Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport

Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport
IATA: GAL – ICAO: PAGA – FAA LID: GAL
Summary
Airport type		Public
Owner		Alaska DOT&PF - Northern Region
Location		Galena, Alaska
Elevation AMSL		153 ft / 47 m
Coordinates		64°44′10″N 156°56′15″W / 64.73611°N 156.9375°W / 64.73611; -156.9375
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
	ft	m
7/25	7,249	2,209	Asphalt/Concrete
6/24	2,786	849	Gravel
Statistics
Based aircraft			13
Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1]

Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport

Location of Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport, Alaska

Galena Airport was used by the USAF 317th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron at Elmendorf AFB as a forward-deployed Base to intercept Soviet aircraft intruding on United States airspace over the Bering Sea. This aircraft, Convair F-102A-70-CO Delta Dagger 56-1257, 1965. Aircraft was retired to MASDC as FJ0367 Mar 16, 1975. Converted to QF-102A, later to PQM-102B and later expended as an aerial target during the 1980s at Holloman AFB, New Mexico

Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (IATA: GAL, ICAO: PAGA, FAA LID: GAL) is a state-owned public-use airport located in Galena, a city in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area of the U.S. state of Alaska.^[1]

Facilities

Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport covers an area of 1,250 acres (510 ha) which contains two runways: 7/25 with an asphalt/concrete pavement measuring 7,249 by 150 feet (2,209 x 46 m) and 6/24 with a gravel surface measuring 2,786 by 80 feet (849 x 24 m).^[1]

The airport also sports a ski-jump takeoff ramp at one end and provisions for arresting gear (see picture, ski jump at 07 end) at the other, a leftover from the Cold War years as Galena Air Force Base, as tactical aircraft required more landing and takeoff space than was available on the runway.

Airlines and non-stop destinations

• Arctic Circle Air (Fairbanks) ^[2]
• Everts Air
• Era Alaska Aviation (Anchorage, Fairbanks, Huslia, Kaltag, Koyukuk, Nulato, Ruby)^[3]
• Warbelow's Air Ventures

Top Destinations

Busiest domestic routes out of GAL
(June 2010 - May 2011) ^[4]

Rank	City	Passengers	Carriers
1	Fairbanks, AK	7,000	Arctic Circle, Era Alaska
2	Nulato, AK	2,000	Era Alaska
3	Kaltag, AK	1,000	Era Alaska

Military use

Galena Airport was used as a transport base during World War II, facilitating the transit of Lend-Lease aircraft to the Soviet Union.

Galena Air Force Base was also used by the USAF during the Cold War as an interceptor base for aircraft patrolling the western areas of Alaska. It was closed in 1993, however the military airfield is maintained by a private contractor as a weather/emergency diversion airfield since Regular Air Force fighter-interceptor alert operations ended

See also

	United States Air Force portal
	Military of the United States portal
	World War II portal

• Alaska World War II Army Airfields

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

1. ^ ^{a b c} FAA Airport Master Record for GAL (Form 5010 PDF), effective 2007-07-05
2. ^ Fairbanks Schedule. Arctic Circle Air. 24 April 2006.
3. ^ 2007 Timetable (PDF). Frontier Flying Service. Retrieved 29 August 2007.
4. ^ http://www.transtats.bts.gov/airports.asp?pn=1&Airport=GAL&Airport_Name=Galena,%20AK:%20Galena%20Airport&carrier=FACTS

www.flyera.com

External links

• FAA Alaska airport diagram (GIF)
• FAA Airport Diagram for Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) (PDF), effective 20 October 2011
• FAA Terminal Procedures for Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL), effective 20 October 2011
• Resources for this airport:
  • AirNav airport information for PAGA
  • ASN accident history for GAL
  • FlightAware airport information and live flight tracker for PAGA
  • NOAA/NWS latest weather observations for PAGA
  • SkyVector aeronautical chart for GAL