Santa Fe Regional Airport is a public use airport in Santa Fe, in

Santa Fe County Santa Fe County ( es, Condado de Santa Fe; meaning ''Holy faith'' in Spanish) is located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 census, the population was 144,170, making it New Mexico's third-most populous county, after Bernalillo Cou ...

, New Mexico, United States, southwest of the city center. The airport serves the greater Santa Fe and Los Alamos areas. Santa Fe's is the second busiest commercial airport in New Mexico behind the Albuquerque International Sunport. It is one of the highest in elevation in the United States at 6348 feet above sea level. The airport is currently served by American Eagle with regional jet flights to Dallas/Fort Worth and to Phoenix as well as by

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 ...

with regional jets to

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. The airport also sees a considerable amount of private jet activity by NetJets and many other companies. There are two fixed base operators: Jet Center at Santa Fe which has a facility just northeast of the terminal and Signature Flight Support SAF just south of the terminal. Since the introduction of regional jet service by major airlines in 2009, the airport has seen a tremendous increase in airline activity with 43,329 passenger boardings (enplanements) in

calendar year Generally speaking, a calendar year begins on the New Year's Day of the given calendar system and ends on the day before the following New Year's Day, and thus consists of a whole number of days. A year can also be measured by starting on any o ...

2011 to 142,057 in 2019. The

National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS) is an inventory of U.S. aviation infrastructure assets. NPIAS was developed and now maintained by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). It identifies existing and proposed airports tha ...

for 2011–2015 called it a ''

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 ...

'' airport based on enplanements in 2008, when Santa Fe had no airline service while airport officials awaited federal approval of an environmental impact assessment (the ''commercial service'' category requires at least 2,500 per year). However, as of the 2019-2023 NPIAS, it is listed as a ''commercial service - primary nonhub'' airport.

History

The airport opened in 1941, replacing the former Santa Fe Municipal Airport/Boyd Field, which was located off Cerrillos Road between Rodeo Road and Jaguar Drive. The facility was called the Santa Fe County Municipal Airport until 2018, when the name was changed to Santa Fe Regional Airport. The current terminal building was opened in 1957 and has 11,000 square feet of space. It was renovated in 1988 and again in 2004 but has not seen an expansion. In June 1972,

Frontier A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts o ...

and

Texas International Airlines Texas International Airlines Inc. was a United States airline, known from 1940 until 1947 as Aviation Enterprises, until 1969 as Trans-Texas Airways (TTa), and as Texas International Airlines until 1982, when it merged with Continental Airlines. ...

, the two local service air carriers serving Santa Fe, abruptly ended service, citing unsafe runway conditions after multiple aircraft received prop damage from deteriorating asphalt. Neither carrier ever returned, and the airport then began receiving service by

commuter airline A regional airline is a general classification of airline which typically operates scheduled passenger air service, using regional aircraft, between communities lacking sufficient demand or infrastructure to attract mainline flights. In North ...

s operating much smaller aircraft. In 1983, Santa Fe saw its first

code share In communications and information processing, code is a system of rules to convert information—such as a letter, word, sound, image, or gesture—into another form, sometimes shortened or secret, for communication through a communication c ...

service by a commuter airline on behalf of a major airline. Smaller 19-seat aircraft were mostly used, with the exception of a brief period in 1997 and 1998, when Santa Fe saw two carriers using 32-seat aircraft. The airport lost all airline service at the end of 2007 but resumed service in the summer of 2009, when it gained its first major airline code share flights using regional jets. Passenger traffic responded tremendously to the new jet service, and regional jet flights increased from once per day in 2009 to as many as twelve per day in 2019. To help with the increase in passenger traffic, the terminal was remodeled in 2016 by removing much of the restaurant for added gate space. The airport manager's office was converted to a baggage claim room, while the manager was relocated to a portable building. Aircraft had been parked parallel to the terminal building, accommodating a maximum of two regional jets, but were changed to park head in so that three aircraft could be accommodated. On September 27, 2017, the Santa Fe City Council approved an expansion plan for the airport to better accommodate the current volume of airline service as well as future growth. This includes expanding the terminal with added gate space, a new addition for the baggage claim area and rental cars, and a new parking lot with 750 spaces. Coinciding with the approval of this expansion plan was a renaming of the airport from Santa Fe Municipal Airport to Santa Fe Regional Airport. Funding and planning for the expansion began in 2019. A design was completed by Molzen Corbin in 2021, and the only bid received was by Bradbury Stamm Construction. Work began on February 25, 2022 and is expected to take 12–14 months. This expansion will build a 7500 ft addition to the north side of the terminal as well as remodeling of the entire terminal. The roadway system will be redesigned, and the current parking area will be completely rebuilt with the addition of three new long-term lots. A second phase is planned for a 13000 ft addition to the south side of the terminal, which will include a baggage claim area and a restaurant. Until then, baggage claim will be in a portable building.

