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Republic Airport

Coordinates: 40°43′44″N 073°24′48″W / 40.72889°N 73.41333°W / 40.72889; -73.41333
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Republic Airport
The airport, as seen from the air in 2010
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerNew York State Department of Transportation
OperatorAvPORTS
ServesLong Island
New York metropolitan area
LocationEast Farmingdale, New York
Opened1928
Elevation AMSL82 ft / 25 m
Coordinates40°43′44″N 073°24′48″W / 40.72889°N 73.41333°W / 40.72889; -73.41333
Websitewww.republicairport.net
Maps
FAA airport diagram
FAA airport diagram
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
14/32 6,833 2,083 Asphalt
1/19 5,516 1,681 Asphalt
Statistics
Aircraft operations (2019)219,672[1]
Based aircraft (Aug. 2021)350[2]

Republic Airport (IATA: FRG, ICAO: KFRG, FAA LID: FRG) is a public airport in East Farmingdale in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York, United States[3][2][4]

The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a general aviation reliever airport.[5] Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 3,586 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008,[6] 2,866 in 2009, and 2,783 in 2010.[7] It is the busiest public general aviation airport within the State of New York and the third largest airport overall by total annual flights – behind only John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport, respectively.[8]

On behalf of the New York State Department of Transportation, the airport is currently managed by AvPORTS – a US-based and owned operator and manager of airports.

History

Republic Airport was developed by Sherman Fairchild as the Fairchild Flying Field in East Farmingdale on Long Island, NY in late 1927 as his flying field and airplane factory on Motor Avenue in South Farmingdale was inadequate to support the mass production of his Fairchild FC-2 and Fairchild 71 airplanes. Fairchild purchased property on the south side of Conklin Street (New York State Route 24) and had the airport's original layout plan prepared on November 3, 1927.

The 77.967-acre (315,520 m2) flying field was developed in the late winter and early spring of 1928 and was originally owned and operated by Fairchild Engine & Airplane Manufacturing Company. The first flights from the Fairchild Flying Field took place in late spring of 1928 after the Fairchild Airplane and Airplane Engine factories and hangar were completed and aircraft were produced in the new factories. After Fairchild moved to Hagerstown, Maryland in 1931, Grumman Aircraft Engineering built planes at the airport from 1932 until the spring of 1937.

Seversky Aircraft moved there in January 1935 from College Point in Queens, and became Republic Aviation in 1939. Republic built more than 9,000 P-47 Thunderbolts in Farmingdale during World War II and expanded Republic Field, erected three hangars and a control tower and lengthened and hardened the runways. Republic built the straight-wing F-84 Thunderjet and the swept-wing F-84 Thunderstreak during the Korean War and extended Runway 14–32 to the southeast over the objections of Long Island State Parks Commissioner Robert Moses.

Republic Aviation produced over 800 F-105 Thunderchief fighter bombers during the Vietnam Era. Republic Aviation was acquired by the Fairchild-Hiller Corp. in 1965 for $24.5 million and Fairchild stock. Flight Safety Inc. ran the Republic Airport as a general aviation airport beginning on December 7, 1966, for the Mailman brothers'[clarification needed] Farmingdale Corporation, which had purchased the field from Fairchild Hiller for $8 million in 1965.

Republic Airport was acquired by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) on March 31, 1969. The MTA installed an instrument landing system (ILS) on runway 14–32, built the Republic Airport Terminal building, cooperated with the Federal Aviation Administration, which built the new 100' high control tower and got the US Government to transfer 94 acres (380,000 m2) to the airport in 1971 and purchased the 77-acre (310,000 m2) Lambert property on the north side of Route 109 and the Breslau Gardens property between New Highway and Route 109 in 1972.

After complaints that the MTA was not contributing taxes to local governments and questions about the MTA spending at Republic, ownership of the airport was transferred to the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) by the New York State Legislature in April 1983, to promote economic development in the surrounding Long Island region. The Republic Airport Commission was created by the New York State Legislature in 1982 (Chap. 370, L.1982) "as an advisory council to the Commissioner of Transportation in the administration and management of the Republic Airport facilities and its surrounding areas with respect to projects to be undertaken at such airport." Fairchild went out of business in 1987, and much of its historic Fairchild-Republic factory complex was sold and developed as the Airport Plaza shopping mall.

