Welcome to KRDU, Raleigh-Durham International Airport!
Located between the capital of the U.S. state of North Carolina, Raleigh, and its neighboring city, Durham, KRDU is a beautiful and constantly evolving international airport in the heart of the Research Triangle, a global hub of science, technology, and healthcare. Known as the City of Oaks, Raleigh is full of vibrant nature, including the massive Umstead State Park, which you can’t miss on your way into RDU sitting just to the southeast.
RDU’s destinations include nearly every major city in the U.S., as well as destinations across Canada, Central America, the Caribbean, and Europe. It also serves as a focus city for Delta Air Lines, and is a hub for the up and coming Breeze Airways.
This will serve as your guide to the airport from a real-life local who visits on a weekly basis. Let’s get started!
The Airport
History
KRDU opened in 1943 as Raleigh-Durham airport, initially only served by Eastern Airlines. Though the airport grew quickly in the post-WWII years, it mostly served as a smaller regional airport until the 1980s, when American Airlines chose to use RDU as a new southeast hub.
American operated out of RDU as a hub airport from 1987 to 1995, introducing the first international flights from the airport to Paris-Orly and the Caribbean. American also led to the buildup of the airport’s facilities, including what is now Terminal 2.
The hub at RDU did not play out well for American, leading it to close the hub at RDU, though it did maintain its Raleigh to London flight to Gatwick. Into the late 1990s and early 2000s, Midway Airlines used RDU as a hub, operating to destinations up and down the east coast of the United States.
Despite floundering as a hub for American and later Midway as well, the economic boom in the Triangle region in the 2000s and 2010s led to a huge expansion in the number of airlines and destinations at RDU, including the return to cities like Paris with Delta. RDU is unique in that it has almost equal numbers of flights between American, Delta, and United, with all three operating flights to all of their major US hubs and many other smaller cities.
The pandemic temporarily dampened RDU’s growth, as it did many other airports around the world, but the years following it have seen even more growth at RDU, both domestically, with airlines like Breeze turning the airport into one of their primary hubs, and with international carriers. Just since 2022, RDU has seen new routes from Icelandair, Air France (taking over the RDU-CDG from Delta), Lufthansa, Aer Lingus, and more.
The future looks bright for RDU, which is currently undergoing construction of a brand new runway that will replace 5L/23R in the coming decade, a large expansion of the customs facilities in Terminal 2 to allow for even more international travel, and upgrades to taxiways and parking to facilities more and larger jets into the mid-20th century and beyond!
Terminals, Ramps, & Map
RDU has two primary commercial terminals, a cargo ramp, and a business and GA ramp.
- Terminal 1 is Raleigh’s home for Alaska, Avelo, Breeze, Southwest, and Sun Country. Of those, by far the most dominant airlines are Breeze and Southwest.
- Terminal 2 is the largest terminal at RDU. Domestically, it hosts American, Delta, Frontier, JetBlue, and United. T2 also hosts all of Raleigh’s international airlines, including Aer Lingus, Aeroméxico, Air Canada, Air France, Copa, Icelandair, and Lufthansa.
- To the north of the airport, next to the approach end of 23R, is the cargo ramp, from which several daily FedEx and UPS flights operate.
- Finally, our GA/bizjet ramp is situated at the approach end of 23L, and has both an Atlantic and Signature FBO, as well as several hangars and parking areas. RDU sees constant bizjet action, and is home to several flight schools, so this is one of the busiest parts of the airfield!
Below is the official FAA chart of KRDU to use as a map of the field:
Runways
RDU has three runways, 5L/23R, 5R/23L, and 14/32, and the field sits an an elevation of 435ft above sea level.
- 5L/23R is the larger of the two main runways at RDU, sitting adjacent to Terminal 2, and sees by far the most traffic, with all of the airlines that operate from T2 typically using this runway.