Historical airline service

Santa Fe's first commercial airline service was by Mid Continent Air Express beginning in 1929 operating on a route from

El Paso El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...

with stops at

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

, Santa Fe and Las Vegas, New Mexico as well as Pueblo and Colorado Springs, Colorado. The route was replaced with Western Air Express in 1931 and again by

Varney Speed Lines Varney Air Lines was an airline company that started service on April 6, 1926, as an air-mail carrier. Formed by Walter Varney, the airline was based in Boise, Idaho, United States. The airline is one of the predecessors of United Airlines. Hi ...

, the predecessor of

Continental Airlines Continental Airlines, simply known as Continental, was a major United States airline founded in 1934 and eventually headquartered in Houston, Texas. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers. Continental started o ...

, in 1934. The southwest division of Varney was operating daily round trip air service flown with a single engine Lockheed Vega aircraft on a routing of El Paso - Albuquerque - Santa Fe - Las Vegas, NM - Pueblo, CO with continuing service operated by Wyoming Air Service on to Colorado Springs, Denver, and Cheyenne, WY. In 1936, the southwest operating division of Varney was acquired by

Robert F. Six Robert Forman Six (June 25, 1907 – October 6, 1986) was the CEO of Continental Airlines from 1936 to 1980. His career began in the earliest days of U.S. commercial aviation; his determined, scrappy, risk-taking nature paid off for Continental ...

who in 1937 renamed the air carrier

Continental Air Lines Continental Airlines, simply known as Continental, was a major United States airline founded in 1934 and eventually headquartered in Houston, Texas. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers. Continental started ...

which then began operating Lockheed Model 12 Electra Junior twin prop aircraft on a daily round trip routing of El Paso - Albuquerque - Santa Fe - Las Vegas, NM - Pueblo, CO - Colorado Springs - Denver. Mr. Six would serve as CEO of the airline until 1981. Thus, Santa Fe was one of the first destinations served by Continental which would become a major domestic and international airline. In 1940, Continental began operating

Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar The Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar is a passenger transport aircraft of the World War II era. Design and development Sales of the 10–14 passenger Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra, which first flew in 1937, had proved disappointing, despite the air ...

twin prop aircraft and extended single plane service from Santa Fe and Albuquerque to Roswell and

Hobbs, New Mexico Hobbs is a city in Lea County, New Mexico, Lea County, New Mexico, United States. Its population was 40,508 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, increasing from 34,122 in 2010. Hobbs is the principal city of the Hobbs, New Mexico microp ...

as well as Midland/Odessa, Big Spring, San Angelo, and

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

, Texas. By the mid-1940s, Continental introduced

Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version ...

service, followed soon with Convair 240 and

Convair 340 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. In 1950, Continental expanded its service by adding more stops along the El Paso to Denver route, including Las Cruces, Truth or Consequences, Socorro, and Raton in New Mexico and

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

in Colorado in addition to Santa Fe and the other aforementioned destinations. However all of the new stops had ended by 1955. In 1955, Continental merged with

Pioneer Airlines Essair (short for ''Efficiency, Safety, and Speed in the Air'') was incorporated in 1939, the first airline authorized by the federal Civil Aeronautics Board (Civil Aeronautics Board, CAB) to fly as a "local service" air carrier in the United Sta ...

and took over that carrier's service on the Albuquerque - Santa Fe - Clovis - Lubbock - Abilene - Ft. Worth - Dallas route. By 1959, the airline had introduced its first turbine powered airliner service into Santa Fe with the four engine, British-manufactured

