Tri-State Airport (Milton J. Ferguson Field) is a public airport in
Wayne County, West Virginia
Wayne County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 38,982. Its county seat is Wayne. The county was founded in 1842 and named for General "Mad" Anthony Wayne.
Wayne County is ...
, United States,
three miles south of
Huntington, West Virginia
Huntington is a city in Cabell and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is the county seat of Cabell County, and the largest city in the Huntington–Ashland metropolitan area, sometimes referred to as the Tri-State Area. A h ...
,
near
Ceredo and
Kenova
Kenova is a city in Wayne County, West Virginia, United States, situated at the confluence of the Ohio and Big Sandy Rivers. Located near a tristate border, the city's name is a portmanteau of Kentucky, Ohio, and Virginia (Va). Founded in ...
. Owned by the Tri-State Airport Authority,
it serves Huntington;
Ashland, Kentucky
Ashland is a home rule-class city in Boyd County, Kentucky, United States. The largest city in Boyd County, Ashland is located upon a southern bank of the Ohio River at the state border with Ohio and near West Virginia. The population was 21,6 ...
; and
Ironton, Ohio
Ironton is a city in and the county seat of Lawrence County, Ohio, United States. Located in southernmost Ohio along the Ohio River northwest of Huntington, West Virginia, the city includes the Downtown Ironton Historic District.
The populatio ...
. It has heavy use 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 after the withdrawal 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 List of airlines by foundation date, world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atla ...
in June 2012, is down to two airlines, one of which provides nationwide connecting service. On August 2, 2021, a federal subsidy was announced to subsidize flights to Washington-Dulles and Chicago-O'Hare airports. It is not yet known which airline will operate the flights.
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...
records say the airport had 115,263 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2010, 10.9% more than 2009. The
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...
(FAA)
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 2017–2021
categorized it as a non-hub primary commercial service facility.
The first airline flights were Piedmont DC-3s around the end of 1952; Eastern and Allegheny arrived in 1953. Eastern left about the end of 1972; Piedmont and Allegheny remained through the 1989 merger. The first jets were Piedmont 737s in 1969 (the runway was then 5280 feet).
Eastern Airlines provided jet service beginning July 1, 1968 using a DC-9 jet. According to the Eastern Airlines timetable, effective June 21, 1968, the routing was LEX-HTS-EWR. HTS had 5 other EA in the same schedule with 1 on a Lockheed Electra & the other 4 on Convair 440s. The airport is the second busiest airport in West Virginia after
Yeager Airport
West Virginia International Yeager Airport is a public airport east of downtown Charleston, in unincorporated Kanawha County, West Virginia, United States. It is owned by the Central West Virginia Regional Airport Authority. The airport hosts ...
in
Charleston, West Virginia
Charleston is the capital and List of cities in West Virginia, most populous city of West Virginia. Located at the confluence of the Elk River (West Virginia), Elk and Kanawha River, Kanawha rivers, the city had a population of 48,864 at the 20 ...
. Huntington Tri-State airport has the second longest runway in West Virginia. The airport is replacing lights in the terminal and hangars with LED lights as of November 2021.
Facilities
The airport covers 1,300
acre
The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imp ...
s (526
ha) at an
elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Vert ...
of 828 feet (252 m). It has one runway, 12/30, 7,017 by 150 feet (2,139 x 46 m) asphalt.
In the year ending February 28, 2017 the airport had 12,870 aircraft operations, average 35 per day: 46% general aviation, 32%
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 ...
, 15% airline, and 7% military. In December 2017, 48 aircraft were based at the airport: 35 single-engine, 8 multi-engine, 3 jet, 1 helicopter, and 1 ultralight.
The airport has the only
FedEx
FedEx Corporation, formerly Federal Express Corporation and later FDX Corporation, is an American multinational conglomerate holding company focused on transportation, e-commerce and business services based in Memphis, Tennessee. The name "Fe ...
B-757 hub in West Virginia.
Economic Impact
A study by Marshall University's Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER) in 2006 published a finding that the economic output was $50.4 million, with an income of $21.1 million and 803 jobs and $3.5 million state and local tax revenue.
A series of Airport Improvement Projects (AIPS) were completed from 2006 to 2014 with a total cost of $39,226,015.00 based on $36,716,290.00 federal funds, $1,141,993.53 state funds, and $322,966.90 local funds.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger
Cargo
Top destinations
FedEx Feeder is operated at the field by
Mountain Air Cargo
Mountain Air Cargo (MAC) is an American cargo airline based in Denver, North Carolina. It is a major contract carrier for FedEx Express, operating in the eastern United States and the Caribbean region. Previous turboprop operations in South Ameri ...
.
Incidents
*On October 30 1970 a
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
U-8 crashed west of the airport while making an emergency landing in rain and fog, killing three of the four passengers, including
Major general
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
Edwin H. Burba.
* On November 14, 1970, in what has been recognized as "the worst sports related air tragedy in U.S. history,"
[Rivals.com College Football. "Marshall crash still looms after 36 years. December 19, 2006 .] Southern Airways Flight 932
Southern Airways Flight 932 was a chartered Southern Airways Douglas DC-9 domestic United States commercial jet flight from Stallings Field (ISO) in Kinston, North Carolina, to Huntington Tri-State Airport/Milton J. Ferguson Field (HTS) near ...
, a chartered
Southern Airways
Southern Airways was a regional airline (known at the time as a "local-service air carrier" as designated by the federal Civil Aeronautics Board) in the United States, from its founding by Frank Hulse in 1949 until 1979, when it merged with No ...
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 ...
, crashed into a hill just short of runway 12 (then runway 11, due to differences in
magnetic declination
Magnetic declination, or magnetic variation, is the angle on the horizontal plane between magnetic north (the direction the north end of a magnetized compass needle points, corresponding to the direction of the Earth's magnetic field lines) and ...
between 1970 and today). The flight carried 37 members of the
Marshall University
Marshall University is a public research university in Huntington, West Virginia. It was founded in 1837 and is named after John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the United States.
The university is currently composed of nine colleges: L ...
"Thundering Herd" football team, eight members of the coaching staff, and 25 boosters. There were no survivors. The tragedy was the basis of the 2006 film ''
We Are Marshall''.
* On January 30, 2009 a
Piper PA-34-200T Seneca crashed near KHTS in a snowstorm. The pilot was trying to divert to KHTS due to a fuel emergency; all six aboard were killed.
References
External links
Tri-State Airport official website
from 2008
West Virginia DOT
The West Virginia Department of Transportation (WVDOT) is the state agency responsible for transportation in West Virginia. The Department of Transportation serves an umbrella organization for seven subsidiary agencies which are directly respons ...
Airport Directory
*
*
*
* http://www.wvculture.org/history/transportation/tristateairport01.html
* https://www.airnav.com/airport/KHTS
* https://aeronav.faa.gov/d-tpp/2205/00532AD.PDF
* https://skyvector.com/airport/HTS/Tri-State-Milton-J-Ferguson-Field-Airport
{{Huntington, West Virginia
Airports in West Virginia
Buildings and structures in Wayne County, West Virginia
Transportation in Wayne County, West Virginia