South Dakota Airports

Aviation in South Dakota

South Dakota is served by a network of 161 public-use airports recorded in the FAA's NASR Airport Master Record. The mix breaks down into 0 large_airport, 9 medium_airport, and 152 small_airport. Together they form the on-the-ground network that connects South Dakota residents to the rest of the country and, in many cases, to international destinations through the larger airports profiled elsewhere in this directory.

FAA region: South Dakota falls inside the FAA's Great Lakes Region, The region oversees airport certification, safety inspections, and air-traffic-control coordination for every airport in this state.

All 161 airports in South Dakota

Travel context

Travelers comparing flight options inside South Dakota should look beyond the obvious large_airport entry. Many travelers reflexively book through the biggest airport in their state, but for short-haul itineraries a closer medium_airport or small_airport can shave an hour off the total door-to-door time even when its ticket price is slightly higher. The opposite is also true for long-haul or international travel, where the broader carrier selection at the large_airport typically wins on both price and routing.

For multi-airport metropolitan areas, and several states have them, pay attention to which carrier alliance dominates each airport. A traveler with frequent-flyer status on one alliance will usually find the better experience at the alliance's home airport, even at the cost of a slightly longer drive.

Related references