Houston, G. Bush (IAH / KIAH) TX, USA

19 octobre 2006

IATA: IAH – ICAO: KIAH – FAA: IAH
Summary
Airport type		Public, George Bush Intercontinental Airport is a Class B international airport in the city of Houston, Texas, United States serving the Greater Houston area. Located 20 miles (32 km) drive north of Downtown Houston, Bush Intercontinental is Texas's second-largest air facility—after Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport—covering an area of 10,000 acres (40 km²). The airport has scheduled flights to destinations in the United States and international destinations in Asia, Canada, the Caribbean, Central America, Europe, Mexico, South America, the Middle East and scheduled charter flights to Africa. George Bush Intercontinental Airport is named after George H. W. Bush, the 41st President of the United States.
Owner/Operator		Houston Airport System
Serves		Greater Houston
Location		Houston, Texas, United States
Hub for		Continental Airlines
Fact.		George Bush Intercontinental Airport served 43,176,478 passengers in 2008 making the airport the eighth busiest for total passengers in North America. In 2006, the airport was named the fastest growing of the top ten airports in the United States by the United States Department of Transportation. Houston is home to the headquarters of Continental Airlines, and Bush Intercontinental is Continental's largest hub with an average of 700 daily departures.
Coordinates
Website		www.fly2houston.com/iah
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
Direction	ft	m	Surface
15L/33R	12,001	3,658	Concrete
15R/33L	9,999	3,048	Concrete
9/27	10,000	3,048	Concrete
8L/26R	9,000	2,743	Concrete
8R/26L	9,402	2,866	Concrete
Statistics (2007)
Passengers			43,176,478
Aircraft operations			603,836

Houston DSp Video
Year	Sony		Spot Location
Year		VHS	Spot Location
2006			Inside the terminal, train, public & transit aera behind the windows

Spotting at Houston (IAH) Texas-USA 2006
envoyé par DreamSpotter

Web information :

History

Houston Intercontinental Airport, as it was originally known, opened in June 1969. All passenger traffic from William P. Hobby Airport moved to Intercontinental upon the airport's completion. Hobby remained open as a general aviation airport and reopened two years later to domestic routes and discount air carriers.

As of 2007, Terminals A and B remain from the original design of the airport. Lewis W. Cutrer Terminal C opened in 1981, the Mickey Leland International Airlines Building (now called Terminal D) opened in May 1990, and the new Terminal E partially opened on June 3, 2003. The rest of Terminal E opened on January 7, 2004. Terminal D is the arrival point for all international flights arriving into Houston except for flights operated by Continental Airlines which uses Terminal E. Terminal D also held customs and INS until the opening of the new Federal Inspection Service (FIS) building, completed on January 25, 2005.

The city renamed the airport George Bush Intercontinental Airport/Houston, after George H. W. Bush, the 41st President of the United States, in 1997.

Operations

George Bush Intercontinental Airport's control tower

George Bush Intercontinental Airport served 42,979,207 passengers in 2007 making the airport the eighth busiest for total passengers in North America. IAH is the seventh largest international passenger gateway in the United States and the sixth busiest airport in the world for total aircraft movements according to the ACI World Traffic Report for 2006. In 2006, the United States Department of Transportation named George Bush Intercontinental Airport the fastest growing of the top ten airports in the United States.

The airport currently ranks third in the United States for non-stop domestic and international service with 182 destinations, trailing Chicago O'Hare International Airport with 192 destinations and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport with 239 destinations. Furthermore, about 45 percent of the airport's passengers begin or terminate (O&D) their journey at the airport. Bush Intercontinental ranks as one of the major United States airports with the highest on-time performance, according to a 2007 United States Department of Transportation report.

As of 2007, with 31 destinations in Mexico, the airport offers service to more Mexican destinations than any other United States airport.

The Houston Air Route Traffic Control Center, located on the airport grounds at 16600 JFK Boulevard, serves as the airport's ARTCC.

Terminals and airlines

Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport has a total of five terminals. Those five terminals encompass an area of 10,000 acres (40 km²). The terminals at IAH all have a unique shape and are not in a particular design. Long term redevelopment has the terminals each being in a horizontal line (similar to Hartsfield in Atlanta).

There are three main entrances into IAH's terminal areas. JFK Boulevard is the main artery into the airport and intersects with Greens Road becoming a freeway. Will Clayton Parkway runs east to west is another main road for IAH. The Hardy Tollway Connector runs from west to east connecting JFK Boulevard to the Hardy Toll Road.

