The six general aviation airports operated by the\nMetropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) grew their operations in 2021 by 8%\ncollectively\u2014an increase to 352,195, or 26,151 more takeoffs and landings\ncompared to 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe strong demand for our general aviation system did not\nwane over the past year,\u201d said Brian Ryks, CEO of the MAC. \u201cOur general\naviation airport system overall has seen double-digit growth in operations from\n2019 to 2021, and the total number of aircraft based at our six reliever\nairports has held steady at more than 1,300. The amount of flight training\noccurring at our airports is very promising as airlines look to backfill large\nnumbers of vacancies due to pilot retirements and focus on continued growth in\ndemand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The MAC\u2019s general aviation airports are referred to as\n\u201creliever airports\u201d within the Twin Cities metropolitan area because they\nrelieve congestion that would otherwise impact Minneapolis-Saint Paul\nInternational Airport (MSP), which had 303,850 total operations in 2021, a 24%\nincrease over 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite the pandemic, MAC reliever airports in 2021\ncontinued to build on the momentum from 2020, when the reliever system posted\n2% growth over 2019 activity levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe have seen a resurgence in private business travel and in\nleisure and educational flights across our system of reliever airports during\nthe past year,\u201d said Joe Harris, director of reliever airports for the MAC. \u201cIn\n2021, corporations began flying their business jets more often and the demand\nfor flight training programs at our reliever airports has been off the charts.\nWe expect these trends to continue into 2022 as more workers return to the\noffice and pilots continue training at one of the many flight schools located\nat our relievers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
St. Paul Downtown Airport (STP) and Airlake Airport (LVN)\nlocated in Lakeville, MN, saw the largest increases in total operations in\n2021. Takeoffs and landings at STP, which serves more corporate activity than\nother reliever airports, increased by 29.8%, or more than 9,000 additional\noperations over 2020. At LVN, which serves primarily leisure flying and flight\ntraining, activity increased by 15.8%, or nearly 5,000 more operations in 2021\nthan 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The only reliever airport to see a decrease in operations in\n2021 was Crystal Airport (MIC), located northwest of Minneapolis, where\ntakeoffs and landings dropped by 4.2%, or around 1,600 operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The MAC\u2019s remaining three reliever airports\u2014Flying Cloud\nAirport (FMC) in Eden Prairie, MN; Lake Elmo Airport (21D), located between St.\nPaul to the west and the St. Croix River to the east; and Anoka County\u2013Blaine\n(ANE), located just north of Minneapolis and St. Paul\u2014each saw increases in\noperations ranging from 5\u201310%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The MAC\u2019s reliever airports returned to hosting outdoor,\nin-person community events in summer 2021. Notable events in 2021 included\nFlying Cloud Airport\u2019s Girls in Aviation Day and the AirExpo aircraft showcase,\nas well as the annual Father\u2019s Day pancake breakfast at both Lake Elmo Airport\nand Crystal Airport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Continued investments at MAC\u2019s reliever airports are planned\nfor 2022. Major improvements continue at Lake Elmo Airport to complete the\nrelocation and extension of Runway 14-32, which will be paved later this year.\nThe new runway will span 3,500 feet and will allow the existing runway to be\nconverted to taxiway. New lighting, signage and other airfield safety\nimprovements are also planned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The MAC\u2019s reliever airport system generates an estimated $756 million a year for the area economy and supports more than 3,600 jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n