Hector International Airport is a civil-military public airport three miles (5 km) northwest of Fargo, in

Cass County, North Dakota Cass County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 184,525, making it the most populous county in North Dakota, and was estimated to be 200,945 in 2024. It contains over 25.23% of the state' ...

, United States. The busiest airport in North Dakota, it is owned by the City of Fargo Municipal Airport Authority., effective December 26, 2024

Fargo Air National Guard Base Fargo Air National Guard Base is a United States Air National Guard facility located at Hector International Airport in Fargo, North Dakota. The 119th Wing is based at Fargo and operates the MQ-9A Reaper. History The North Dakota Air National ...

is located adjacent to the airport. The airport was named after Martin Hector, who first leased, and then donated the original 50 acres of land to the city. Customs service is available for arrivals from Canada and other countries. Hector International has no scheduled passenger airline flights out of the country but has its international title (like many other airports) because of this customs service. The airport is home to

and the ''Happy Hooligans'' of the 119th Wing (119 WG), a unit of the North Dakota

Air National Guard The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia (United States), militia of each U.S. ...

that operates the

MQ-9 Reaper The General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper (sometimes called Predator B) is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV, one component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS)) capable of remotely controlled or autonomous flight operations, developed by General Atomi ...

. The airport was the intended destination for the airplane carrying

Buddy Holly Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer, songwriter, and musician who was a central and pioneering figure of rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texa ...

Ritchie Valens Richard Steven Valenzuela (May 13, 1941 – February 3, 1959), better known by his stage name Ritchie Valens, was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. A rock and roll pioneer and a forefather of the Chicano rock movement, Valens died i ...

, and J.P. Richardson on February 3, 1959. The airplane crashed shortly after takeoff from

Mason City, Iowa Mason City is a city and the county seat of Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, United States. The population was 27,338 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Mason City is known for its musical heritage, a significant ...

, killing the three musicians and the pilot.

Facilities and aircraft

Interior of Hector International Airport 2

Hector International Airport covers and has three

runway In aviation, a runway is an elongated, rectangular surface designed for the landing and takeoff of an aircraft. Runways may be a human-made surface (often asphalt concrete, asphalt, concrete, or a mixture of both) or a natural surface (sod, ...

s: 18/36 is 9,001 x 150 ft (2,744 x 46 m), 9/27 is 6,302 x 100 ft (1,921 x 30 m), and 13/31 is 3,801 x 75 ft (1,159 x 46 m). Hector International has the longest public runway in North Dakota and can receive

Boeing 747 The Boeing 747 is a long-range wide-body aircraft, wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2023. After the introduction of the Boeing 707, 707 in October 1958, Pan Am ...

s. For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2021, the airport had 92,980 aircraft operations, an average of 255 per day. In December 2021, there were 203 aircraft based at the airport: 124 single-engine, 52 multi-engine, 22 jet, and 5 helicopters. The current terminal was built in 1986 and designed by Foss Associates with Thompson Consultants. In 2008 the airport completed the passenger terminal expansion and update that had begun in October 2006. The $15.5 million project designed by TL Stroh Architects updated the terminal and added a fifth gate, an additional baggage claim and expanded the security checkpoint area. TSA PreCheck was added in 2014. Hector International Airport plans to begin a large terminal expansion project in 2024. The expansion will add four new gates bringing the terminal's total number of gates to nine. The project is expected to cost $124 million. Completion of the terminal expansion and renovation is anticipated to take three to four years. The airport also plans to construct a parking garage adjacent to the terminal. The ramp will be connected to the terminal via skyway and will provide approximately 1,000 parking spaces. The parking ramp is expected to cost $43 million with construction scheduled to begin in 2024.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

Statistics

Top destinations

Annual traffic

Commercial airline market share

Ground transportation

As of 2022, there is no public transit service to Hector International Airport. The closest MATBUS bus stop is located over a mile away.

Climate

UFO encounter

On October 1, 1948, the Gorman dogfight, a widely publicized UFO encounter, took place over Hector International Airport.Ruppelt, p. 30

References

External links

Official airport website
* * {{authority control Fargo, North Dakota Airports in North Dakota Buildings and structures in Cass County, North Dakota