Rochester International Airport | |||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||||||
| Operator | City of Rochester | ||||||||||||||
| Location | Rochester, Minnesota | ||||||||||||||
| Hub for | Mayo Clinic MedAir | ||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 1,317 ft / 401.4 m | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 43°54′30″N92°30′00″W / 43.90833°N 92.50000°W /43.90833; -92.50000 | ||||||||||||||
| Website | www.flyrst.com | ||||||||||||||
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 FAA diagram | |||||||||||||||
  RST  RST | |||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2021) | |||||||||||||||
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| Source:Bureau of Transportation Statistics,[2]Federal Aviation Administration[3] | |||||||||||||||
Rochester International Airport (IATA:RST,ICAO:KRST,FAALID:RST) is an international airport located seven miles (11 km) south of downtownRochester inOlmsted County,Minnesota. It is the second-busiest airport in Minnesota. Its name used to be "Rochester Municipal Airport", before adding customs and immigration facilities specifically forMayo Clinic purposes in 1995.[4]
The airport covers 2,400 acres (9.7 km2) and has two concrete runways: 9,034 ft × 150 ft (2,754 m × 46 m) runway 13/31 and 7,301 ft × 150 ft (2,225 m × 46 m) runway 3/21.[3][5]
Airline service is currently provided byAmerican Airlines andDelta Air Lines. The airport has a largeFedEx Express freight terminal and ageneral aviation terminal.
The original Rochester airport was founded in 1928 by theMayo Foundation to bring patients toMayo Clinic. It was in what is now southeastRochester and occupied 285 acres (1.15 km2). The following year "Rochester Airport" was dedicated, and the Rochester Airport Company was founded as a subsidiary of the Mayo Foundation.Northwest Airlines began runningFord Trimotors to Rochester fromSt. Paul. Rochester was one of the first destinations from theTwin Cities in Northwest Airlines history, behindChicago,Winnipeg,Green Bay, andFargo.
In 1940, the runways were paved and more land was acquired, bringing the airport's area to 370 acres (1.5 km2). During World War II, theArmy Air Corps conducted training operations from the airport. In 1945, the Mayo Foundation gave the airport to the city of Rochester, but the Rochester Airport Company continued to operate the field under an agreement with the city. The airport was renamedLobb Field in 1952. In 1960, it was decided to replace Lobb Field with a new airport southwest of town because it could not be expanded to allow larger airliners and was too close to the urban area of Rochester. The original Rochester Airport closed in 1961.
In 1960, Rochester Municipal Airport opened at its current location 7 miles (11 km) south of downtown Rochester; in 1965, runway 13 was 6400 feet and runway 2 was 4000 feet. Northwest andBraniff moved to the new airport in 1960, butOzark's DC-3s stayed at Lobb until 1961;North Central Airlines arrived in 1968, and Braniff left around the same time. The first jets were Northwest 727s in 1965.
American Airlines began service toO'Hare International Airport in 1988. 1995 saw the addition of aUnited States Customs Service post and it became the Rochester International Airport.Trans World Airlines operated flights to St. Louis in early-2001, but these routes were dropped very soon due to themerger withAmerican Airlines. On September 15, 2005, the primary runway was lengthened from 7,533' to 9,034 following a three-month closure for renovations; runway centerline and touchdown zone lighting were added. The change was made to allow large wide body aircraft, which had been weight-restricted upon departure.
In 1970, Imperial Airways offered scheduled helicopter service toMinneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport. On December 4, 1970, Imperial Airways announced it was canceling its scheduled helicopter flights in Minnesota, including from Minneapolis–St. Paul to Rochester.[6]
In 2020, the airport received a $2,479,991CARES Act award.[7][8]
During the week of May 1, 2023, workers at the airport worked to rename runway 2/20 to 3/21. The renaming was caused by the magnetic north pole moving enough to change the orientation of the runway.[1]
The Rochester International Airport was the site of the six-hour 2009 tarmac stranding incident that made international news and resulted in the first fines ever imposed on airline carriers by theUnited States Department of Transportation for stranding passengers on a tarmac.[9]
In March 2019, plans for construction of an additional gate andjet bridge were announced. The proposal for the addition came after a large increase in passengers the previous year and congestion.[10] In July 2019, the Rochester Airport Commission began accepting bids for the jet bridge project. The commission also discussed repaving parts of runway 02/20 as well as additional dining and shopping options in the terminal.[11] At the end of July 2019, the airport received $3.3 million in federal grants to improvements, including the jet bridge project and runway reconstruction.[12]
In February 2020, the airport was awarded $750,000 by the United States Department of Transportation for attracting new service, with the federal grant's stated purpose being "revenue guarantee and marketing program to attract new service toDenver on United Airlines."[13] Airport directors noted that the grant does not guarantee the new destination yet and also does not exclude possible other destinations. In August 2022, the airport was awarded another $850,000 in a federal airport grant. This new grant is allowing for potential flights toDallas onAmerican Airlines.[14]
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| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| American Eagle | Chicago–O'Hare |
| Delta Connection | Minneapolis/St. Paul |
| United Express | Chicago–O'Hare (resumes April 30, 2026) |
| Destinations map |
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Destinations from Rochester International Airport Red = Year-round destination Green = Seasonal destination |
Airport directors are trying to get more service into Rochester. The directors have contacted two of the airline providers, American and Delta, about adding more destinations, and have also contactedUnited andFrontier, to bring new nonstop destinations.[15] On February 26, 2017,United announced it was adding three daily flights toChicago–O'Hare beginning June 8. The new flight was to compete with existing service fromAmerican Airlines.[16] United later added service toDenver however these services proved unsuccessful in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and were discontinued in late 2021 as United exited the Rochester market entirely.[17]
In August 2012, just days after Allegiant Air announced flights between Rochester and Phoenix (Allegiant Air has since dropped its Rochester service altogether), theUnited States Department of Transportation gave the airport $500,000 and the city of Rochester gave the airport $250,000 to help recruit more airlines and non-stop destinations.[18]
On May 31, 2018,Elite Airways announced that they would be launching service direct toPhoenix, Arizona, andSt. Augustine, Florida, starting in July 2018. This service was to allowMayo Clinic staff, patients, and families to easily move back and forth between Mayo's headquarters in Rochester and its other main facilities in the Phoenix andJacksonville metropolitan areas.[19] They ended the service on August 22, 2018, citing low bookings.
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carrier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN | 49,910 | Delta |
| 2 | Chicago–O'Hare, IL | 49,620 | American |
Rochester Aviation is the general aviation terminal at the airport. It is owned and operated by Hiawatha Aviation, Inc. The terminal provides line services, refueling services, and caters largely towards business aviation. On April 1, 2006, the ownership of Rochester Aviation was passed ontoRegent Aviation of St. Paul. In November 2007, Regent Aviation in turn sold its ownership stake in Rochester's general aviation terminal toSignature Flight Support, a worldwide fixed-base operator provider. Aircraft rental and flight instruction at RST are available throughGreat Planes Aviation, with various aircraft providing flight instruction with a group ofcertified flight instructors. The airport is also home to the Southeastern Minnesota Flying Club, which has had a presence at both RST and its predecessor Lobb Field for over 50 years.
Transportation to Rochester International Airport is available from downtown Rochester via $30 taxi or $15 shuttle service. Rochester Yellow Cab, Rochester Taxi, and Med-City Taxi service the airport with both cabs and shuttles. Uber, Lyft, and other ride share apps are also available. Ground transportation to and from MSP airport is also available.Rochester Public Transit does not serve the airport.
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