sky Club on Concourse A and a multi-airline passenger club located behind the airside food court.

There are three galleries located off of the main courtyard before the security checkpoint. One features an art exhibit, the second houses a revolving exhibit about a Jacksonville-area landmark or institution, and the third houses a permanent exhibit highlighting the history of aviation in the region.

The airport's two runways form a "V" pattern (with the tip of the "V" pointing west). A plan exists to build two more runways, each paralleling one existing runway. The one alongside the existing southern runway will be built first. No date has been set.

In the year ending February 28, 2023, the airport had 99,616 aircraft operations, an average of 273 per day: 63% scheduled commercial, 19% general aviation, 14% air taxi and 4% military. In February 2023, there were 72 aircraft based at this airport: 3 single-engine, 3 multi-engine, 46 jet and 20 military.[1]

Military facilities

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Concurrent with the closure of Imeson Airport, the 125th Fighter-Interceptor Group (125 FIG) of the Florida Air National Guard (FANG) relocated to Jacksonville International Airport. Military Construction (MILCON) funds provided for the establishment of Jacksonville Air National Guard Base in the southwest quadrant of the airport and placement of USAF-style emergency arresting gear on the JAX runways. Upgraded from group to wing status and redesignated as the 125th Fighter Wing (125 FW) in the early 1990s, the wing is the host unit for Jacksonville ANGB and operates F-15C and F-15D Eagle aircraft. The 125 FW is operationally-gained by the Air Combat Command (ACC).

Jacksonville ANGB is basically a small air force base, albeit without the military housing, military hospital or other infrastructure of major U.S. Air Force installations. The Air National Guard provides a fully equipped USAF Crash Fire Rescue station to augment the airport's own fire department for both on-airport structural fires and aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) purposes. The base employs approximately 300 full-time military personnel (ART and AGR) and 1,000 part-time military personnel who are traditional air national guardsmen.[16]

 
Gate A3

Airlines and destinations

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Passenger

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AirlinesDestinationsRefs
Air Canada Express Toronto–Pearson (resumes May 22, 2025)[17] [18]
Allegiant Air Akron/Canton (begins May 22, 2025),[19] Cincinnati, Des Moines (begins May 23, 2025),[19] Grand Rapids (resumes May 23, 2025),[19] Harrisburg,[20] Indianapolis, Knoxville,[20] Pittsburgh, Washington–Dulles
Seasonal: Belleville/St. Louis, Columbus–Rickenbacker, Flint,[21] Norfolk
[22]
American Airlines Charlotte, Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami, Philadelphia, Phoenix–Sky Harbor,[23] Washington–National
Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare
[24]
American Eagle Chicago–O'Hare, Miami, Philadelphia, Washington–National [24]
Avelo Airlines New Haven (begins February 14, 2025)[25] [26]
Breeze Airways Hartford, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New Haven (begins February 6, 2025),[27] Norfolk, Providence, Pittsburgh[28]
Seasonal: Columbus–Glenn, New Orleans, Raleigh/Durham, Richmond, San Diego,[29] White Plains[30]
[31]
Delta Air Lines Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York–JFK [32]
Delta Connection Austin (begins May 7, 2025),[33] New York–JFK, New York–LaGuardia [32]
Frontier Airlines Dallas/Fort Worth,[34] Philadelphia, San Juan
Seasonal: Denver
[35]
JetBlue Boston, Fort Lauderdale,[36] New York–JFK [37]
Southwest Airlines Atlanta (ends April 7, 2025),[38] Baltimore, Chicago–Midway, Dallas–Love, Denver, Houston–Hobby, Kansas City (begins June 7, 2025),[39] Nashville, St. Louis[40][41] [42]
Sun Country Airlines Seasonal: Minneapolis/St. Paul[43]
United Airlines Chicago–O'Hare, Denver, Houston–Intercontinental, Newark, Washington–Dulles [44]
United Express Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare, Houston–Intercontinental, Newark, Washington–Dulles [44]

Cargo

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AirlinesDestinations
FedEx Express Fort Lauderdale, Greensboro, Memphis, Tampa
UPS Airlines Albany (GA), Louisville, Miami, San Juan

