BILLINGS LOGAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT EXPANSIONS KEEP PACE WITH GROWING AIR TRAFFIC WWW.FLYBILLINGS.COM
BILLINGS LOGAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AT A GLANCE THE BILLINGS LOGAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT WHAT: A commercial, cargo, and general aviation airport WHERE: B illings, Montana WEBSITE: w ww.flybillings.com EXPANSIONS KEEP PACE WITH GROWING AIR TRAFFIC AIRLINES OFFER MORE ROUTES AND FLIGHTS 1 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 09
Serving as a gateway to a thriving and beautiful region, Billings Logan International Airport represents a 2,400-acre commercial, cargo, and general aviation airport, and eastern Montana’s only commercial service airport while the City of Billings serves as an important, multi-state hub for the region’s agricultural, petroleum, transportation, medical, financial, educational, 2 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 09
and tourist sectors. Billings Logan International has three asphalt runways: Primary Runway 10L/28R has a length of 10,518 feet and a width of 150 feet; Runway 10R/28L, at 3,801 X 75 feet, is a parallel runway for single engine and light piston aircraft; and a crosswind runway, Runway 07/25, measures 5,501 X 75 feet. Billings Logan International’s commercial carriers include: Alaska, Allegiant, American, Cape Air, Delta, Sun Country, and United Airlines, plus Horizon Air, a regional commuter airline owned by Alaska Airlines. Freight carriers include: FedEx, UPS, Alpine Air Express, and Richland Aviation. About 150 GA aircraft also call the airport home. Its full-service FBO (Fixed Base Operator) is Edwards Jet Center and Beacon Air Group.The airport has 55 employees and almost 2,000 more people work on airport grounds in various aeronautical and non-aeronautic businesses. A NEW DIRECTOR AND A TERMINAL UPDATE In 2023, Jeff Roach became Billings Logan International Airport’s new Director of Aviation and Transit, having been appointed to the position after the retirement of former Director, Kevin Ploehn, and who brings to the job 30-plus years of experience in transportation, aviation, and airport management. 2023 also marked the final year of a $60 million airside terminal renovation and expansion project, which, now complete, brings the terminal to 220,000 square feet of available space, with a total of eight jet bridge gates and one ground loading gate, an expanded concession area, and updated carpeting and rest rooms. The dynamic airport has an annual operating budget of about $10 million and a capital budget about twice that. But unlike many municipally-owned airports, it receives neither local nor state tax dollars for its operations and maintenance. “However, with the revenue that we’ve generated and the grants that we received through the federal Airport Improvement Program (AIP) – terminal projects are AIP-eligible -- we were able to complete the $60 million airside terminal redevelopment and expansion project with virtually no debt service,” Roach explains. “So, we’re coming out of this $60 million project with no mortgage.” 3 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 09 BILLINGS LOGAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
MORE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS This year, the airport has already finished two major airfield projects: a million dollar service road rehabilitation and a terminal apron reconstruction. “Those were completed and we have begun our FY- ’25 summer seasonal projects,” Roach notes. “We started an air cargo pad project, which is about a $7.5 million project to expand our air cargo operating area to include a fifth pad. We currently have four pads with UPS taking two of those pads and FedEx the other two. We needed room for expansion, and so this fifth cargo pad project, which is being completed by Knife River Construction, will allow us to offer additional space for another air cargo carrier to operate here at BIL. Next summer, we have programmed the resurfacing and extension of our crosswind runway, 72/5. It will be extended by a few hundred feet on each end and the surface will be rehabilitated. We anticipate that it will be around a $10-12 million project.” Next year, Billings Logan International Airport will begin design work on the next part of its terminal reconstruction.“We’ll design the front of the terminal,” Roach shares. “We’re looking at ticket counters, baggage claim, and our terminal front face. We’ll also look at the needs of some of our other operations like rental car counters and other businesses that operate in the landside of the terminal. That front half of the terminal was last updated in the 1990s, so it definitely needs an update and an expansion to meet the needs of our expanding passenger numbers.” Looking ahead, Roach adds that in 2026, the airport will be rehabilitating one of its major taxiways and its stormwater holding system.“We’re always working on improving our infrastructure,” he affirms. “In addition, we own and operate a number of buildings in the airport that we lease out to aeronautical and non-aeronautical tenants, and there’s always work going on associated with those buildings.” MOVING PASSENGERS AND FREIGHT Regarding those expanding passenger numbers, Roach reports that last year, the airport served 840,000 passengers. “While that’s still below our 2019 (pre-pandemic) peak, we are continuing to 4 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 09
