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Missoula Montana Airport

Johnson-Bell Field
Missoula Montana Airport; Johnson-Bell Field
	Former Missoula airport terminal building, now demolished
	IATA: MSO; ICAO: KMSO; FAA LID: MSO;
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	Missoula County Airport Authority
Serves	Missoula, Montana
Elevation AMSL	3,206 ft / 977 m
Coordinates	46°54′59″N 114°05′26″W / 46.91639°N 114.09056°W
Website	FlyMissoula.com
Map
Runways
Statistics (2023)
Aircraft operations
Aircraft operations	42,681
Passengers	913,198
	Sources: Montana DOT

Missoula Montana Airport (IATA: MSO, ICAO: KMSO, FAA LID: MSO) is located in Missoula, in Missoula County, Montana. It is owned by the Missoula County Airport Authority.^[2]

The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a primary commercial service airport (more than 10,000 enplanements per year).^[3] Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 288,071 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008,^[4] 281,428 in 2009 and 289,875 in 2010.^[5]

Several expansion projects have been completed in recent years. A 101-foot control tower was completed in September 2012. An expansion of the old terminal building, with a new security screening area, was completed in 2007. In 2022, construction finished on the new terminal.^[6]

In September 2021, the airport changed its name from Missoula International Airport to Missoula Montana Airport.^[7]

Missoula's airport is home to a U.S. Forest Service smokejumper base, the largest of seven in the nation.

History

Missoula's first landing strip was laid out in 1923 south of the university. An additional strip near the Western Montana Fair Grounds on what is now Sentinel High School was sold to the county in 1927 at the request of the Missoula chapter of the National Aeronautic Association and would become Missoula's first true airport. The current airfield is named after that chapter's first president, Harry O. Bell, along with mountain flying pioneer Bob Johnson of Johnson Flying Service (now Minuteman Aviation).

The original Garden City Airport was renamed Hale Field in 1935, and operated as such until closing forever in 1954.

The airport was gradually replaced by the Missoula County Airport, opened in 1941 with WPA funds, and the cooperation of the US Forest Service, which needed access to an airport. The new airport was renamed Johnson-Bell Field in 1968 and today serves over 750,000 passengers a year.^[8]

Facilities

The airport covers 2,700 acres (1,093 ha) at an elevation of 3,206 feet (977 m). It has two asphalt runways: 12/30 is 9,501 by 150 feet (2,896 x 46 m) and 8/26 is 4,612 by 75 feet (1,406 x 23 m).^[2]^[9]

In the year ending January 1, 2018 the airport had 35,944 aircraft operations, average 98 per day: 63% general aviation, 16% air taxi, 20% airline, and 2% military. 161 aircraft were then based at the airport: 56% single-engine, 20% multi-engine, 18% jet, and 14% helicopter.^[2]

The airport recently constructed a new 101-foot tall control tower, replacing one that opened in 1961.^[10] The new control tower is one of the tallest control towers in the Pacific Northwest, and is the tallest in Montana. It cost an estimated $6.77 million.^[10]

Due to increased patronage, it was determined in 2013 that further expansion of the current terminal was not financially prudent, with a new terminal instead being proposed. Construction started on Phase 1 of the new terminal, the South Concourse, in 2018, and finished in 2022.^[11] Demolition of the old terminal was completed in 2023. In 2024, Senator Jon Tester announced that a $6 million in funding was secured to begin construction of the eastward terminal expansion, funded by a FAA Airport Terminal Program grant included in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that was signed into law by President Joe Biden.^[12] The expansion plan includes four new gates, an expanded baggage claim area and a new rental car center.^[13]

In August 2024, the airport became one of the few in the country to allow non-ticketed persons to visit areas past security.^[14]

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations
Alaska Airlines	Portland (OR), Seattle/Tacoma Seasonal: San Diego
Allegiant Air	Las Vegas, Phoenix/Mesa Seasonal: Los Angeles, Oakland, Orange County
American Airlines	Dallas/Fort Worth
American Eagle	Dallas/Fort Worth Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare, Los Angeles
Delta Air Lines	Minneapolis/St. Paul, Salt Lake City
Delta Connection	Salt Lake City
Frontier Airlines	Denver
Sun Country Airlines	Seasonal: Minneapolis/St. Paul^[15]
United Airlines	Denver Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare
United Express	Denver Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare, San Francisco

Neptune Aviation, an aerial firefighting company, is based at the airport.

Destinations map

Missoula

Chicago–O'Hare

Dallas/Fort Worth

Denver

Las Vegas

Los Angeles

Minneapolis/St. Paul

Oakland

Orange County

Phoenix-Mesa

Portland

Salt Lake City

San Diego

San Francisco

San Jose

Seattle/Tacoma

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Destinations from Missoula Montana Airport
Red = Year-round destination
Green = Seasonal destination
Blue = Future destination

Statistics

Top destinations

Top ten busiest domestic routes out of MSO
(July 2022 - June 2023)^[16]
Rank	City	Passengers	Carriers
1	Denver, Colorado	114,000	Frontier, United
2	Salt Lake City, Utah	77,000	Delta
3	Seattle/Tacoma, Washington	74,000	Alaska
4	Minneapolis/St Paul, Minnesota	52,000	Delta
5	Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas	51,000	American
6	Phoenix/Mesa, Arizona	18,000	Allegiant
7	Las Vegas, Nevada	15,000	Allegiant
8	Chicago–O'Hare, Illinois	11,000	American, United
9	Los Angeles, California	11,000	Alaska, Allegiant, United
10	San Francisco, California	6,000	Alaska, United

References

^ Boardings 2023 mdt.mt.gov
^ ^a ^b ^c FAA Airport Form 5010 for MSO PDF. Federal Aviation Administration. Effective June 7, 2014.
^ "2011–2015 NPIAS Report, Appendix A" (PDF). National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems. Federal Aviation Administration. October 4, 2010. Archived from the original (PDF, 2.03 MB) on September 27, 2012.
^ "Enplanements for CY 2008" (PDF, 1.0 MB). CY 2008 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data. Federal Aviation Administration. December 18, 2009.
^ "Enplanements for CY 2010" (PDF, 189 KB). 2010 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data. Federal Aviation Administration. October 4, 2011.
^ "Terminal Expansion Project: New Terminal Building is Open!" (PDF). flymissoula.com. July 2022. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
^ Kidston, Martin (September 2021). "Authority unveils new Missoula Montana Airport name, logo". KPAX8 Missoula and Western Montana. Scripps Local Media. Retrieved September 13, 2021.
^ "Airport Studies and Research". Montana.gov. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
^ "MSO airport data at skyvector.com". skyvector.com. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
^ ^a ^b Briggeman, Kim (July 27, 2010). "Tower to rise: Missoula airport to get modern control center". The Missoulian.
^ Fryer, Brian. "Missoula's New Airport Will Improve Passenger Service in Western Montana". Engineering News-Record. BNP Media. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
^ Kidston, Martin (February 15, 2024). "Missoula Airport Lands $6M Infrastructure Grant for Terminal Project". Missoula Current. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
^ Erickson, David (January 5, 2023). "Missoula Airport begins $42M second-phase expansion project". Missoulan. Lee Enterprises. Retrieved January 18, 2023.
^ Journalist, Ian Alvano, NonStop Local Multimedia (August 26, 2024). "Missoula airport now lets you explore beyond security without a ticket". San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved August 27, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ "Sun Country Airlines Expands with 11 New Destinations, Including Two in Canada".
^ RITA | BTS | Transtats