Airport type Public Serves Dubuque, Iowa Website www.FlyDBQ.com Code DBQ Phone +1 563-589-4127 | Owner City of Dubuque Elevation AMSL 1,077 ft / 328 m 18/36 6,327 Elevation 328 m | |
 | ||
Address 10965 Aviation Drive, Dubuque, IA 52003, United States Profiles | ||
The evolution of the dubuque regional airport
Dubuque Regional Airport (IATA: DBQ, ICAO: KDBQ, FAA LID: DBQ) is eight miles southwest of Dubuque, a city in Dubuque County, Iowa, United States. Situated along U.S. Highway 61, the airport is owned by the city of Dubuque, and is operated as a department of the city government. The city council appoints people for four-year terms to the Airport Commission board, which oversees the airport. For day-to-day operations, the Commission hires an airport manager. DBQ is used for general aviation and sees one airline. A charter service which is run by Chartaire, Inc. The airport offers maintenance and refueling services, including services for jets.
Contents
- The evolution of the dubuque regional airport
- Dubuque regional airport opens new terminal in june 2016
- History
- Facilities
- Airlines and destinations
- Safety
- Incidents and Accidents
- Expansion
- References
The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2017–2021 categorized it as a primary commercial service facility. Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 42,870 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008, 39,359 in 2009 and 33,861 in 2010.
The 2013 Federal sequester would have resulted in the closure of the airport's control tower, but the Federal Aviation Administration ultimately reversed its decision.
Dubuque regional airport opens new terminal in june 2016
History
Northwest Airlines announced on February 7, 2008 that its regional partner Mesaba Airlines operating as Northwest Airlink will once again return with service to Dubuque with twice daily flights to and from Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport using Saab 340 aircraft. These flights began on June 20, 2008. On July 2, 2009, the merged Delta/Northwest Airlines announced it would discontinue all service to Dubuque citing weakened demand throughout its system. This left DBQ with only one airline providing commercial service.
Facilities
Dubuque Regional Airport covers 1,240 acres (502 ha) at an elevation of 1,077 feet (328 m). It has two concrete runways: 18/36 is 6,327 by 150 feet (1,928 x 46 m) and 13/31 is 6,502 by 100 feet (1,982 x 30 m).
For the year ending September 30, 2011 the airport had 48,417 aircraft operations, an average of 132 per day: 93% general aviation, 7% air taxi, <1% military and <1% airline. In January 2017, there were 64 aircraft based at this airport: 52 single-engine, 9 multi-engine, 2 jet and 1 helicopter.
The University of Dubuque has a flight operations center at the airport. This operations center provides for pilot training in the school's aviation programs. This includes both ground school and actual flight training. The University has two hangars with exclusively their aircraft and a third hangar that is shared.
The terminal features free WI-FI internet access. The airport also recently installed enclosed walkways at the gates, allowing passengers to walk to and from the planes without having to go outdoors. The terminal has a small cafe (FlyDBQ Cafe), ATM, vending, and gaming machines. The terminal has three gates for airline passengers and a jet bridge. The terminal also has a baggage carousel, desks for three airlines and rental car services including Avis and Hertz.
Airlines and destinations
The following airline offers scheduled passenger service at this airport:
American Eagle provides flights to and from O'Hare International Airport in Chicago three times a day on ERJ-145 aircraft, which generally take around one hour. At one time propeller driven aircraft were used, but American has since upgraded to using regional jets.
Safety
The airport has been recognized by the Federal Aviation Administration a number of times for its strong commitment to safety. It won the FAA's "Airport Safety Enhancement Award" in 1994, 1997, 2000, and 2003. In order to receive this honor, an airport must be free from discrepancies during an inspection for three consecutive years. In 2008, the Dubuque Regional Airport marked 18 consecutive years of perfect safety inspections in accordance with FAR Part 139. That record is unmatched among the approximately 600 certified U.S. airports.
Incidents and Accidents
Expansion
In order to update aging facilities and accommodate continued growth, the City of Dubuque announced in 2007 that it intends to build a new, larger airport terminal building in the coming years. The new $23 million facility is a part of the airport's master improvement plan. The new terminal will open on June 9, 2016.
The city has also expressed an interest in courting additional airlines to serve the airport. Up until recently, Dubuque Regional had up to three air carriers. Two were eliminated when the airline industry met hard financial times following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. However, with strong passenger numbers, a growing tourism industry, and financial stability among air carriers, expanded service seems increasingly likely in Dubuque.