California Redwood Coast – Humboldt County Airport , also known as Arcata–Eureka Airport and Arcata Airport, is in Humboldt County, California, United States, north of

Arcata Arcata (; Wiyot: ''Goudi’ni''; Yurok: ''Oket'oh'') is a city adjacent to the Arcata Bay (northern) portion of Humboldt Bay in Humboldt County, California, United States. At the 2020 census, Arcata's population was 18,857. Arcata was first ...

and north of

Eureka Eureka (often abbreviated as E!, or Σ!) is an intergovernmental organisation for research and development funding and coordination. Eureka is an open platform for international cooperation in innovation. Organisations and companies applying th ...

, in McKinleyville. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a ''Nonhub primary commercial service'' airport. The airport is a federally designated port of entry for civil aircraft arriving in the United States. The airport is the site of the command center for and primary facilities of the United States Coast Guard Air Station Humboldt Bay, which provides rescue and law enforcement for the region north of the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

History

The airport was built by the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during World War II to test defogging systems. It operated in support of the

Naval Air Station Alameda Naval Air Station Alameda (NAS Alameda) was a United States Navy Naval Air Station in Alameda, California, on San Francisco Bay. NAS Alameda had two runways: 13–31 measuring and 07-25 measuring . Two helicopter pads and a control tower were ...

as the Arcata Naval Auxiliary Air Station (NAAS) and was headquarters for the Eureka section of naval local defense forces for the

12th Naval District The naval district was a U.S. Navy military and administrative command ashore. Apart from Naval District Washington, the Districts were disestablished and renamed Navy Regions about 1999, and are now under Commander, Naval Installations Command ...

. In December 1947 a

Southwest Airways Pacific Air Lines was a regional airline (then called a "local service" air carrier as defined by the federal Civil Aeronautics Board) on the West Coast of the United States that began scheduled passenger flights in the mid 1940s under the name ...

Douglas DC-3 made the world's first blind landing by a scheduled commercial airliner using Ground-Controlled Approach (GCA) radar,

Instrument Landing System In aviation, the instrument landing system (ILS) is a precision radio navigation system that provides short-range guidance to aircraft to allow them to approach a runway at night or in bad weather. In its original form, it allows an aircraft to ...

(ILS) and

Fog Investigation and Dispersal Operation (FIDO) Fog Investigation and Dispersal Operation (FIDO) (which was sometimes referred to as "Fog Intense Dispersal Operation" or "Fog, Intense Dispersal Of") was a system used for dispersing fog and pea soup fog (dense smog) from an airfield so that a ...

oil-burners next to the runway. By the following year the airline had made 1,200 routine instrument landings at the often fog-shrouded airport.

Facilities

The airport covers at an elevation of . It has two asphalt runways: 14/32 is and 01/19 is . The airport is under the jurisdiction of the California Coastal Commission and major changes to the airport such as rezoning or fencing in the airport require its approval. The approach path for runway 32 passes over Central Avenue. The glare of the strobe lights that direct planes to the runway were a hazard for drivers, especially during rain when the strobes' intensity increased and the road reflected the blinking lights. Baffles were installed on the strobes which block the lights from shining on the road while still guiding aircraft.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Statistics

In the year period ending May 31, 2019 the airport had 42,174 aircraft operations, average 116 per day: 61% military, 25%

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...

, and 14% airline. 24 aircraft at the time were based at the airport: 18 single-engine, 3 multi-engine, and 3 helicopters.

Top destinations

Current airline service

Scheduled flights are currently operated by SkyWest Airlines flying as

United Express United Express is the brand name for the regional branch of United Airlines, under which six individually owned regional airlines operate short- and medium-haul feeder flights. On October 1, 2010, UAL Corporation and Continental Airlines merged t ...

on a code sharing basis on behalf of

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

with three or four nonstop flights per day to SFO on Canadair

CRJ-200 The Bombardier CRJ100 and CRJ200 (previously Canadair CRJ100 and CRJ200) is a regional jet designed and manufactured by Bombardier Aerospace between 1991 and 2006, the first of the Bombardier CRJ family. The ''Canadair Regional Jet'' (CRJ) pro ...

and

Embraer 175 The Embraer E-Jet family is a series of four-abreast narrow-body short- to medium-range twin-engine jet airliners designed and produced by the Brazilian aerospace manufacturer Embraer. The E-Jet was designed as a complement to the preceding ...

regional jets as well one nonstop flight per day to

LAX Los Angeles International Airport , commonly referred to as LAX (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles, California and its surrounding metropolitan area. LAX is located in the W ...

