Columbia Metropolitan Airport

Coordinates: 33°56′20″N 081°07′10″W / 33.93889°N 81.11944°W / 33.93889; -81.11944
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the World War II use of the airport, see Columbia Army Air Base.
Columbia Metropolitan Airport
AMSL
236 ft / 72 m
Coordinates33°56′20″N 081°07′10″W / 33.93889°N 81.11944°W / 33.93889; -81.11944
Websiteflycae.com
Map
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
5/23 8,001 2,439 Asphalt/concrete
11/29 8,601 2,622 Asphalt
Helipads
Number Length Surface
ft m
H1 50 15 Concrete
Statistics (2023)
Commercial passengers1,234,487
Enplaned passengers607,481
Freight/mail (lb.)143.518 million (2022)

Columbia Metropolitan Airport (IATA: CAE, ICAO: KCAE, FAA LID: CAE) is the main commercial airport for Columbia and the Midlands region of South Carolina, United States. The airport is located in West Columbia, five miles (8.0 km) southwest of Columbia, in Lexington County.[1] It is surrounded by the city of Cayce and the towns of Springdale, Pine Ridge, and South Congaree. The airport is a regional cargo hub for UPS Airlines.

History

World War II era

The airport was built in 1940 as Lexington County Airport. In 1940 the

105th Observation Squadron began flying Douglas O-38 and North American O-47 light observation aircraft on 24 September.[year needed
]

In 1941 the airport came under formal military control, and an immediate program began to turn the civil airport into a military airfield. On 8 December 1941, as the Columbia Army Air Base, Columbia Army Airfield's mission was a training base for

B-25 Mitchell
crews.

One of the earliest units to train at Columbia AAB was the 17th Bombardment Group, which arrived on 9 February 1942. When the group arrived in Columbia its combat crews were offered the opportunity to volunteer for an "extremely hazardous" but unspecified mission which ultimately turned out to be the famous Doolittle Raid on Japan. Contrary to popular belief, the volunteers who made up the crews of the Doolittle Raid did not train for the Raid itself at Columbia.

Training at Columbia Army Air Base was phased down during the summer of 1945. Several units arrived at the base from overseas to inactivate during September and October. It was inactivated by the

Air Force Reserve
, but it was never equipped or manned; it was inactivated on 27 June 1949.

Postwar use

Inside the airport looking toward TSA security
Inside the airport beyond TSA security
Columbia Metropolitan Airport 1998

Before World War II, Columbia's main civil airport had been Owens Field. However, its location near downtown made expansion impossible. Accordingly, in 1947, most frontline passenger service relocated to Lexington County Airport, which was renamed Columbia Metropolitan Airport. The city of Columbia built a new terminal at the airport in the early 1950s. It burned down, and a new one was built in its place.

In 1962, the Richland-Lexington Airport District was established to operate the airport. It is governed by a 12-member commission–five nominated by Lexington County's legislative delegation, five nominated by Richland County's legislative delegation, and two nominated by the Columbia city council.

Passenger service began on

DC-9 jet flights began March 7, 1966, with Flight 521 from Charleston continuing to Atlanta
.

Twin Otter aircraft. Piedmont Airlines introduced nonstop service to Miami
in January 1980, but dropped Columbia in June 1980 leaving only Delta and Eastern for a time.

In November 1982 Piedmont Airlines returned to Columbia with flights to

Dallas/Fort Worth after Delta closed their DFW hub earlier that year. In October 2010 US Airways Express operated by Air Wisconsin began non-stops to New York–La Guardia
, but wound up discontinuing it as a result of a New York–La Guardia slot swap with Delta, which now has two daily flights to the airport.

Since 2000 the airport has tried to recruit low-cost carriers, but has been unable to maintain those services.

Washington–Dulles before ceasing its operations in January 2006. In May 2008, Spirit Airlines began service to Fort Lauderdale but terminated the route in March 2009. In 2011 Vision Airlines launched service to Destin, Florida
, ending the route after a month.

In 2015 United Airlines CEO Jeff Smisek was forced to step down after it was revealed that he had continued to run an unprofitable route to the airport from Newark Liberty International Airport for former Port Authority of New York and New Jersey chairman David Samson.[3]

On June 7, 2018 American Airlines restored mainline service to Columbia with two daily nonstop flights to Dallas/Fort Worth.[4] The airline also announced it would start flights to/from Miami by the end of 2019.

Facilities

The airport covers 2,600 acres (1,100 ha) and has two runways: 11/29 is 8,601 ft × 150 ft (2,622 m × 46 m) and 5/23 is 8,001 ft × 150 ft (2,439 m × 46 m). It has a 50 ft × 50 ft (15 m × 15 m) helipad. The center 75 ft (23 m) of runway 5/23 is asphalt; the edges are grooved concrete.[1][5]

The airport is a hub for UPS Airlines and was a hub for Air South, a former low-cost carrier.

For the year ending February 22, 2022 the airport had 63,338 aircraft operations, an average of 174 per day: 46% general aviation, 23% air taxi, 23% airline and 8% military. In November 2023, there were 81 aircraft based at this airport: 44 single-engine, 13 multi-engine, 14 jet, 5 helicopter and 5 gliders.[1]

The terminal opened May 30, 1965, and was renovated in 1997. The renovation was designed by Heyward, Woodrum, Fant & Associates, Ltd.

parking garage (completed in 2003), the lengthening of the runways, and better interstate access. The terminal has several services, including gift shops, the Everett Adams Memorial Chapel, restaurants and bars inside the terminal. Free wireless internet
service is provided throughout the airport as well as small number of recharge stations with access to outlets.

