Grand Rapids—Itasca County Airport - GPZ Minnesota
Ted Tinquist, Sr. opened the Grand Rapids-Itasca County Airport or Gordon Newstrom Field or Gordy Newstrom Field in 1933 as an airstrip where he provided flight training in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. Nearby, Gordon Newstrom also had a flight school, which had over 100 students after World War II (WWII). However, it quickly slacked off, leading Newstrom to strike a deal with Tinquist in 1950 to move his operations to what is now known as the GPZ- Grand Rapids-Itasca County Airport.
Best Time to Visit
Back then, the airport was known as Grand Rapids Municipal Airport. It was renamed when Itasca County formed a joint airport commission. Since then, the commission has been overseeing and governing its operations. In 1980, continuous improvements are being made in the airport to accommodate the growing demands and changing trends in the tourism industry. The Grand Rapids-Itasca County Airport (GPZ) operates on a 1,400-acre land. It sees heavy traffic every day, as it caters primarily to the central business district of Grand Rapids. Annually, it sees about 20,000 aircraft movements. The airport has three (3) runways. These runways are 5,747’, 3,000’, and 1,334’ in length, respectively. As of 2017, there are 75 aircrafts based in it - 71 single-engine aircrafts, three (3) multi-engine aircrafts, and one (1) jet. Interesting destinations nearby include Hibbing, Virginia, and Britt.
What to Do & Area Attractions
Some of the best and most affordable hotels near GPZ-Grand Rapids-Itasca County Airport are the Super 8 by Wyndham Grand Rapids, the comfy Country Inn & Suites by Radisson Grand Rapids, and the Americinn by Wyndham Grand Rapids. All mentioned hotels are not more than 1km away from the airport.
Another airport in Minnesota is the HIB-Chisholm-Hibbing Airport in Hibbing, MN.
