A STOLport or STOLPORT was an airport designed with
STOL (Short Take-Off and Landing) operations in mind, usually for an aircraft class of a certain weight and size. The term "STOLport" did not appear to be in common usage as of 2008, although was commonly used by pilots flying into
Biggin Hill during 1986/87 when the
London City Airport was opened restricting approaches and ceilings to the north of Biggin. A STOLport usually has a short single runway, generally shorter than .
STOLports are only practicable by certain types of aircraft, especially smaller propeller aircraft, with performances that are compatible with the shorter runway length, steeper approach/departure paths, etc. at individual STOLports. In the United States, short runway facilities are simply known as airports, and the term "STOLport" has not been commonly used since the early 1970s.
Definition
The
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) defines STOLports as "unique airports designed to serve airplanes that have exceptional short-field performance capabilities." ICAO Document 9150: Stolport Manual states that "for the purposes of this manual, the stolport design aeroplane is assumed to be an aeroplane that has a reference field length of 800 m or less".
[Mallela, J.; Wheeler, P.; Le Bris, G.; Nguyen, L.-G. (2023). ACRP Research Report 243: Urban Air Mobility: An Airport Perspective. Transportation Research Board, Washington, DC]
Urban Air Mobility: An Airport Perspective
/ref>
North America
In the United States, a STOLport is one of several types of facilities. STOLports are identified with an S at the end of the site ID. For example, Calvert Peak STOLport is listed as Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates civil aviation in t ...
(FAA) site number 19448.1*''S''. As of January 2009, around 80 facilities were coded as STOLports by the FAA in the United States. According to the FAA in 1968, twenty-five potential STOLport sites were identified in the Northeast megalopolis. In the early 1970s, a study was conducted to help the FAA determine if it was necessary to create an elevated STOLport test facility. At one point in 1968, a STOLport was under consideration for a rooftop in Manhattan. Toronto City Airport, with the longest runway of , went into a period of decline in the 1980s and 1990s, but has since been revitalized as a city centre airport by Porter Airlines, flying the 400
__NOTOC__
Year 400 (Roman numerals, CD) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Stilicho and Aurelianus (consul 400), Aurelianus (or, less frequently, year ...
series De Havilland Canada Dash 8. However, it is not officially designated as a STOLport.
Scotland
In the islands of Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
there are some airports with very short runways, but still having scheduled flights. Examples include Colonsay Airport (), Foula Airfield () and Westray Airport (). They are usually serviced by Britten-Norman Islander aircraft.
Norway and Greenland
Between 1965 and 1987, approximately 30 STOLports were built in Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
, typically equipped with a runway. They were intended to improve transportation systems and shorten travel times to areas that were considered difficult to reach by other means. In Norwegian, they are called "kortbaneflyplass" (literally "short runway airport"). As they were built in areas with relatively low population density and terrain that often wouldn't permit a standard length runway, it became essential to build shorter runways and use smaller airplanes. Today, the airports are frequented by airliners that have been awarded subsidies from the Norwegian government. They typically fly feeder routes to larger hub airports that have direct routes to Oslo
Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
and other major cities in Norway. Though most of the routes are flown by Widerøe, other airliners occasionally win bids on some of the routes.
Based on the Norwegian example, several short runway airports () were built in Greenland, replacing heliports. The country at that time only had a few airports, built by United States forces in hidden locations far from Greenlandic settlements. Still the short runway airports (including at the capital Nuuk) can't accept flights from distant places like Denmark or the United Kingdom. Some of the airports of Iceland
Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...
are STOLports, although most are longer. The availability of STOL aircraft has enabled Icelandair to extend its network to Greenland.
Avinor, the Norwegian airport authority, worries about the future availability of aircraft for runways in future when older aircraft currently used retire. Currently, Dash 8-100 aircraft, manufactured in the early 1990s, are used. Avinor has found that after 2010, no new aircraft can be bought which have more than 20 seats and are able to use such short runways. For this reason there are plans to extend runways to or in some cases to build new airports, and to close some combined with road improvements. The least used will not be extended, but will have to be flown with very small aircraft. Also in Greenland this is discussed for the same reason. Greenland has decided to extend Nuuk and Ilulissat airports to jet aircraft size, . Rising fuel prices makes low drag a desirable feature, so STOL aircraft might be less desirable or numerous in future. Also aircraft might be able to use short runways only with limited payload, making tickets expensive.
Historical STOLports
Several attempts were undertaken at the late 1960s and early 1970s to create STOLports in the United States for the New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
and Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, California areas; however, most are not operational or no longer in existence at the present time. There was also Victoria STOLport in Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, Quebec, Canada.
The first United States STOLport for commercial operation was commissioned August 5, 1968, at La Guardia Airport and was available for visual flight rules (VFR) use only.[FAA Chronology]
. Accessed August 26, 2008. This STOL runway was dubbed the LaGuardia STOLPORT.
