Grand Rapids Airport Guide: West Michigan’s Busy Gateway
Grand Rapids Airport has hit record traffic as West Michigan grows. Read about its history, three runways, airlines, routes, transport and plans.
By The Aviation Hub
5 min read
Updated October 20, 2026 
West Michigan’s main air gateway has been setting records. Grand Rapids Airport, officially Gerald R. Ford International Airport, handled about 4.3 million passengers in 2025, its busiest year yet. It serves the state’s second largest city and a wide region of furniture makers, medical firms, lakeshore resorts and universities. Nonstop flights reach 39 US airports, and a major expansion is adding gates, a new control tower and facilities for international arrivals.
Grand Rapids Airport at a Glance
The IATA code is GRR and the ICAO code is KGRR. Grand Rapids Airport lies in Cascade Charter Township, about 13 miles (21 km) southeast of downtown Grand Rapids. The elevation is 794 feet (242 metres). There are three runways and one terminal with two concourses.
Traffic reached roughly 4.3 million passengers in 2025, up about 3 per cent. Allegiant Air is the largest carrier, with nearly 19 per cent of passengers, and runs an operating base here. Delta, American, United and Southwest are also major players. Kent County owns the field, and an independent airport authority manages it. Details are on the airport’s official website.
How Grand Rapids’ Airport Came to Be
Grand Rapids broke ground on its first airport in November 1919, about four miles south of downtown. The city claims the first scheduled air service in the United States, a 1926 route to Dearborn, though the claim is hard to verify. That older field served the region for four decades.
The current site in Cascade Township opened on 23 November 1963 as Kent County Airport and was dedicated in June 1964. The first scheduled jet, a United Boeing 737-200, arrived from Chicago in April 1968. The airport became Kent County International in January 1977.
In December 1999 it was renamed after Gerald R. Ford, the 38th president, who represented the Grand Rapids area in Congress from 1949 to 1973. In January 2007 an Air Force VC-25 brought his remains home to the city for burial at his presidential museum. Grand Rapids Airport also made history in 2002 as the first US airport to trial new TSA baggage screening machines, which had to sit in the passenger lobby.
Runways at Grand Rapids Airport
The main runway, 08R/26L, measures 3,048 metres (10,001 feet) long and 46 metres (151 feet) wide. Runway 17/35 is 2,591 metres (8,501 feet) long and also 46 metres wide. The short parallel runway, 08L/26R, is 1,524 metres (5,001 feet) long and 30 metres (98 feet) wide, used by general aviation. All three are concrete.
The two main runways have instrument landing systems. Prevailing westerly winds favour runway 26L for much of the year, with arrivals coming in from the east. Runway 17/35 handles northerly and southerly winds, common with winter weather systems.
Winter is the main challenge. Lake effect snow from Lake Michigan can bring heavy bursts, and crews keep the runways open with large clearing fleets.
Terminals and Airlines
The terminal has two concourses. Concourse A has 15 gates used by Delta, American and United. Concourse B has 8 gates used by Southwest, Sun Country, Frontier and Allegiant. A security consolidation project, part of the Gateway Transformation, was completed in 2017.
Allegiant uses Grand Rapids Airport as an operating base, flying Airbus A320 family jets to Florida, Arizona and other leisure markets. Delta links the city with Atlanta, Detroit and Minneapolis, United with Chicago O’Hare and Denver, and American with its hubs. Southwest and Frontier add more low cost options. All three alliances are present through the legacy carriers.
FedEx Express flies to Memphis, and FedEx Feeder flights operated by CSA Air reach Pellston, Sault Ste. Marie and Traverse City.
Routes and Destinations
Chicago O’Hare is the busiest route, with about 311,000 passengers between April 2025 and March 2026. Atlanta follows at around 215,000, then Denver at about 182,000. Detroit and Minneapolis complete the top five, each above 130,000.
Florida dominates leisure travel, with cities such as Orlando and Tampa busiest in winter. Arizona and Las Vegas are also popular. Delta’s seasonal Boeing 757-200s were the largest aircraft to serve the field.
International flights have been rare at Grand Rapids Airport. Air Canada flew to Toronto from 2008 to 2013, the only international service. That should change once the new inspection facility opens.
Getting to and from Grand Rapids Airport
Most travellers drive. The airport sits close to Interstate 96 and state routes M-6, M-37 and M-11, and downtown Grand Rapids is around 20 minutes away by car. Parking is plentiful, and a new rental car facility and parking ramp worth about $156 million opened in June 2026. Avis, Budget, Enterprise, Hertz, Dollar, National and Alamo operate on site.
Rapid bus route 27 runs to Woodland Mall on weekdays from 6am to 10pm, with connections to downtown. It is the cheapest sensible option for light travellers, though it takes longer than driving. Taxis and car services from Metro Cab and Metro Cars are available. There is no rail link, and the Lake Michigan beaches around Holland are roughly an hour away by car.
Spotting and Photography
Grand Rapids Airport offers a varied mix of regional jets, Allegiant and Southwest narrow bodies and FedEx freighters. Public roads around the perimeter give views of approaches to runway 26L and runway 17/35. The surrounding farmland and woodland keep sightlines open.
The sun sits in the southern sky for much of the day, so positions on the southern side of the main runway generally offer the best light. Autumn colours and clear winter days after a snowfall make for striking images.
Stay on public land, keep away from fences and follow instructions from airport police. Never stop on busy roads or block access gates to get a shot.
What Comes Next
Project Elevate is the big story. It includes a $90 million expansion of Concourse A with eight extra gates, a $50 million relocated air traffic control tower and a $25 million federal inspection station for international arrivals. A separate $135 million Terminal Enhancement Project, announced in 2024, is due to finish by 2027.
The airport also hosts the West Michigan Aviation Academy, a public charter high school focused on aviation. Compare it with other Great Lakes airports on our Airports of the World map. The verdict: Grand Rapids Airport is growing fast and investing heavily, and international flights could be its next milestone.
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