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Midway Airport
Airport Directory » United States » Chicago » Midway AirportChicago Midway International Airport (IATA: MDW, ICAO: KMDW, FAA LID: MDW), also known just as Midway Airport or Midway, is an airport in Chicago, Illinois, United States, turn up on the town's southwestward side, 8 land mile (13 kilometre) from Chicago's Loop. The airport's current IATA codification MDW has been in use since it was implemented in 1949 when Chicago Municipal Airport was renamed Chicago Midway Airport. It is ring by 55th Street, Cicero Avenue (depot gate), 63rd Street, and Central Avenue. The airport's northern one-half is within the Garfield Ridge community area , and the southern one-half is within the Clearing community area . The airport is bring off by the Chicago Airport System, which also manages functioning at O'Hare International Airport and Gary/Chicago International Airport.
Midway is to a great extent used by low-cost bearers, such as Southwest Airlines, and to a smaller extent by bequest bearers, such as Delta Air Lines, although Delta's presence has late increased significantly. AirTran Airways also has focus functioning, but has been stand out by Delta in functioning. Both the Stevenson Expressway and Chicago Transit Authority's "L" Train Orange Line furnish riders access to business district Chicago. Chicago Midway Airport is the 2nd biggest rider airport in the Chicago metropolitan area , and is the 2nd busiest in the province of Illinois after Chicago O'Hare International Airport.
Today, Midway Airport assists as a focal point town for Dallas-based Southwest Airlines and Orlando-based AirTran Airways. For over 16 yr, Chicago Midway International Airport had been the independent hub for Indianapolis-based ATA Airlines (ATA), but that service was cut down to 4 destinations in November 2007, and was scheduled to finish by June 7, 2008 before the air hose registered for failure in April 2008, like a shot stopping all voyages.
History
Early history (1923-1962)
Originally named Chicago Air Park, Midway Airport was built on a 320-acre (1 km²) game in 1923 and lie of a individual clinker landing track that mainly assisted airmail services. The location was take coming after the devastation of the Wingfoot Air Express when it crashed into the Illinois Trust and Savings Building, assassination 13 mortals, and the town make up one's mind to close up the Grant Park air strip. In 1926, the Chicago City Council rent the district for commercial designs from the Chicago Board of Education at a value of $1560 per yr. On December 12, 1927, Midway was give as Chicago Municipal Airport by Chicago Mayor William H. Thompson, and got known as "Munie" to many early airplane pilots. The unique one-square-mile step of Midway Airport is due to its connexion to the Chicago Board of Education. When the province of Illinois was made, district was split up into towns. Each town included a one-square-mile (640 acre) subdivision committed to teaching. In most examples, one-room school houses were turn up on this district, the balance of which was farmed to furnish monetary funds for the functioning of the school. As town school lands consolidated, much of this excess district was typically sold for other intentions. The Chicago Board of Education elongated to own the Midway Airport subdivision and lease it to the City of Chicago for airport functioning until 1982, when an teaching monetary funding crisis pressured the Board of Education to sell the district to the City of Chicago for $16 million.
Chicago Midway Airport (once Chicago Municipal Airport) as it looked in 1927During its 1st full yr of functioning in 1928, the field was place to 12 depots and 4 landing track, visible light for nighttime functioning. Air traffic command was cared by flagmen, who shall be positioned at the finish of the landing track; they were responsible for command 14,498 voyage functioning transporting 41,660 riders that yr. The functionary observation location for Chicago's condition puts down was also make a motion to Midway during that yr from the business district area and would stay there until it was travel once more, this clip to O'Hare, in 1958.
A new rider depot and disposal construction, funded by a bond issue, was give in 1931 by Chicago city manager Anton Cermak, and in the coming after yr Midway Airport clear the statute title of "World's Busiest" with over 100,846 riders sitting on 60,947 voyages. Midway maintained that statute title for 3 decenniums until O'Hare demanded it in 1961.
In 1941, Midway Airport get together World War II attempts because of its long landing track and mid-continent place. The conflict yr turn up to be a din for Midway, which saw new building funded in division by $1 million in federal monies from the Works Progress Administration, and work on additional landing track go forward in 1941 when a court order the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad to reroute landing tracks in the neck of the woods of the field. Midway managed a full 25% of the commonwealth's 417,000 riders during that yr.
