The airport is also home to the161st Air Refueling Wing (161 ARW), anAir Mobility Command (AMC)–gained unit of theArizona Air National Guard. The military enclave is known asGoldwater Air National Guard Base. One of two flying units in the Arizona ANG, the 161 ARW flies theKC-135R Stratotanker aircraft. In addition to its domestic role as a National Guard unit, answering to the Governor of Arizona, the 161 ARW also performs both a stateside and overseas role as aUSAF organization, supporting air refueling and air mobility missions worldwide.[6]
Interior of Terminal 2 in the 1960s with a view of Paul Coze's muralThe PhoenixSky Harbor's Control Tower withdowntown Phoenix in the distanceAmerican Airlines aircraft at Terminal 4
Sky Harbor Airport's evocative name was conceived by J. Parker Van Zandt, the owner ofScenic Airways, who purchased 278 acres of farmland for Scenic's winter operations in November 1928. Sky Harbor was not only named but founded and built by Van Zandt in late 1928. He immediately commenced building a 100 x 120 foot airplane hangar and through early 1929 built one runway. This was the fourth airport built inPhoenix.[7] Scenic Airways, lacking funds after the infamousStock Market Crash of 1929,[8][7] sold the airport to Acme Investment Company, which owned the airport until 1935, when the city of Phoenix purchased Sky Harbor airport from Acme for $100,000.[9]
On February 23, 1929,Maddux Air Lines began the airport's first scheduled passenger service with a route betweenSan Francisco andEl Paso stopping in Phoenix, Los Angeles, and several other cities; however the service was short-lived, ending by autumn 1929.Standard Air Lines had been serving Phoenix since late 1927 at a different airport and began landing at Sky Harbor on August 5, 1929. Standard operated a route betweenLos Angeles and El Paso stopping at Phoenix,Tucson, andDouglas, Arizona. Standard was acquired by American Airways in 1930 which later becameAmerican Airlines. American extended the route eastward to New York by way ofDallas,Nashville, and many other cities making for a southern transcontinental route across the United States.[10]
TWA began service toSan Francisco in 1938 and added Phoenix onto its transcontinental network by 1944 with flights to Los Angeles and eastward toNew York stopping atAlbuquerque,Kansas City, and many more cities.Arizona Airways began intrastate service within Arizona in 1946 and merged intoFrontier Airlines in 1950 which added new routes toDenver, Albuquerque, and El Paso.Bonanza Airlines began service by 1951 with a route toLas Vegas andReno making several stops at smaller communities. New routes toSalt Lake City andSouthern California were added in the 1960s along with nonstop flights to Las Vegas and Reno aboardDouglas DC-9 jets by 1965. Bonanza merged with two other carriers to become Air West in 1968 and was changed toHughes Airwest in 1970 adding several new routes, including service to Mexico, creating a hub at Phoenix. Hughes Airwest was then merged intoRepublic Airlines in 1980 which continued the Phoenix hub operation until the mid-1980s.Western Airlines came to Sky Harbor in 1957 with flights to Denver, Los Angeles andSan Diego,Continental Airlines came in 1961 to El Paso, Los Angeles, and Tucson, andDelta Air Lines began flights to Dallas by 1969.[9]
Bonanza Air Lines moved its headquarters from Las Vegas to Phoenix in 1966. Bonanza merged with two other airlines to form Air West, which becameHughes Airwest afterHoward Hughes bought it in 1970.[11]
After theAirline Deregulation Act was signed in 1978, many new airlines began service to Sky Harbor. In 1978, former Hughes Airwest executive Ed Beauvais formed a plan for a new airline based in Phoenix. He foundedAmerica West Airlines in 1981, which began service from Phoenix in 1983 and doubled in size during its first year.[11]Allegheny Airlines andEastern Airlines soon began service in 1979 followed byUnited Airlines in 1980. Allegheny changed its name toUSAir shortly after beginning service in 1979.Southwest Airlines arrived at Phoenix in January 1982 with 13 daily flights to 12 cities; by 1986 it had 64 daily flights from Phoenix and had a crew base there. Southwest opened a maintenance facility at PHX in 1992, which was its largest.[12]
America West filed forChapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1991 and sold its larger aircraft and Japanese route authority, but continued growing its domestic operations from Terminal 4 in cooperation withContinental Airlines. Although AWA enjoyed further growth at Phoenix during the 1990s the aftermath of theSeptember 11 attacks strained its financial position. AWA ended its relationship with Continental and merged withUS Airways in 2005. US Airways moved its headquarters to the AWA campus in Tempe and retained many AWA managers to run the merged company. US Airways was then merged intoAmerican Airlines in 2015 which continues to build upon the largest hub operation at Phoenix Sky Harbor.[11]
