San Bernardino International Airport (, initialism: SBIA) is a public airport two miles (3 km) southeast of the city center of

San Bernardino, California San Bernardino (; Spanish for "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 cen ...

, in

San Bernardino County San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 2,181, ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, United States. The airport covers and has one

runway According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt concrete, as ...

that can accommodate the largest existing aircraft, including the Airbus A380 and the Boeing 747. The facility is a commercial,

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 cargo airport on the site of the former San Bernardino Municipal Airport, which was converted during World War II into the San Bernardino Air Depot in 1942 and which was subsequently renamed, "

Norton Air Force Base Norton Air Force Base (1942–1994) was a United States Air Force facility east of downtown San Bernardino in San Bernardino County, California. Overview For the majority of its operational lifetime, Norton was a logistics depot and heavy-l ...

," before being decommissioned with the fall of the Soviet Union. San Bernardino International Airport encompasses three passenger terminals, including the following: a domestic terminal where Breeze Airways operates daily non-stop service to and from San Francisco International and daily one-stop, direct flights to and from Provo, Utah; an international terminal with U.S. Customs and Border Protection; and, the Luxivair executive terminal, which is an airport-owned fixed-base operator. In February 2023, Breeze Airways will add non-stop service between San Bernardino and Las Vegas and one-stop, direct flights between San Bernardino and Hartford, Connecticut.

History

The

opened shortly after the attacks on Pearl Harbor. Norton was placed on the Department of Defense's base closure list in 1989. Most parts of San Bernardino International Airport were completed in 2011, though a customs facility was still under construction. San Bernardino International Airport was built to conform to aviation-demand modeling and allocations performed as part of the 2008 Regional Transportation Plan (R.T.P.) of the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), the Metropolitan Planning Organization for San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Riverside, Ventura, Imperial, and Orange counties. The 2008 R.T.P. projected 9.4 million passengers and 1.29 million tons of air cargo at San Bernardino International Airport in 2035 with improved ground access provided, in part, by high-speed rail. The California High-Speed Rail Authority is currently performing alternatives analysis regarding the Los Angeles-to-San Diego segment, which includes, along the I-215 alignment, an optional station location at Rialto Avenue and E Street in the city of San Bernardino. The 2008 R.T.P states, "The high speed, reliability, and predictability of high-speed airport access will be needed to overcome mounting and increasingly unpredictable traffic congestion (on area freeways)."

U.S. Customs and Border Protection United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the largest federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security. It is the country's primary border control organization, charged with regulating and facilit ...

agents are available on call to clear imported goods. The airport is used as a base for

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...

planes fighting

forest fires A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identif ...

. Several hangars that were formerly empty have recently been occupied by civilian-owned aircraft maintenance companies. The runway is long, easily accommodating air cargo aircraft.

San Bernardino County grand jury and FBI investigations

An audit completed June 2011 at the request of a grand jury investigation found examples of potential mismanagement and financial irregularities. In September 2011, as part of a special joint corruption task force, the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

raided the offices of the airport and the home of airport developer Scot Spencer to secure internal documents. In late September 2011, Don Rogers, the Director of the SBIA Authority (SBIAA) resigned.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

Passenger terminal

San Bernardino's terminal can accommodate domestic and international airline service.

Volaris Volaris, legally ''Concesionaria Vuela Compañía de Aviación S.A.P.I. de C.V.'', is a Mexican low-cost airline based in Santa Fe, Álvaro Obregón, Mexico City l-888-Ʒ9Ʒ-I394 with its hubs in Guadalajara, Mexico City, and Tijuana, and focu ...

, a Mexican low-cost airline, announced the beginning of flights to

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

in November 2017, however these plans were later cancelled. In March 2022, Breeze Airways first announced plans to operate passenger service at the airport. Finally, on August 4, 2022, Breeze Airways became the first commercial airline to operate passenger flights in and out of SBD's never-been-used air terminal, with daily flights to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, 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 List of Ca ...

Location

The airport and some of the surrounding area is within the city of

San Bernardino San Bernardino (; Spanish language, Spanish for Bernardino of Siena, "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a ...

and the Inland Valley Development Agency. The surrounding areas are being redeveloped by Hillwood. The airport is about two miles east of

downtown San Bernardino Downtown San Bernardino is a district in the city of San Bernardino, California, in San Bernardino County, United States. It is home to city and county government buildings, and to the city's central business district. The downtown area of San B ...

and 14 miles northeast of downtown

Riverside Riverside may refer to: Places Australia * Riverside, Tasmania, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania Canada * Riverside (electoral district), in the Yukon * Riverside, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Alberta * Riverside, Manitoba, a former rural m ...

. It is six miles northwest of downtown Redlands, on the outskirts of

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

. Motorists can use the San Bernardino Freeway (Interstate 10), Barstow Freeway (Interstate 215), or the Foothill Freeway (State Route 210).

Ground Transportation

The

Omnitrans Omnitrans, stylized as "OmniTrans," is a public transportation agency in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The largest transit operator within San Bernardino County, it serves the San Bernardino Valley. The agency was established ...

route 15 bus connects from North Del Rosa Dr. and East Rialto St. to the

Downtown San Bernardino Downtown San Bernardino is a district in the city of San Bernardino, California, in San Bernardino County, United States. It is home to city and county government buildings, and to the city's central business district. The downtown area of San B ...

station, where Metrolink connections are available to Union Station Los Angeles.

In popular culture

The airport was the filming location for the 1996 movie ''

Executive Decision ''Executive Decision'' is a 1996 American action film directed by Stuart Baird in his directorial debut. The film stars Kurt Russell, Steven Seagal, Halle Berry, John Leguizamo, Oliver Platt, Joe Morton, David Suchet, and B.D. Wong. It depict ...

'', the 2001 movie ''

The Fast and the Furious ''Fast & Furious'' (also known as ''The Fast and the Furious'') is a media franchise centered on a series of action films that are largely concerned with street racing, heists, spies, and family. The franchise also includes short films, ...

'' and the 2004

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

film '' The Aviator'' using a

Lockheed Constellation The Lockheed Constellation ("Connie") is a propeller-driven, four-engined airliner built by Lockheed Corporation starting in 1943. The Constellation series was the first pressurized-cabin civil airliner series to go into widespread use. Its press ...

preserved by the

Airline History Museum The National Airline History Museum is an aviation museum located at the Kansas City Downtown Airport in Kansas City, Missouri focused on the history of airlines in the United States. History Founded in 1986 by aviation enthusiasts Larry A. ...

, and flown in for the shoot, with one hangar "dressed" as a

Trans World Airlines Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major American airline which operated from 1930 until 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles via St. Louis, Kansas City, and other stops, with F ...

facility.

References

External links

* * * {{San Bernardino Airports in San Bernardino County, California