Port Moller Airport
Encyclopedia
Port Moller Airport is a publicly-owned, private-use airport
located 87 NM northeast of the central business district
of Cold Bay
, in the Aleutians East Borough
of the U.S. state
of Alaska
. It is owned by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management
. It was previously known as Port Moller Air Force Station.
is provided by Peninsula Airways (PenAir). As per Federal Aviation Administration
records, this airport had 487 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year
2008, an increase of 14% from the 427 enplanements in 2007.
Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier
for the FAA
and IATA
, this airport is assigned 1AK3 by the FAA and PML by the IATA..
of 20 feet (6 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway
designated 1/19 with a gravel surface measuring 3,500 by 100 feet (1,067 x 30 m).
United States Air Force
Distant Early Warning Line
radar station. The station was operated by Detachment 4, 714th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron based at Cold Bay Air Force Station
, near Cold Bay, Alaska
. The radar station was inactivated in September 1969, ending military use of the airport. The Air Force remediated the site around 2000, removing all abandoned military structures and returning the site to a natural condition.
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
located 87 NM northeast of the central business district
Central business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...
of Cold Bay
Cold Bay, Alaska
Cold Bay is a city in Aleutians East Borough, Alaska, United States.Cold Bay is one of the main commercial centers of the Alaska Peninsula, and is home to Cold Bay Airport.-History:...
, in the Aleutians East Borough
Aleutians East Borough, Alaska
- See also :*List of airports in the Aleutians East Borough*National Register of Historic Places listings in Aleutians East Borough, Alaska-External links:*-References:...
of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. It is owned by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...
. It was previously known as Port Moller Air Force Station.
Overview
Scheduled airline service to Cold Bay AirportCold Bay Airport
Cold Bay Airport is a public-use airport located in Cold Bay, a city in the Aleutians East Borough of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is owned by the state and is one of the main airports serving the Alaska Peninsula.-Overview:...
is provided by Peninsula Airways (PenAir). As per Federal Aviation Administration
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
records, this airport had 487 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year
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. By convention, a calendar year consists of a natural number of days. To reconcile the calendar year with an astronomical cycle , certain years...
2008, an increase of 14% from the 427 enplanements in 2007.
Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier
Location identifier
A location identifier is a symbolic representation for the name and the location of an airport, navigation aid, or weather station, and is used for manned air traffic control facilities in air traffic control, telecommunications, computer programming, weather reports, and related services.-ICAO...
for the FAA
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
and IATA
International Air Transport Association
The International Air Transport Association is an international industry trade group of airlines headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where the International Civil Aviation Organization is also headquartered. The executive offices are at the Geneva Airport in SwitzerlandIATA's mission is to...
, this airport is assigned 1AK3 by the FAA and PML by the IATA..
Facilities
The airport covers an area of 369 acres (149.3 ha) at an elevationElevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
of 20 feet (6 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
designated 1/19 with a gravel surface measuring 3,500 by 100 feet (1,067 x 30 m).
History
The airport was built in 1958 to support Port Moller Air Force Station, a Cold WarCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
Distant Early Warning Line
Distant Early Warning Line
The Distant Early Warning Line, also known as the DEW Line or Early Warning Line, was a system of radar stations in the far northern Arctic region of Canada, with additional stations along the North Coast and Aleutian Islands of Alaska, in addition to the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Iceland...
radar station. The station was operated by Detachment 4, 714th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron based at Cold Bay Air Force Station
Cold Bay Air Force Station
Cold Bay Air Force Station is a closed United States Air Force General Surveillance Radar station. It is located southwest of Anchorage, Alaska....
, near Cold Bay, Alaska
Cold Bay, Alaska
Cold Bay is a city in Aleutians East Borough, Alaska, United States.Cold Bay is one of the main commercial centers of the Alaska Peninsula, and is home to Cold Bay Airport.-History:...
. The radar station was inactivated in September 1969, ending military use of the airport. The Air Force remediated the site around 2000, removing all abandoned military structures and returning the site to a natural condition.