In the 1950s a small airport was built on land leased from Penn State, just north of State College. The Centre County Airport Authority was created to manage the development of the airport. The October 1959 chart[citation needed] shows 2350-foot runway 6; the August 1965 chart shows 3000 feet; the November 1967 chart adds 2350-foot runway 16. (The intersection of those two 50-foot runways is still visible at 40°50′57″N77°51′11″W / 40.8492°N 77.85315°W / 40.8492; -77.85315). The present runway was built parallel to the old runway 6 about 1975–76; it was then 5000 feet long.[citation needed]
The first airline flights (All AmericanDC-3s) at State College were at the old airport southwest of town 40°46′13″N77°52′53″W / 40.7704°N 77.8815°W / 40.7704; -77.8815 from 1949 to 1951.[citation needed] In 1965 Harrisburg Commuter began flights from State College to Harrisburg, two flights each weekday; the 1965 Official Airlines Guide does not state which airport they served, but starting in 1978 Allegheny Commuter flights were at University Park.[citation needed]Penn State assumed the lease and assets of the airport in 1972.[4] A permanent passenger terminal was built in 1985.[1] A new passenger terminal was completed in 1993, and cargo operations moved to the old terminal. In 1997 the runway was lengthened to 6,701 ft (2,042 m).[5] A new general aviation hangar was built in 2001.[6]
Construction on the control tower began on January 8, 2010[7] and was completed in early August 2011. The Airport Traffic Control Tower (ATCT) went operational on September 1, 2011, and is operated by Midwest Air Traffic Control under the Federal Contract Tower Program.
The U.S. Department of Transportation says in 2023 there were 135,020 enplanements, making State College Regional Airport the 6th busiest airport in Pennsylvania after Wilkes Barre - Scranton (AVP), Allentown Lehigh Valley (ABE), Harrisburg (MDT), Pittsburgh (PIT), and Philadelphia (PHL).[8]
On November 3, 2023, the Centre County Airport Authority announced that University Park Airport had been renamed State College Regional Airport.[9][10]
Services
The Centre County Airport Authority owns and operates the commercial airline terminal. The terminal consists of a snack bar, free Wi-Fi, charging stations for mobile devices, and a conference room. Taxi, limousine services, and car rentals are available. The airport does not have jet bridges, and all aircraft board from ground-level hardstands. However, there are plans to add two boarding bridges in the future.[11]
Penn State University fixed-base operator (FBO) offers fuel, flight planning services, aircraft repair, and hangar rental.
Delta Airlines suspended service from State College to New York LaGuardia on June 5, 2023, citing personnel shortages.[13] Delta operated between State College and Detroit until January 8, 2023 when the service was replaced with service to New York LaGuardia. New York service was later suspended in June 2023. [14]
Tech Aviation Flight School is located at the T-Hangars.
Runways
State College Regional Airport features one active runway. The end closest to Rock Road is Runway 24, bearing a magnetic heading of 243 degrees. Runway 24 is equipped with an instrument landing system (ILS) and is used as the primary landing and departing runway. Runway 6 is used as a visual runway; however, infrastructure has been considered to improve satellite-based approaches.[17] Runway 16 and 34 was formerly used for general aviation but was closed.
Destinations from State College Regional Airport (SCE) Red = Year-round destination Green = Seasonal destination Blue = Future destination Pink = Destination being terminated
State College Regional Airport is home to Civil Air Patrol Nittany Composite Squadron PA-338.[22] The squadron operates a Cessna 182 Skylane registered as N848CP.
