In and out of the Triangle, twenty minutes from everywhere
Raleigh-Durham International is the default: open around the clock, no weight limit, two FBOs (Signature and Atlantic), and Research Triangle Park ten minutes from the ramp. US customs meets private arrivals at the aircraft from 9 am to 8.30 pm with 48 hours' notice. For Pinehurst, Moore County Airport at Southern Pines is minutes from the village on a 6,500 ft runway, and Raleigh Executive Jetport at Sanford, forty minutes from the first tee at No. 2, takes the overflow on a championship week. We choose the airport around the meeting, the campus or the course and the aircraft around the party, then hold the slot on the basketball nights and golf weekends that fill the ramp.
Leaving Raleigh works the same way. Most departures go from Raleigh-Durham, where operators base light and midsize jets, so an early start rarely waits for an aircraft to fly in. Raleigh Executive Jetport at Sanford, staffed from 7 am on weekdays and 8 am at weekends, suits the south of the county, and Johnston Regional at Smithfield (JNX), on a 5,500 ft runway, takes light jets for Clayton and the east side. Three departures have their own pages: Raleigh to New York in about 1 hour 20 from $8,500, Raleigh to Chicago in about 1 hour 45 from $9,500, and Raleigh to Las Vegas in about 5 hours from $23,000.