What passenger services are available at Roanoke Airport?

Roanoke Airport is located five miles north of Roanoke in Virginia, USA. It began life just after the end of World War I with a pair of dirt runways, but has evolved to be a fully equipped municipal airport with asphalt runways, terminal buildings and control tower. It averages over 60 scheduled flights every day.

History

Origins Originally, Roanoke Regional Airport was conceived as place for aircraft storage and a flight school for local enthusiasts. It took some time for commercial services to develop and the first service began when Ludington Airlines made it a stopover on the New York to Nashville flight in 1933. American Airlines briefly followed suit in 1934, but within three year,s they had relocated to Lynchberg because of the poor facilities at Roanoke.
The airfield as a defense project
This was a wake up call for the city officials and they took over ownership of the airport and attracted federal funds by nominating the airfield as a national defense project. In 1941, the refurbished airport was named Woodrum Field in honour of Clifton A. Woodrum, the congressional representative from Virginia's Sixth District. American Airlines recommenced services soon after.
Accident related to the airport On 19th July 1967, a Piedmont Airlines Boeing 727, Flight 22, collided with a twin engine Cessna 310 whilst on route to Roanoke. Eighty two people were killed and there were no survivors. It remains the worst accident associated with the airport.

Facilities

Developments By the early 1980s, it was obvious that Roanoke's facilities had again passed their sale by date. A runway expansion was desperately needed to cope with the new jet aircraft. The new runway was completed in 1985, which allowed a name change from Roanoke Municipal Airport to Roanoke Regional Airport. Charlotte based architects Odell Associates designed the current terminal which opened in 2005 at a cost of around $25 million. Facilities available at the airport Facilities, before you get to the security checkpoint for departures, now include check-in, car rental, baggage claim and a taxi hire. There is a cafe and newsstand on the upper level. Once past the security check point, there are seven departure gates. A small cafe area serves refreshments and free WI-FI is available. For convenience, a number of hotels are well located to the airport including Roanoke Days Inn, Quality Inn and Airport Plaza.