--- iata: TYS name: McGhee Tyson Airport city: Knoxville country: United States lastUpdated: '2026-09-12' officialWebsite: 'https://flyknoxville.com/' sources: - 'https://flyknoxville.com/' - 'https://flyknoxville.com/home-traveler/faqs/' - 'https://flyknoxville.com/home-traveler/amenities-accessibility/' - 'https://flyknoxville.com/home-traveler/parking-map/' - 'https://flyknoxville.com/home-traveler/car-rentals/' - 'https://flyknoxville.com/home-traveler/uber-lyft/' - 'https://flyknoxville.com/home-traveler/taxis-charters/' - 'https://flyknoxville.com/nonstop-flights/' - 'https://flyknoxville.com/home-traveler/departures-arrivals/' - >- https://flyknoxville.com/what-travelers-need-to-know-about-security-wait-times-at-tys/ - >- https://flyknoxville.com/southwest-airlines-starting-service-to-tys-march-2026/ - 'https://flyknoxville.com/reflecting-on-a-record-year-for-air-service-at-tys/' - 'https://flyknoxville.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/TYS-Stats-2025-DEC.pdf' - >- https://flyknoxville.com/introducing-flight-plan-major-expansion-and-renovation-program/ - >- https://flyknoxville.com/seen-at-tys-this-summer-more-travelers-more-improvements/ - >- https://flyknoxville.com/tys-receives-10-million-for-security-checkpoint-expansion/ - 'https://www.tysflightplan.com/' - 'https://www.airnav.com/airport/KTYS' - 'https://aviationdb.com/Aviation/OTP/Destination-OTP-2025.shtm' - 'https://www.prioritypass.com/en-GB/lounges/united-states-of-america' - 'https://katbus.com/schedules-maps/' quickFacts: - >- Official Dec 2025 activity report (calendar year): **1,821,489 enplaned + 1,808,921 deplaned = 3,630,410** total passengers (+8.70% vs **3,339,757**). Freight **61,875,096 lb**. Ops **113,849** (including **6,752 military**). Official 9 Mar 2026 recap: October 2025 was the busiest month on record (**more than 358,000**). MKAA FY2025 ACFR “3.55 million / six passenger airlines” is a **fiscal** window that closed **before Southwest** — do not mix it with the calendar-year 3.63 million. - >- One civil terminal at **2055 Alcoa Highway, Alcoa, TN 37701**. Main / 24-hour line **865-342-3000** / info@tys.org. Complaints **865-342-3001**. Lost and found Dispatch **865-342-3088**. Parking **Republic 865-970-2749**. Wheelchair-from-vehicle **865-342-3180**. Owner / operator **Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority (MKAA)**; president **Patrick W. Wilson, A.A.E.** (AirNav manager). MKAA also runs Downtown Island (**DKX**) — **do not merge DKX into TYS.** - >- Official FAQ airline list (12 Sep 2026): **Allegiant, American, Avelo, Delta, Frontier, Southwest (starting March 2026), United**. Southwest actually launched **5 Mar 2026** (official Aug 2025 press: BNA twice daily + daily BWI / DAL / MCO). Live official FIDS on 12 Sep 2026 already prints Southwest on **BNA, BWI, DAL, MCO, and DEN** — the FAQ “starting March 2026” line is leftover. Saturday FIDS did **not** print a Frontier or Avelo row; treat those as confirm-on-the-board, not a promise. - >- **No passenger lounge.** Official amenities / dining cards name Ruby Tuesday, Starbucks, Tennessee Marketplace, Quiznos / Express Uno / Cinnabon, Smoky Mountain Travelmart, and a shoe-shine — not a club. Live Priority Pass USA (12 Sep 2026) has CHS / GSP / GRR / XNA / SYR / TUL / COS / PVD — **not TYS**. Aggregator **“The Club TYS” is fiction.** - >- Two runways (AirNav): **5L/23R 10,000×150** concrete, **5R/23L 9,000×150** asphalt (AirNav: 5R/23L surface **poor**). Elev **986.4 ft**, ~10 mi S of Knoxville / official copy **12 miles south of downtown**. Civil passenger terminal on a joint-use field with Tennessee ANG **134th Air Refueling Wing / McGhee Tyson ANGB**. **Do not create a second airport for KTYS or an ANGB page.** - >- `lib/airports.json`: IATA **TYS**, ICAO **KTYS**, 35.810916, −83.993946, America/New_York. AirNav 35.8110911, −83.9940672. Official FAQ: **not an international airport / no customs office**. AirNav “customs landing rights” is field CBP for GA / military — **no scheduled international passenger airline** on the live FIDS. FAQ still tells you to arrive 2.5 hours for “international flights” — leftover. bentoTips: - label: TSA title: 'One checkpoint, and it now overflows' detail: >- Official June 12, 2026 notice: queues have been spilling outside the checkpoint. Peaks 5–7 a.m., 11 a.m.