(Photo by Senga Butts)

(Photo by Senga Butts)

Location
Identifier FAA: PBI | IATA: PBI | ICAO: KPBI Airport Diagram
Lat/Long 26-40-59.3780N / 080-05-44.1210W
26-40.989633N / 080-05.735350W
26.6831606 / -80.0955892
(estimated)
Elevation 19 ft. / 5.8 m (surveyed)
Variation 03W (1985)
From city 3 miles SW of FORT LAUDERDALE, FL
Time zone 3 miles W of WEST PALM BEACH, FL
Zip code 33406
Operations
Airport use Open to the public
Activation date 04/1940
Sectional chart Miami
Control tower Yes
ARTCC Miami Center
FSS Miami Flight Service Station
NOTAMs facility PBI (NOTAM-D service available)
Attendance Continuous
Wind indicator Yes
Segmented circle No
Lights Dusk-Dawn
Beacon White-green (lighted land airport)
Landing fee Yes
Fire and rescue ARFF index D
International operations international airport of entry
US CUSTOMS USER FEE ARPT.
Runways
Runway 9L/27R
Dimensions 10008 x 150 ft. / 3050 x 46 m
Surface asphalt/grooved, in good condition
Weight bearing capacity
Single wheel:  85.0
Double wheel:  200.0
Double tandem:  400.0
Instrument approach Runway 9L: ILS/DME
  Runway 27R: LOC/GS
Runway 13/31
Dimensions 6932 x 150 ft. / 2113 x 46 m
Surface asphalt/grooved, in good condition
Weight bearing capacity
Single wheel:  100.0
Double wheel:  180.0
Double tandem:  325.0
Dual double tandem:  400.0
Runway edge lights medium intensity
Instrument approach Runway 13: VOR/DME
  Runway 31: VOR/DME
Runway 9R/27L
Dimensions 3213 x 75 ft. / 979 x 23 m
Surface asphalt, in good condition
Weight bearing capacity
Single wheel:  25.0
Instrument approach Runway 9R: VOR/DME
  Runway 27L: VOR/DME
Ownership and Management
Ownership Publicly-owned
Owner PALM BEACH COUNTY
BLDG 846-PALM BEACH INTL
WEST PALM BEACH, FL 33406
Phone 561-471-7420
Manager BRUCE V PELLY
BLDG 846-PALM BEACH INTL
WEST PALM BEACH, FL 33406
Phone 561-471-7412
Maps

PBI Live Traffic

JFK Live Traffic @ FlightAware.com

FLL Sectional Chart

History
Palm Beach International Airport (PBIA) began operations as Morrison Field in 1936. Morrison Field was named in honour of Miss Grace K. Morrison who was a key participant in the planning and organization of the airfield. The first flight departing the field was a New York bound Eastern Air Lines DC-2 in 1936. The airport was officially dedicated on December 19, 1936.

In 1937 the airport was expanded beyond an airstrip and an administration building when the Palm Beach Aero Corporation obtained a lease, built hangars and the first terminal on the south side of the airport. The new terminal became known as the Eastern Air Lines Terminal. The field was used by the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II, commencing in 1941. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor Morrison field was used as a base for the allied invasion of France, many planes took off from Morrison, en route to the United Kingdom, to take part in the D-Day invasion of Normandy.

In 1947 the Army Air Corps moved to Mobile, Alabama and commercial services by Eastern and National Airlines resumed from Morrison Field. On August 11, 1948, the name of the airport was changed to Palm Beach International Airport. The airport was once again used by the military in 1951. Renamed Morrison Air Force Base, the facility was used to train nearly 23,000 airmen during the Korean War. On March 1953 the county opened the airport’s second passenger terminal on the south side of the field. Following the Korean War, the federal government attempted to make Morrison AFB a permanent military installation, however the County fought the move and took over airport operations in 1959. Delta Air Lines began scheduled service in 1959 and was followed by Capital Airlines in 1960. Jet-powered flights were introduced by Eastern Airlines in 1959 with the turboprop Lockheed L-188 Electra.

On October 1966 a jet-age eight-gate Main Terminal Building was opened on the northeast quadrant of the airport. In 1974, Delta Air Lines moved into its own six-gate unit terminal which featured the airport’s first jetways. The FAA built a new ATC Control Tower on the south side of the airport during this period.

On October 23, 1988, the 25-gate David McCampbell Terminal, named for World War II naval flying ace, Medal of Honor recipient and Palm Beach County resident CAPT David McCampbell, USN (Ret) was officially dedicated. The 550,000 square foot (51,000 m²) terminal was designed with expansion in mind and can be doubled in size when required.

In 2003 its terminal was voted among the finest in the nation by the readers of Conde Nast Traveler Magazine. In that same year, a new landscaped and state of the art I-95 interchange was built to decrease traffic on Southern Blvd (US 98) extending Turnage Boulevard (the road around the perimeter of the concourse).

Aggressive competition for the southern end of the airport’s market from rapidly expanding Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport led to an unanticipated stagnation of passenger growth at the airport throughout the 1990s. The 2001 recession and the September 11th terrorist attacks further inhibited growth in 2001 and 2002. However, rapid development in South Florida since 2002 has finally led to a surge of passenger traffic at the airport. In addition, discount carriers such as JetBlue decided to make PBIA a mini-hub for travellers from the northeast during this period, further increasing traffic at the airport. In 2006, the County embarked on an interim expansion program by breaking ground on a new 7 story parking garage and the addition of 3 gates within Concourse C. Long range expansions include an expansion of gates at Concourse B and the eventual construction of a new 14 gate Concourse D to be extended east from the present terminal.

 

This page contains excerpts of Wikipedia entry Palm Beach International Airport, shared under the GNU Free Documentation License.