Terminal A

Terminal A was one of the original two terminals to open in 1969. Like Terminal B, it originally had four circular modules at the end of corridors radiating out of the corners of the terminal. However, in the late-1990s and early-2000s, the North and South Concourses were rebuilt into linear facilities which provide a smoother operation within the terminal. Terminal A has 20 gates, with 10 gates in the North Concourse and 10 gates in the South Concourse.

Air Canada (Toronto-Pearson)
- Air Canada Jazz (Calgary)
American Airlines (Chicago-O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami)
Continental Airlines
- Continental Connection operated by Colgan Air (Abilene, Alexandria (LA), Beaumont, College Station, Del Rio, Killeen, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Monroe (LA), San Angelo, Shreveport, Texarkana, Tyler (TX), Victoria (TX), Waco)
Delta Air Lines (Atlanta, Salt Lake City [seasonal])
- Delta Connection operated by Atlantic Southeast Airlines (Atlanta)
- Delta Connection operated by Comair (Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky)
- Delta Connection operated by Freedom Airlines (New York-JFK)
- Delta Connection operated by Shuttle America (Atlanta)
- Delta Connection operated by SkyWest (Atlanta, Salt Lake City)
- Delta Connection operated by Pinnacle Airlines (Atlanta)
Frontier Airlines (Denver)
Northwest Airlines (Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis/St. Paul)
- Northwest Airlink operated by Mesaba Airlines (Minneapolis/St. Paul)
- Northwest Airlink operated by Pinnacle Airlines (Memphis)
United Airlines (Chicago-O'Hare, Denver, San Francisco)
- United Express operated by Shuttle America (Chicago-O'Hare, Denver, Washington-Dulles)
- United Express operated by SkyWest (Chicago-O'Hare, Denver)
- United Express operated by Mesa Airlines (Denver, Washington-Dulles)
US Airways (Charlotte, Philadelphia, Phoenix)
- US Airways Express operated by Mesa Airlines (Charlotte, Las Vegas, Phoenix)
- US Airways Express operated by Republic Airlines (Philadelphia)

Terminal B

Terminal B was also one of the original two terminals to open in 1969. It is mostly unaltered terminal from its original set up and is used mostly by regional jets for Continental Express. For this reason, the jet bridges are considerably lower to the ground than most others. Future plans call for linear facilities, similar to those at Terminal A, to replace the circular ones. Terminal B has 31 gates and 20 hardstand gates.

Continental Airlines
- Continental Express operated by Chautauqua Airlines (Alexandria, Amarillo, Atlanta, Baton Rouge, Brownsville, Colorado Springs, Columbia (SC), Columbus (OH), Corpus Christi, El Paso, Fort Walton Beach, Harlingen, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Little Rock, Louisville, Lubbock, McAllen, Midland/Odessa, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Oklahoma City, Pensacola, Sarasota-Bradenton [ends September 3], St. Louis, West Palm Beach)
- Continental Express operated by ExpressJet Airlines (Albuquerque, Alexandria, Amarillo, Asheville, Atlanta, Austin, Bakersfield, Baton Rouge, Beaumont, Birmingham (AL), Brownsville, Charleston (SC), Charleston (WV), Charlotte, Chattanooga [ends September 3], Chicago-O'Hare, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, College Station, Colorado Springs, Columbia (SC), Columbus (OH), Corpus Christi, Dallas/Fort Worth, Dallas-Love, Dayton, Des Moines, El Paso, Fayetteville (AR), Fort Myers, Fort Walton Beach, Grand Rapids, Greensboro, Greenville, Gulfport/Biloxi, Harlingen, Huntsville, Indianapolis, Jackson, Jacksonville, Killeen, Kansas City, Knoxville, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Laredo, Lexington, Little Rock, Louisville, Lubbock, McAllen, Memphis, Midland/Odessa, Milwaukee, Mobile, Montgomery [ends September 3], Nashville, New Orleans, Norfolk, Oklahoma City, Omaha, Orlando, Palm Springs [ends September 3], Pensacola, Pittsburgh, Phoenix, Raleigh/Durham, Richmond, Salt Lake City, Savannah, Shreveport, St. Louis, Tallahassee [ends September 3], Toronto-Pearson, Tucson, Tulsa, Victoria (TX), Washington-Dulles, West Palm Beach, Wichita)

Terminal C

Lewis W. Cutrer Terminal C, named after former Mayor of Houston Lewis W. Cutrer, was the third terminal to open at the airport following A and B in 1981. It serves as Continental Airlines's main base of domestic operations. Terminal C has 31 gates. The terminal includes the airport's interfaith chapel.

