Hays Regional Airport is three miles southeast of Hays, in

Ellis County, Kansas Ellis County (county code EL) is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 28,934. Its county seat and most populous city is Hays. Ellis County is the official German Capital of Kansas. ...

, United States. It is used for

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 sees one airline,

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 ...

. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2021–2025 categorized it as a ''non-primary commercial service'' airport (between 2,500 and 10,000 enplanements per year). In the 1950s the airport was known as the Hays Municipal Airport and located in the half-mile square whose southeast corner was at East 13th Street and Canterbury Drive. The current airport opened around 1960 with a 4000-ft runway.

Historical airline service

Central Airlines Central Airlines was a passenger airline (the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) called it a "local service" air carrier) in Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas from 1949 to 1967. It was founded by Keith Kahle in 1944 to opera ...

began flights to the original Hays airport in 1961. Hays was one of several stops on a route between Denver and Kansas City. Douglas DC-3 aircraft were first used and service was soon moved to the present airport. Central later upgraded with

Convair 240 The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the 240 series made some inro ...

and

Convair 600 The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the 240 series made some inroa ...

aircraft before merging into Frontier Airlines in 1967. Frontier flew

Convair 580 The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the 240 series made some inroa ...

aircraft along the same route until service ended in early 1977. Air Midwest served Hays from 1969 through 2007 using

Beechcraft 99 The Beechcraft Model 99 is a civilian aircraft produced by Beechcraft. It is also known as the Beech 99 Airliner and the Commuter 99. The 99 is a twin-engine, unpressurized, 15 to 17 passenger seat turboprop aircraft, derived from the earlier Be ...

and

Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner The Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner (previously the Swearingen Metro and later Fairchild Aerospace Metro) is a 19-seat, pressurized, twin-turboprop airliner first produced by Swearingen Aircraft and later by Fairchild Aircraft at a plant in San ...

II aircraft. The carrier provided commuter flights to Denver, Kansas City, and Wichita, most flights made one or more stops en route. From 1986 through 1988 Air Midwest operated as

Eastern Express The Eastern Express ( tr, Doğu Ekspresi) is an overnight passenger train operated by the Turkish State Railways. The train runs from Ankara Railway Station to Kars Railway Station in Kars. The train was the first overnight service east of Anka ...

on behalf of

Eastern Airlines Eastern Air Lines, also colloquially known as Eastern, was a major United States airline from 1926 to 1991. Before its dissolution, it was headquartered at Miami International Airport in an unincorporated area of Miami-Dade County, Florida. Ea ...

and from 1988 through 1989 their service operated as Braniff Express on behalf of

Braniff (1983-1990) Braniff Airways, Inc., operated as Braniff International Airways from 1948 until 1965, and then Braniff International from 1965 until air operations ceased, was an airline in the United States that once flew air carrier operations from 1928 un ...

. From late 1989 through early 1991 Air Midwest operated under their own branding before beginning a third code share partnership as

US Airways Express US Airways Express was the brand name for the regional affiliate of US Airways, under which a number of individually owned commuter air carriers and regional airlines operate short and medium haul routes. This code sharing service was previously ...

on behalf of

US Airways US Airways (formerly USAir) was a major United States airline that operated from 1937 until its merger with American Airlines in 2015. It was originally founded in Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called All American Aviation, which soon ...

with flights to Kansas City. The service as US Airways Express lasted until 2007 when all service ended. Air Midwest had switched to using Beechcraft 1900D aircraft in the early 1990s.

, operated by

Mesa Airlines Mesa Airlines, Inc., is an American regional airline based in Phoenix, Arizona. It is an FAA Part 121–certificated air carrier operating under air carrier certificate number MASA036A issued on June 29, 1979. It is a subsidiary of Mesa Air ...

provided service to Denver 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.

from 1992 through 1998 using Beechcraft 1900D commuter aircraft.

