Concord–Padgett Regional Airport

For other airports in places named Concord, see Concord Airport.

Concord–Padgett Regional Airport (IATA: USA, ICAO: KJQF, FAA LID: JQF) is a city-owned, public-use airport located 7 nmi (13 km; 8.1 mi) west of the central business district of Concord, a city in Cabarrus County, North Carolina, United States.^[2] According to the FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2009–2013,^[4] it is classified as a reliever airport for Charlotte Douglas International Airport.^[2]

Concord–Padgett Regional Airport
IATA: USA ICAO: KJQF FAA LID: JQF
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	City of Concord
Serves	Charlotte metropolitan area
Location	Concord, North Carolina
Opened	November 18, 1994; 30 years ago (1994-11-18)
Operating base for	Avelo Airlines[1]
Elevation AMSL	705 ft / 215 m
Coordinates	35°23′16″N 080°42′33″W
Website	www.concordairportnc.com
Maps
FAA airport diagram
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 2/20 7,402 2,256 Asphalt
Statistics (2024)
Aircraft operations 76,305 Based aircraft 233 Total passengers 257,000
Source: Federal Aviation Administration[2][3]

Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier for the FAA and IATA, Concord–Padgett Regional Airport is assigned JQF by the FAA but had no designation from the IATA until August 22, 2013, when it was assigned USA by the IATA.^[5] The airport's ICAO identifier is KJQF.

Because multiple race car teams that base aircraft fleets at JQF and the airport’s proximity to the Charlotte Motor Speedway, the airport is sometimes referred to as "NASCAR's Airport."

In April 2018, the airport was renamed to honor longtime Mayor of Concord, Scott Padgett. An official ceremony was held on November 18, 2019, for the airport's 25th anniversary.^[6]

Facilities and aircraft

Concord-Padgett Regional Airport covers an area of 750 acres (300 ha) at an elevation of 705 feet (215 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 2/20 with an asphalt surface measuring 7,402 by 100 feet (2,256 x 30 m).^[2]

For the 12-month period ending May 31, 2022, the airport had 86,654 aircraft operations, an average of 237 per day: 87% general aviation, 9% air taxi, 1% military and 4% scheduled commercial. At that time, there were 233 aircraft based at this airport: 161 single-engine, 29 multi-engine, 35 jet and 8 helicopter.^[2]

NASCAR

Since the airport's expansion of its runway to accommodate mid-size commercial aircraft in the early 2000s, the airport has been quite popular among local NASCAR teams. Teams charter flights out of Concord-Padgett instead of Charlotte Douglas because of its affordability and proximity to their headquarters.

Commercial passenger service

On August 20, 2013, Allegiant Air announced it would begin nonstop jet service between Concord and Orlando Sanford International Airport in December 2013. Since then the airline has expanded its nonstop service to several other vacation destinations in Florida as well as announcing new nonstop service to New Orleans. An existing hangar to the left of the main terminal was converted to a separate temporary terminal for this new commercial service. A larger permanent commercial service terminal opened in October 2016. According to FlightAware, Allegiant serves the airport with Airbus A320 jetliners.^[7] On March 4, 2020, Allegiant announced Concord would be the airline's 21st operating base, housing two Airbus planes beginning October 7, 2020.^[8]

Avelo Airlines also flies to the airport.

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations
Allegiant Air	Fort Lauderdale, Orlando/Sanford, Punta Gorda (FL),[9] St. Petersburg/Clearwater
Avelo Airlines	Lakeland (ends April 28, 2025),[10] Manchester (NH),[11] Nashville (ends April 28, 2025),[12] New Haven,[13] Rochester (NY)[11] Seasonal: Long Island/Islip (begins May 22, 2025)[14]

Statistics

Top destinations

Busiest domestic routes from Concord Regional
(December 2023 - November 2024)^[15]

Rank	City	Passengers	Airlines
1	St. Petersburg/Clearwater, Florida	32,000	Allegiant
2	Fort Lauderdale, Florida	26,000	Allegiant
3	Orlando/Sanford, Florida	25,000	Allegiant
4	Punta Gorda, Florida	17,000	Allegiant
5	New Haven, Connecticut	15,000	Avelo
6	Lakeland, Florida	1,000	Avelo
7	Rochester, New York	1,000	Avelo
8	Hartford, Connecticut	1,000	Avelo
9	Wilmington, Delaware	1,000	Avelo
10	Albany, New York	1,000	Avelo

Airline market share

Largest airlines at USA (December 2023 - November 2024)^[16]

Rank	Airline	Passengers	Share
1	Allegiant Airlines	201,000	84.12%
2	Avelo Airlines	37,950	15.88%

See also

• List of airports in North Carolina