Buffalo Niagara International Airport (IATA: BUF, ICAO: KBUF, FAA LID: BUF) is in Cheektowaga,[2] New York, United States. The airport serves Buffalo, New York and Niagara Falls, New York in the United States, and the southern Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario, Canada. It is the third-busiest airport in the state of New York and the busiest inside of the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area. It is about 11 miles (18 km) east of Downtown Buffalo and 60 miles (97 km) southeast of Toronto (although driving distance is 106 miles (171 km)). The airport covers 1,000 acres (400 ha).[3][4]
Buffalo Niagara International Airport opened as Buffalo Municipal Airport in 1926 on former farmland, making it one of the country's oldest public airports. The original airport included a small terminal building, one hangar, and four cinder runways, each 3,000 feet (910 m) long by 100 feet (30 m) wide. Passenger and mail service began in December 1927, with service to Cleveland. A WPA-built Art Deco V-shaped terminal with a large cylindrical tower opened in 1939, replacing the original terminal. At this time, the airport had four paved runways: Runway 5/23 was 5,630 feet (1,720 m) long, Runway 13/31 (now 14/32) was 5,730 feet (1,750 m) long, Runway 1/19 was 5,000 feet (1,500 m) long, and Runway 8/26 was 3,650 feet (1,110 m) long. All of the runways were 150 feet (46 m) wide.[5] Runways 1–19 and 8–26 were closed in the 1950s, and Runway 13–31 was renamed Runway 14–32.
The terminal's first expansion was completed in 1955. This addition expanded the terminal to 11 gates, tripled the terminal's square footage and added a restaurant and lounge. In 1959, the airport was acquired by the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority from the City of Buffalo and renamed Greater Buffalo International Airport.
The terminal received another overhaul in 1961 that added a new control tower and a concourse for American Airlines. The first scheduled jet service was American Boeing 727 service to/from New York in 1965; Runway 5–23 was extended northeast from 5,645 feet (1,721 m) to 8,100 feet (2,500 m) later that year. In 1968, an auxiliary terminal building, West Terminal, was announced. Construction began in 1969 and it opened in 1971 with nine gates. During this time, an all-new airport to be located in Wheatfield, New York was in the planning stages and so the West Terminal was intended to have a ten-year life expectancy.
Despite the addition of the West Terminal, the 1939 terminal, now named East Terminal, received another expansion and renovation completed in 1973. New ticket lobbies were built for American Airlines and United Airlines, the original portion was turned into a baggage claim area and jetways were added for the first time. An expansion and renovation of West Terminal was announced in 1977 and completed in 1982. Two gates were added, the front of the terminal received a two-story addition, new ceilings were installed, and the original blue exterior was repainted gray. This configuration of the airport remained for the next fifteen years.
A large Curtiss-Wright plant once existed at the Airport. In 1940, the company broke ground on the plant on the southeast side of the airport and dedicated it in August 1941. The building was sold to Westinghouse in 1946 after the end of World War II. Westinghouse sold the facility to Buffalo developer Paul Snyder in 1985, who attempted to repurpose the building as the Buffalo Airport Center industrial park. This was not successful and the building was shuttered in 1991. After sitting vacant for nearly a decade, the facility was demolished in 1999 to allow Runway 14/32 to be lengthened. In 2006 the main runway was repaved and extended 750 feet (230 m), its first major upgrade since 1980 and the secondary runway was extended 1,000 feet (300 m).
In 2008 some local residents made a short-lived attempt to rename the airport to "Buffalo Tim Russert International Airport" after popular news commentator and Buffalo native Tim Russert, who had died that year.[6]
In 1991 it was decided a new terminal would make more sense than continued renovations. Construction of the new building designed by the Greater Buffalo International Airport (GBIA) Design Group, a joint venture composed of Kohn Pederson Fox Associates, CannonDesign, and William Nicholas Bodouva began in 1995 in between the two existing terminals.