Billings, Montana offers a perfect balance of outdoor adventures, incredible landscapes, arts and culture, culinary offerings, as well as proximity to national points of interest like the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, the Beartooth Scenic Byway, and Yellowstone National Park. Billings, population 120,000, is the county seat of Yellowstone County (pop. 170,000) and the largest city in the state. The city was named after Frederick H. Billings who was a president of the Northern Pacific Railroad. The city’s nickname is the “Magic City” due to the rapid growth experienced from being a railroad town in the 1880’s.Today, Billings is also known as Montana’s Trailhead as it is the region’s economic hub. Tourism is a major economic driver for Billings along with agriculture, energy, healthcare, finance, and education. Popular attractions include the Rimrocks which are 70-million-year-old sandstone cliffs that surround much of the city offering incredible views of the region where the mountains meet the plains. The Rimrocks, or Rims, run north and east of the downtown core and rise 500-800 feet tall depending on where you stand. Four Dances National Recreation Area, Swords-Rimrock Park, the Skyline Trail, and Zimmerman Park offer vantage points of the city as well as the Bighorn, Pryor, and Beartooth Mountains.The elevation of Billings is 3,126 feet above sea level. The destination boasts a citywide brewery district with much of it experienced in historic downtown, restaurants featuring local flavors and James Beard finalist chefs, Montana’s only zoo and botanical park, contemporary and western museums, galleries, several theaters, music venues, outdoor community venues, boutique retail, and annual festivals. Billings is home to nearly 50 miles of multi-use trails and 24 miles of bike lanes which help people explore the Rimrocks to the Yellowstone River, which is the longest free-flowing river in the lower 48. The city sits near the intersection of Interstates 90 and 94 and offers a firstclass, newly renovated and expanded airport with daily flights to major U.S. cities via Delta, United, American Airlines, Allegiant, Sun Country, and Alaska Airlines. Regional carrier CapeAir also plays an important regional role in air travel and connectivity between Billings and eastern Montana rural communities. Amazing summer weather and snowy winters with bluebird days offer ample opportunity for outdoor enthusiasts to experience adventures during all four seasons. More details on Montana’s city at VisitBillings.com.
increase our passengers served, and we’re on track to exceed 900,000 passengers in calendar year 2024. That’s largely due, not only to the uptick in the demand for travel, but also to the additional opportunities that our airline partners have come on board to provide.” Roach outlines some of those travel opportunities: “In May, United added a 5th daily flight to Denver; that will be on a seasonable basis. It’s the most that United ever served Denver on a daily basis; typically they dropped to three a week during the winter season (ramped up at the holidays), but in the past, we’ve seen four a day during the summer. This year we have five a day during the summer.” “Allegiant added a new service to LAX (Los Angeles International). That’s a seasonal – twice a week, which we began on May 16th.Alaska Airlines brought back their Portland service – not on a seasonable basis. Now it’s on a daily, year-round basis. That also started on May 16th. And we’re happy to announce that we have a new carrier that started with us this summer season and that is Sun Country with a Billings/Minneapolis-St. Paul route twice a week, which began on June 19th and will run through the end of August. That’s brought our available seats from about 1.2 million seats a year ago to 1.6 million available seats out of our market this year.” Roach notes that the airport also continues to be the busiest freight airport in Montana, “In 2023, we served over 77 million pounds of air freight through Billings that is distributed throughout the multistate region that we serve.” “In 2022, we were the 63rd busiest air freight operation airport in the nation. We are looking forward to seeing what the calendar year 2023 numbers are going to be. Those should come out sometime in August. We’re hoping that we’ll continue to rise up in the ranking in air freight operations.” BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT “We do have land available and aeronautical and non-aeronautical lease areas available -- some with developed utilities and some that are currently undeveloped,” says Roach. “And to that end, we are 7 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 09 BILLINGS LOGAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
