Akron–Canton Airport

Akron–Canton Airport (IATA: CAK, ICAO: KCAK, FAA LID: CAK) is a commercial airport in the city of Green, in southern Summit County, Ohio (a small piece of each runway is in Stark County), about 10 miles (16 km) southeast of Akron. It is jointly operated by Summit County and Stark County. The airport is a "reliever" airport for Northeast Ohio and markets itself as "A better way to go", emphasizing the ease of travel in comparison to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. Just under 90% of its traffic is general aviation. It is included in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2019–2023, in which it is categorized as a small-hub primary commercial service facility.[3]

"CAK" redirects here. For other uses, see CAK (disambiguation).

Akron–Canton Airport (CAK)
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorAkron Canton Regional Airport Authority
ServesAkron, Canton, and Massillon, Ohio
LocationGreen, Ohio
Elevation AMSL1,228 ft / 374 m
Coordinates40°54.90′N 81°26.62′W
Websitewww.akroncantonairport.com
Map
CAK
Location
CAK
CAK (the United States)
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
1/19 7,601 2,317 Asphalt
5/23 8,204 2,501 Asphalt
Statistics
Passenger volume (12 months ending February 2020)804,000
Departing passengers (12 months ending February 2020)402,000
Scheduled flights7,699
Aircraft operations Year ending September 25, 201941,554
Based aircraft (2020)147
Sources: airport website[1] and FAA[2]

The 2300-acre (931-hectare) airport has two runways: 1/19 is 7,601 feet long and 5/23 is 8,204 feet long.[2]

The airport has a maintenance base for PSA Airlines, a regional carrier that flies under the American Eagle brand for American Airlines.

Early history

Public funds for construction of the airport were allocated during World War II for defense purposes, but construction stalled over a controversy relating to whether public funding of airport construction would be appropriate. As a result, private funding was essential to the initial construction of the airport, particularly in purchasing the land.

The airport was dedicated on October 13, 1946, as the Akron–Canton–Massillon Airport; the name was later changed to Akron–Canton Regional Airport. Passenger air service began in 1948 when American, United, Capital, and Eastern airlines moved from the Akron Fulton International Airport.

A permanent terminal was built in 1955 and expanded in 1962. In the summer of 2020, a new expansion was made to the terminal relocating gates from the original terminal to a new bi-level concourse. The gates and terminal area original to the 1960s are slated for demolition to make room for new aircraft parking areas.

Passenger growth and decline

During the mid-2000s, the airport was one of the fastest-growing airports in the Midwest, attracting passengers from the Akron/Canton area and Cleveland metropolitan area.[4] The airport's passenger count doubled between 2000 and 2006, with several new routes added by AirTran Airways and Frontier Airlines. The airport experienced its busiest year in 2012, with 1.83 million passengers flying in or out.

Since 2012, passenger traffic has decreased. Following the acquisition of AirTran Airways, then the airport's largest carrier, by Southwest Airlines in 2011, Southwest reduced AirTran's presence at the airport. Several other low-cost carriers, including JetBlue, Frontier Airlines, and Spirit Airlines, established new routes from nearby Cleveland Hopkins, lowering average airfares at that airport and reducing demand for Cleveland-based travelers to fly out of further-away Akron. In 2017 Southwest dropped Akron and consolidated operations at Cleveland Hopkins, as did Allegiant Air the same year.[5][6]

By 2017, the airport's passenger traffic sank to its lowest level since 2004. As of May 2018, the airport had the 2nd fastest declining passenger count of any US airport.[7]

Expansion

In 2006 the airport completed an expansion and renovation of the terminal, including the addition of a new wing off the main concourse. It brings the number of gates to 11 (from 9), and provides new baggage areas, a food court, and better aesthetics. The new wing opened to passengers in May 2006 and was home to AirTran Airways and its successor Southwest.

In 2011 the expanded TSA screening area was completed. It has four lanes for screening, with the ability to open two more. Along with the expanded screening area, Advanced Imaging Devices were installed and a TSA Precheck lane was added.

The airport initiated CAK 2018, its 10-year, $110 million Capital Improvement Plan in March 2008. The plan is the most ambitious capital improvement plan in Akron–Canton Airport's history and calls for 10 projects in the next 10 years. One of those projects, a runway expansion, has already been completed. Runway 5/23 was extended from 7,600 ft (2,300 m) to 8,200 ft (2,500 m). The runways will allow aircraft to fly non-stop to anywhere in the U.S. and throughout Mexico and Canada.

Other projects include expanding aircraft parking and general aviation area, replacing aircraft rescue and firefighting maintenance facility, a new customs and border patrol facility, expand auto parking lots, a widened entrance road, expanded ticket wing, and TSA screening area, expanded upper-level concourse and the construction of Port Green Industrial Park, 213 acres (0.86 km2) will be developed into 10-12 business sites.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger
AirlinesDestinationsRefs
American Eagle Charlotte, Chicago–O'Hare, New York–LaGuardia, Philadelphia, Washington–National [8]
Delta Air Lines Atlanta (suspended) [9]
Delta Connection Atlanta (suspended) [9]
Spirit Airlines Orlando
Seasonal: Fort Myers, Tampa		 [10]
United Express Chicago–O'Hare, Houston–Intercontinental (resumes October 1, 2020), Washington–Dulles [11]