The new $56 million terminal (at newly named Buffalo-Niagara International Airport) opened on November 3, 1997, with 15 gates. The old terminals were demolished immediately to allow expansion. The new building was expanded in 2001, increasing the number of gates to 24. The entire terminal has a total floor area of 462,256 square feet (42,945.0 m2).[7]
In late 2017 the terminal began an $80 million renovation and expansion with more than 54,000 square feet (5,000 m2) of new space as part of the airport's 2013 master plan.[7] The expansion will create secure walkways on the east and west side of the terminal for arriving passengers and relocate the central exit walkway to eliminate bottlenecks with departing passengers on the second floor. This will also create expanded curbside space for arriving and departing passengers. The renovation will also replace the baggage claim area's three flat plate baggage carousels with four sloped plate carousels, doubling the current capacity. Preparations began December 2018, and groundbreaking and major construction began in February 2019.[8] The renovations were completed in 2021. As part of the master plan, this expansion allows for the creation of a new pier south of the current east concourse.[7]
Buffalo Niagara International Airport is at elevation 727 feet (222 m) and has two runways.[9]
Buffalo Airport Fire Department responds to all fire and emergency medical aid calls in the terminal complex and adjacent property. The airport was formerly served by Buffalo Fire Department Engine 7 (crash-fire-rescue unit) until 1981 and was transferred to the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority.[11] A new $11 million fire station was completed in 2017. The facility is off of Amherst Villa Road. It is triple the size of the old station and includes a training facility and other amenities.[12]
Signature Flight Support is the FBO for the airport. It provides private charter flights and other services, including fueling and ground handling, to many of the scheduled airlines that operate from the Buffalo-Niagara International Airport. It also provides aircraft maintenance service from its FAA approved repair station to airlines, corporate and general aviation customers. It is on the airport's north side.[13] Prior to Tac Air taking over FBO operations in October 2020, Prior Aviation was the FBO.[14]
The airspace above Buffalo is prone to high flight traffic due to its proximity to Toronto Pearson International Airport, Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport and Hamilton International Airport. Most of these flights are inbound or outbound from destinations in the United States, Central America, the Caribbean and South America. Aircraft descending into the Toronto area use waypoints in Buffalo as part of a Standard Terminal Arrival Route (STAR) from the south.[15] These aircraft are still well above 6,500 feet (2,000 m) and do not affect the air traffic of Buffalo.
The April 1957 OAG shows 96 weekday departures: 55 American, 28 Capital, 10 Mohawk and 3 Allegheny. Nonstops didn't reach past Boston, New York, Pittsburgh and Chicago; Buffalo didn't get a nonstop beyond Chicago until Mohawk started Minneapolis in 1970. Continental tried Denver for a few months in 1987–88, American tried DFW a couple of times, and Northwest started Minneapolis in 1987—no others until Southwest started Phoenix and Las Vegas in October 2000.
When the federal government deregulated the airlines in 1978, Buffalo was served by four airlines: three "trunk carriers" (American Airlines, United Airlines, Eastern Air Lines) and one "local service carrier" (Allegheny Airlines). American and United used the East Terminal, and Allegheny and Eastern used the West Terminal.
During the "glory years" for mainline-sized jet service at U.S. medium-size airports in the 1970s and 1980s, Buffalo regularly hosted widebody passenger jets. American Airlines DC-10s flew to Chicago O'Hare International Airport and other points. Eastern Air Lines Lockheed L-1011s and Airbus A300s flew to Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Eastern's flights often did 'tag-on' hops to Toronto Pearson International Airport due to legal restrictions on flights between the United States and Canada. Buffalo still hosts many mainline passenger jets, but scheduled flights are usually narrow-body (single-aisle) aircraft. Today, Buffalo hosts wide-body charter flights for the Buffalo Bills or their National Football League opponents.
Shortly after deregulation of the U.S. airline industry, American and United began reducing service at medium-sized Northeastern markets such as Buffalo. Many other airlines entered the Buffalo market and the 1980s saw a riot of new airline service as the industry began to take its post-deregulation shape. Most of these carriers did not survive the decade.