- 5R/23L is the smaller of the two mains, sitting next to Terminal 1 and the GA/Business ramp. This runway is where most of the T1 airlines fly in and out of (with the exception of Alaska, who often lands on this side but departs from the longer runway), and is where almost all of our general aviation and business aviation flies out of.
- 14/32 is the shortest and least used runway. To it’s southeastern end is a North Carolina National Guard helicopter base. This runway is almost exclusively used for GA arrivals on 32, which fly in over the beautiful Umstead Park I mentioned earlier!
Below is a handy chart of the details for each runway at RDU:
| Runway | Heading | Length | Width | Surface | Approaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5L | 54° | 10,007ft | 150ft | Concrete | ILS, RNAV, VIS |
| 23R | 234° | 10,007ft | 150ft | Concrete | ILS, RNAV, VIS |
| 14 | 144° | 3,570ft | 97ft | Asphalt | NA |
| 32 | 324° | 3,570ft | 97ft | Asphalt | RNAV, VIS |
| 5R | 54° | 7,504ft | 150ft | Asphalt | ILS, RNAV, VIS |
| 23L | 234° | 7,504ft | 150ft | Asphalt | ILS, RNAV, VIS |
Procedures
Both arrival and departure procedures at KRDU will typically follow those published within the IF procedures tab for the airport. On departure, due to noise abatement requirements, aircraft may climb a bit steeper than usual, sometimes reaching over 3000f/m before even reaching the departure end of the runway! These steeper departures are primarily used to decrease sound levels for the Town of Morrisville to the southwest of the airport, so steeper climbs are most common off of 23R and 23L.
Typical departures will fly runway heading until off of airport property, then turn to follow the SID.
Arrivals will similarly follow the STARs into the vicinity of the airport, most of the approaches are simply straight in RNAV or ILS approaches, so flying in and out of KRDU is very easy.
The only major airspaces in the region to be aware of within the borders of North Carolina are a few large patches of military airspace to the east and southeast of Raleigh, and the Charlotte Class-B airspace to the west. However, sticking to the published procedures will keep you out of trouble.
There are no major obstacles in the vicinity of the airport, and the weather is usually mild. The prevailing winds usually give a headwind to a slight crosswind for the 23s, though summers can bring severe thunderstorms and associated winds.
Exploring North Carolina
When flying in from the north for the 23s, you will fly over Falls Lake, the resevoir that provides fresh water to Raleigh, Durham, and the surrounding cities like Morrisville, Cary, Apex, Chapel Hill, Wake Forest, and more.
When coming from the south for the 5s, you will pass by KTTA (Raleigh Executive Jetport), one of the main smaller airports serving the area, and home to many flight schools, as well as another resevoir, Jordan Lake, on your way towards final.
Approaching the airport from the west will bring you right over downtown Durham, and from the east right over downtown Raleigh. Between downtown Raleigh and KRDU, you will see a large patch of forest, which is Umstead Park, one of the area’s crown jewels.
Below is a photo I took from a PA-28 overdowntown Raleigh, looking west towards the airport, which you can see off in the distance!
Beyond the immediate areas around RDU, there is lots of beautifl flying to be had in North Carolina while you’re here. To the west, you can explore the Appalachian mountains, including the highest American peak east of the Mississippi River near KAVL.
To the east, you can follow the beautiful Outer Banks along the Atlantic coast of the state, including KFFA in Kill Devil Hills, an airport at the site of the very first powered manned flight by the Wright Brothers all the way back in 1903. The memorial is even visible from the airfield!
North Carolina holds the title “First in Flight,” so why not take a tour of the area in a Cherokee, Cessna, or a Cub after you land at RDU?
The Destinations
Now for what you’re really here for, all the places that you can fly to or from out of RDU. I have listed the destinations in alphabetical order, grouped into domestic, international, and cargo. Each destination has the airlines that fly to it from RDU, as well as the aircraft types used on the route (you will note that I listed aircraft that we don’t currently have in Infinite Flight, such as the A320neo or the A220-100. This is so that, if we get these types, the list will still be correct, and it also allows you to substitute aircraft if you choose to do so).