Police and fire/rescue services are provided by the Columbia Metro Airport Department of Public Safety. Public safety officers are South Carolina Police Academy Class 1 officers, and South Carolina Fire Academy IFSAC Firefighter II, and Airport Firefighter. Some have basic EMT certifications. The Department has three ARFF units, one RIV unit, one fire pumper, and a service truck. Law enforcement is covered by four patrol vehicles. The Department provides fire services at the FAR 139 level only. Structural firefighting is handled by Lexington County Fire Service.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger service is currently provided by five scheduled airlines, with commercial cargo service being handled by three scheduled airlines and numerous air freight operators. Two fixed-base operators also serve the Metro facility with various charter flights. The airport maintains a newly dedicated air cargo terminal, the Columbia Airport Enterprise Park (CAE Park) and

Foreign Trade Zone #127. Columbia Metropolitan Airport recently completed a $45 million terminal expansion and renovation. Annually, the airport serves about 1 million passengers, though prior to the Great Recession, nearly 1.5 million passengers were served.[8]

Passenger

Source:[9]

AirlinesDestinations
Dallas/Fort Worth
Washington–National
Seasonal: Miami
Delta Air Lines Atlanta
Delta Connection Atlanta, New York–LaGuardia
Washington–Dulles

Cargo

AirlinesDestinations
FedEx Express Indianapolis, Memphis
FedEx Feeder
Greensboro, Myrtle Beach
Freight Runners Express Kansas City, Winston-Salem
Springfield

Statistics

Top destinations

Busiest domestic routes from CAE (April 2022 – March 2023)[11]
Rank City Passengers Carriers
1 Georgia (U.S. state) Atlanta, Georgia 191,000 Delta
2
Charlotte, North Carolina
 114,020 American
3
Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas
 65,000 American
4 Virginia Washington–National, D.C. 46,000 American
5 Illinois Chicago–O'Hare, Illinois 28,000 United
6
Washington–Dulles, D.C.
 25,000 United
7 Pennsylvania Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 21,000 American
8 New York (state) New York-LaGuardia, New York 15,000 Delta
9 Florida Miami, Florida 6,000 American

Airline market share

Largest airlines serving CAE (April 2022 – March 2023) [12]
Rank Airline Passengers Share
1 Delta Air Lines 346,000 33.62%
2 PSA Airlines 232,000 22.56%
3 Piedmont Airlines 103,000 10.03%
4 Air Wisconsin 102,000 9.88%
5 Envoy Air 81,840 7.96%
Other 164,000 15.95%


Annual passenger traffic at CAE airport. See Wikidata query.

Southeastern regional cargo hub

In August 1996, the

DC-8 aircraft. The hub can process 42,000 packages an hour. Other major air cargo companies serving the airport include ABX Air and FedEx Express
.

Accidents and incidents

Features

  • The airport's two airplane runways measure 8,000 feet (2,400 m) and 8,600 feet (2,600 m) in length.
  • The airport runways can accommodate an airplane of any size, including the Boeing 747 and the military C-5A.
  • The airport contains its own police department, fire station, and post office (Air Mail Facility).
  • Decorative and semi-natural ponds bordering the sides of the airport terminal can be used by the airport fire department to put out fires.
  • The air traffic control tower is 105 feet (32 m) tall.
  • More than 1.1 million passengers travel through Columbia Metropolitan Airport each year.
  • More than 1,400 people work at the airport.

In popular culture

  • An opening scene in the 2006 film
    Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
    , starring Sacha Baron Cohen, was shot in the Columbia Metropolitan Airport terminal although it is labeled as "New York Airport."
  • Air scenes from the 1943 World War II film A Guy Named Joe, starring Spencer Tracy and Lionel Barrymore, and directed by Victor Fleming, were filmed at what was then called the Columbia Army Air Base.

See also

References

  1. ^
    PDF
    , effective January 25, 2024.
  2. ^ "CAE Airport Data for 2023". flycae.com. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  3. ^ Harwell, Drew; Zezima, Katie (8 September 2015). "United Airlines chief steps down amid federal investigation" – via www.washingtonpost.com.
  4. ^ "Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE)". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2018-07-03.
  5. ^ "CAE airport data at skyvector.com". skyvector.com. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
  6. ^ Natural light pours into the Columbia Metropolitan Airport Archived 2005-09-03 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ http://www.columbiaairport.com/ airport section, history subsection
  8. ^ http://www.thestate.com/2014/01/17/3213731/columbia-airport-traffic-increased.html Archived 2014-02-21 at the Wayback Machine Columbia airport traffic increased in 2013
  9. ^ "Direct flights from Columbia (CAE)". Flightconnections.com. Retrieved 2 July 2022.
  10. ^ "American Airlines announces new nonstop service from Columbia to Chicago". 20 February 2023. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  11. ^ "Columbia, SC: Columbia Metropolitan (CAE)". June 2022. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
  12. ^ "Columbia, SC: Columbia Metropolitan (CAE)". June 2022. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
  13. ^ "FAA Registry (N47A)". Federal Aviation Administration.
  14. ^ National Transportation Safety Board. MIA71AM076
  15. ^ "FAA Registry (N711FC)". Federal Aviation Administration.
  16. ^ National Transportation Safety Board. MIA74AM049.
  17. ^ "FAA Registry (N999LJ)". Federal Aviation Administration.
  18. ^ "Crew in crash died of burns, smoke inhalation". 22 September 2008. Archived from the original on 2 December 2014. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  19. ^ "Western Global Boeing 747-400 Loses Wingtip at Columbia". 20 December 2020.

External links


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