McGhee Tyson Airport McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base
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McGhee Tyson Airport Logo
IATA: TYS – ICAO: KTYS – FAA LID: TYS TYS Location of the McGhee Tyson Airport
Summary
Airport type		Public
Owner		Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority
Serves		Knoxville, Tennessee
Location		Alcoa, Tennessee
Elevation AMSL		981 ft / 299 m
Coordinates		35°48′40″N 083°59′38″W / 35.81111°N 83.99389°W / 35.81111; -83.99389
Website		www.TYS.org
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
	ft	m
5L/23R	9,005	2,745	Concrete
5R/23L	9,000	2,743	Asphalt
Statistics (2010)
Aircraft operations			107,010
Based aircraft			173
Passengers			1,688,882
Source: Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority[1]

Northwest Airlines ticket counter.

AirTran at McGhee Tyson Airport

McGhee Tyson Airport (IATA: TYS, ICAO: KTYS, FAA LID: TYS) is a joint civil-military public airport serving the Knoxville metropolitan area and located approximately 10 miles (16 km) south of the central business district of Knoxville, in Alcoa, Blount County, Tennessee, United States. It is owned by the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority.^[2] Commercial service is provided by several major airlines and connection carriers.

The airport is named for United States Navy pilot Charles McGhee Tyson, lost on patrol in World War I.^[3]

The airport also serves as the home of McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base, an air base for the 134th Air Refueling Wing (134 ARW) of the Tennessee Air National Guard.

History [link]

In 1927 McGhee Tyson airport was opened in honor of Charles McGhee Tyson. Originally the airport was on a 60 acre stretch of land in West Knoxville. In 1935 the city purchased 351 acres of land in Blount County for development of the current airport. The land was being purchased for the development of a facility that would be used for air carrier traffic. The airport has constantly making improvements to it since the first terminal was built. In 1941 the city constructed a new air traffic control tower on the airport. Two years later the airport continued the development of with two 5,000-foot (1,500 m) runways.

In 1951 the United States Air Force constructed several facilities on the field along with a 7,500-foot (2,300 m) runway. The Federal aviation administration (FAA) added an Instrument Landing System to runways 4L and 22R in 1959. Then in 1961 the runway was lengthened again to its current length of 9,000 feet (2,700 m). The Tennessee Air National Guard financed the project. In 1968 McGhee Tyson constructed a new air cargo facility. Almost a decade after the new air cargo facility was built one of the first major construction projects was completed with a new passenger terminal facility in 1974. Four years later the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority (MKAA) was established, and the airport authority had the two parallel runways redesigned to become 5R and 23 L and 5L and 23 R in 1985.

In 1990 runway 5R and 23L was reconstructed to its current a length of 9,000 feet. The airport authority constructed a new air cargo facility in 1992. The Air Cargo Complex provided a 21-acre facility for Federal Express, UPS and Airborne Express the carriers were provided with building designs to meet their needs. 90 percent of the total air cargo operations at the Airport are operated between UPS and Federal Express. The total cost of the project was an estimated at $9.3 million. The new air cargo facility is located on the northern side of the air facility.

In 2000, construction was completed on the last major construction project with improvements to the passenger terminal. The cost of the project was $70 million dollars. The improvements included two new concourses, 12 new gates, ticket counters, and a Ruby Tuesday restaurant. Currently, 11 gates are in use, with gate 6 being the only one not in service.^[4] In 2002, an aircraft maintenance facility was built for Northwest Airlines, serving as their primary CRJ MRO facility.^[5] ExpressJet Airlines has also built a heavy maintenance hangar near the air cargo facilities for its fleet. In June 2009, a new food court was completed, featuring Starbucks, Quiznos, Cinnabon, and Zia locations.^[6]

Air National Guard Base [link]

The 134 ARW, which is operationally gained by the Air Mobility Command (AMC), operates KC-135R Stratotankers for both air mobility and aerial refueling of military aircraft. McGhee Tyson ANGB is also home to the I.G. Brown Air National Guard Training and Education Center and the former home of the Air National Guard's Academy of Military Science (AMS). Similar to U.S. Air Force (USAF) Officer Training School (OTS), AMS is an alternate commissioning source for USAF officers who are directly inputted into various units of the Air National Guard throughout the United States.^[7][8]

Facilities and aircraft [link]

McGhee Tyson Airport covers an area of 2,250 acres (910 ha) which contains two parallel runways: 5L/23R measuring 9,005 x 150 ft (2,745 x 46 m) and 5R/23L measuring 9,000 x 150 ft (2,743 x 46 m).^[2]

The FBO (fixed based operator) general aviation facility is operated by TAC Air (formerly Knoxair and Cherokee Aviation).

For the 12-month period ending March 31, 2011, the airport had 110,110 aircraft operations, an average of 301 per day: 37% general aviation, 39% air taxi, 16% military and 9% scheduled commercial. At that time there were 174 aircraft based at this airport: 47% single-engine, 34% multi-engine, 18% jet, 1% helicopter and 20% military.^[2]

Airport terminal layout [link]

McGhee Tyson Airport has two levels. The top level is accessed via the curbside drop off and the parking garage. The top level is used for ticket counters, security, gates, restaurants, and shops. It is designed with a Smoky Mountain theme, complete with faux waterfalls and wood carvings of bears. The bottom level is used for car rental counters, two baggage claims, and airline offices.

Airlines and destinations [link]

Top Destinations [link]

Top ten busiest domestic routes out of TYS
(March 2011 - February 2012) ^[9]

Rank	City	Passengers	Carriers
1	Atlanta, GA	176,000	Delta
2	Charlotte, NC	109,000	US Airways
3	Chicago-O’Hare, IL	93,000	American, United
4	Dallas-Fort Worth, TX	50,000	American
5	Houston-Intercontinental, TX	44,000	United
6	Memphis, TN	44,000	Delta
7	Detroit, MI	43,000	Delta
8	Denver, CO	36,000	Frontier, United
9	Orlando-Sandford, FL	33,000	Allegiant
10	Washington-Reagan, VA	29,000	US Airways

Cargo [link]

• Federal Express
• United Parcel Service

Accidents and incidents [link]

• On 06 August, 1962, an American Airlines Lockheed L-188 Electra veered off the runway on landing, striking the raised edge of an under-construction taxiway with the landing gear, causing it to collapse. All 72 passengers and crew survived.
• On 12 March, 1992, a USAir Express Jetstream 31 crashed on landing after the pilot failed to lower the landing gear. There were no passengers aboard, however the 2 crew members were killed.^[10]

References [link]

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

External links [link]

• McGhee Tyson Airport, official site
• FAA Airport Diagram (PDF), effective 31 May 2012
• FAA Terminal Procedures for TYS, effective 31 May 2012
• Resources for this airport:
  • AirNav airport information for KTYS
  • ASN accident history for TYS
  • FlightAware airport information and live flight tracker
  • NOAA/NWS latest weather observations
  • SkyVector aeronautical chart for KTYS
  • FAA current TYS delay information