Taos Regional Airport in Taos, NM

The Taos Regional Airport in Taos, New Mexico is a public airport located eight miles (13 kilometers) northwest of the town of Taos in Taos County.

The airport has one runway and covers 18 acres. The runway is surfaced in asphalt and is oriented from northeast to southeast and at 5,798 feet long is the shortest runway in any city in northern New Mexico.

Runway length is important for safety reasons since pilots need enough runway to safely land a plane. Since the Taos Regional Airport's runway is so short, pilots usually end up using 80% to 90% of the runway to land and to take up. This leaves not much room for error or difficult conditions such as ice or wet payment.

The Taos Regional Airport also has the shortest runway of any city located above 5,000 feet above sea level in New Mexico. The runway can handle planes with a weight of up to 24,000 pound per wheel. The Taos area is the largest population in New Mexico that's served by a runway shorter than 6,500 feet.

A larger runway that's 8600 feet long and 100 feet wide is in the approval process. After FAA approval, it could take up to three years to allocate the funds to build the runway, and another six to nine months to build it. Cost for the new runway is estimated to be between $12 and $20 million.

The Taos Regional Airport has a small public terminal mid-field which offers the public free wireless Internet access, bathrooms, a meeting area and seating for up to 15 people.