Great Lakes Airlines Great Lakes Airlines was an American regional airline operating domestic scheduled and charter services. Corporate headquarters were in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with a hub at Denver International Airport. As of November 2013, Great Lakes Airlines ...

then provided service to Denver from 1998 through 2014 using Beechcraft 1900Ds. At first Great Lakes operated as

but reverted to its own branding in 2002. From 2007 through 2009 the carrier also provided flights to Kansas City. The current provider, SkyWest Airlines, operating as

, began service to Denver on August 1, 2014, using

Bombardier CRJ100/200 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) p ...

regional jets.

Facilities

The airport covers 545 acres (221 ha) at an elevation of 1,999 feet (609 m). It has two concrete runways: 16/34 is 6,501 by 100 feet (1,982 x 30 m), rebuilt in 2013, and 4/22 is 4,501 by 75 feet (1,372 x 23 m). Runway 4/22 was built in 2002. In the year ending December 31, 2021, the airport had 31,329 aircraft operations, an average of 86 per day: 70%

, 25%

air taxi An air taxi is a small commercial aircraft that makes short flights on demand. In 2001 air taxi operations were promoted in the United States by a NASA and aerospace industry study on the potential Small Aircraft Transportation System (SATS) ...

, 5% airline and less than 1% military. In April 2022, 35 aircraft were based at this airport: 31 single-engine, 3 multi-engine and 1 helicopter.

Airline and destination

Statistics

References

Other sources

* Essential Air Service documents
Docket DOT-OST-1998-3497
from the

U.S. Department of Transportation The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is headed by the secretary of transportation, who reports directly to the President of the United States and ...

: *
Order 2009-9-5 (September 11, 2009)
re-selecting

Great Lakes Aviation Great Lakes Airlines was an American regional airline operating domestic scheduled and charter services. Corporate headquarters were in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with a hub at Denver International Airport. As of November 2013, Great Lakes Airlines ...

, Ltd., to provide essential air service (EAS) at Dodge City, Garden City, Great Bend, Hays, and Liberal for the two-year period from October 1, 2009, through September 30, 2011, at combined annual subsidy rates of $8,897,565. ''Hays, Kansas: Docket OST-1998-3497; Scheduled Service: 24 nonstop round trips per week to Denver; Aircraft: Beech 1900, 19 seats.'' *
Order 2011-10-24 (October 31, 2011)
re-selecting Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd., to provide essential air service (EAS) at Great Bend and Hays combined for $3,246,061 annual subsidy. Effective Period: Two year period beginning when American Eagle begins full EAS (at Garden City) through the 24th month thereafter. Hays: 24 nonstop round trips per week to Denver with Beech 1900s. *
Order 2014-3-9 (March 14, 2014)
selecting SkyWest Airlines, Inc. to provide essential air service (EAS) at Hays, and sets bridge rates for Great Lakes at Great Bend and Hays until the start of replacement service. ***

, Ltd.: Docket 1998–3497; Effective Period: May 1, 2014 through July 31, 2014; Service: Eighteen (18) nonstop round trips per week to Denver (DEN); Aircraft Type: Beech 1900, Annual Subsidy: $1,699,520. *** SkyWest Airlines, Inc.: Docket 1998–3497; Effective Period: July 1, 2014, through July 31, 2016; Service: Twelve (12) nonstop round trips per week to Denver (DEN); Aircraft Type: 50-seat

regional jet A regional jet (RJ) is a jet-powered regional airliner with fewer than 100 seats. The first one was the Sud-Aviation Caravelle in 1959, followed by the widespread Yakovlev Yak-40, Fokker F-28, and BAe 146. The 1990s saw the emergence of ...

; Annual Subsidy: $2,253,132.

External links

Hays Regional Airport
* from

Kansas DOT The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) is a state government organization in charge of maintaining public roadways of the U.S. state of Kansas. Funding issues Since 2012, over $2 billion has been diverted from its coffers to the Kansas ...

Airport Directory
Aerial image as of March 2002
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 ...

'' * * {{authority control Airports in Kansas Buildings and structures in Ellis County, Kansas Essential Air Service