Alamogordo–White Sands Regional Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located four nautical miles (5 mi, 7 km) southwest of the central business district of Alamogordo, a city in Otero County, New Mexico. It was formerly known as Alamogordo Municipal Airport and opened in late 1959. The airport does not presently have any commercial air service. New Mexico Airlines discontinued service to the airport on April 1, 2012 after the airport lost eligibility for subsidies through the Essential Air Service program. As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 414 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008, 505 enplanements in 2009, and 369 in 2010. It is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a general aviation airport (the commercial service category requires at least 2,500 enplanements per year). Facilities and aircraft Alamogordo–White Sands Regional Airport covers an area of 1,465 acres (593 ha) at an elevation of 4,200 feet (1,280 m) above mean sea level. It has two runways: 4/22 is 9,207 by 150 feet (2,135 x 46 m) with an asphalt surface; 16/34 is 3,512 by 200 feet (1,070 x 61 m) with a dirt surface. For the 12-month period ending March 31, 2009, the airport had 34,460 aircraft operations, an average of 94 per day: 93% general aviation, 5% air taxi, and 2% military. At that time there were 86 aircraft based at this airport: 88% single-engine, 1% multi-engine, 1% jet, 1% helicopter, 6% glider, and 2% ultralight. The airport installed an 8-kilowatt solar photovoltaic array in November 2008, using a $100,000 grant from the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department. The system is estimated to save the airport $100 to $300 per month, and after 2012, when the new buyback rate goes into effect, that amount may rise to $300 to $500 per month in electric costs savings. Airlines and destinations Cargo Historical airline service Continental Airlines provided the first commercial airline service to Alamogordo, beginning on August 31, 1954, with their flights between El Paso and Albuquerque making a stop at the city. Douglas DC-3 aircraft were first used, later upgrading to the Convair 340 followed by the four-engine Vickers Viscount turboprop in 1959. Air service was first operated at Holloman Air Force Base and then moved to the Alamogordo Municipal Airport (now the White Sands Regional Airport) when it opened in late-1959. By 1960,