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  • 21 Aug, 2019

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Williston Basin International Airport
Williston Basin International Airport (IATA: XWA, ICAO: KXWA, FAA LID: XWA) is an airport serving Williston, a city in the U.S. state of North Dakota. It is located 9 nautical miles (17km) northwest of the city.

Williston Basin Airport has two runways and a 110,000-square-foot (10,000 m) terminal building. It was built to replace Sloulin Field International Airport, which previously served Williston and had experienced difficulty dealing with the increase in air traffic to Williston amid the North Dakota oil boom. The airport opened to the public on October 10, 2019.

History

The airport previously serving Williston was Sloulin Field International Airport. Sloulin Field Airport dealt with design concerns, constraints on expansion, and the need for runway works. In addition, the airport had difficulty coping with a significant rise in air traffic amid the North Dakota oil boom.

In 2011, officials began to consider either making renovations to Sloulin Field or building a new airport. The cost of refurbishments was less than that of constructing a new airport; however, officials determined that building a new airport was the cheaper option. Not having to limit air service to Williston during construction at Sloulin Field would save revenue, and the city would gain from decommissioning the old airport and selling the land. The total cost of the project was $240 million, which was paid by the FAA, the state of North Dakota, and the city of Williston.

A groundbreaking ceremony took place on October 10, 2016, with several members of the state government in attendance. Procedural and weather-related problems delayed the start of construction to mid-2017. The airport opened to the public on October 10, 2019, with short-haul service to Minneapolis/St. Paul by Delta Connection and Denver by United Express. Shortly after the airport's opening, both carriers began using larger regional jets accommodating up to 76 passengers on some flights as compared to smaller 50-seat planes used previously in Williston.

Infrastructure

XWA covers 1600 acres (647 ha) of land. The airport opened with one runway, 14/32, with dimensions of 7,503 by 150 feet (2,287 m × 46 m). A crosswind runway, 4/22, which measures 4,502 by 75 feet (1,372 m × 23 m), was opened on November 5, 2020 and is mainly intended for use by smaller aircraft.

The terminal occupies 110,000 square feet (10,000 m) and has four gates, three of which have jet bridges. It can handle up to 350,000 passengers annually.

At the end of 2022, there were 32 aircraft based at this airport: 25 single-engine, 5 multi-engine, and 2 helicopter. Currently, the FAA does not have any published aircraft operations data for this airport.

Access

Williston Basin International Airport is located about 10 miles (16 km) northwest of Williston. A 2-mile (3.2 km) road was built to connect the airport to the U.S. Route 85 truck bypass.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

AirlinesDestinations
Delta Connection Minneapolis/Saint Paul
Sun Country Airlines Seasonal: Las Vegas
United Express Denver

Delta Connection uses CRJ700s and CRJ900s operated by SkyWest Airlines to Minneapolis. Sun Country Airlines uses Boeing 737-800s to Las Vegas. United Express uses CRJ200s and Embraer 175s operated by SkyWest Airlines to Denver.

Cargo

AirlinesDestinations
Encore Air Cargo
operated by Bemidji Airlines 		Fargo
FedEx Feeder
operated by Corporate Air 		Fargo

Statistics

Carrier shares

Carrier shares (August 2023 - July 2024)
Carrier Passengers (arriving and departing)
SkyWest
179,000(95.57%)
Sun Country
8,290(4.43%)

Top destinations

Busiest domestic routes from XWA (August 2023 - July 2024)
Rank Airport Passengers Carriers
1 Denver, Colorado 54,930 United Express
2 Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota 34,990 Delta Connection
3 Las Vegas, Nevada 4,260 Sun Country

See also

References

  1. ^ "FONSI/ROD for Williston Basin International Airport". Federal Aviation Administration. September 2015. p. 2. Retrieved October 15, 2016. The current airport (Sloulin Field International Airport – ISN) and proposed replacement airport (Williston Basin International Airport – XWA) will be owned and operated by the City of Williston.
  2. ^ FAA Airport Form 5010 for XWA PDF, effective July 13, 2023.
  3. ^ "Williston International (XWA) Summary Statistics". Retrieved May 30, 2022.
  4. ^ "Notice of Permanent Closure; Sloulin Field International Airport, Williston, ND". Federal Register. August 29, 2019. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  5. ^ "Williston Basin International Airport Master Plan" (PDF). KLJ. April 2016. pp. 2–3. Retrieved October 15, 2016.
  6. ^ "Williston breaks ground on new $240 million airport". WDAZ-TV. October 11, 2016. Archived from the original on October 18, 2016. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
  7. ^ Jean, Renée (October 20, 2015). "Does Williston really need a new airport?". Williston Herald. Retrieved October 14, 2016.
  8. ^ "Dalrymple Celebrates Williston Airport Groundbreaking" (Press release). North Dakota Office of the Governor. October 10, 2016. Archived from the original on November 18, 2016. Retrieved October 14, 2016.
  9. ^ Hackenburg, Elizabeth (March 29, 2017). "City picks JE Dunn to build new airport terminal". Williston Herald. Retrieved April 2, 2017.
  10. ^ Melberg, Mitch (October 8, 2019). "Williston native to be one of first pilots to fly into Williston Basin International Airport". Williston Herald. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  11. ^ Tanner, Aleisa. "XWA will have first class and larger planes soon". www.kfyrtv.com. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  12. ^ "Approved Airport Layout Plan (ALP) for Williston Basin International Airport" (PDF). Williston Basin International Airport. August 31, 2015. p. A-2. Retrieved October 14, 2016.
  13. ^ "Williston Basin International Airport to open Oct. 10". October 3, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  14. ^ Melberg, Mitch (November 6, 2020). "New crosswind runway at XWA open for business". Williston Herald. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  15. ^ Kohn, Jay (October 4, 2019). "New Williston airport to open next week, bring more flights to region". KTVQ. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  16. ^ Smith, Nick (October 31, 2015). "Williston airport proponents chart aggressive course". The Bismarck Tribune. Retrieved October 16, 2016. A 2-mile road off of the city's new truck bypass will lead to the facility, which is part of the construction cost.
  17. ^ "Williston Truck Reliever Route". North Dakota Department of Transportation. Retrieved October 16, 2016.
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