Departure
98%
vs 95% ▲ 2
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Houghton County Memorial Airport lies on Michigan's remote Keweenaw Peninsula, serving the twin communities of Hancock and Houghton as well as Calumet, Laurium and Lake Linden. It is a county-owned field with two lit asphalt runways, sustained by Essential Air Service passenger flights and seasonal seaplane operations to Isle Royale, making it an interesting stop for pilots exploring Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
Houghton County Memorial Airport is a county-owned, public-use airfield on the Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, serving the communities of Hancock and Houghton as well as nearby Calumet, Laurium and Lake Linden. It combines general aviation activity with subsidised scheduled airline service and seasonal seaplane operations, giving it a mixed character that will interest visiting VFR pilots as well as those flying in on instrument procedures.
The airfield sits in the unincorporated community of Oneco within Franklin Township, about four nautical miles southwest of the centre of Calumet village, on the Keweenaw Peninsula in the far northwest of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Traffic in the area is worked by Minneapolis Center on 127.2 MHz, with Green Bay Radio available on 122.525 MHz for flight service.
The airfield has two paved, lit runways. The primary runway, 13/31, is 6,486 feet long with a hard surface. The crosswind runway, 07/25, is 5,177 feet long, also hard-surfaced and lit.
Weather information is broadcast on the ASOS frequency of 125.675 MHz. En-route traffic is handled by Minneapolis Center on 127.2 MHz, with Green Bay Radio reachable on 122.525 MHz. The airfield's own frequency, 122.7 MHz, serves as both CTAF and UNICOM for local traffic and airport advisories. There is no ILS at the field.
Pilots can use the village of Calumet, close to the northeast of the airfield, along with Hancock and Houghton across the Keweenaw Peninsula, as broad references when routing to the field. The airfield's position near the Portage Canal and its proximity to Isle Royale National Park, served by a seasonal seaplane operation, make these useful wider orientation points for the area.
The Keweenaw Peninsula's earliest airfields were sited near the shoreline on either side of the Portage Canal, supporting airmail and ad hoc passenger service to Chicago's Meigs Field, but these sites could not accommodate the larger aircraft of the post-war era. Houghton County Memorial Airport was commissioned at its present location in 1948, with Wisconsin Central Airlines beginning milk-run service to Chicago and Detroit soon afterward. Over the following sixty years the route was maintained by a succession of corporate successors, including North Central Airlines, Republic Airlines, Northwest Airlink operated by Simmons Airlines, Mesaba Airlines, Pinnacle Airlines and Delta Connection, serving varying combinations of Chicago, Detroit and Minneapolis. Following the reduction in traffic after the 2008-2009 recession, Mesaba Airlines sought subsidised service under the Essential Air Service program, but the FAA instead selected SkyWest Airlines, operating as United Express, to fly twice daily to Chicago. In 2022 SkyWest announced plans to withdraw from the airport along with thirty others, but the airport rejected the reduced-frequency proposal and SkyWest has continued its twice-daily service under a higher subsidy.
The airfield today combines subsidised scheduled airline service, general aviation and seasonal seaplane operations. SkyWest Airlines, operating as United Express, flies twice daily to Chicago under the Essential Air Service program, while Royale Air Service offers a seaplane service to Isle Royale National Park depending on demand. General aviation makes up the majority of movements, and the field has an FBO offering fuel and rental car services. As of late 2023 there were 22 aircraft based at the airport, comprising 20 single-engine and 2 multi-engine types.