The first officially designated STOLport in the United States opened on October 17, 1971, at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. Shawnee Airlines operated scheduled passenger service between the Walt Disney World Airport (also known as the Lake Buena Vista STOLport) and Orlando McCoy Jetport (now the Orlando International Airport) as well as the Tampa International Airport with de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter STOL turboprop aircraft. Information concerning the Shawnee Airlines STOL service appeared in the Eastern Air Lines system timetable dated September 6, 1972 with regard to connecting service between the two airlines at either Orlando or Tampa. The STOL runway at this former airport is no longer in use. Prior to that date, only portions of facilities were designated STOLports. Plans at the time called for an interstate STOL transportation system. On July 26, 1972; the FAA V/STOL office was renamed to the Quiet Short-Haul Air Transportation System Office refocusing it and reflecting public concerns about noise created by smaller more numerous STOLports as opposed to larger airports. The Quiet Short-Haul Air Transportation System Office was eliminated June 11, 1974. Logan International Airport opened an STOL runway September 20, 1968 for testing Eastern Air Lines STOL capable Bréguet 941 turboprop shuttle on east coast routes.
Some STOLports were never open to public aviation and were privately owned, such as the Avon STOLPort, a runway located adjacent to the town of Avon, Colorado that was constructed specifically to handle tourist flights for nearby ski resorts in the Vail area. The Avon STOLPort was owned and operated by Rocky Mountain Airways which operated de Havilland Canada Dash 7 STOL turboprops from this mountain airfield from 1978 through 1989. The Avon STOLport is no longer in existence.
Another privately owned STOL airfield was the Clear Lake City STOLport located in the Houston, Texas area, near the Johnson Space Center. This small airport which included a runway, an aircraft hangar, and a passenger terminal was constructed in 1969 and owned by Houston Metro Airlines which later changed its name to Metro Airlines. The airline operated Twin Otters from this suburban airfield with shuttle service to Houston Intercontinental Airport. According to the February 1, 1976 Official Airline Guide (OAG), Houston Metro was operating 22 round trip flights on weekdays between Clear Lake City and Houston Intercontinental. After Metro Airlines decided to pursue other avenues of business in the airline industry, the Clear Lake City STOLport was abandoned and then demolished to make way for new suburban development. There is no trace remaining of this pioneering airfield.
STOLport airlines
Rocky Mountain Airways was the worldwide launch customer of the de Havilland Canada Dash 7 four engine turboprop STOL aircraft. Rocky Mountain selected the 50-passenger Dash 7 specifically for the purpose of transporting passengers into high mountain airports with short runways such as the Avon STOLport located near Vail, Colorado from its hub located at Stapleton International Airport in Denver
Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
from 1978 through 1989. The airline also utilized the Dash 7 for scheduled flights into the small Steamboat Springs Airport in Colorado. Rocky Mountain first began airline operations with de Havilland DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft before subsequently commencing Dash 7 service and only operated STOL capable aircraft during its existence.
Norwegian Widerøe are one of the biggest STOLport operators in Europe as they have a fleet of over 40 Bombardier aircraft they mostly use on short runways in Northern and Western Norway.
Houston Metro Airlines operated Twin Otters in scheduled "cross-town" air service between the Clear Lake City STOLport in Clear Lake City, Texas and Houston Intercontinental Airport which had a dedicated STOL runway at the time. According to the February 1976 edition of the OAG, the airline was operating 22 round trip flights every weekday between Clear Lake City and Houston Intercontinental in a passenger shuttle service.[Feb. 1, 1976 Official Airline Guide (OAG), Houston (IAH)-Clear Lake City (CLC) flight schedules]
SKS Airways from Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
launched its commercial operation in January 2022 by focusing on STOLports situated on domestic holiday islands. Its initial operation will be traveling back and forth using a Twin Otter type aircraft from either Subang or Senai airport to the islands of Pangkor, Redang and Tioman. It will also operate cargo and charter services between these locations. In the long run, they are planning to expand their network to major cities in Malaysia and other locations in Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
and Southern China.
See also
* Airpark
* Altiport
* Highway strip
* List of shortest runways
* Satellite airfield
* Wayport
References
{{reflist
Further reading
A Flight Investigation using Variable Glide Path Trajectories to Compensate for Winds and Moderate Wind Shears
Elevated STOLport Test Facility Conceptual Development and Cost Study.
Technical Feasibility of Floating Interim Manhattan STOLport.
*''County Plans Study of Stolport for Pasadena.'' Los Angeles Times. September 10, 1972
The New York Times. May 28, 1972
The New York Times. November 18, 1966
The New York Times. July 3, 1970.
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20101029070633/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,838584,00.html ''Starting STOL.''Time. Aug. 16, 1968.
Flying Downtown
Time. Jan. 12, 1968
*''Catalina Needs STOLPORT to prosper.'' Independent Press-Telegram. Sunday, August 24, 1969
– Avon STOLPort (WHR), Avon, CO
Airports by type