. And Denver International Airport. SkyWest Airlines also currently operates

American Eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

service from the airport via a code sharing agreement on behalf of

American Airlines American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...

with nonstop flights to the American hub in

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

(PHX) operated with

Canadair CRJ-700 The Bombardier CRJ700, CRJ900, and CRJ1000 are a family of regional jet airliners that were designed and manufactured by Canadian transportation conglomerate Bombardier (formerly Canadair) between 1999 and 2020. Their design was derived from t ...

regional jets. The service started June 3rd, 2021 and ended August 15, 2022. Daily nonstop service to Denver International Airport (DEN) began on June 7, 2019. Service has increased significantly since 2015, with five new destinations (

, DEN, BUR, PHX, LAS), and passenger departures have increased 56%. On May 19, 2021, new nonstop scheduled passenger service to

Hollywood Burbank Airport Hollywood Burbank Airport, legally and formerly marketed as Bob Hope Airport after entertainer Bob Hope , is a public airport northwest of downtown Burbank, in Los Angeles County, California, United States.. Federal Aviation Administration. ef ...

(BUR) operated by

Avelo Airlines Avelo Airlines () is an ultra low-cost U.S. carrier headquartered in Houston, Texas. It previously operated charter flights as ''Casino Express Airlines'' and ''Xtra Airways'', before transitioning to scheduled operations and rebranding as Av ...

was initiated with

Boeing 737-800 The Boeing 737 Next Generation, commonly abbreviated as 737NG, or 737 Next Gen, is a narrow-body aircraft powered by two jet engines and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Launched in 1993 as the third generation derivative of the Boein ...

mainline jetliners which are currently the largest aircraft type serving the airport. Avelo added service to Harry Reid International Airport aka Las Vegas in November 2021. The Service ended on May 2nd, 2022. On November 9, 2021, new nonstop scheduled service to Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RNO) operated by Aha! Airlines was initiated with Embrear 145s. Aha! ended service to Reno on March 30, 2022. In August 2022,

Alaska Airlines Alaska Airlines is a major American airline headquartered in SeaTac, Washington, within the Seattle metropolitan area. It is the sixth largest airline in North America when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and the num ...

announced a possible reintroduction of service to Seattle Tacoma International Airport or

Portland International Airport Portland International Airport is a joint civil–military airport and the largest airport in the U.S. state of Oregon, accounting for 90% of the state's passenger air travel and more than 95% of its air cargo. It is within Portland's city l ...

. On October 20, 2022, the airline cited a potential delay due to the ongoing pilot shortage.

Past airline service

ACV was served by

Eureka Aero Air Pacific was a commuter airline based in the United States of America, United States that operated regional flights wholly within the state of California. Founded as Eureka Aero in 1970, it was renamed Air Pacific in 1979. Its de Havilland Can ...

(mid-1970s) (Eureka, Crescent City),

Air Oregon Air Oregon was founded as Executive Flight Services in 1961 in Portland, Oregon; was renamed to Air Oregon in 1977. In June 1982, Air Oregon was acquired and merged into Horizon Air which is now a wholly owned subsidiary of the Alaska Air Group ...

(early 1980s) (

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

Portland, OR Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous coun ...

Medford, OR Medford is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Oregon, in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census on April 1, 2020, the city had a total population of 85,824 and a metropolitan area population of 223,259, making the M ...

Eugene, OR Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, E ...

, North Bend, OR),

( San Jose),

Pacific Air Lines Pacific Air Lines was a regional airline (then called a "local service" air carrier as defined by the federal Civil Aeronautics Board) on the West Coast of the United States that began scheduled passenger flights in the mid 1940s under the name ...

and predecessor

(

Pacific Southwest Airlines Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) was a regional U.S. airline headquartered in San Diego, California, that operated from 1949 to 1998. It was the first large discount airline in the United States. PSA called itself "The World's Friendliest Airl ...

(PSA) (San Francisco),

Horizon Air Horizon Air Industries, Inc., operating as Horizon Air, is an American regional airline based in SeaTac, Washington, United States. Horizon Air and its sister carrier Alaska Airlines are subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group, and all Horizon-opera ...

(from 1994 to 2011) ( Redding,

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

and briefly

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

Delta Connection Delta Connection is a regional airline brand name for Delta Air Lines, under which a number of individually owned regional airlines primarily operate short- and medium-haul routes. Mainline major air carriers often use regional airlines to ope ...

(2008–2010) operated by SkyWest Airlines (

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

Hughes Airwest Hughes Airwest was a regional airline in the western United States, backed by Howard Hughes' Summa Corporation. Its original name in 1968 was Air West and the air carrier was owned by Nick Bez. Hughes Airwest flew routes in the wes ...

and predecessor

Air West Air West is an airline based in Khartoum, Sudan. It operates domestic passenger services and international cargo charters. Its main base is Khartoum International Airport, with a hub at Sharjah International Airport. This airline has no connect ...

(Crescent City, Medford, San Francisco, Eugene, Los Angeles, Portland and Seattle);

Republic Airlines (1979–1986) Republic Airlines was an American airline formed by the merger of North Central Airlines and Southern Airways on July 1, 1979. Their headquarters were at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, in what is now Fort Snelling in unincorporate ...