Sky Harbor landed its first transatlantic flights in 1996 whenBritish Airways inaugurated nonstop service to London. The flight was first operated with aDouglas DC-10 aircraft but soon upgraded to aBoeing 747-400.[13]
In May 2025,Starlux Airlines announced they would launch service in 2026 toTaipei, Taiwan, on anAirbus A350 aircraft, marking the first time an airline announced non stop service to Asia from the airport.[14] On 25 July 2025 China Airlines announced that it will start nonstop flights to Taipei, starting on December of that year.[15][16]
AfterWorld War II, the airport began work on a new passenger terminal, as well as a new parallel runway and a diagonal runway.[17] On the February 1953 C&GS diagram runways 8L and 8R are each 6,000 feet (1,800 m) long and runway 3 is 5,500 feet (1,700 m). The $835,000 Terminal 1 (originally called the West Wing), which also had the firstcontrol tower, opened in October 1952.[17]
The airport's master plan was redesigned in 1959 to eliminate the cross runway to make room for new terminals.[17] American and TWA began jet service to Phoenix in 1960 and 1961 respectively, and Terminal 2 (originally called the East Wing) opened in 1962.[18] Terminal 2 was designed by the Phoenix architectural firms of Weaver & Drover andLescher & Mahoney and opened in 1962.[19] Terminal 2 also featured a 16-foot (4.9 m) high and 75-foot (23 m) wide mural composed of 52 different materials, including mosaic glass, gemstones, shells, and vintage toys.
The Phoenix, designed by the late French-American artist and full-time resident of PhoenixPaul Coze, was commissioned in 1960 as Phoenix's first work of public art and was installed in 1962 in the main lobby area of the terminal.The Phoenix was relocated to the Rental Car Center in 2021 following the decommissioning and demolition of Terminal 2.[20] In November 2006, a Military and Veterans Hospitality Room, sponsored by the Phoenix Military and Veterans Commission, was opened in Terminal 2. It has since relocated to Terminal 4 as the newUSO club. This terminal underwent two renovation projects. The first was completed in 1988.[21] The second project, which cost $24 million and was designed by DWL Architects + Planners, Inc., was completed in 2007.[19]
Construction on Terminal 3 began in January 1977. Designed by DWL Architects + Planners, Inc., Terminal 3 opened in October 1979, and the "East" and "West" names were dropped since there were no longer only two terminals.[17]
AUSAirBoeing 737-300 at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport on February 28, 1986. This aircraft, N360AU, would later be re-registered as N388US, and would go on to crash at Los Angeles in 1991 asFlight 1493
In October 1989, ground was broken for Terminal 4, the largest terminal.[22] It opened on November 2, 1990,[23] with four concourses: N2 and N3 on the north side and S3 and S4 on the south side. In 1994 the N4 International Concourse was opened, adding 10 gates and a sterile walkway to the S4 concourse. In 1997 construction began on the 14-gate N1 concourse for America West Airlines. It was completed in June 1998 at a cost of $50 million,[24] completing the expansion of the north side of the terminal. On the south side of the terminal, construction began in 2002 on the eight-gate S2 concourse for Southwest Airlines. This project was completed in 2004 and has a different architectural design from the other six concourses. The eighth and final concourse for Terminal 4, S1 (South 1), with gates D11–D18, began construction in May 2019. Terminal 4 is named after former ArizonaSenator and 1964Presidential candidateBarry M. Goldwater. After Goldwater's death in 1998, the then-mayor of Phoenix,Skip Rimsza, proposed renaming the airport in Goldwater's memory but was deluged with public support for the familiar "Sky Harbor" name.[25] Terminal 4, designed by DWL Architects + Planners, Inc., is the largest and busiest of the two terminals with 86 (now 92) gates, divided into eight satellite concourses connected behind security.[19]
In February 2020, Terminal 2 accepted its final flight and was then decommissioned. Demolition occurred in early 2021 with the terminal being replaced by concrete stands for aircraft, accessible by bus from other terminals.[27] Airlines previously using Terminal 2 were relocated to Terminal 3, which had completed renovations in January 2020.[28]