Continental Airlines (U.S. and Canada) (Albuquerque, Anchorage [seasonal], Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore/Washington, Baton Rouge, Boston, Calgary, Chicago-O'Hare, Cleveland, Columbus (OH), Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Detroit, El Paso, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Hartford [ends September 3], Honolulu, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, McAllen, Miami, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Montrose/Telluride [seasonal], New Orleans, New York-JFK [ends October 2], New York-LaGuardia, Newark, Oakland [ends September 3], Oklahoma City, Omaha, Ontario (CA), Orange County, Orlando, Pensacola, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland (OR), Raleigh/Durham, Reno/Tahoe [ends September 3], Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose (CA), San Juan, Santo Domingo, Seattle/Tacoma, Tampa, Toronto-Pearson, Tucson, Tulsa, Vail [seasonal], Vancouver, Washington-Dulles [ends September 3], Washington-Reagan, West Palm Beach)

International Terminal D

Mickey Leland Terminal D

A typical lineup at Terminal D showing Air France, British Airways, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Lufthansa

Mickey Leland Terminal D opened in 1990 and took over the international operations of the entire airport. Originally Terminal D, named Terminal IAB, was the only terminal to have a Federal Inspection Facility (FIS), and US Customs. At the time, all international arrivals used the terminal. The original name of Terminal D was Mickey Leland International Arrivals Building. Since the opening of Terminal E/FIS, Terminal D now houses all non-Continental international flights except for some Continental Express international flights. In 2007 the airport authority began renovations in which 20 additional common-use ticket counters, upscale retail and restaurant shops, and new on-airport spa/beauty lounge will be added over the next few years. Terminal D has 12 gates.

Aeroméxico (Mexico City)
Air France (Paris-Charles de Gaulle)
British Airways (London-Heathrow)
Continental Airlines
- Continental Express operated by ExpressJet Airlines (Destinations listed under Terminal E)
Emirates (Dubai)
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (Amsterdam)
- KLM operated by PrivatAir (Amsterdam)
Lufthansa (Frankfurt)
Qatar Airways (Doha) [begins December 8]
Singapore Airlines (Moscow-Domodedovo, Singapore)
TACA (Belize City, Roatán, San Salvador, San Pedro Sula)

The Houston Airport System (HAS) is negotiating future services with other international carriers including Air India, Arik Air, Air Algérie, Finnair and Korean Air.

International Terminal E

Terminal E

Continental Airlines's Boeing 777 "Peter Max". Downtown Houston is visible in the background

Terminal E is IAH's newest terminal, and houses Continental Airlines's international operations and some domestic operations. The terminal opened in two phases. The first phase opened with 14 gates, and the second phase added 16 gates in 2003 for a total 30.

Originally Continental used the terminal solely for domestic flights, but relocated its international services to the new terminal after the new Federal Inspection Service (FIS) building opened. The terminal was designed for maximum flexibility, with jetways that were able to handle any aircraft. Currently, all Continental international mainline flights arrive at Terminal E while all Continental Express international flights arrive at Terminal D. In addition to international flights, Continental domestic mainline flights also operate out of the terminal.

Continental Airlines (Acapulco, Amsterdam, Aruba, Belize City, Bogotá, Bonaire, Buenos Aires-Ezeiza, Cali [ends September 3], Cancún, Caracas, Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Guadalajara, Guatemala City, Guayaquil [ends September 3], Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo, León, Liberia (CR), Lima, London-Gatwick, London-Heathrow, Managua, Mérida, Mexico City, Montego Bay, Monterrey, Nassau [seasonal], Panama City, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Port-of-Spain, Puerto Vallarta, Quito, Rio de Janeiro-Galeão, Roatán, San Jose del Cabo, San José (CR), San Pedro Sula, San Salvador, São Paulo-Guarulhos, Tegucigalpa, Tokyo-Narita)
- Continental Express operated by ExpressJet Airlines (Acapulco, Aguascalientes, Chihuahua, Ciudad Del Carmen, Durango, Guadalajara, Huatulco, Ixtapa/Zihuatenejo, León, Loreto, Manzanillo, Mazatlán, Mexico City, Monclova [ends September 3], Monterrey, Morelia, Nassau, Oaxaca, Puebla, Puerto Vallarta, Querétaro, Saltillo, San Luis Potosí, Tampico, Toluca, Torreón, Veracruz, Villahermosa)