Cargo
AirlinesDestinations
Castle Aviation Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus–Rickenbacker, Hamilton, Indianapolis–Eagle Creek

Statistics

Top destinations
Busiest domestic routes from CAK
(March 2019 – February 2020)[12]
Rank City Passengers Carriers
1 Atlanta, GA 72,000 Delta
2 Chicago, IL (O'Hare) 64,000 American, United
3 Charlotte, NC 64,000 American
4 Orlando, FL 35,000 Spirit
5 Philadelphia, PA 20,000 American
6 Houston, TX 20,820 United
7 Newark, NJ 17,000 United
8 Fort Myers, FL 17,000 Spirit
9 Washington-National, DC 7,000 American
10 New York–LaGuardia, NY 6,000 American

Carrier shares
Carrier shares (March 2019 – February 2020)[12]
Carrier Passengers (arriving and departing)
PSA
235,000(29.27%)
Spirit
125,000(15.57%)
Delta
95,160(11.84%)
Endeavor
87,920(10.94%)
Air Wisconsin
65,790(8.18%)
Other
195,000(24.2%)

Annual passenger traffic
Annual passenger traffic 2005-2019[13]
Year Passengers Change (%)
2005 1,301,000
2006 1,438,304 10.6%
2007 1,391,836 -3.2%
2008 1,469,196 5.6%
2009 1,444,269 -1.7%
2010 1,594,875 10.4%
2011 1,664,387 4.4%
2012 1,838,082 10.4%
2013 1,724,676 -6.2%
2014 1,566,638 -9.2%
2015 1,545,997 -1.3%
2016 1,398,615 -9.5%
2017 1,265,844 -9.5%
2018 920,002 -27.3%
2019 834,365 -9.7%

Ground transportation

Akron–Canton Airport has a number of taxicab and shuttle services.[14]

It is also served by one route from each of the region's two public transit providers, Akron Metro Regional Transit route 110, and Canton-based Stark Area Regional Transit Authority (SARTA) route 81.

The SARTA route provides service every hour for most of the day Monday through Saturday and serves both Canton and Akron via Interstate 77, including transit centers in both downtown Canton and downtown Akron.[15]

The Akron Metro route is a five-times-per-day Monday through Friday local route through Southern Summit County, but does serve the downtown Akron Transit Center.[16]

Accidents and incidents

On November 4, 1949, a Harrington's Inc. DC-3, a cargo flight, crashed at CAK short of runway 36 in light snow and limited visibility, hitting trees and landing inverted east of the runway, killing all 3 occupants.[17] This is the worst crash on airport property in its history.[18]

Further information: Thurman Munson § Death

On August 2, 1979, a Cessna Citation 501 piloted by New York Yankees catcher, Thurman Munson stalled and crashed 870 feet (270 m) short of runway 19, killing Munson. The two other people in the plane with him were able to escape the plane just as it caught fire.[19][20] On November 27, 1973, Eastern Airlines flight 300 was arriving from Pittsburgh when it ran off the end of the runway. The flight was a McDonnell-Douglas DC-9-31 with five crew members and 21 passengers, and originated in Miami with a routing MIA-PIT-CAK. The weather was thunderstorms, light rain showers, and fog. The NSTB determined, among other things, that landing at excessive speed too far down the wet runway caused the aircraft to hydroplane and not be able to stop. It went over an embankment and was written off. There were no fatalities, but all 26 on board had various injuries.

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References
  1. Akron–Canton Airport Archived March 28, 2005, at the Wayback Machine (official site)
  2. FAA Airport Master Record for CAK (Form 5010 PDF), effective May 21, 2020
  3. "NPIAS Report 2019-2023 Appendix A" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. October 3, 2018. p. 109. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 12, 2018. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  4. Akron–Canton Airport Achieves Fourth Consecutive Annual Passenger Record Archived September 29, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  5. "Southwest Airlines leaving Akron-Canton Airport in June". www.ohio.com. Archived from the original on July 2, 2018. Retrieved September 28, 2017.
  6. "Allegiant Air departing Akron-Canton Airport for Cleveland Hopkins". www.ohio.com. Retrieved September 28, 2017.
  7. Michael Sasso; Steve Matthews. "These Are America's Fastest-Growing Airports". Bloomberg.com. Archived from the original on May 31, 2018. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
  8. "Flight schedules and notifications". Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  9. "FLIGHT SCHEDULES". Archived from the original on June 21, 2015. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  10. "Where We Fly". Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
  11. "Timetable". Archived from the original on January 28, 2017. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  12. "RITA BTS Transtats - CAK". www.transtats.bts.gov. Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  13. "Airport Passenger Statistics". Archived from the original on July 2, 2018. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  14. Akron–Canton Airport Ground Transportation Services Archived July 3, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  15. "81: Canton - Akron Express". sartaonline.com. Archived from the original on January 24, 2016. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  16. "Route Schedule - Akron Metro". akronmetro.org. Archived from the original on February 1, 2016. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  17. Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on August 5, 2018.
  18. Ranter, Harro. "Akron/Canton Regional Airport, OH profile - Aviation Safety Network". aviation-safety.net. Archived from the original on August 6, 2018. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  19. Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on January 1, 2018.
  20. "Yankees' star Munson is killed in plane crash". Toledo Blade. (Ohio). Associated Press. August 3, 1979. p. 1.
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