The airport was officially renamed on July 8, 1949 by a unanimous vote in the City Council to "Chicago Midway Airport" in honour of the World War II Battle of Midway – not after Midway Airlines, as many have believed, nor because the airport is turn up at the west finish of 59th Street (the eastern finish of which is division of Chicago's historic Midway Plaisance). Midway saw 3.2 million riders carried on 223,000 voyages during 1949. The figure of riders come up to 3.5 million the next yr and attained a tallness of 10 million in 1959. This picture of Chicago Midway Airport in 1954 presents the increase in traffic that Midway Airport see throughout the 1950s. However, by 1959, the airport had turn up unable to deal bigger aircraft and higher rider burdens. By 1961, the airport face up a 60% drop in rider traffic, mostly due to the opening of O'Hare in 1955. In 1962, United Airlines, the 1st major bearer to assist Midway, stopped functioning at the airport, the last staying bearer to do so during this time period of worsen.
Post-O'Hare reconstruction (1963-1993)
By 1967, reconstruction had get down at the airport, adding 3 new concourses with 28 entrances and 3 ticket counters, and in 1968 the town put $10 million in redevelopment monetary funds, The monetary funds partially back up building of the Stevenson Expressway, which proved to be a major path for riders to the airport, and Midway saw the return of major air hose during that yr, assisting 1,663,074 riders on more than 274,062 voyages, helped in division by the unveiling of jet plane, such as the McDonnell Douglas DC-9, Boeing 727, and Boeing 737, that were capable of using Midway's shorter landing track, which the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8 is able to not.
In 1979, Midway Airlines commenced functioning, the 1st to do so after the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, and went on to get the flagship bearer at Midway before stopping its functioning in 1991. Midway Airlines assisted regenerate the airport and directed the style for other disregard bearers, who profited from Midway's lower costs and close propinquity to Chicago's Loop, to fly high. Southwest Airlines, which set about functioning at Midway in 1985, was 1 such donee. Three yr earlier, in 1982, the City of Chicago bought Midway Airport from the Chicago Board of Education for $16 million.
The Chicago Transit Authority preempted the Carlton Midway Inn to open a new CTA depot at the airport on October 31, 1993 for the new constituted Chicago "L" Orange Line, which linked Midway to Chicago's Loop. The CTA's Orange Line links Midway to business district Chicago via kicked upstairs railroad train transportation system. Midway Airport is the depot of the line, which covers the southwest part of the town before finish in the loop and rhythm dorsum to Midway once more. The Orange Line does not run 24 60 minutes a solar day (unlike the Blue Line, which supplies 24-hour service to O'hare & the Red Line), but does function extensive 60 minutes from approximately four:00 A.M. to one:00 A.M., running at an mean of 8-minute time interval.
Recent history (1994-2008)
In 1996, Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley denoted the historic Midway Airport Terminal Development Program, which was set up the next yr. At the clip, it was the biggest public works labor in the province. The Midway Airport parkland garage opened in 1999, conveying covered parkland to the airport for the 1st clip. The garage, offering 3,000 hourly and daily parking zone, is linked to the Midway depot construction for convenient access to ticket counters and baggage demand area .
Midway Airport's new rider depot. In the background are ticket counters for Southwest Airlines, Frontier Airlines, and Delta Air Lines.Continuing with the enlargement labor, a pedestrian bridge over Cicero Avenue was build in 2000. The span plugs in the new depot to the new concourses. In 2001, the new 900,000-square-foot (84,000 m²) Midway Airport depot construction opened, offering spread out ticket counters, spacious baggage demand area , traveler info and a short walking distance to air hose entrances. A 50,000-square-foot (4,500 m²) food judicature opened with Chicago-style nutrient and retail options, and in 2002, Midway welcomed the return of direct international service after a 40-year absence with the opening of the new Federal Inspection Service installation in Concourse A.
In June 2004, Mayor Daley and air hose functionaries observed the pass completion of the Terminal Development Program. The enlargement labor ensued in the addition of 14 entrances (from 29 to 43), with the airport currently furnishing 43 entrances on three concourses. A new 6,300-space economic system parkland garage, including a new span and roadway used entirely for coaches shuttling riders to and from the depot, opened in December 2005.
Simultaneous to Midway's enlargement, ATA Airlines commenced rapid enlargement at Chicago Midway in the early 2000s, and prior to 2004, ATA offered eminent scheduled service to destinations from Midway Airport and was the airport's dominant bearer, busying and functioning 14 of the 17 entrances in Concourse A. However, after the air hose declared failure in October 2004, scheduled service from Midway significantly diminished.