Statistics

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Passenger traffic

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The 2023 fiscal year (10/1/2022-9/30/2023) set a record for passenger numbers at Jacksonville International Airport. handling 7,306,171 passengers, which was a 14.4% increase from the prior fiscal year.[45]

Annual traffic

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JAX Annual Passenger Traffic 2017/2018 Fiscal Year (10/1-9/30) to Present[46][47]
Fiscal Year Passengers
2017/2018 6,221,827
2018/2019 7,073,228
2019/2020 3,960,498
2020/2021 4,162,825
2021/2022 6,387,924
2022/2023 7,306,171
2023/2024

Top destinations

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Busiest domestic routes from JAX (June 2023 – May 2024)[48]
Rank City Passengers Carriers
1   Atlanta, Georgia 718,000 Delta, Southwest
2   Charlotte, North Carolina 332,000 American
3   Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas 267,000 American
4   Baltimore, Maryland 174,000 Southwest
5   New York–JFK, New York 174,000 Delta, JetBlue
6   Miami, Florida 156,000 American
7   Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 154,000 American, Frontier
8   Newark, New Jersey 154,000 United
9   Chicago–O'Hare, Illinois 148,000 American, United
10   Denver, Colorado 135,000 Frontier, Southwest, United

Airline market share

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Largest airlines at JAX
(June 2023 – May 2024)
[49]
Rank Airline Passengers Share
1 American Airlines 1,835,000 24.94%
2 Delta Air Lines 1,692,000 23.00%
3 Southwest Airlines 1,177,000 16.00%
4 United Airlines 915,000 12.43%
5 JetBlue Airways 471,000 6.41%
Other 1,267,000 17.22%

Ground transportation

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Jacksonville International Airport has direct public transit service to Jacksonville Transportation Authority's bus network. The Route 1[50] bus connects the airport to downtown Jacksonville, with connections to Greyhound Bus Lines and to the Jacksonville Skyway monorail system.

Accidents and incidents

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On October 4, 1971, George M. Giffe Jr. hijacked a plane in Nashville, Tennessee, then forced the pilot to fly to Jacksonville, where Giffe killed his wife, the pilot and himself when cornered by the FBI.[51]