–1 p.m., and 4–6 p.m. That same notice wants 2.5 hours; the June 1 summer note and the standing FAQ still say 2 hours domestic. Build the longer window on those peaks. Checkpoint and ticket counters open about two hours before the first departure — the building is 24/7, the sterile side is not. summary: >- Official pages describe one TSA, not two. Arrive 2.5 hours on the 5–7 a.m. bank until the Flight Plan checkpoint expansion is actually open. category: timing - label: Layout title: 'One building, 12 gates, Gate 13 not open yet' detail: >- Ticketing / TSA upstairs; bags, rentals, taxi, and rideshare downstairs. Live FIDS on 12 Sep 2026 pins through Gate 12 (Southwest mostly 7; Allegiant 2; Delta 3/5; United 9/11; American 8/10/12). Official June 2026 Flight Plan note: Gate 13 opens “this fall” — do not navigate as if it is already boarding. summary: >- After the single checkpoint you can walk the whole sterile concourse. Wrong gate is a walk, not a reclear. category: terminal - label: Food title: Eat after TSA — landside is a gift shop detail: >- Official amenities (12 Sep 2026): Ruby Tuesday left of the checkpoint 07:00–19:00; Starbucks right 05:00–18:00; Tennessee Marketplace right 04:30–20:00; Quiznos / Express Uno / Cinnabon right Mon/Thu/Fri/Sun 05:00–19:00 and Tue/Wed/Sat 05:00–13:00. Smoky Mountain Travelmart is landside, level 2, before TSA. summary: >- Official pages put every kitchen past security. If you have not cleared TSA, Travelmart is the only named landside shop. category: food - label: Lounge title: There is no passenger lounge detail: >- Live Priority Pass USA does not list TYS. Do not buy a third-party “The Club TYS” pass. Construction you will feel instead: $186 million garage / roadway through summer 2027, and a TSA expansion that had $10 million in June 2026 ATP money but is still in design / early work. summary: >- No club, no CLEAR, no public bus. Budget the extra drive-and-queue time, not a day-pass. category: status lounges: [] waterOptions: - kind: purchase name: Tennessee Marketplace bottled water zone: airside price: posted register price summary: >- Official clock 04:30–20:00, on your right after TSA. Official pages do not print a bottle price. location: 'Airside, immediately right after the single TSA checkpoint' terminal: Concourse isBestValue: true - kind: purchase name: Starbucks bottled water zone: airside price: posted register price summary: >- Official clock 05:00–18:00, on your right after TSA. Official pages do not print a bottle price. location: 'Airside, right of the TSA checkpoint on the official amenities card' terminal: Concourse - kind: purchase name: Smoky Mountain Travelmart zone: landside price: posted register price summary: >- Official amenities: second level, before TSA; hours follow the flight schedule. Use this only if you have not cleared security. location: 'Landside level 2, before the TSA Security Checkpoint' terminal: Ticketing - kind: refill name: Concourse restroom fountains zone: airside summary: >- Official amenities and FAQ do not publish a bottle-filler map. Treat this as a hunt at the Gate 2 and Gate 7 family-restroom banks, not a pin. location: >- Hunt restroom banks after the single TSA — official pages do not map fillers terminal: Concourse airportistScore: 6.7 slug: tys region: North America --- > Markdown for [/airports/tys](/airports/tys). Append `.md` to any page URL (or send `Accept: text/markdown`) for an agent-readable copy. - [HTML page](/airports/tys) - [Lounge directory](/airports/tys/lounges.md) - [Sitemap](/sitemap.md) # McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS) Knoxville, United States · North America A one-terminal East Tennessee field that just ran 3.63 million passengers through a building sized for 2.6 million: easy to learn, no lounge, no bus, and a checkpoint that now overflows on the 5 a.m. bank. ## Airportist Score **6.7 / 10** Weighted sum of the six published categories (no holistic fudge). - Ease of use (25%): 8.3 — Wayfinding, security wait, and layout. - Comfort & amenities (20%): 7.2 — Seating, Wi-Fi, cleanliness, and quiet. - Food & retail (15%): 7.0 — Food and retail quality and variety. - Ground access (15%): 6.4 — Transit, taxi, and parking to the city. - Reliability (15%): 6.4 — Delays, cancellations, and weather resilience. - Lounges (10%): 2.0 — Worth-it density and access quality. ## At a glance - Passengers: 3.63 million (CY 2025 official) - Terminals: 1 terminal, 12 gates, 1 TSA (Gate 13 opening fall 2026) - Typical security: 15 min - On-time: 70% - Disruption: minor ## Best for - Smokies / East Tennessee trips that want one TSA and a short walk - Southwest and Allegiant leisure nonstops - Drivers who will use Economy $13 or the free Phone & Wait lot ## Watch out for - Morning and late-afternoon TSA queues that spill outside the checkpoint - No passenger lounge and no public bus to Knoxville - Garage / roadway construction through summer 2027 - FAQ still says Southwest “starts March 2026” and Economy $11 — both leftover ## More intel - [Lounge directory](/airports/tys/lounges.md) (free) - [Getting there](/airports/tys/getting-there.md) (free) - [Amenities](/airports/tys/amenities.md) - [Traveler tips](/airports/tys/tips.md) - [Water](/airports/tys/water.md) - [Full guide](/airports/tys/guide.md) - [Disruptions](/airports/tys/disruptions.md) - [Reviews](/airports/tys/reviews.md) (free)