The numbers aren’t clear. We do know that in 1929, Ransom Field opened as the first airport in Traverse City. But we don’t know how many passengers they carried. They flew a Boeing 80A aircraft that could handle up to 18 passengers. There was only a direct flight to Grand Rapids. They not only took passengers but also carried airmail. The cost of that airmail stamp was five cents per ounce, quite a lot more than the standard two cents per ounce for regular postage. But you gladly paid the extra if it was urgent to get that letter up north, there was no UPS at that time.
Ransom Field sat atop the hill on Veterans Drive, which is currently home to Veterans Memorial Gardens, a cemetery. There are few, if any, signs that an airport ever operated here. Among the office buildings and townhouses, the hilly terrain becomes flat. You can envision that before the trees flourished, this elevated area was a welcome sight for pilots looking for a place to land as they took that long trek up from downstate.
Ransom Field has come a long way over the years, quite literally. It moved to the east side of town, in an area that was considered a long way from the city. Today, it is just outside the city limits. It changed its name to Cherry Capital Airport. And those Boeing 80A bi-wing propeller airplanes have been replaced by Boeing 737s and similar jets that carry between 125 and 200 passengers.
Photo credit: Traverse Area District Library
The Cherry Capital Airport is not only a welcome mat to all of northern Michigan, but it is the hub of a vibrant city within a city. This is an aviation network that includes the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station, the Northwestern Michigan College flight school, air ambulance services for Munson Medical Center, and helicopter and fixed-wing charter aviation businesses.
Klein makes an easy argument for the terminal expansion. Since the current airport was built in 2004, air travel has nearly tripled out of TVC. “Where we struggle is we’re trying to fit three times the volume of passengers through the building. So, people are crowded.” He adds that the new construction will make the airport more attractive for airlines to add flights, add more seats, which can perhaps reduce airfares, and give a greater boost to the local economy.
The ribbon cutting for the new terminal is planned for the spring of 2028. Klein expects to be there with scissors in hand to welcome the first visitors to the new gates. But he’s already keeping an eye on what comes next. If the travel trends continue that have ushered in the exponential growth at Cherry Capital Airport, a third terminal, Concourse C, could follow. First, Concourse B needs to open and welcome visitors to the region.
Cherry Capital Airport certainly has come a long way since the first flight into Ransom Field. It has played an important role in aviation history. During WWII, the US Navy took over the airport and used it as a training facility. A young Lieutenant, George H.W. Bush, flew bone-chilling open-cockpit flights over West Grand Traverse Bay. That Lieutenant went on to become a U.S. President. Around the same time, the Navy also operated a top-secret drone aircraft development program long before drone flight became a common wartime practice.
Those pilots who first flew the Boeing 80A biplanes into Ransom Field with 18 passengers would not recognize how aviation has dramatically changed. It was a different time, and passenger air travel was something new. They would never have envisioned how Cherry Capital Airport has grown.
For Klein, those first passengers, and the air passengers today, share a common thread: they want a great flight. The new terminal will play a critical role. “The bottom line with this expansion is that it’s going to be a better customer experience,” Klein said.
We think those Boeing 80A pilots would be pleased.
