Nantucket Memorial Airport
Summertime and the living is easy
If you’ve never visited the New England island of Nantucket, you are in for a treat.
Getting there
Nantucket Memorial Airport (ACK)
14 Airport Road
Nantucket, Massachusetts 02554
508-325-5300
100 LL and Jet A
FBO: 508-325-5307
That is if the weather cooperates; Nantucket is known as the Little Grey Lady of the Sea because even in the warmest days of summer, the Atlantic Ocean island can be socked in by fog. The 48-square-mile island is located 30 miles off the coast making it one of the easternmost destinations in the continental United States (Acadia National Park in Maine takes that honor).
Nantucket is a seaport and a summer colony, founded on the whaling and fishing industry and now an exclusive vacation hotspot. The population of the tourist destination increases to about 80,000 in the summer months (its year-round population is about 15,000). The best ways to get here are flying—airlines, charter, and GA—although the ferry from Hyannis can be your best bet when the fog rolls in.
Nantucket Memorial Airport (ACK) is on the south side of the island and is just three miles from the town center. It has two paved runways; 6/24 is 6,303 feet by 150 feet and 15/33 is 4,500 feet by 100 feet. The airport has approximately 50,000 airport operations per year but is second only to Boston’s Logan International (BOS) as the busiest airport in Massachusetts during the summer. Commercial operations such as American Eagle, Cape Air, JetBlue, Delta Connection, and United Express serve the island, mostly seasonally. The airport has a rich history of air carrier operations, from Northeast Airlines in the 1970s to Air New England in 1975 and then Gull Air, Hyannis Aviation, and Nor-East Commuter in the 1980s. Until 1989, PBA (Provincetown-Boston Airlines) served Nantucket. You may remember the 1990s television show Wings in which two brothers operated a single-airplane airline called Sandpiper Air. The series, which ran for eight seasons, set the airport as Tom Nevers Field, not the actual Nantucket Memorial Airport.
GA is especially welcome here. With the average house price topping $2 million, the town airport sees its fair share of jets and private aircraft. The gray clapboard terminal building gives a hint at the architecture to come throughout the small towns on the island. The gray and white-trimmed houses, stores, and restaurants are accented by the blue and pink hydrangeas of summer, creating the quintessential Nantucket atmosphere so loved by visitors. The terminal building was renovated in 2009 but kept its Nantucket vibe.
In the 1930s, a farmer in the Nobadeer section of the island plowed his corn fields to create a landing strip. Leslie Holm then partnered with Dave Raub to establish Nobadeer Flying Service and the Nantucket Flying Club. The first airshow was held August 6, 1939. During World War II the U.S. Navy controlled the field and it was returned to the town of Nantucket in 1946 and dedicated as the Nantucket Memorial Airport in honor of the 11 men from the island who died in the war.
Taxis, car rentals, livery service, and bicycles are the way to get around once you’re on the ground. And think ahead; reservations for hotels, Airbnbs, guest houses, and camping must be made in advance. It’s summer on the island, after all.