Due to retold cancellations to its schedule, ATA then offered non-stop voyages to four destinations, and principally functioned out of only two entrances in Concourse B. On May 11, 2007, the air hose added new service from Chicago to Oakland and Ontario, California. These new additions marked the 1st clip ATA increased service at Chicago Midway in about 3 yr. However, merely 5 calendar month after, ATA denoted they would stop service to Ontario on January 7, 2008. On April 3, 2008, ATA Airlines stopped all functioning. The air hose had functioned at Chicago-Midway since 1992.
As of November, 2008, Porter Airlines wings between between Midway and Toronto. It is the only Canadian path assisted from Chicago-Midway.
In early 2009, building set about on an enlargement of Concourse A. The new area will replace the being walk to entrances A4A and A4B, and will characteristic new grants and a new maintaining appartment. The labor is scheduled to be complete in Spring 2010.
Privatization
On April 20, 2009, a $2.5 billion cover to privatise the airport via a 99-year rent fell through when the syndicate is able to not set up financing. The City is to hold $125 million in the downpayment. The syndicate functioning under the name of Midway Investment and Development Company LLC dwell of Vancouver Airport Services, Citi Infrastructure Investors and Boston's John Hancock Life Insurance. It was presented the contract in October 2008 by the City Council which voted 49-0 to okay it. The syndicate would have functioned the airport and roll up airport parkland, grant and rider installation bear down. However Chicago would have elongated to furnish fire and police force services. Chicago privatised the Chicago Skyway in 2007.
Statistics
Chicago Midway Airport is the 2nd biggest rider airport in the Chicago metropolitan area , and is the 2nd busiest in the province of Illinois after Chicago O'Hare International Airport. In 2008, 17,340,497 riders moved through Chicago Midway, 2nd behind O'Hare International Airport, and in front of Gary/Chicago International Airport and Chicago Rockford International Airport. In 2005, Chicago Midway International Airport was the 30th busiest airport in the United States in terms of rider traffic. In its 80-year history of rider traffic, Midway Airport has had 21 incidents and accidents, and only 1 accident since 1976.
Southwest is the dominant bearer at Midway, command 29 of the airport's 43 entrances. Currently, the airline offers 227 daily going to 47 destinations. AirTran is the 2nd biggest bearer, busying five out of the 43 entrances at Midway, and offering over 15 daily nonstop voyages to five destinations; three of which are assisted year-around.
Chicago Midway International Airport ranked 3rd among big airports in the land for "Best On-Time Arrival Rates" in June 2007, with 75.4% of all voyages (8,087) coming on clip, a 3.8% increase from the previous yr. It ranked highest in client satisfaction amongst medium-sized airports (10 million to 30 million riders per yr) in J.D. Power and Associates' 2008 survey.
Airfield
The original to the full germinated 1940s layout included eight landing track that crisscrossed the 8-by-8-block (1 square land mile) belonging. All depots and depots were on the foursquare outer boundary. By the late 1970s the shorter north–south and east–west landing track brace had been closed. Four of the original landing track stay, all significantly beef up and raised, but basically the same lengths as ever. A short landing track for visible light aircraft was added in 1989.
Chicago Midway International Airport covers 320 acres (129 ha) and now has 5 landing track:
- Runway 13C/31C: 6,522 x 150 foot. (1,988 x 46 m), air bearer landing track, ILS fit.
- Runway 4R/22L: 6,446 x 150 foot. (1,965 x 46 m), air bearer landing track, ILS fit.
- Runway 4L/22R: 5,507 x 150 foot. (1,679 x 46 m), civil aviation and air cab.
- Runway 13L/31R: 5,141 x 150 foot. (1,567 x 46 m), civil aviation and air cab.
- Runway 13R/31L: 3,859 x 60 foot. (1,176 x 18 m), visible light aircraft only.
Because Midway is border by constructions and other development, the districting thresholds of the landing track are preempted to supply a proper obstruction clearance. Both the FAA and the air hose ensure safety by boundary burdens and adhering to correct condition lower limits. Also because of preempted thresholds the landing track are really a good deal shorter in terms of take-offs and landings. 13C/31C, the longest landing track, only has a maximal take-off and districting distance of 6,059 human foot (1,847 m), and on the opposite finish of the landing track the maximal take-off and districting distance is 5,826 human foot (1,776 m). All the other landing track have a maximal take-off and districting distance beneath 5,930 human foot (1,810 m). The biggest aircraft Midway sees is the 757. Widebody aircraft do not have enough appartment for take-off or districting due to the mi long landing track.
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