The most prominent new carrier at Buffalo was People Express Airlines, a low-fare carrier founded in 1981 with a hub at Newark International Airport. Buffalo, along with Norfolk, Virginia and Columbus, Ohio was one of the original three cities served by People from Newark. The airline grew rapidly into a major carrier and at its peak ran over 10 flights per day from Buffalo to Newark. Too-rapid growth including a purchase of the original Frontier Airlines led to People's demise in 1987. They were bought and assimilated by Continental Airlines.
Other carriers at Buffalo included:
In 1986–1987 the US airline industry went through a series of buyouts and mergers, and by the end of 1989 most domestic air service in the US was provided by six "legacy carriers." At the end of the 1980s, airlines at Buffalo were mostly this six and their regional affiliates: American, United, Continental, USAir, Northwest and Delta Air Lines. During the 1990s, with People Express swallowed by Continental, these carriers kept fares high and enplanements stagnant at Buffalo.
At the beginning of the 21st century, Buffalo Niagara International Airport grew with the addition of low-cost carriers Southwest and JetBlue. Due to the "Southwest Effect", Buffalo Niagara International Airport exceeded the 5 million passenger mark in 2006. Previous estimates by the NFTA had projected 3.8 million passengers for 2006, and it would be 2020 before the 5 million passenger plateau would be reached.[16] Buffalo is the largest airport by passenger traffic in Upstate New York and now averages 4.5–5.5 million passengers per year. Another addition to the low cost carriers was Frontier, which began service from Buffalo in 2017.[17]
The proximity of Buffalo Niagara International Airport to the 9.2 million[18] residents of the Golden Horseshoe region (which includes the metropolitan areas of Greater Toronto and Hamilton) in Ontario makes it a very popular airport for Canadians traveling to U.S. destinations. Despite the existence of four international airports in the region that provide cross-border flights (Toronto-Pearson, Toronto-Billy Bishop, Hamilton and Kitchener-Waterloo), one in three passengers utilizing Buffalo are from Canada[19] and in 2012, 47 percent of all passengers were from Canada.[20] This is due to air fares for US-bound Canadian flights being generally higher due to added customs and immigration surcharges, the value difference of Canadian and U.S. currency, and other taxes and fees. Several passenger shuttle services operate from the airport to cities in Southern Ontario, and to Toronto-Pearson and Hamilton airports.
Due to past U.S. COVID-19 pandemic travel restrictions that required COVID-19 testing for international arrivals via air travel, Toronto-based professional sports teams were similarly using the airport as a travel hub, having their players transported by bus from Toronto since land crossings and domestic flights were not subject to testing.[21]
On average there are over 100 flights per day, with nonstop service to 31 airports across the United States.[22] Seasonally the airport offers international flights to the Domican Republic and Mexico. https://www.wgrz.com/article/money/business/business-first/business-first-whats-new-at-buffalo-airport/71-94c96f55-076f-4dc5-b803-efb202895c1c
^Sharp decrease in traffic caused by the COVID-19 pandemic
The airport is served by the Kensington Expressway (NY Route 33), which ends at the airport. Route 33 intersects with the New York State Thruway, Interstate I-90, about 1 mi (1.6 km) from the airport and then continues directly into downtown Buffalo with a total drive time of approximately 10–15 minutes.
Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority provides service on routes 24B (Genesee), 47 (Youngs Road), 68 (George Urban Express) and 204 (Airport-Downtown Express). NFTA Metro Paratransit offers services to the airport for people with mobility issues, but pre-booking is required.
Greyhound Bus Lines also provides transportation to and from the airport, with services to Toronto and New York City, (dropping off at 34th and 11th avenues).[33]
Many national car rental companies have rental facilities on airport property. Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Hertz and National all are onsite. Various limos, taxis, and shuttle buses have access to and from the airport.
The aircraft crashed 17 miles east from the destination airport after beginning its initial descent, both occupants were fatally injured.[41]
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
41 Jetblue.com