In January 2021, Terminal 3 was renamed in honor of SenatorJohn McCain by the Phoenix City Council.[29]
In February 2024, the airport announced plans for infrastructure upgrades at its central utility plant in Terminal 4, which will improve air conditioning at the airport. The $36 million project was funded by a FAA Airport Terminal Program grant included in the federalInfrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that was signed into law by PresidentJoe Biden.[30]
On April 29, 2024, Phoenix MayorKate Gallego announced that a new terminal would be constructed on the west end of the property near the former location of Terminal 2. She said that in 2023 the airport welcomed more than 48 million passengers and with continued growth expected the new terminal was needed to accommodate growing demand and handle the increased number of travelers. The terminal would feature a new customs facility and would be designed to have net-zerogreenhouse gas emissions, making it an environmentally friendly structure.[31]
In 2024, the airport surpassed 50 million passengers in a single calendar year, an all-time record for the facility.[32]
On December 25, 2024, an apparent family dispute among a group of five at a restaurant in Terminal 4 escalated into a shooting and stabbing, leaving three with gunshot wounds and another with a stab wound. A man and a juvenile female were detained as a result of the incident. After the domestic incident, a man allegedly responding to false reports of anactive shooter at the airport arrived at the airport shirtless and armed. The man had an altercation with police before he was also arrested.[33][34]
Aerial view of the new control tower in the foreground, and the old control tower in the background, with Terminal 3 in between, looking southwest
The airport has 119 active aircraft gates in two Terminals (3 and 4).[35] The airport administration states that the designations Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 have been "retired" and that it did not wish to renumber the other terminals since passengers were already familiar with the numbers in place.[36] Terminals 3 and 4 continued to retain their numbers after the closing of Terminal 2.[37] Bus gates are planned to be operated on the Terminal 2 site.[38][36][39][40] Terminal 3 is used by most domestic or precleared arrivals includingFrontier Airlines.[41]Alaska Airlines also uses Terminal 3 for both its arrivals and departures.[6] International carriers, American and Southwest operate in Terminal 4.[42]
The airport's 326-foot-tall (99 m)air traffic control tower began operations on January 14, 2007. It stands just east of the Terminal 3 parking garage and also houses the PhoenixTRACON. This is Sky Harbor's third control tower and is among the tallest control towers in North America.[45][46]
Annual passenger traffic (enplaned + deplaned) at PHX, (1951–present)[126][127][128]
Year
Passengers
Year
Passengers
Year
Passengers
Year
Passengers
1951
240,786
1971
3,000,707
1991
22,140,437
2011
40,592,295
1952
296,066
1972
3,365,122
1992
22,118,399
2012
40,448,932
1953
325,311
1973
3,776,725
1993
23,621,781
2013
40,341,614
1954
365,545
1974
3,962,988
1994
25,626,132
2014
42,134,662
1955
442,587
1975
3,964,942
1995
27,856,195
2015
44,003,840
1956
495,268
1976
4,414,625
1996
30,411,852
2016
43,411,591
1957
581,087
1977
4,984,653
1997
30,667,210
2017
43,921,670
1958
658,889
1978
5,931,860
1998
31,769,113
2018
44,943,686
1959
783,115
1979
7,021,985
1999
33,472,916
2019
46,288,337
1960
857,318
1980
6,585,854
2000
36,044,281
2020
21,928,708
1961
920,096
1981
6,641,750
2001
35,437,051
2021
38,846,713
1962
1,090,953
1982
7,491,516
2002
35,547,432
2022
44,397,854
1963
1,247,684
1983
8,605,408
2003
37,423,596
2023
48,654,432
1964
1,411,912
1984
10,801,658
2004
39,504,323
2024
52,325,266
1965
1,594,895
1985
13,422,764
2005
41,215,342
2025
1966
1,943,336
1986
15,556,994
2006
41,436,498
2026
1967
2,236,637
1987
17,723,046
2007
42,184,515
2027
1968
2,515,326
1988
19,178,100
2008
39,891,193
2028
1969
2,795,212
1989
20,714,059
2009
37,824,982
2029
1970
2,871,958
1990
21,718,068
2010
38,554,530
2030
From 1951 through the end of 2024, 1,477,534,183 passengers (domestic and international, enplaned and deplaned) have transited through PHX, an annual average of 19,966,678 passengers per year. In the same time frame there were 30,033,280 million aircraft movements (commercial, military, general aviation) at PHX, an annual average of 405,855 movements per year.[129] PHX has grown over the years into a major US hub, and in 2024 was ranked the35th-busiest airport in the world and11th-busiest airport in the United States in passenger boardings.
