Hanscom Field (IATA: BED, ICAO: KBED, FAA LID: BED), also known by its full name Laurence G. Hanscom Field, is a public use airport operated by the Massachusetts Port Authority and located in Bedford, a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States.
Hanscom is primarily a general aviation facility, the largest in New England. Both of the airport's two runways can accommodate jet aircraft, and are also used by Hanscom Air Force Base, a defense-research facility located directly adjacent to Hanscom Field. It is a popular training airport, with more than 40 rental aircraft on the field. The Civil Air Terminal building hosts one current airline and is home to two flight schools, East Coast Aero Club and Executive Flyers. East Coast Aero Club offers helicopter and airplane instruction and rental. Executive Flyers offers airplane and aerobatics instruction. Transient general aviation planes are served by two FBOs: Jet Aviation and Signature Flight Support.
As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 8,385 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008, 7,350 enplanements in 2009, and 7,952 in 2010. It is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a non-primary commercial service airport (between 2,500 and 10,000 enplanements per year).
Hanscom is a critical part of the air transportation infrastructure for Massachusetts and the rest of New England. As T. F. Green Airport in Warwick, Rhode Island and Manchester-Boston Regional Airport in New Hampshire have become viable alternatives to Logan International Airport (the region's main commercial airport), Hanscom has emerged as one of the most important airports serving the region's business and general aviation needs.
The field serves a wide diversity of aviation, from Piper Cubs to Gulfstream V jets. The events of September 11 caused a number of changes to general aviation in the US. Hanscom Field saw changes implemented by Massport that included large security fees, identification cards, and a requirement for propeller locks.
The Massachusetts Air and Space Museum is looking at Hanscom Field as a future location.
Read more about Hanscom Field: Facilities and Aircraft, Ground Transportation, Notable Events At Hanscom Field
Famous quotes containing the word field:
“The field of doom bears death as its harvest.”
—Aeschylus (525–456 B.C.)