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Destin–Fort Walton Beach Airport is an airport within Eglin Air Force Base, near Destin and Fort Walton Beach in Okaloosa County, Florida. No private aircraft are allowed, so Destin Executive Airport is used for non-commercial operations. The airport was called Northwest Florida Regional Airport until February 17, 2015 and Okaloosa Regional Airport until September 2008. Destin–Fort Walton Beach Airport is served by the regional airline affiliates of American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and US Airways which fly nonstop, mainline and regional jets to hubs in the southern and eastern United States. Delta Air Lines mainline jets also fly to its hub in Atlanta. In 2008 the FAA recorded over 373,808 enplanements at the airport. ==History== In 1957, The Okaloosa County Air Terminal opened on Eglin Air Force Base in building 89 with 3 personnel (Airport Manager, Security and Admin Support). Southern Airways was the only passenger airline, with Douglas DC-3s direct to Atlanta via several stops.〔timetableimages.com, January 7, 1958 Southern timetable〕 Passengers entered the base through the East Gate near Valparaiso, thus the airport code of VPS. Southern would later upgrade their service into the airport with 40-passenger Martin 404 propliners before initiating the first scheduled passenger jet flights at VPS. 1967: Southern Airways introduced Douglas DC-9-10 jetliner service into VPS becoming the first airline to do so. 1968: According to the September 3, 1968, Southern Airways system timetable, the airline was operating daily nonstop DC-9 jet service to Atlanta and New Orleans with direct, no change of plane DC-9 jet flights twice a day to New York LaGuardia Airport and Washington D.C. Dulles Airport via intermediate stops in Dothan, AL and Columbus, GA.〔http://www.timetableimages.com, Spet. 3, 1968 Southern Airways system timetable〕 February 1975: The new James E. Plew Terminal Building of the Okaloosa Air Terminal, on State Road 85, opened in mid-February 1975, with dedication on 22 February. Congressman Bob Sikes and Southern Airways President Frank Hulse were some of the speakers.〔Fort Walton Beach, Florida, "Terminal Dedication Saturday", ''Playground Daily News'', Friday 21 February 1975, Volume 30, Number 13, page 1A.〕 The 32,000 sq ft (3,000 m2) facility cost $1.7 million. Federal grants totaled $472,000, state $80,000, Okaloosa County bond sale $1.1 million, and Southern Airways $190,000. First year enplaned passengers totaled 97,000 with Southern Airways as the sole airline serving VPS with 12 departing flights daily. 1979: On July 1, 1979 Southern Airways merged with North Central Airlines to form Republic Airlines. In July 1979 Republic flew Douglas DC-9s nonstop from VPS to Atlanta, GA; Dothan, AL; Mobile, AL; New Orleans, LA; Orlando, FL and Tallahassee, FL. Republic also operated direct DC-9s to Baton Rouge, LA; Chicago, IL (O'Hare Airport), Fort Lauderdale, FL; Memphis, TN; Monroe, LA; New York (LaGuardia Airport) and Washington D.C. (Dulles Airport).〔departedflights.com, July 1, 1979 Republic timetable〕 Prior to the merger Southern flew all of these nonstop and direct DC-9 routes as well and also operated direct DC-9 jet service to Birmingham, AL; Miami, FL and Nashville, TN.〔departedflights.com, July 1, 1978 Southern timetable〕 1980's: At the beginning of the 1980s, only Republic Airlines was operating nonstop service between VPS and Atlanta. Republic was operating DC-9-10, DC-9-30 and DC-9-50 jets on the route.〔http://www.departedflights.com; April 1, 1981 Official Airline Guide (OAG), ATL-VPS flight schedules〕 As the decade progressed, Delta Air Lines and Eastern Air Lines both added nonstop service between the airport and Atlanta via their respective regional airline code sharing partners, Delta Connection and Eastern Metro Express, both of which operated turboprop aircraft into VPS.