The Long Island Republic Airport Historical Society, formed in 1984, and chartered by the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York in 1987, maintains historical archives and sixteen photographic exhibits illustrating the history of aviation on the first floor of the Republic Airport terminal building, behind the airport's control tower, on the east side of New York State Route 110.[9][10] The airport is also home to the American Airpower Museum, which offers visitors the opportunity to see World War II aircraft in flight.[11]

In April 2023, Republic Jet Center announced that it broke ground on a new, $28 million FBO facility at the airport to replace its old one.[12] The 50,000-square-foot (4,600 m2) facility is anticipated to be completed by the end of 2024.[12]

Historic airline service

The airport has seen scheduled passenger airlines over the years – including Cosmopolitan Airlines and Provincetown-Boston Airlines (operating as Continental Express) in the 1980s, and Northwest Airlink in the 1990s.[13][14][15][16]

Facilities and operations

Runways and helipads

The airport covers 77.967 acres (315,520 m2) of land and has three runways and two helipads:[17][18][19]

  • 14/32: 6,833 by 150 feet (2,083 m × 46 m), asphalt, grooved
  • 01/19: 5,516 by 150 feet (1,681 m × 46 m), asphalt, grooved
  • Helipad H1: 79 by 79 feet (24 m × 24 m), asphalt
  • Helipad H2: 44 by 44 feet (13 m × 13 m), asphalt

Airport buildings and structures

Republic Airport has a two-story terminal building serving passengers boarding charter flights to nearby cities such as Atlantic City, New Jersey.[13] This terminal building was constructed in the 1980s and has previously been used by regional airlines, including Northwest AIrlink.[13]

U.S. Customs and Border Protection has an office at the terminal building; however, it is staffed by appointment only and pilots must request immigration services four hours prior to arrival.[20]

General aviation

An aircraft landing at the airport in 2023.

There are three fixed-base operators that serve corporate and light general aviation customers at Republic Airport: Sheltair (now Modern Aviation), Republic Jet Center (affiliated with Signature Aviation), and Atlantic Aviation.[21][22]

Operations

Charter airlines serving Republic Airport include Air Rutter International, Northeastern Aviation Corporation, Ponderosa Air, Sundance Aviation, Talon Air, and Ventura Air Services.[23][24][25][26][27]

Most NHL teams flying charter flights onto Long Island to play the New York Islanders use Republic Airport.[28][29]

Emergency services

ARFF Crash Trucks Rescue 3 and Rescue 4

Troop L of the New York State Police, which provides highway patrol for state parkways in Nassau and Suffolk Counties, is headquartered at the airport.[30]

Republic Airport has a full-time Index A ARFF team located at the main headquarters and terminal building. The airport has two crash trucks (Rescue 3 and 4), and a support vehicle pickup truck (Rescue 1). The airport is also served by the East Farmingdale Volunteer Fire Company and Village of Farmingdale Fire Department when mutual aid is requested.[citation needed]

Republic Airport Fire Rescue also responds to aviation incidents in the general vicinity outside of the airport.[citation needed]

Accidents and incidents

  • On July 3, 1975, a Learjet 25 (registration N428JX) collided with trees just after a failed takeoff attempt; the takeoff was aborted but the jet continued off the runway with both engines at or near takeoff power.[31]
  • On August 12, 2007, a Learjet 25 (registration N125FT) stained severe damage after encountering a hailstorm. The airplane was withdrawn from use at Republic Airport and subsequently dismantled.[32]
  • On February 15, 2022, a Cessna 152 (registration N64949) veered off the runway into the grass during its landing at Republic Airport, subsequently damaging a runway light.[35][36]
  • On March 5, 2023, a Piper PA-28 with three people onboard caught fire and crashed into the woods on approach to the airport.[8][37] The 23-year-old pilot and one of the two passengers received critical injuries. The other passenger was killed as a result of the crash.[37]

