Departure
96%
vs 95% ▲ 1
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport (KFXE) is a busy general aviation reliever field five miles north of downtown Fort Lauderdale, Florida, operated by the City of Fort Lauderdale. With two lit asphalt runways, a 24-hour tower and an ILS approach, it is one of the busiest GA airports in the United States and a popular destination for simulator pilots exploring South Florida's crowded airspace.
Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport is a city-owned general aviation airport lying within the city limits of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, about five miles north of the downtown area. It functions as the FAA-designated general aviation reliever facility for Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and is one of the busiest GA fields in the country, handling well over 150,000 aircraft movements a year. For a simulator pilot it offers a realistic slice of dense South Florida GA traffic, a 24-hour control tower, an ILS-equipped runway and a mix of piston, turboprop and business jet operations.
The airport sits in Broward County, Florida, within the city limits of Fort Lauderdale, roughly five miles north of the downtown core. It operates in proximity to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport's controlled airspace and is served by Miami Approach/Departure control on 119.7 MHz. The field is tagged as lying within Class C airspace, reflecting its close association with the surrounding Miami-area terminal environment.
The airport has two physical runways. Runway 09/27 is a hard-surfaced, lit runway 5,986 feet long, with an ILS serving Runway 09. Runway 13/31 is also a hard-surfaced, lit runway, 3,995 feet long. Field elevation is 10 feet above mean sea level.
Miami Approach/Departure works arriving and departing traffic on 119.7 MHz. The airport broadcasts its ATIS on 119.85 MHz. Clearance Delivery is available on 127.95 MHz. Executive Ground operates on 121.75 MHz, and Executive Tower on 120.9 MHz. UNICOM is on 122.95 MHz. The tower operates around the clock, and Runway 09 is equipped with an ILS approach.
As a tower-controlled field with a full-time ATC service, joining and departure instructions are given directly by Executive Tower and coordinated with Miami Approach/Departure. A specific noise abatement procedure, known locally as the I-95 Turn, applies to jet departures from Runway 9 bound to the west and north: between 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. these aircraft are directed by ATC to turn left over the Interstate 95 industrial corridor after takeoff rather than continuing straight ahead.
The airport lies close to and largely parallels the Interstate 95 corridor, which forms the basis of the published departure turn used by jet traffic leaving Runway 9 and also serves as a useful visual reference for pilots orientating themselves in the local area. Its position roughly five miles north of downtown Fort Lauderdale provides another straightforward landmark for visual navigation to the field.
The airfield was built in 1941 to train United States Naval Aviators during the Second World War and was originally known as West Prospect Satellite Field. In 1947 the federal government deeded the airport to the City of Fort Lauderdale for use as a public airport, beginning its long career as a civilian general aviation field. Over the following decades it grew into one of the busiest general aviation centres in the country, a role reflected in a long history of based aircraft and high annual movement counts.
Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport remains an active general aviation reliever airport for Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International, supporting a large resident fleet across single-engine, multi-engine, jet and helicopter categories. It is a Landing Rights Airport with a U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility for international general aviation arrivals, and maintains a 24-hour aircraft rescue and fire-fighting facility. Multiple fixed base operators serve based and visiting aircraft, and the field continues to support significant flight training activity thanks to its round-the-clock tower and instrument approach capability.