Domestic
- Akron - KCAK
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Albany - KALB
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Atlanta - KATL
- Delta (A321, 737-800, 737-900, 757-200)
- Frontier (A320, A321, A320neo, A321neo)
- Southwest (737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Atlantic City - KACY (from June 2026)
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Austin - KAUS
- Delta (CRJ-900)
- Southwest (737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Baltimore-Washington - KBWI
- Southwest (737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Bangor - KBGR
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Birmingham - KBHM (from July 2026)
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Boston - KBOS
- Delta (A220-100, A220-300, A319, 737-800
- Frontier (A321neo)
- JetBlue (A220-300)
- Buffalo - KBUF
- Frontier (A320neo)
- Burlington - KBTV
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Charlotte - KCLT
- American (A319, A321, A321neo, 737-800, 737-8 MAX
- Chicago-Midway - KMDW
- Southwest (737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Chicago-O’Hare - KORD
- American (A319, E175)
- Frontier (A321, A321neo)
- United (A319, 737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX, 737-9 MAX, E175)
- Cincinnati - KCVG
- Delta (CRJ-900)
- Cleveland - KCLE
- Frontier (A320neo, A321neo)
- Columbus - KCMH
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Dallas-Fort Worth - KDFW
- American (A321, 737-800)
- Frontier (A320neo)
- Dallas-Love Field - KDAL
- Southwest (737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Daytona Beach - KDAB
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Denver - KDEN
- Frontier (A321, A321neo)
- United (A320, 737-800, 737-900, 737-9 MAX)
- Southwest (737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Detroit - KDTW
- Delta (717-200, A320, 737-900)
- Frontier (A320, A321, A320neo, A321neo)
- Fort Lauderdale - KFLL
- Delta (A319)
- Frontier (A320, A321, A320neo, A321neo)
- JetBlue (A320)
- Southwest (737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Fort Myers - KRSW
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Hartford - KBDL
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Houston-Bush - KIAH
- Frontier (A321, A321neo)
- United (A320, 737-800, 737-900, 737-8 MAX, 737-9 MAX, E175)
- Houston-Hobby - KHOU
- Southwest (737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Indianapolis - KIND
- Delta (CRJ-900)
- Islip - KISP
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Jacksonville - KJAX
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Kansas City - KMCI
- Delta (CRJ-900)
- Southwest (737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Key West - KEYW
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Las Vegas - KLAS
- Delta (A321neo, 737-900)
- Southwest (737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Los Angeles - KLAX
- American (A321, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Delta (737-900)
- Louisville - KSDF
- Breeze (A220-300, E190)
- Madison - KMSN
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Manchester - KHMT
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Memphis - KMEM
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Miami - KMIA
- American (A319, A321neo, 737-800, 737-8 MAX, E175)
- Delta (A319)
- Frontier (A320, A320neo)
- Minneapolis - KMSP
- Delta (A220-100, A220-300, A321, 737-800, 737-900)
- Sun Country (737-800)
- Nashville - KBNA
- American (E175)
- Delta (CRJ-900)
- Southwest (737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- New Haven - KHVN
- Avelo (737-800)
- Breeze (A220-300)
- New Orleans - KMSY
- Breeze (A220-300, E190)
- Southwest (737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Newark - KEWR
- Delta (CRJ-900)
- United (A319, 737-8 MAX, 737-9 MAX, E175)
- New York-Kennedy - KJFK
- American (E175)
- Delta (CRJ-900)
- JetBlue (A220-300, A320)
- New York-LaGuardia - KLGA
- American (737-800, E175)
- Delta (CRJ-900)
- Frontier (A320, A321, A320neo, A321neo)
- New York-Stewart - KSWF