Vickers Viscount The Vickers Viscount is a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs. A design requirement from the Brabazon Committee, it entered service in 1953 and was the first turboprop-powered airliner. The Visc ...

turboprop operating on four of its six daily flights. By 1963, Continental Airlines was growing rapidly with large jets and began transferring its route authority for its smaller cities to other carriers. The El Paso - Denver route with all the intermediate stops, including Santa Fe, was transferred to

Frontier Airlines (1950-1986) Frontier Airlines is a major ultra-low-cost U.S. airline headquartered in Denver, Colorado. It operates flights to over 100 destinations throughout the United States and 31 international destinations, and employs more than 3,000 staff. The ca ...

, and the Albuquerque - Dallas route with all the intermediate stops went to Trans-Texas Airways, which resulted in Continental no longer serving the Santa Fe airport.

began serving Santa Fe in 1948 with two daily round trip flights operated with

s on a routing of Albuquerque - Santa Fe - Las Vegas, NM - Tucumcari, NM - Clovis, NM - Lubbock, TX - Abilene, TX - Mineral Wells, TX - Fort Worth, TX - Dallas, and by 1953, the airline was operating

Martin 2-0-2 The Martin 2-0-2 was an airliner introduced in 1947. The twin piston-engined fixed-wing aircraft was designed and built by the Glenn L. Martin Company. Design and development Glenn L. Martin, president of the company, intended that the Mode ...

aircraft with direct, no-change-of-plane flights to Houston Hobby Airport making eight stops en route (the stops at Las Vegas, NM and Tucumcari, NM had been dropped). Pioneer was then acquired by and merged into

in 1955.

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 ...

, (

TWA 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 ...

), began Santa Fe service in 1948 by adding the city as a stop on its transcontinental mainline route using

aircraft. Initially, the daily routing was New York LaGuardia Airport - Pittsburgh - Columbus, OH - Dayton - Chicago Midway Airport - Kansas City - Topeka, KS - Wichita - Amarillo - Santa Fe - Winslow, AZ - Phoenix - Los Angeles. Albuquerque was later added as stop on the way to Winslow, and the

Martin 4-0-4 The Martin 4-0-4 was an American pressurized passenger airliner built by the Glenn L. Martin Company. In addition to airline use initially in the United States, it was used by the United States Coast Guard and United States Navy as the RM-1G (l ...

aircraft replaced the DC-3s. By 1959, TWA was operating four engine Lockheed Constellation propliner service into Santa Fe with a daily routing of Chicago Midway Airport - Kansas City - Wichita - Amarillo - Santa Fe - Albuquerque - Los Angeles but only in the westbound direction. TWA's service to Santa Fe ended by late 1960.

began flights to Santa Fe in 1963, replacing Continental Airlines at four stops made on the El Paso - Denver route. Frontier initially operated

and

prop aircraft. By the mid-1960s, Frontier began operating Convair 580 turboprops from the airport nonstop to Denver and Albuquerque, with direct service to Phoenix, Tucson, and El Paso. In June 1972 Frontier (as well as

) both ceased operating at Santa Fe citing unsafe runway conditions. Trans-Texas Airways (TTa) began their Santa Fe service later in 1963, replacing Continental Airlines at all the stops made on the Albuquerque - Dallas route that Continental acquired from Pioneer Air Lines eight years prior. Initially, the carrier used

prop aircraft and later upgraded to Convair 600 turboprops. In 1967, TTa had introduced the first jet service into Santa Fe with the Douglas DC-9-10 on nonstop flights to

Dallas Love Field Dallas Love Field is a city-owned public airport northwest of downtown Dallas, Texas., effective April 10, 2008 It was Dallas' main airport until 1974 when Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) opened. Love Field covers an area of a ...

with continuing direct service to Houston Hobby Airport. DC-9s were also flown to Albuquerque, Roswell and Midland/Odessa on a flight routing to Dallas and Houston from Santa Fe. Trans-Texas Airways changed its name to

Texas International Texas International Airlines Inc. was a United States airline, known from 1940 until 1947 as Aviation Enterprises, until 1969 as Trans-Texas Airways (TTa), and as Texas International Airlines until 1982, when it merged with Continental Airlines ...