On December 6, 1984, Provincetown-Boston Airlines Flight 1039 crashed on takeoff, killing 11 passengers and 2 crew on board. The debris from the Tampa-bound flight burned near Lem Turner Road. The 1986 National Transportation Safety Board report cited elevator trim control system failure, causing separation of the horizontal stabilizer.[52]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c FAA Airport Form 5010 for JAX PDF, effective February 22, 2024.
  2. ^ "Jacksonville International Airport". www.flyjax.com. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
  3. ^ JACKSONVILLE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT TRAFFIC SUMMARY REPORT (PDF) (Report). December 2023.
  4. ^ "Dedication program, Jacksonville International Airport
  5. ^ "Jacksonville International Airport". www.jaa.aero.
  6. ^ "Reynolds, Smith & Hills – Aviation Building Projects". Archived from the original on June 19, 2012.
  7. ^ Bauerlein, David (June 4, 2019). "Economy soars, but memories of Great Recession linger in Jacksonville". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
  8. ^ Gibbons, Timothy J. (June 22, 2009). "Demolition of JIA's Concourse B brings end of an era". Florida Times-Union.
  9. ^ "JAX Sets New Record for Annual Passenger Traffic" (Press release). Jacksonville Aviation Authority. January 24, 2019. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  10. ^ "Enplanements by Airline" (PDF). flyjacksonville.com. Jacksonville Aviation Authority. May 31, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 30, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2022.
  11. ^ Burmeister, Caren (March 1, 2019). "With traffic surging Jacksonville International Airport adding 3rd concourse". Jacksonville Daily Record. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
  12. ^ Colburn, Allison (May 2, 2019). "JAA selects design team for new concourse". Jacksonville Business Journal. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  13. ^ "JIA breaks ground on Concourse B". News4Jax. May 10, 2024. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  14. ^ "JAX airport data at skyvector.com". skyvector.com. Retrieved August 18, 2022.
  15. ^ "Terminal Maps". Jacksonville International Airport. Retrieved June 13, 2014.
  16. ^ Pike, John. "125th Fighter Wing [125th FW]". GlobalSecurity.org.
  17. ^ "International service from Jacksonville returns with Air Canada flights to Toronto". September 12, 2024.
  18. ^ "Air Canada".
  19. ^ a b c "Allegiant offering nonstop flights from JAX to Akron-Canton, De Moines, Grand Rapids". November 2024.
  20. ^ a b "Airline announces new nonstop flight, low fares from Harrisburg to Florida". February 12, 2024.
  21. ^ Newsroom, Mid-Michigan NOW (December 7, 2021). "Flint Bishop Airport announces new routes to Boston and Jacksonville". WEYI. Retrieved April 13, 2023. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  22. ^ "Cheap airline tickets, low cost nonstop flights | Route Map".
  23. ^ "American Airlines adding more flights from Phoenix this winter".
  24. ^ a b "Flight schedules and notifications". American Airlines. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  25. ^ Wright, Bailey (December 9, 2024). "Dominican Republic among Avelo Airlines' 5 new destinations". Retrieved December 9, 2024.
  26. ^ "Destinations". Avelo Airlines. Archived from the original on November 7, 2023. Retrieved January 18, 2022.
  27. ^ "Breeze Airways to begin flying from Tweed-New Haven Airport". NBC Connecticut. August 13, 2024. Retrieved August 13, 2024.
  28. ^ "Breeze Airways adds two Florida destinations from T.F. Green. Here's where they're flying". The Providence Journal. July 18, 2023. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  29. ^ Weisberg, Lori (January 9, 2024). "A new low-cost airline is coming to San Diego and with it five new nonstop destinations". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  30. ^ "Breeze Airways adds new destinations to summer schedule at Westchester County Airport". lohud. April 24, 2024. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  31. ^ "Breeze Airways".
  32. ^ a b "Flight Schedules". Delta Airlines. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  33. ^ "Delta to launch nonstop flights from Austin to Jacksonville in May 2025". KXAN. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  34. ^ "Frontier Adding Flights from DFW to Jacksonville, Pittsburg". December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  35. ^ "Route Map". Frontier. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  36. ^ "JetBlue Will Add 30 New Routes, Launch Mint® Service at Newark". JetBlue Airways. June 18, 2020. Archived from the original on April 9, 2023. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  37. ^ "JetBlue Airlines Timetable". JebBlue. Archived from the original on July 13, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
  38. ^ Schlappig, Ben (September 26, 2024). "Southwest Massively Cuts Atlanta Flights". One Mile at a Time. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  39. ^ Liu, Jim (November 5, 2024). "Southwest Airlines June 2025 Network Additions". Aeroroutes. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
  40. ^ "Southwest Airlines Sep 2023 Network Additions". Aeroroutes. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  41. ^ "March 2023 Flight Schedule". Southwest.com. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  42. ^ "Check Flight Schedules". Southwest Airlines. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  43. ^ "Sun Country Announces Service From Minneapolis to Jacksonville, Fla". Jacksonville International Airport. October 19, 2021.
  44. ^ a b "Timetable". United Airlines. Archived from the original on January 28, 2017. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  45. ^ "JAX Airport Statistics For Fiscal Year 2023" (PDF). flyjacksonville.com. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
  46. ^ "JAX Airport Annual Passengers by Fiscal Year" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 26, 2022. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  47. ^ "JAX Annual Passenger Traffic by Fiscal Year" (PDF). flyjacksonville.com. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  48. ^ "Transtats". Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  49. ^ "Jacksonville International". Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  50. ^ "Map - Jacksonville Transportation Authority Schedules and Routes". schedules.jtafla.com. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  51. ^ Hargrove, Brantley (August 27, 2009). "A Nashville hijacking 38 years ago set the standard on how not to handle hostage negotiations". Nashville Scene. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  52. ^ Freeman, Clayton (May 4, 2019). "Commercial flight crash not Jacksonville's first". Florida Times-Union. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
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