Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport

Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport (KTRM) sits in Thermal, California, in the eastern Coachella Valley near La Quinta and Indio. The field handles no scheduled commercial service and a substantial flow of business aviation, particularly during the winter UHNW season and major event weekends. KTRM is the structural alternative to KPSP for La Quinta-area charter, with much shorter ground time to the desert luxury communities.

The two runways at KTRM (17/35 8,500 ft, 12/30 4,997 ft) handle every current business jet without restriction on the longer 17/35. Atlantic Aviation operates the FBO. Field elevation is -115 feet (below sea level), no density-altitude concerns despite the extreme summer heat. The dominant operational considerations are extreme summer heat (one of the hottest US airports, 115°F+ in July-August can affect aircraft performance), the structural winter peak, and the structural event windows that drive extreme ramp pressure — Coachella, Stagecoach, BNP Paribas Open, The American Express golf tournament (January). KTRM ramp space is genuinely capacity-constrained during these events. Ground time to La Quinta is 10 minutes; Indian Wells is 15; PGA West is 5; Coachella festival grounds are 15.

Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport in Riverside County, California, United States. It is located in the southeastern Coachella Valley, 20 nautical miles southeast of the central business district of Palm Springs, in Thermal, California. This airport is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a general aviation facility.