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Ogdensburg - KOGS
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Orange County - KSNA
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Orlando-International - KMCO
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Delta (A320)
- Frontier (A320, A321, A320neo, A321neo)
- Southwest (737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Pensacola - KPNS
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Philadelphia - KPHL
- American (A319, A320, 737-800, 737-8 MAX, CRJ-900, E175)
- Frontier (A320, A321, A320neo, A321neo)
- Phoenix - KPHX
- American (A321, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Southwest (737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Pittsburgh - KPIT
- American (E175)
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Portland - PWM
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Portsmouth (KPSM)
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Providence - KPVD
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Provo - KPVU (from October 2026)
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Rochester - KROC
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Salt Lake City - KSLC
- Delta (A321neo, 737-900)
- San Antonio - KSAT
- Breeze (A220-300)
- San Diego - KSAN
- Alaska (737-800, 737-900, 737-8 MAX, 737-9 MAX)
- Breeze (A220-300)
- San Francisco - KSFO
- United (737-800, 737-900, 737-8 MAX, 737-9 MAX)
- San Juan - TJSJ
- JetBlue (A320)
- Frontier (A320, A321, A320neo, A321neo)
- Sarasota - KSRQ
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Seattle - KSEA
- Alaska (737-800, 737-900, 737-8 MAX, 737-9 MAX)
- Delta (737-800, 737-900)
- St. Louis - KSTL
- Southwest (737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Syracuse - KSYR
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Tallahassee - KTLH (from July 2026)
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Tampa - KTPA
- Breeze (A220-300
- Delta (A319)
- Frontier (A320, A321, A320neo, A321neo)
- Southwest (Southwest (737-700, 737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- Vero Beach - KVRB
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Washington-Dulles - KIAD
- United (A320, 737-700, 737-800, 737-900, 737-8 MAX, 737-9 MAX, CRJ-700, E175)
- Washington-Reagan - KDCA
- American (A319, CRJ-700, CRJ-900, E175)
- Delta (CRJ-900)
- West Palm Beach - KPBI
- Breeze (A220-300)
- White Plains - KHPN
- Breeze (A220-300)
International
- Cancún - MMUN
- Aeroméxico (seasonal, Dec-Jan) (737-800, 737-8 MAX)
- American (seasonal) (737-800)
- Delta (seasonal) (737-800)
- Frontier (A320, A321, A320neo, A321neo)
- Dublin - EIDW
- Aer Lingus (A321neo)
- Frankfurt - EDDF
- Lufthansa (A330-300, 787-9)
- London - EGLL
- American (777-200ER)
- Mexico City - MMMX
- Aeroméxico (E190)
- Montreal - CYUL
- Air Canada (CRJ-900, E175)
- Panama City - MPTO
- Copa (737-800, 737-900, 737-8 MAX, 737-9 MAX)
- Paris - LFPG
- Air France (777-200ER, 787-9)
- Punta Cana - MDPC
- American (seaonal) (737-800)
- Breeze (A220-300)
- Reykjavik - BIKF
- Icelandair (A321neo, 737-8 MAX, 737-9 MAX)
- Toronto - CYYZ
- Air Canada (CRJ-900, E175)
- Vancouver - CYVR
- Air Canada (A220-300)
Cargo
- Greensboro - KGSO
- FedEx (757-200F, 767-300F)
- Indianapolis - KIND
- FedEx (767-300F)
- Louisville - KSDF
- UPS (767-300F, MD-11F (historically, RIP))
- Manteo - KMQI
- FedEx (C208)
- Memphis - KMEM
- FedEx (767-300F)
- New Bern - KEWN
- FedEx (C208, ATR-72)
- Philadelphia - KPHL
- UPS (757-200F)
- Wilmington - KILM
- FedEx (ATR-42)
There is much more to be said about KRDU and the Raleigh area, but for now, this provides a decent enough look at my home airport that I hope will encourage more users to fly in and check it out!
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raleigh--Durham_International_Airport
- AirNav: KRDU - Raleigh-Durham International Airport
- Nonstop Destinations - Raleigh-Durham International Airport
- Flightradar24
- My own personal experience living less than 5 miles from RDU!
- All photos other than the FAA chart are ones I took myself