Raleigh County Memorial Airport

Not to be confused with Raleigh–Durham International Airport in North Carolina.

Raleigh County Memorial Airport^[1][2] (IATA: BKW, ICAO: KBKW, FAA LID: BKW) is approximately three miles east of the city of Beckley, in Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States. It is both owned and operated by the Raleigh County Airport Authority.^[2] The airport is used for general aviation and sees one scheduled passenger airline, subsidized by the Essential Air Service program.

Raleigh County Memorial Airport
USGS orthophoto of Raleigh County Memorial Airport
IATA: BKW ICAO: KBKW FAA LID: BKW
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	Raleigh County Airport Authority
Serves	Raleigh County, West Virginia
Location	176 Airport Road, Beaver, West Virginia, United States
Elevation AMSL	2,504 ft / 763 m
Coordinates	37°47′14″N 081°07′27″W
Website	www.FlyBeckley.com
Maps
BKW Show map of West Virginia BKW Show map of the United States
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 1/19 6,750 2,057 Asphalt 10/28 5,001 1,524 Asphalt
Statistics (2022)
Aircraft operations (year ending 4/30/2022) 23,181 Based aircraft 33
Sources: Airport[1] and FAA[2]

Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 3,630 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008,^[3] 2,626 in 2009 and 2,429 in 2010.^[4] The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a non-primary commercial service airport based on enplanements in 2008, (between 2,500 and 10,000)^[5] but would later categorize it as general aviation based on the number of enplanements in 2010 (under 2,500).

The airport opened in 1950–52 with a 4,200-foot, east-west runway; the first airline flights were Piedmont DC-3s in 1952. (The last Piedmont YS-11 left in 1981.) The runway was extended to 5,000 ft in the 1950s, and the 6,750 ft runway 1/19 was constructed between 1975 and 1979.

In 2005, the airport was the least busy airport in the United States that also had an airline service, with a total of 2,578 passengers served during that year.^[6]

Facilities

The airport covers 1,433 acres (580 ha) at an elevation of 2,504 feet (763 m). It has two asphalt runways: 1/19 is 6,750 by 150 feet (2,057 x 46 m) and 10/28 is 5,001 by 100 feet (1,524 x 30 m).^[2]

In the year ending April 30, 2022, the airport had 23,181 aircraft operations, which was an average of 63 per day: 85% general aviation, 6% air taxi, and 9% military. 33 aircraft were then based at the airport: 21 single-engine, 7 multi-engine, 4 jet, and 1 helicopter.^[2]

Airline and destinations

Passenger

Airlines	Destinations	Refs.
Contour Airlines	Charlotte, Parkersburg	[7]

Cargo

FedEx Feeder is operated at the field by Mountain Air Cargo.^{[citation needed]} UPS Airlines is operated by Air Cargo Carriers.^{[citation needed]}

Statistics

Busiest domestic routes from Raleigh County Airport (BKW)
(January 2023 – December 2023)^[8]

Rank	City	Passengers
1	Charlotte, North Carolina	4,690
2	Parkersburg, West Virginia	140

See also

• List of airports in West Virginia