Departure
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MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Griffith-Merrillville Airport is a public-use general aviation field in Lake County, Indiana, roughly two miles east of Griffith and within easy reach of the southern Chicago metropolitan area. Home to a full-service FBO, flight school and aircraft maintenance shops, it offers a single lit hard-surfaced runway with VOR/DME and GPS approaches, and operates around the clock with no landing, parking or ramp fees.
Griffith-Merrillville Airport sits in mid Lake County, Indiana, just east of the town of Griffith and within easy striking distance of Chicago and its metropolitan area, which the airport's operators promote as its main selling point for general aviation traffic. It is a modest but well-equipped field, built around a single asphalt runway, a sizeable ramp, and a 38,000 square foot terminal building housing the resident fixed-base operator. For a sim pilot it offers a straightforward, uncomplicated approach into the edge of Chicago's airspace without the congestion of the larger fields nearer the city.
The airport lies in Lake County, Indiana, about two miles east of Griffith, placing it firmly in Northwest Indiana on the southern fringe of the greater Chicago area. Chicago Center is available on 133.10 MHz for those wanting a traffic advisory or flight-following service in the surrounding airspace.
The field has a single physical runway, 08/26, hard-surfaced and lit. Runway 08 is listed at 4,889 feet while runway 26 is listed at 3,771 feet, indicating differing declared distances between the two ends. There is no ILS at the airport.
The airport's Unicom frequency is 123.00 MHz, used for advisory calls at this uncontrolled field, and Chicago Center can be reached on 133.10 MHz. The runway is served by VOR/DME and GPS instrument approaches, along with full pilot-controlled lighting, a rotating beacon, REIL and PAPI lights.
Griffith-Merrillville Airport opened in January 1962 and for most of its existence was privately owned and operated by Griffith Aviation, Inc. In December 2023 the field was sold to the Gary/Chicago International Airport Authority for 1.8 million dollars, bringing it under public ownership for the first time.
The airport operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and advertises no landing, parking or ramp fees. Griffith Aviation, Inc. remains the on-field fixed-base operator and flight school, offering 100LL and Jet A fuel with Prist, ground power, overnight hangarage, pre-heat, a pilot lounge and briefing area, and both Part 61 and Part 141 flight training; its services run from 7:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Monday to Friday and 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekends, with callout service available by prior arrangement. Aircraft maintenance is provided on the field by Northwest Aviation Maintenance and by G&N Aircraft, which specialises in engine repair and overhaul. As of 2015 the airport had 71 based aircraft, comprising single- and multi-engine piston types, one jet and several helicopters, and it recorded around 33,700 annual operations in 2006.
