South Bend International Airport
South Bend International Airport
is three miles northwest of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States. It is the state's second busiest airport in terms of passenger traffic after Indianapolis International Airport.
The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2015–2019 called it a primary commercial service facility.
Federal Aviation Administration and St. Joseph County Airport Authority records show the airport had 417,929 passenger enplanements in 2019 with an estimated total air passenger volume of over 830,000.
History
In the early days South Bend's main airport was Cadet Field in present-day Granger. Vincent Hugo Bendix, founder of Bendix Aviation, bought land northwest of South Bend in 1929 to provide air service closer to the city. Bendix Municipal Airport opened in 1933.Bendix Airport was later called St. Joseph County Airport, then Michiana Regional Transportation Center. The airport was renamed South Bend Regional Airport on January 1, 2000, to help identify the airport, many travelers not knowing the meaning of Michiana.
The April 1957 OAG shows 10 weekday departures on North Central, 9 on United, 6 on Lake Central and 3 on TWA. North Central Airlines merged with Southern Airways on July 1, 1979, commencing operations with Republic from South Bend.
Until the 1980s the airport had four runways; in the 1950s runway 9 was 5000 ft, runways 6 and 12 were 4000 ft and the 3059-ft runway 18 connected the west ends of runways 6 and 12. In 1963-65 runway 9 was extended to 6000 ft. In January 1967 SBN got its first scheduled jets, United Caravelles flying Chicago O'Hare-South Bend-Fort Wayne-Newark and back.
On April 23, 2014, the St. Joseph County Airport Authority announced the airport was changing its name from South Bend Regional Airport to South Bend International Airport. The Airport Authority has had conversations with two airlines interested in providing service to Mexico and the Bahamas and indicated that it was looking at service to Toronto, Ireland and Europe. As part of the change, the airport will begin a $3 million project to construct a general aviation facility and a border customs area, to be financed through federal, state and airport funds.
Administration
The airport is governed by the St. Joseph County Airport Authority, which is a municipality in the State of Indiana. Its four bipartisan board members are appointed by the St. Joseph County Commissioners. The Airport Authority is directed by Mike Daigle who is an accredited airport executive. Board members include Thomas S. Botkin, Abraham Marcus, David R. Sage and James V. Wyllie. The Airport Authority employs approximately 60 staff members.The mission of the St. Joseph County Airport Authority as defined is "to maximize the safety, service, efficiency and effectiveness of South Bend Airport for the traveling public, and to promote the value of the airport to the community."
Facilities
The airport covers 2,200 acres at an elevation of 799 feet. It has three asphalt runways: 9L/27R is 4,300 by 75 feet ; 9R/27L is 8,414 by 150 feet ; 18/36 is 7,100 by 150 feet.The terminal, built in 1981 and designed by HOK and Cole Associates
and expanded in 2011 by Ken Herceg & Associates, has one nine-gate concourse. Seven of the nine gates have jetways, while 2 gates are ground level. Amenities include cafes and restaurants, pet relief area, a concession area/lounge, a gift shop, a children's play area, a business center, and free Wi-Fi available throughout the terminal.
Despite being partially obstructed by the new concourse the in-terminal viewing area remains open and offers live air traffic control transmissions from South Bend Air Traffic Control Tower/TRACON as well as a small airport-focused museum. The viewing area is located on the second level of the terminal's atrium adjacent to US Customs.
The airport is one of the few multi-modal transportation facilities in America that provide air, interstate bus and interstate rail service at one terminal. The St. Joseph County Airport Authority claims the airport was the first truly multi-modal airport in the country. As of 2019, interstate bus services have been moved to the downtown South Bend bus station.
June 2017 brought the grand opening of SBN's International General Aviation Facility which cleared nearly 60 international aircraft in its first partial year of operation. On July 16, 2019, a Boeing 747 chartered by the Liverpool Soccer Club landed at South Bend from Manchester England. This flight marked the opening of the Federal Inspection Station. On the same day, US Customs and Border Patrol announced South Bend Airport would be the state's first Global Entry Enrollment Center.
The airport is a maintenance base for regional carrier SkyWest Airlines.