〔http://www.departedflights.com; Feb. 15, 1989 & Dec. 15, 1989 editions, Official Airline Guide (OAG), ATL-VPS flight schedules〕 The Delta Connection service was flown by Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA) operating de Havilland Canada DHC-7 Dash 7 and Embraer EMB-120 Brasilia turboprops. The Eastern Metro Express service was flown by Metro Airlines operating British Aerospace BAe Jetstream 31 and de Havilland Canada DHC-8-100 Dash 8 turboprops. Air New Orleans, a commuter airline, also served VPS during the 1980s with commuter aircraft such as the Beechcraft C99 turboprop and Piper prop aircraft. Destinations served by Air New Orleans from VPS included Birmingham, AL; Mobile, AL; New Orleans, LA; Orlando, FL; Panama City, FL; Pensacola, FL and Tampa, FL.〔http://www.departedflights.com; May 1, 1982 & Jan. 1, 1986 Air New Orleans system timetable route maps〕 1986–1987: On October 1, 1986, Northwest Airlines completed its merger with Republic Airlines. Northwest flew only one route from VPS: nonstop to Memphis, a Northwest hub which was also a former Republic and Southern Airways hub. By September 1987 Northwest had four non-stops a day to Memphis with stretched McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 and DC-9-50s.〔departedflights.com, September 9, 1987 Northwest timetable〕 Later Northwest would reduce its schedule from VPS to three daily DC-9s nonstop to Memphis.〔departedflights.com, April 1995 Official Airline Guide (OAG), North American edition〕 No other airline flew jets into VPS until Valujet/Airtran appeared in the 1990s. 1998: AirTran Airways was serving the airport at this time with jet service. According to the August 1, 1998 AirTran system timetable, two nonstop flights a day were operated to Atlanta with direct, one stop service once a day to Washington, D.C. Dulles Airport. AirTran operated stretched McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners into VPS.〔http://www.departedflights.com; Aug. 1, 1998 AirTran system timetable〕 However, by the end of 2001, AirTran had ceased all service into the airport after commencing service to Pensacola.〔http://www.departedflights.com; Nov. 15, 2001 AirTran system timetable route map〕 November 2004: The current Northwest Florida Regional Airport opened its doors following an expansion with more parking, a larger aircraft parking apron, a second parallel taxiway, landscaping and a new passenger terminal. January 2008: Ground was broken for the Consolidated Rental Car Service Facility located on east of the airport. This facility will have offices for five rental car companies and rental car service facilities with hydraulic lifts, automated car washes, gas pumps and vacuum islands and a consolidated fuel farm for aviation and unleaded gasoline. A cargo facility and new offices for airport maintenance will be built to the east of the terminal. May 2009: The Consolidated Rental Car Service Facility opened on a new leasehold just east of the main terminal. This $14 million project came in on time and under budget and was funded with rental car user fees. January 2010: Delta Air Lines completed its merger with Northwest Airlines on January 31, 2010. Delta then scaled back the Northwest hub operation in Memphis, and service between VPS and MEM was discontinued in favor of nonstop flights to Delta's hub in Atlanta. 2011: Vision Airlines began a small scheduled passenger hub operation at VPS with flights to Asheville, NC; Atlanta, GA; Baton Rouge, LA; Columbia, SC; Fort Lauderdale, FL; Fort Myers, FL; Greenville/Spartanburg, SC; Huntsville, AL; Knoxville, TN; Lafayette, LA; Las Vegas, NV; Little Rock, AR; Louisville, KY; Sanford/Orlando, FL; Savannah, GA; Shreveport, LA; St. Louis, MO; and St. Petersburg, FL. Vision flew Boeing 737 jetliners and Dornier 328 turboprops.〔http://www.visionairlines.com, Press Releases〕 Vision later ended all flights at the airport and shut down its VPS hub. February 17, 2015: Northwest Florida Regional Airport changed its name to Destin–Fort Walton Beach Airport on a 3–2 vote. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Destin–Fort Walton Beach Airport」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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