Travelers can access both terminals from the East Economy Parking by using thePHX Sky Train.[130] There is also terminal parking adjacent to each terminal.[131] The PHX Sky Train project is complete, connecting terminals to the Rental Car Center.
Valley Metro bus route 13 has a stop at the 24th St. Sky Train station[132] Travelers connecting to or from the Greyhound station can walk from the 24th St. Sky Train Station. TheValley Metro Rail has a stop at the nearby44th St/Washington light rail station. A moving sidewalk bridge over Washington Street allows light rail passengers to arrive at the nearby PHX Sky Train station and then onward to stations at the East Economy Parking Lot and Terminals 3 and 4. Valley Metro bus routes 44 serve the PHX Sky Train station at 44th Street and Washington.[133]
A number of taxi, limousine, ride share and shuttle companies provide service between each airport terminal, the Phoenix metropolitan area, and other communities throughout the state.[134]
ThePHX Sky Train is an automated people-mover, much like those found at other airports, that transports Sky Harbor passengers from the 44th Street and Washington Light Rail station to Sky Harbor's East Economy Parking lot, through both terminals. Phase 1 opened on April 8, 2013, and runs from the 44th Street and Washington Light Rail station, to East Economy Parking and on to Terminal 4.[135] Phase 1A shuttles passengers to Terminal 3. Phase 1A opened on December 8, 2014.[136] Phase 2 transports passengers to the Rental Car Center. Phase 2 opened on December 20, 2022.[137]
In its 2019 airport rankings,The Wall Street Journal ranked Sky Harbor as the best airport overall among the 20 largest airports in the U.S.[138] "Phoenix excelled in several of the 15 categories, with short screening waits, fast Wi-Fi, good Yelp scores for restaurant reviews, short taxi-to-takeoff times for planes and cheap average Uber cost to get downtown."[139] Sky Harbor won the honor again in 2023, ahead ofMinneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport andLos Angeles International Airport.[140]
ACessna 182 Skylane, flying fromHawthorne Airport inHawthorne, California, to Sky Harbor, hithigh-tension power lines east of the airport and crashed at 10:48 pm in the Salt River bed while attempting to land on Runway 26R, knocking out power to the airport and killing all three passengers on board.[141]
March 13, 1990
N/A
AnAlaska AirlinesBoeing 727 taking off from PHX struck and killed a male who breached security and ran onto the runway. There were no injuries on the 727. Airport authorities determined he was a patient at a nearby mental hospital.[142]
AQantasAirbus A380 passenger experienced a medical emergency en route from Sydney to Dallas and the flight diverted to Phoenix. This is the first recorded arrival of the A380 superjumbo in Phoenix and the aircraft was required to taxi to a remote stand as the airport did not have a gate capable of handling the oversized Airbus.[147]
December 6, 2017
BA288/BAW38P
ABritish AirwaysBoeing 747 experienced a #3 engine problem during climbout and needed to return to the airport after dumping fuel. The incident was recorded on camera.[148][149][150]
^"The 80's: A Time of Change".Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. September 13, 2010.Archived from the original on December 21, 2010. RetrievedJuly 12, 2012.
.jpg)
_-_Quintin_Soloviev.jpg)
Denver, Colorado
Seattle/Tacoma, Washington
Chicago–O'Hare, Illinois
Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas
Los Angeles, California
Las Vegas, Nevada
Salt Lake City, Utah
Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Minnesota
San José del Cabo, Mexico
London–Heathrow, United Kingdom
Calgary, Canada