Operations
Within Indiana, the airport is second in passenger enplanements after Indianapolis International. SBN overtook Fort Wayne International in 2019 to reclaim second place. The airport is in second place behind Indianapolis in cargo operations and third in the state for overall take-offs and landings. Due to South Bend's proximity to Chicago, South Bend air traffic controllers work closely with Chicago Center and Chicago Approach Control to sequence aircraft into and out of Chicago's terminal airspace. These efforts make South Bend's Tower/TRACON the second busiest terminal air traffic facility in the state and one of the busiest in the region.In 2019 the airport handled 47,756 aircraft operations, averaging 130 per day. The TRACON handled over 150,000 operations in 2019.
Air service
South Bend's four airlines have non-stop flights to thirteen cities. Allegiant offers flights to Las Vegas, Orlando, Phoenix-Mesa, Punta Gorda, St Pete/Clearwater, Sarasota, American Eagle has twice daily flights to Charlotte and Dallas, Delta Connection offers service to Atlanta, Detroit, and Minneapolis, and United Express has multiple daily flights to Chicago O'Hare and seasonal service to Newark.With the exception of Allegiant's Airbus A319/A320s, South Bend mostly sees regional jets such as the Bombardier CRJ200/700 and the Embraer E145/175. During Notre Dame football games and graduation, Delta is known to upgrade to mainline aircraft such as the Airbus A319/A320, Boeing 717, and McDonnell Douglas MD80 aircraft. Additionally, Delta and United have added point to point football flights for fans to travel directly from one college town to the other.
According to the 2007 Economic Impact Report from the Aviation Authority of Indiana, the airport's annual economic impact on South Bend and surrounding communities was in excess of $433.7 million. SBN's annual contribution to the Indiana economy is estimated at more than $1.4 billion.
Ground transportation
Rail
The South Shore Line commuter rail runs from South Bend Airport station to Millennium Station in downtown Chicago, with express services taking 1 hour and 55 minutes.Bus
bus route 4 serves the airport. Royal Zoom provides bus service from South Bend International Airport to Chicago O'Hare and Chicago Midway airports with stops at Notre Dame, Michigan City, Valparaiso, and Griffith.Airlines and destinations
Passenger
| Destinations map |
Cargo
Statistics
| Year | Passengers | Year | Passengers |
| 2000 | 432,439 | 2010 | 317,096 |
| 2001 | 375,817 | 2011 | 305,386 |
| 2002 | 409,319 | 2012 | 299,592 |
| 2003 | 404,607 | 2013 | 328,992 |
| 2004 | 397,565 | 2014 | 311,158 |
| 2005 | 349,847 | 2015 | 315,313 |
| 2006 | 378,909 | 2016 | 328,897 |
| 2007 | 398,500 | 2017 | 305,491 |
| 2008 | 357,168 | 2018 | 368,377 |
| 2009 | 318,974 | 2019 | 417,929 |
| Rank | Airport | Passengers | Airlines |
| 1 |  Chicago–O'Hare, Illinois | 66,160 | United |
| 2 |  Atlanta, Georgia | 64,480 | Delta |
| 3 |  Detroit, Michigan | 64,030 | Delta |
| 4 |  Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas | 37,930 | American |
| 5 |  Charlotte, North Carolina | 36,740 | American |
| 6 |  Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota | 28,410 | Delta |
| 7 |  Orlando–Sanford, Florida | 25,280 | Allegiant |
| 8 | Punta Gorda/Fort Myers, Florida | 25,020 | Allegiant |
| 9 | St. Petersburg/Clearwater, Florida | 18,810 | Allegiant |
| 10 |  Phoenix/Mesa, Arizona | 16,890 | Allegiant |
| Category | Count | Rank | |
| Passenger Count | 737,754 | 148 | More than 81% of US airports |
| Number of Flights | 7,617 | 143 | More than 81% of US airports |
| Pounds of Freight | 24m Lbs. | 128 | More than 84% of US airports |
Incidents
- On April 4, 2011, a pilot flying from Chicago Executive Airport attempted to land a rented Cirrus SR22, but was hit by a gust of wind on approach. The plane landed on the left wing, cart-wheeled and came to a stop from the runway. He was hospitalized in critical condition, with no one else on board. He later died from his injuries.
- On March 17, 2013, a private jet crashed into three homes near South Bend Regional Airport. Two of the four people on the plane were killed while the other two on board, and one person on the ground, were injured.
- On September 12, 2017, a Beech N35 Bonanza made a forced landing into a ditch just short of the airport perimeter fence. No injuries were reported.
- On May 25, 2018, SkyWest flight 4647 made an emergency landing in South Bend after a halon bottle exploded in the cargo bin. The aircraft had just departed South Bend bound for Atlanta. None of the passengers or crew on board were injured.