Charter airlines

Sonair operated by World Airways (Luanda)

Terminal transportation

A train called TerminaLink connects Terminals B, C, D, E and the International Arrivals Building (IAB) for those with connecting flights in different terminals and provides sterile airside connections. This allows passengers to travel within the airport without having to re-enter security. TerminaLink has three stops: Terminal B, Terminal C, and Terminals D/E and the IAB. Currently, the airport is also planning to expand the line to Terminal A at a cost of US $100 million, and construction began in early 2008.

Artwork

Flag posts of various countries titled "Light Spikes" located outside the airport entrance

Ed Carpenter's "Light Wings", a multicolored glass sculpture suspended below a sky light, adorns the Terminal A North Concourse. In Terminal A, South Concourse stands Terry Allen's "Countree Music." Allen's piece is a cast bronze tree that plays instrumental music by Joe Ely and David Byrne, though the music is normally turned off. The corridor leading to Terminal A displays Leamon Green's "Passing Through," a 200-foot etched glass wall depicting airport travelers.

The elevators in Terminal B are cased in stainless steel accordion shaped structures designed by Rachel Hecker. The corridor leading to Terminal B has Dixie Friend Gay's "Houston Bayou." This work is composed of an 8 x 75 ft (2.4 x 23 m) Byzantine glass mosaic mural depicting scenes from Houston's bayous and wetlands, several bronze animals embedded in the floor, and five mosaic columns.

Lights Spikes was created by Jay Baker, shown in the photo, were created for the 1990 G7 Summit when it was hosted by President George H. W. Bush in Houston. The sculpture was relocated to the airport outside of E Terminal after the meetings from its original location in front of the George R. Brown Convention Center.

The distance between each “spike” and this point is relative to the distance between Houston and the capital of the country the flags represent. The countries represented are the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Japan, Canada, Italy and Germany, as well as the European community and the columns lean at a ten degree angle toward a central point that represents Houston.

Cargo

George Bush Intercontinental ranks as the 11^th-largest gateway in the United States in terms of international air cargo moved. The facility moved over 387,000 metric tons of air cargo in 2007, a 5.4 percent increase over 2006.

Because of the 4.2 percent annual growth rate in cargo over the last five years, the Houston Airport System decided to create the 125 million dollar, 550,000 square feet (51,095 square meters) George Bush Intercontinental CargoCenter, which opened in January 2003. The new facility can handle up to 20 widebody aircraft at one time. The CargoCenter has its own separate Federal Inspection Facitilty (FIS) that houses Customs, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), United States Department of Agriculture, and Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

The facility also includeds the International Air CargoCenter II, a 60,000 sq ft (18,288 m2) perishable cargo handling facility. It is located in the IAH CargoCenter and offer direct ramp access for cargo airlines as well as importers and distributors of perishable goods.

For four years in a row, Air Cargo World has honored Bush Intercontinental Airport with the ACE Award for Excellence in the category of airports with less than 500,000 tons of air cargo annually.

Cargo Airlines

ABX Air (DHL)
Aeromexpress
AirBridge Cargo [begins 2008]
Air France Cargo
Atlas Air
BAX Global
British Airways World Cargo
Cargoitalia
Cargolux
Cathay Pacific Cargo [starts 1 September]
China Airlines Cargo
EVA Air Cargo
FedEx Express
Gemini Air Cargo
Korean Air Cargo
Polar Air Cargo
Polet Airlines
Saudi Arabian Airlines Cargo
Southern Air
UPS Airlines
Volga-Dnepr

Accidents and incidents

The following involved flights departing or arriving at the airport:

1991: Continental Express Flight 2574 (Britt Airways): Broke into pieces on route from Laredo to Houston Intercontinental.
1990 : Executive: Power loss in engine after take-off resulted in a failed attempt to regain altitude on route to New Orleans International Airport.
1973 : National Airlines (NA): Depressurization ejected a passenger after the fan assembly disintegrated on route to McCarran International Airport.
1973 : Aeroméxico: Crashed on route to Puerto Vallarta Airport.