Billings Logan International Airport was a seven-phase expansion project constructed by Sletten Construction and designed by A&E Architects in collaboration with Morrison Maierle.The project added approximately 89,000 square feet to the airport including two new concourses as well as eight new gates and jet bridges. To offer passengers a more enriching experience, a “river wall” was installed onto the exit ramp of the airport’s terminal concourse. The architectural feature is lit with LED strip lighting and shows the entire path of the Yellowstone River with mountains and beloved landmarks inlaid into the wall. During the project, we took careful measures so that passengers and airport employees remained undisturbed, ensuring that the airport remained fully operational. Founded in Montana in 1928, Sletten Construction is 100% employee-owned with over 200 employee-owners. We approach every project with the mindset of an owner, ensuring a highquality finished product and satisfied clients. We have delivered successful projects across the state of Montana for over 95 years, with our corporate headquarters making its home in Great Falls. Over the years, our firm has grown steadily throughout the western United States, establishing offices in Nevada, Arizona, Wyoming, and Idaho. Great Falls . Missoula . Billings WWW.SLETTENCOMPANIES.COM BUILDING MONTANA SINCE 1928
working with the Chamber of Commerce and with Big Sky Economic Development here in Billings to promote our business and commercial lease areas.” Big Sky Economic Development (BSED) is a publicprivate partnership whose mission is to sustain and grow Yellowstone County’s vibrant economy and outstanding quality of life, by providing leadership and resources for business creation, expansion, retention, new business recruitment, and community development. A new tenant at Billings is Beacon Air Group, the airport’s second full service FBO, offering aircraft fuel and maintenance, hangar space, charter brokerage, pilot services, and flight instruction. “They built their facility, which consists of two hangars and office space, but they’re also building three large and five small hangars that will be either leased or sold,” Roach relates. “So, they’re doing a significant construction effort as part of their business operation at the airport. Beacon Air Group is in an area on the west end of the airport where we have available space for future commercial/aeronautical operations and development.” AVIATION EDUCATION AND PRESENTATION In addition to Beacon Air, there are two other entities that provide aviation training at Billings: Ridgeline Aviation offers flight training to new pilots, and Rocky Mountain College in Billings offers a BS degree in aeronautical science (professional pilot) and one in aviation management.The AABI (Aviation Accreditation Board International) accredited school currently has more than 50 students in its flight training program, according to Roach. The airport, itself, offers tours to local school children during the school year, and during the summer, to area summer camps. “They learn about future job opportunities and careers related to the aviation industry,” says Roach. “It’s very well received here in our community.” Last year, Billings hosted the Yellowstone 9 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 09 BILLINGS LOGAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
International Air Show which had over 30,000 spectators who came to see the Blue Angels, the U.S. Navy’s flight demonstration squadron, and other aerial performances.“We’re looking at doing another air show in 2026,” Roach proffers. “It has been 20 years since the last major air show at Billings, and we hope there will continue to be air shows on a more regular basis.” THE MASTER PLAN Looking ahead, Roach reveals that the airport has initiated its Master Plan update, a 20-year look at future infrastructure needs that will help determine the airport’s ongoing capital improvement programs and attendant funding requirements.“The last airport Master Plan was updated 12 years ago,” he notes.“So, it is definitely time to take another look at what our airport should, and can be, in the next 20 years.” Congratulations to the Billings Logan International Airport on your terminal renovation and expansion project. First Interstate Bank is proud to be a preferred partner of the Billings Logan International Airport. firstinterstate.com PREFERRED VENDOR/PARTNER n Visit Billings www.visitbillings.com Visit Billings is the backbone of the tourism industry for Billings, Montana and fosters the local visitor economy through promotion, marketing, destination management, and longterm initiatives like air service development. The Visit Billings team works domestically and internationally to enhance tourism for the city in the leisure, meetings, group tour, and sporting events markets. Visit Billings is proudly managed by the Billings Chamber of Commerce. n Sletten Construction www.slettencompanies.com Founded in Montana in 1928, Sletten Construction is 100% employee-owned and we approach every project with the mindset of an owner, ensuring a high-quality finished product and satisfied clients. Over the years, our firm has grown steadily throughout the western United States, establishing offices in Nevada, Arizona, Wyoming, and Idaho n Sky Dine, Inc www.skydine.com At Sky Dine, Inc., we cater to today’s travelers with a blend of nationally recognized food & beverage brands as well as local favorites. Our airport gift shops, curated by our expert design team, offer a unique and delightful shopping experience, with travel products that are both fun and functional for every journey. n First Interstate Bank www.firstinterstatebank.com Since 1968, First Interstate has grown from a single bank in Sheridan, Wyoming, to operating over 300 banking offices throughout 14 states. Headquartered in Billings, Montana, First Interstate’s mission is to help people and their money work better together with an approach to service centered around the client. 10 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 09
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