Departure
94%
vs 95% ▼ 1
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
MBS International Airport lies at Freeland, Michigan, midway between Midland, Bay City and Saginaw, and offers a long ILS-equipped runway alongside a shorter crosswind runway, making it a straightforward and well-equipped destination for both airline traffic and general aviation pilots flying VFR or IFR. Its control tower is known to pilots as "Saginaw Tower" despite the airport's location in Freeland. The field has a long history dating to a World War II training airfield and has hosted Air Force One and Air Force Two on several occasions.
MBS International Airport serves the Great Lakes Bay Region communities of Midland, Bay City and Saginaw, though it is physically located in Freeland, Michigan. It is jointly owned by Bay County and the cities of Midland and Saginaw, governed by a nine-member commission drawn from the three municipalities, and is officially associated with Saginaw for IATA and FAA naming purposes, which is why the tower is known to pilots as "Saginaw Tower". For a simulator pilot, MBS offers a mix of commercial jet operations, general aviation traffic and a full ILS approach on a long runway, making it a useful and characterful stop in the Michigan interior.
MBS International Airport is situated at Freeland, Michigan, between the Tri-Cities of Midland, Bay City and Saginaw. Approach and departure control in the area is provided as Saginaw Approach/Departure on 120.95 MHz.
MBS has two physical runways. Runway 05/23 is 7,986 feet long, hard-surfaced, lit, and served by an ILS. Runway 14/32 is 6,390 feet long, hard-surfaced and lit but without an ILS. Field elevation is 659 feet.
The tower operates as Saginaw Tower on 120.1 MHz, which also serves as the CTAF. Ground control is on 121.7 MHz, clearance delivery on 121.85 MHz, and ATIS is broadcast on 118.6 MHz. Saginaw Approach/Departure works traffic on 120.95 MHz. UNICOM is available on 122.95 MHz, and a remote Lansing radio outlet is listed on 122.2 MHz. An ILS is available for runway 05/23.
During the Second World War the federal government acquired the land and began construction of Tri-City Airport for use in various air training projects, with German prisoners of war housed in barracks on the field helping to maintain it. After the war the airport passed to civilian control, resuming local civilian operation in the mid-1940s. The airport was renamed MBS International Airport in 1994, replacing the earlier Tri-City Airport name, to avoid confusion with other similarly named airports elsewhere in the United States and to reflect its IATA code. The field has seen several presidential and vice-presidential visits: Air Force One landed in 1974 for a speech by President Richard Nixon, Air Force Two brought Vice President Dan Quayle in 1992, and Air Force One returned in 2004, in September 2020 for a campaign visit by President Donald Trump, and most recently in March 2024 for a visit by President Joe Biden. Commercial service expanded through the 1980s and 1990s, including United Airlines mainline jet service to Chicago and, briefly, Denver, and an Air Canada-operated (via Air Ontario) international route to Toronto. A new $55 million six-gate terminal opened in October 2012, replacing the 1965 terminal, which was later demolished in 2017.
MBS International Airport covers around 3,200 acres and combines scheduled airline service with general aviation activity; general aviation accounted for the majority of aircraft operations in recent years. An FBO operated by AvFlight is based on the field, offering fuel along with general maintenance, oxygen, courtesy and rental cars, conference rooms, crew lounges and showers. The airport has a modest number of based aircraft, including jets, multi-engine and single-engine types and a helicopter.
