The Ohio State University Airport (OSU) is one of the leading general aviation facilities in the nation, providing educational opportunities to the universitys students and aircraft services to many of central Ohios pilots and businesses.

The OSU Airport began in 1943 as a flight training facility for military and civilian pilots, operated by the OSU School of Aviation. The OSU Airport now operates as a self-supporting entity of The Ohio State University through the Department of Aerospace Engineering & Aviation.

The Department oversees all aspects of the Airport from Airport Management, to Fixed Base Operations, to Airport Maintenance.

Today, the OSU Airport serves as a general aviation reliever for Port Columbus International Airport. Its status as a Part 139 Certificated Airport assures the aviation community that the facility will meet specific standards in terms of operations and maintenance.

The OSU Airport is home to 230 aircraft, including single- and multi-engine, piston and turbine engine aircraft and rotorcraft.  The OSU Airport oversees an estimated 100,000 operations per year, including corporate activity, student training, and pleasure flying. By comparison, the OSU Airport generally ranks in the top five airports in Ohio in the number of take-offs and landings with Cleveland Hopkins, Port Columbus, Dayton, and Cincinnati Lunken.

Primary users of the facility include local businesses and residents; as well as, transient users. The Airport is also home to the OSU Department of Aerospace Engineering & Aviation Gas Turbine Laboratory, several facilities operated by the OSU College of Agriculture, the Ohio Department of Transportations Office of Aviation, fourteen corporate flight departments, and four flying clubs.

Serving the Business Community
The availability of the Airport to current and future users is important when one realizes that airports, even general aviation facilities, are a great generator of economic development. In fact, economic impact studies being conducted across the country indicate that major employers rank the proximity to a general aviation airport fifth behind labor supplies, highway access, commercial service airports, and urban centers when selecting a site to locate.

The Airport is strategically located to serve the rapidly expanding north outerbelt of Columbus, as well as the new commercial centers in Worthington, Dublin, and Hilliard.

Nationally, the Airport serves as a vital link between the central Ohio business community and their principal destination. Businesses benefit from a brief two-hour flight to 60% of the nations population, 60% of the nations manufacturing, and 60% of the nations purchasing power.

Based on a recent study, the OSU Airport is estimated to contribute roughly $103.6 million annually to the communitys economy through direct and indirect means. Direct impacts include the payroll of airport personnel, revenues and taxes received through the sale of aviation fuel and pilot supplies, and revenues generated by the leasing of airport property. Indirect impacts are generated when airport users visit local restaurants, stay at local hotels, and rent cars for off-airport travel.