(TI) in 1969 and discontinued DC-9 jet service into Santa Fe by early 1970 but continued to serve the airport with the Convair 600's until June 1972 when both Texas International and Frontier were forced to suspend all flights citing unsafe runway conditions. Neither carrier ever returned. During the 1960s and 1970s, several small commuter airlines served Santa Fe, including Bison, Trans Central, The Santa Fe Airline Company, Mountain Air,

Trans American Airways Trans- is a Latin prefix meaning "across", "beyond", or "on the other side of". Used alone, trans may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Trans (festival), a former festival in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom * ''Trans'' (fil ...

, Trans Western Airlines, Zia Airlines and Stahmann Farms. These carriers used a variety of commuter aircraft including Cessna 402's and Piper Navajo's on flights to Albuquerque and Denver. Zia had served Santa Fe from 1974 through 1980, also operating flights to Farmington, New Mexico for a short time and had upgraded to

Handley Page Jetstream The Handley Page HP.137 Jetstream is a small twin-turboprop airliner, with a pressurised fuselage. The aircraft was designed to meet the requirements of the United States commuter and regional airline market. The design was later improved and b ...

propjet aircraft in 1979. Larger commuter and regional carriers served Santa Fe from the 1980s through the mid-2000s. A second Pioneer Airlines began flights to Denver in 1981 flying Beechcraft 99 and Swearingen Metro aircraft. This Pioneer Airlines went on to become a Continental Commuter feeder carrier on behalf of Continental Airlines in 1983 before ending service in 1985. This was the first major airline code-share service recorded in New Mexico.

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 Gr ...

began service in 1985 operating

Cessna 208 Caravan The Cessna 208 Caravan is a utility aircraft produced by Cessna. The project was commenced on November 20, 1981, and the prototype first flew on December 9, 1982. The production model was certified by the Federal Aviation Administration, FAA ...

, Beechcraft 99,

Beechcraft 1300 The Beechcraft Super King Air family is part of a line of twin-turboprop aircraft produced by Beechcraft. The Model 200 and Model 300 series were originally marketed as the "Super King Air" family; the "Super" designation was dropped in 1996. ...

, and

Beechcraft 1900 The Beechcraft 1900 is a 19-passenger, pressurized twin-engine turboprop regional airliner manufactured by Beechcraft. It is also used as a freight aircraft and corporate transport, and by several governmental and military organizations. With c ...

turboprops. Mesa first operated shuttle service between Santa Fe and Albuquerque then later began service to Denver. In 1995 Mesa's flights to Denver were upgraded to operate 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.

but all service ended in 1998 and was replaced by Great Lakes Aviation.

Mountain Air Express Mountain Air Express (MAX) was a short-lived United States commuter airline founded in 1996. The air carrier was established by Western Pacific Airlines in order to provide passenger feed. History It flew Dornier 328 turboprops and operated via ...

, a feeder carrier for

Western Pacific Airlines Western Pacific Airlines, or WestPac, was an airline which operated in the United States from 1995 to 1998. A low-cost carrier, it was formed in 1994 under the name Commercial Air, later changed to Western Pacific, and began operating schedul ...

, flew Dornier 328 propjets nonstop to Colorado Springs in the spring of 1997. Aspen Mountain Air served Santa Fe from 1997 through 1998 with Dornier 328's 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 ...

by reinstating nonstop flights to Dallas/Ft. Worth. Although Aspen Mountain Air operated under a code-share agreement with American, they were not considered as American Eagle.

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 ...

came to Santa Fe in 1998 by resuming the

flights to Denver after the Mesa Airlines contract expired. Great Lakes also used

Beechcraft 1900D The Beechcraft 1900 is a 19-passenger, pressurized twin-engine turboprop regional airliner manufactured by Beechcraft. It is also used as a freight aircraft and corporate transport, and by several governmental and military organizations. With c ...

aircraft and had increased their Denver service to as many as twelve flights per day but then lost their United Express designation in early 2002. They continued to serve Santa Fe independently via their own identity until 2007 as no other United Express carriers had implemented service. Great Lakes returned to Santa Fe with flights to Denver, Phoenix, and Clovis for a short period in 2013 until ExpressJet operating Embraer ERJ-145 regional jets initiated service to Denver as

