MBS International Airport

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MBS International

IATA: MBS - ICAO: KMBS
Summary
Airport type		Public
Operator		MBS International
Serves		Saginaw, Michigan
Elevation AMSL		668 ft (203.6 m)
Coordinates		44°44′29.2″N, 85°34′56.0″W
Website		http://www.mbsairport.org/
Parts of this article may come from Wikipedia
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
Direction	ft	m	Surface
5/23	8,002	2,439	Asphalt
14/32	6,400	1,951	Asphalt

1 General
2 Gate Assignment
3 Flight Planning Resources
4 IFR Routes

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General

MBS International Airport is located in Freeland, Michigan, serving the nearby cities of Midland, Bay City, and Saginaw. It was formerly named Tri City Airport. The airport was renamed to MBS International Airport in 1994 (representative of its IATA airport code) to prevent confusion with other airports named "Tri City Airport" across the United States.

The fourth busiest commercial airport in Michigan, it is a special municipal body owned by Bay County and the cities of Midland and Saginaw. The airports's name is an initialism formed from the names of the three owning communities. It is governed by a nine-member commission made up of three members from each of the owning communities.

Once the third busiest airport in Michigan, MBS has fallen in air service and passenger numbers. One major reason for this is the low-cost competition at nearby Bishop International Airport in Flint, which offers more flights to more destinations and often cheaper fares. Devout MBS passengers still praise MBS for its ease and convenience.

In 2005, 408,549 passengers have flown in and out of MBS. This is a decrease compared to a decade ago, when 548,127 passengers used the airport in 1996.

In early 2007, it was announced that the Airport Commission has approved plans for the construction of a new state-of-the-art passenger terminal. This new $48-million, 75,000 sq. ft. project would begin sometime in 2007 and will take 18 months. The new terminal will be built just north of the current terminal. Airport officials hope this will bring more airlines and more competition to MBS.

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