See also

References

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

  1. ^ "Airport Operations". FAAOPSNET. Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved August 22, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c FAA Airport Form 5010 for FRG PDF. Federal Aviation Administration. Effective August 21, 2021.
  3. ^ Bleyer, Bill. "List of Geographical Misnomers". Newsday. Archived from the original on May 28, 2006. Retrieved September 11, 2007.
  4. ^ "Map show airport, Farmingdale, East Farmingdale, and county border of Nassau and Suffolk". MapQuest. Retrieved June 17, 2013.
  5. ^ "2011–2015 NPIAS Report, Appendix A" (PDF, 2.03 MB). National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems. Federal Aviation Administration. October 4, 2010.
  6. ^ "Enplanements for CY 2008" (PDF, 1.0 MB). CY 2008 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data. Federal Aviation Administration. December 18, 2009.
  7. ^ "Enplanements for CY 2010" (PDF, 189 KB). CY 2010 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data. Federal Aviation Administration. October 4, 2011.
  8. ^ a b Asbury, John (March 13, 2023). "Living close to Republic Airport brings trade-off: The potential for plane crashes". Newsday. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  9. ^ Roberts, Andrea Suozzo, Alec Glassford, Ash Ngu, Brandon (May 9, 2013). "Long Island Republic Airport Historical Society - Nonprofit Explorer". ProPublica. Retrieved June 23, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ "WORLD WAR II". William G. Pomeroy Foundation. December 19, 2018. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  11. ^ "American Airpower Museum Legends of Airpower WWII Warbirds Join Jones Beach Air Show". www.iloveny.com. May 17, 2024. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  12. ^ a b Epstein, Curt. "Republic Jet Center at KFRG Breaks Ground on $28M FBO Facility | AIN". Aviation International News. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  13. ^ a b c Waldvogel, Robert G. (October 13, 2021). "The Airline History of Long Island's Republic Airport". Metropolitan Airport News. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  14. ^ "Cosmopolitan Airlines". Retrieved April 26, 2016.
  15. ^ "CO020187p17". Retrieved April 26, 2016.
  16. ^ Study of Future Use: Republic Airport. State of New York, Office of the State Comptroller. February 10, 1999.
  17. ^ "FRG - Republic Airport | SkyVector". skyvector.com. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  18. ^ "New York State Airport System Plan, 2008 Technical Report" (PDF). New York State Department of Transportation. June 2009. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  19. ^ "AirNav: KFRG - Republic Airport". www.airnav.com. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
  20. ^ "Pilot Information". Republic Airport. NYSDOT.
  21. ^ "Fixed Base Operators (FBOs) – Republic Airport". Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  22. ^ "Republic Jet Center – Home". Republic Jet Center. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  23. ^ "Aircraft Charter – Republic Airport". Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  24. ^ "Alerion Aviation". www.flyalerion.com. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  25. ^ "Northeastern Aviation Corp". Northeastern Aviation Corp. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  26. ^ "Private Jet Charter Company | Talon Air". talonairjets.com. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  27. ^ "Ventura Air Services Private Jet Services & Charter Flights | New York Based". venturajet.com. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  28. ^ "Delta Jet Landing at Republic was Flyers' Charter". Farmingdale, NY Patch. February 19, 2013. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  29. ^ Beach, Jerry. "The 2021 New York Islanders: One More (Possibly Remote) Stanley Cup Run Before UBS Arena Opens?". Forbes. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  30. ^ "Troop L". New York State Police. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  31. ^ Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Learjet 25 N428JX Richmond Municipal Airport, IN (RID)". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  32. ^ Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Learjet 25D N125PT Farmingdale-Republic Field, NY (FRG)". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  33. ^ Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Raytheon Hawker 800XP N412JA Farmingdale-Republic Airport, NY (FRG)". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  34. ^ "Raytheon Hawker 800XP, N412JA: Accident occurred December 20, 2020 at Republic Airport (KFRG), East Farmingdale, Suffolk County, New York". Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  35. ^ "Cessna 152, N64949: Incident occurred February 15, 2022 at Republic Airport (KFRG), Farmingdale, New York". Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  36. ^ "Aircraft Inquiry". registry.faa.gov. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  37. ^ a b Brodsky, Robert (March 8, 2023). "Long Island plane crash: Mom Roma Gupta dies; daughter Reeva Gupta, pilot Fayzul Chowdhury in critical condition". Newsday. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
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