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 United States Census, the population was 184,525. Cass County is the most populous county in North Dakota, accounting for nearly 24% of the state's population. The coun ...

, United States. The busiest airport in North Dakota, it is owned by the City of Fargo Municipal Airport Authority., effective May 25, 2017

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 The 119th Wing (119 WG) is a composite unit of the North Dakota Air National Guard, stationed at Fargo Air National Guard Base, North Dakota. If activated to federal service, elements of the Wing are gained by the United States Air Force Air Co ...

(119 WG), a unit of the North Dakota

Air National Guard The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the ter ...

that operates the

MQ-9 Reaper The General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper (sometimes called Predator B) is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) capable of remotely controlled or autonomous flight operations developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) primarily for the Un ...

. 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 and songwriter who was a central and pioneering figure of mid-1950s rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texas ...

, Ritchie Valens, 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, United States. The population was 27,338 in the 2020 census, a decline from 29,172 in the 2000 census. The Mason City Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Cerro G ...

, killing the three musicians and the pilot.

Facilities and aircraft

Hector International Airport covers and has three

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 ...

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 large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022. After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, ...

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. A passenger terminal expansion study is currently underway. The airport plans to add more boarding gates along with additional seating and food sales spaces.

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