(San Francisco and other destinations);

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

(San Francisco), WestAir operating as

(San Francisco), and Arcata Flying Service (early 1980s) (Redding, Portland, and Oakland). In 2016 and part of 2017,

PenAir Peninsula Airways, operated as PenAir, was a U.S.-based regional airline headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska. It was Alaska's second-largest commuter airline operating scheduled passenger service, as well as charter and medevac services through ...

offered service to Portland International (PDX) and Redding (RDD) with 30 passenger

Saab 340B The Saab 340 is a Swedish twin-engine turboprop aircraft designed and initially produced by Saab AB and Fairchild Aircraft. It is designed to seat 30-36 passengers and, as of July 2018, there were 240 operational aircraft used by 34 different op ...

started flights to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport on June 3rd, 2021. But ended on August 15th, 2022. Aha Airlines also started flights to Reno-Tahoe International Airport on November 11th, 2021 but ended on March 30th, 2022.

Past jet service

flew Boeing 727-100s nonstop to San Francisco and direct to Burbank. *

(PSA) flew

BAe 146-200 The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Manufacture by Avro Internationa ...

s nonstop to San Francisco and direct to Los Angeles. * WestAir (operating code sharing service as

on behalf of

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

) flew

s nonstop to San Francisco. *

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

flew

Boeing 737-200 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton Factory in Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating with two u ...

s to San Francisco. * SkyWest (operating code sharing service as the

on behalf of

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along w ...

) flew

Canadair CRJ-200 The Bombardier CRJ100 and CRJ200 (previously Canadair CRJ100 and CRJ200) is a regional jet designed and manufactured by Bombardier Aerospace between 1991 and 2006, the first of the Bombardier CRJ family. The ''Canadair Regional Jet'' (CRJ) pro ...

s to Salt Lake City. *

(previously Air West) flew

Douglas DC-9-10 The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is an American five-abreast single-aisle aircraft designed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It was initially produced by the developer company as the Douglas DC-9 until August 1967 and then by McDonnell Douglas. After ...

s and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30s nonstop to San Francisco and direct to Los Angeles, Phoenix, Tucson, Portland, OR and Seattle. At one point, Hughes Airwest DC-9s flew direct, no change of plane DC-9 service to Mazatlan and Guadalajara via San Francisco, Los Angeles and Tucson. Predecessor Air West operated Boeing 727-100s,

Douglas DC-9 The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is an American five-abreast single-aisle aircraft designed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It was initially produced by the developer company as the Douglas DC-9 until August 1967 and then by McDonnell Douglas. After ...

-10s and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30s nonstop to San Francisco. *

Republic Airlines Republic Airlines was an American airline formed by the merger of North Central Airlines and Southern Airways on July 1, 1979. Their headquarters were at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, in what is now Fort Snelling, Minnesota, Fort ...

, which was the successor to Hughes Airwest, operated McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30s nonstop to San Francisco with direct, no change of plane DC-9 service to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Tucson, Memphis and Tampa during the early 1980s. The first jets scheduled to ACV were Pacific Air Lines Boeing 727-100s in 1967; Pacific also served ACV with

Fairchild F-27 The Fairchild F-27 and Fairchild Hiller FH-227 were versions of the Fokker F27 Friendship twin-engined turboprop passenger aircraft manufactured under license by Fairchild Hiller in the United States. The Fairchild F-27 was similar to the standa ...

turboprops.

Ground transportation

* The

U.S. 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

freeway is accessible to the airport via the Arcata Airport exit. * Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach: Dedicated Express Service to Martinez connecting with Amtrak California's '' San Joaquin'' and ''

Capitol Corridor The ''Capitol Corridor'' is a passenger train route in Northern California operated by Amtrak between San Jose, in the Bay Area, and Auburn, in the Sacramento Valley. The route is named after the two points most trains operate between, San J ...

'' trains. *

Redwood Transit System The Redwood Transit System is a commuter transit service that operates Monday-Saturday on the Highway 101 corridor between Trinidad and Garberville in Humboldt County, California, and also serves Westhaven, McKinleyville, Arcata, Eureka, Fields Lan ...

* Door-to-door airport shuttle Service, taxis, and rental cars can be arranged at the airport.

Other local airports

* Eureka Municipal Airport *

Kneeland Airport Kneeland Airport is a public airport operated by Humboldt County southeast of Eureka, California. Located on a mountain ridge at over above sea level, this airfield is used by general aviation aircraft, which sometimes seek an alternate airpo ...

Murray Field Murray Field is a county-owned public airport, located adjacent to Humboldt Bay within Eureka, California in Humboldt County. Most of its use is general aviation, but UPS flights stop for package delivery. History Murray Field was establishe ...

* Rohnerville Airport

References

External links

Fly Humboldt!

Humboldt County: Aviation

Aerial image as of April 1989
from

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, a ...

The National Map ''The National Map'' is a collaborative effort of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and other federal, state, and local agencies to improve and deliver topographic information for the United States. The purpose of the effort is to pro ...

'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Arcata-Eureka Airport Airports in Humboldt County, California Eureka, California 1940s establishments in California Airports established in the 1940s Closed installations of the United States Navy