Brainerd Lakes Regional (KBRD), Minnesota
Landing essentials
Whether you can land, whether you can refuel, and how customs works here.
Overview
Brainerd Lakes Regional (KBRD) serves the Brainerd, Minnesota area as a public-use, non-towered airport with two long concrete runways capable of handling a broad range of business jet traffic. The field sits at 1,232 feet elevation and carries both 100LL and Jet A fuel. Business aviation activity here shows a pronounced seasonal pattern tied to the lakes region's recreational draw, with summer months seeing substantially higher operations than winter.
Runways
Brainerd Lakes Regional has two paved runways. The longest, 16/34, is 7,100 ft long and 150 ft wide, with a concrete surface.
Runway geometry from published threshold coordinates. Not for navigation.
Runways are listed longest first. Helipads and surfaces under 500 ft are excluded.
Source: FAA Form 5010.
Fuel and airfield services
Brainerd Lakes Regional has Jet A and 100LL available on the field. The airport has no control tower.
Source: FAA Form 5010 / NASR.
Customs
Brainerd Lakes Regional does not clear customs. The nearest port of entry is Duluth International (KDLH), 84 NM away.
Source: CBP list of ports of entry.
Business aviation traffic
Brainerd Lakes Regional recorded 2,721 business aviation movements in 2025. Traffic peaks in July. Business aviation traffic at KBRD is concentrated in the summer months, peaking in July and August.
Business jet movements, FAA TFMSC count. Peak month July, 479 movements in 2025.
Source: FAA TFMSC, business jet movements, 2025.
Climate
Brainerd Lakes Regional averages 3.1 days above 90°F in July and 30.8 freeze days in January. July is the warmest month, with average highs of 81.5°F, and January the coldest, at 21.4°F.
Weather station is on the field. Some values are estimated by the agency. 1991–2020 climate normals.
Source: NOAA NCEI.
Operating constraints
Brainerd Lakes Regional has published operating constraints in five categories: access, runway notes, environmental, pavement strength and other notes.
Prior permission is required for unscheduled air carrier operations involving aircraft with more than 30 passenger seats. Contact the airport manager between 0800 and 1700. Air carrier operations involving aircraft with more than 30 passengers are not authorized more than 15 minutes before or after scheduled arrival or departure times without prior coordination with the airport manager and confirmation that ARFF is available prior to landing or takeoff.
High-intensity runway lighting for runway 05/23 and runway 16/34 is preset to low intensity. To increase intensity and activate the REIL system on runways 05 and 16, and the MALSR system on runways 23 and 34, use the CTAF.
Calm wind runway.
Deer and gulls are present on and in the vicinity of the airport.
PCR VALUE: 170/R/A/W/T
PCR VALUE: 320/R/A/W/T
The PAPI is unusable beyond 9 degrees right of course.
For attendance outside published hours, see the phone listing in the pilot lounge.
For clearance delivery, if unable to contact on the FSS frequency, contact Minneapolis ARTCC.
Source: FAA Chart Supplement.
Nearby airfields
Brainerd Lakes Regional has five airfields within 36 NM. The closest is Aitkin Municipal / Steve Kurtz Field (KAIT), 20.79 NM northeast.
Source: Skystar calculation from official coordinates.
Skystar at KBRD
We arrange catering, fuel and trip support here. Supplier prices reach you unchanged; our coordination fee sits on its own line.
The same order, priced two ways.
$2,400.00 catering order at KBRD.
Unchanged.
What the kitchen invoices us is what your quote reads.
One line, fixed.
It does not move with the size of the order.
At cost.
Passed on at the exact amount the processor took.
Market practice figures are industry averages, not a specific competitor.
Frequently asked questions
What is the runway length available at KBRD?
Brainerd Lakes Regional (KBRD) offers two paved runways suitable for business aviation. Runway 16/34 is the longer of the two at 7,100 feet, with a width of 150 feet and a concrete surface. Runway 05/23 measures 6,512 feet, also 150 feet wide and concrete. Both runways can accommodate a wide range of turbine and jet aircraft. A third strip, H1, is only 60 feet long and is not relevant for fixed-wing business traffic.
Is KBRD a towered airport, and how does the lighting system work?
KBRD is a non-towered airport, so pilots coordinate movement using the common traffic advisory frequency. High-intensity runway lighting on both 05/23 and 16/34 is preset to low intensity by default. Pilots must key the CTAF to increase intensity and activate the REIL system on runways 05 and 16, and the MALSR system on runways 23 and 34. There is no air traffic control tower to manage these settings, so pilot-controlled lighting is the operating method at this field.
What are the passenger and charter operation restrictions at Brainerd Lakes Regional?
Brainerd Lakes Regional restricts unscheduled air carrier operations involving aircraft with more than 30 passenger seats. Prior permission is required, and operators must call the airport manager between 0800 and 1700 to arrange it. Such operations are not authorized more than 15 minutes before or after scheduled arrival or departure times without prior coordination with the airport manager. Confirmation that ARFF coverage is available is also required before landing or takeoff under these conditions. This applies specifically to larger-capacity charter and air carrier flights at KBRD.
Does KBRD have on-site customs clearance for international arrivals?
Brainerd Lakes Regional does not have customs service on site. The nearest customs-capable airport is KDLH, located approximately 84.23 nautical miles away. Crews arriving from international origins need to route their customs clearance through that facility rather than at KBRD directly. This is an important planning factor for any flight into Brainerd Lakes Regional originating outside the United States, since no CBP presence exists at the field itself.
When is business aviation traffic highest at Brainerd Lakes Regional?
Business aviation traffic at KBRD concentrates heavily in the summer months. According to FAA TFMSC data for 2025, July recorded 479 business aviation operations and August recorded 403, the two highest months of the year. This compares to a low of 116 operations in November. Dispatchers planning summer trips into Brainerd Lakes Regional should expect meaningfully busier ramp and airspace conditions than during the winter months.