America West Express America West Express was the brand name for America West Airlines commuter and regional flights operated by Mesa Air Group's Mesa Airlines under a code share agreement. Today Mesa Airlines operates for American Eagle. Mesa Airlines operated Ameri ...

operated by Mesa Air/

Air Midwest Air Midwest, Inc., was a Federal Aviation Administration Part 121 certificated air carrier that operated under air carrier certificate number AMWA510A issued on May 15, 1965. It was headquartered in Wichita, Kansas, United States, and was a sub ...

also briefly served Santa Fe in 2000 and 2001 with

s nonstop to Phoenix via a

code sharing In communications and information processing, code is a system of rules to convert information—such as a letter, word, sound, image, or gesture—into another form, sometimes shortened or secret, for communication through a communication ...

feeder service for

America West Airlines America West Airlines was a major American airline, founded in 1981, with service commencing in 1983, and having reached US$1 billion in annual revenue in 1989, headquartered in Tempe, Arizona. At the time of its acquisition of US Airways, Americ ...

Period without airlines

From December 11, 2007 until June 11, 2009, Santa Fe had no scheduled passenger airline service. In June 2007, the airport was upgraded to Class 1 status to allow regional jet flights. The city's government and interested airlines entered negotiations to split the cost of upgrades. In July 2007,

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 List of airlines by foundation date, world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atla ...

announced new regional jet flights would commence in December 2007 between Santa Fe and

Los Angeles International Airport 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 ...

(LAX) and Salt Lake City International Airport. American Eagle announced the introduction of regional jet flights to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and

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 ...

beginning in December 2007 as well. However, all scheduled services were suspended indefinitely pending federal approval of an environmental assessment. Delta and American then removed flights to Santa Fe from their schedules, and it was unknown at that time if and when flights would begin. The completion of the environmental impact statement was announced on February 26, 2009, but neither Delta or American Airlines immediately announced any resumption of their intentions to serve the facility, citing changed economic conditions.

Resumption of airline service

American Eagle

On March 12, 2009 the City of Santa Fe announced that American Eagle, the regional affiliate of

, would begin one daily flight to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) on June 11, 2009. On the same day service began, American Eagle also announced additional service to

(LAX) beginning November 19, 2009 with one daily flight. These American Eagle flights to DFW and LAX were operated with

Embraer Embraer S.A. () is a Brazilian multinational aerospace manufacturer that produces commercial, military, executive and agricultural aircraft, and provides aeronautical services. It was founded in 1969 in São José dos Campos, São Paulo, where i ...

ERJ-140 and ERJ-145 regional jet aircraft. By the spring of 2010, two additional flights to DFW were added followed with a fourth flight by the summer of 2011. American Eagle Airlines operating under the American Eagle brand was changed to

Envoy Air Envoy Air Inc. is an American regional airline headquartered in Irving, Texas, in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The airline is a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Airlines Group and it is paid by fellow group member American Airl ...

in 2014. Service was soon supplemented by ExpressJet Airlines and by

SkyWest Airlines SkyWest Airlines is an American regional airline headquartered in St. George, Utah, United States. SkyWest is paid to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by a partner mainline airline. The ...

, both operating as American Eagle and both operating Canadair CRJ-200 and CRJ-700 regional jets. Service to Los Angeles ended on September 8, 2015 and new westbound service to Phoenix began on December 15, 2016 with one daily flight. With the new Phoenix flight and an upgrade of aircraft type on the DFW flights to the CRJ-700, the year 2017 saw a 41 percent increase in passenger traffic at SAF. A second daily flight to Phoenix was added in May, 2019 utilizing a Canadair CRJ-900 regional jet operated by

. This aircraft, seating up to 79 passengers, is the largest to serve Santa Fe. In March, 2020, two of the DFW flights were upgraded to CRJ-900's and by summer of 2020, plans called for five daily flights to DFW, three of which would utilize the CRJ-900 and two on the 76-seat

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 ...

