Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport

Bradenton and Sarasota both initially had their own airports: Bradenton Airport (established between 1935-1937, abandoned during WWII) and Lowe Field in Sarasota (opened in 1929, with flights starting in 1937 but often being canceled due to a wet landing strip - it ended up being used for student pilots, mosquito control and crop dusters until being sold in 1961). As Lowe Field had issues, construction on the Sarasota-Bradenton Airport began in 1939, opened in 1940 (at a total cost of $1 million), and the Sarasota Manatee Airport Authority was created the following year. The airport was leased to the US Army Air Corps in 1942 as part of WWII, and it was known as the Sarasota Army Airfield. Over time, it was home to the 97th Bombardment Group (training with B-17 Flying Fortresses), the 92nd Operations Group, and the 69th Fighter Squadron (trained with P-39 Airacobras. The base closed after three years of use and was transferred back to civilian service in 1947. The first airline to arrive was National Airlines in 1947. As the airport was not in excellent condition, the 1955 Sarasota Manatee Airport Authority Act was passed by the Florida Legislature, giving the airport more legal power and guidelines to operate. Construction started on a terminal building in 1958, and it opened in 1959.
Furthermore, a control tower, ticketing area, offices, gift shop, and balcony whereby passengers could watch their planes arrive were all unveiled. Eastern Airlines came in 1961, and the first jet flights were Boeing 727s operated by Eastern in 1964. Several commuter airlines also served the airport, and a facility for commuter flights was added in 1983. In 1987 work began to add a new terminal with parking areas and ramp space, and the new building opened in 1989. In 1992 the airport was designated port of entry status. A new air control tower opened in 2017. The airport experienced rapid growth in the late 2010s thanks to Allegiant Airlines beginning to service the airport.

The airport is three miles north of Downtown Sarasota and six miles south of Bradenton. 

• To accommodate recent growth, a new terminal will be built, with hopes for completion by 2024. It is to have five gates and will increase capacity by 2.5 million. 
• On September 11th, 2001, Air Force One was parked at SRQ as then-President George W. Bush was reading to a classroom at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota when he was informed of the attacks. 
• In the 40s, the airport was known by the IATA code RS, but growth prompted the need for three-character codes. Originally, the airport was given the designation SSO, but this was too close to the distress code SOS, so the Q was placed into the code as filler text. SRQ is now used as a nickname for the Sarasota area.