Burley Municipal Airport (IATA: BYI, ICAO: KBYI, FAALID: BYI) is a municipal airport in Burley, Idaho.[1] The airport was rededicated as Burley J R Jack Simplot Airport in October 2002,[2] honoring J. R. "Jack" Simplot.
History
The Burley Municipal Airport was dedicated on July 4th, 1930.[3] A stop on the Contract Air Mail Route 5 (CAM5) from Salt Lake City to Pasco, the airport began its life servicing Air Mail aircraft.[4][5]
The airport covers 201 acres (81 ha) and has two asphalt runways: 2/20 is 4,094 x 80 ft (1,248 x 24 m) and 6/24 is 4,067 x 75 ft (1,240 x 23 m).[1]
In the year ending February 10, 2005, the airport had 27,750 aircraft operations, average 76 per day: 98% general aviation, 1% air taxi and <1% military. 56 aircraft are based at this airport:
84% single-engine, 10% multi-engine, 4% jet and 2% ultralight.[1]
Accidents and incidents
On April 13, 2022, a Cessna 208B Caravan registration N928JP on a cargo flight operated by Gem Air from Salt Lake City International Airport crashed into the agglomerate stack of Gem State Processing food processing plant while on approach to the airport. The high temperature steam exhaust, also from the plant, may have contributed to the crash by not only visually obscuring the runway from the pilot, but also lowering the air density causing the aircraft to lose altitude. The pilot and only occupant on board was fatally injured.[6]
A panoramic view of JR Simplot Airport, as seen from a public access road to its east.