. Service to Los Angeles was also planned to resume with one flight on Saturdays only. All of these plans came to a halt in mid-March 2020 with the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus. Instead, service was scaled back to three daily flights to DFW only using CRJ-700 aircraft. The Phoenix flights were discontinued by the end of June, 2020 and resumed in June, 2021 along with up to four daily flights to DFW. A Saturday only flight to Los Angeles was also operated during the summer of 2021. The larger CRJ-900 and Embraer 175 regional jets are planned to resume on some flights in January, 2023.

United Express

On December 19, 2012, it was announced that ExpressJet, operating 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.

, would initiate twice daily regional jet service to

Denver International Airport Denver International Airport , locally known as DIA, is an international airport in the Western United States, primarily serving metropolitan Denver, Colorado, as well as the greater Front Range Urban Corridor. At , it is the largest airport in ...

(DEN) beginning May 1, 2013. These flights were operated with 50-seat Embraer ERJ-145 regional jet aircraft and comprise the first ever nonstop jet service between Santa Fe and Denver. This service was replaced by

Trans States Airlines Trans States Airlines was a regional airline owned by Trans States Holdings and headquartered in Bridgeton, Missouri. At the time of its closing, the airline operated flights for United Airlines under the United Express brand. Trans States Airline ...

in summer, 2015 which also operates Embraer ERJ-145 regional jets. Service had increased to as many as five daily flights to Denver in October 2019. For the summer of 2020, four daily flights were planned and all flights were to operate by

with the larger CRJ-700 aircraft. Instead, due to the COVID-19 virus outbreak, service was cut back to only one daily flight to Denver using the smaller 50-seat CRJ-200. Service increased back to two daily nonstops to Denver by the Fall of 2021 operated by CommutAir.

New Mexico Army National Guard

The airport is home to an Army Aviation Support Facility (AASF) for Company C, 1st General Support Aviation Battalion, 171st Aviation Regiment (C/1-171 AVN) of the New Mexico Army National Guard, flying the UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter.

Facilities

Santa Fe Regional Airport covers 2,128 acres (861 ha) at an elevation of 6,348 feet (1,935 m). It has three

asphalt Asphalt, also known as bitumen (, ), is a sticky, black, highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum. It may be found in natural deposits or may be a refined product, and is classed as a pitch. Before the 20th century, the term a ...

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 ...

s: 2/20 is 8,366 by 150 feet (2,550 x 46 m); 15/33 is 6,316 by 100 feet (1,925 x 30 m); 10/28 is 6,301 by 75 feet (1,921 x 23 m). For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2021, the airport had 57,300 aircraft operations, an average of 157 per day: 83%

, 6%

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

, 6% commercial, and 5%

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) an ...

. 190 aircraft were then based at this airport: 130 single-engine and 22 multi-engine

airplane An airplane or aeroplane (informally plane) is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and wing configurations. The broad spe ...

s, 23 jets, 11

, and 3

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...

. The data below lists annual total aircraft operations from 2003 to 2013 from the FAA's Air Traffic Activity System. Average annual increase in aircraft operations was 0.88% over the last 10 years.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Statistics

Annual passenger traffic

Annual passenger traffic (enplaned + deplaned) at SAF, 2011 through 2020

References

External links

Santa Fe Municipal Airport
- official City of Santa Fe webpage
FlySantaFe.com
- marketing website
The Aviation Association of Santa Fe
- non-profit organization dedicated to supporting the airport and educating the public about the airport
Santa Fe Air Center
- commercial operator providing airline support and fuel and services for private aircraft
Santa Fe Aero Services
- commercial operator providing aircraft parts, avionics and maintenance services for piston and turbine-engine aircraft
Skyland Aircraft
- commercial operator providing aircraft parts and maintenance services for piston-engine aircraft

- commercial operator providing private pilot training ("flight school") and aircraft brokerage services

- commercial operator providing private pilot training ("flight school")
NM Sport Aviation
- offers sport pilot and private training ("flight school") and rental in a Remos GX light sport aircraft
Jet Warbird Training Center
- commercial operator providing civilian pilots with training in ex-military jet training aircraft
Aerial image as of October 1996
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 prov ...

'' * * * {{Santa Fe, New Mexico Municipal Airport Airports in New Mexico Transportation in Santa Fe County, New Mexico Buildings and structures in Santa Fe County, New Mexico