Midway Airport
Encyclopedia
Chicago Midway International Airport , also known simply as Midway Airport or Midway, is an airport in Chicago, Illinois, United States, located on the city's southwest side, eight miles (13 km) from Chicago's Loop
. The airport's current IATA code
MDW has been used since 1949 when Chicago Municipal Airport was renamed Chicago Midway Airport, although the airline schedule books continued to call it CHI until airline flights began at O'Hare. It is bordered by 55th Street, Cicero Avenue (terminal entrance), 63rd Street, and Central Avenue. The airport's northern half is within the Garfield Ridge
community area
, and the southern half is within the Clearing
community area. The airport is managed by the Chicago Airport System, which also oversees operations at O'Hare International Airport
and Gary/Chicago International Airport
. The airport is named after the Battle of Midway
during World War II.
Midway is dominated by low-cost carrier
Southwest Airlines
. AirTran Airways
and Delta Air Lines
are the airport's other major operators. Both the Stevenson Expressway
and Chicago Transit Authority's
Orange Line
provide passengers access to downtown Chicago. Midway Airport is the second largest passenger airport in the Chicago metropolitan area, as well as the state of Illinois
, after Chicago O'Hare International Airport
.
Today, Midway Airport serves as a focus city
for Dallas-based Southwest Airlines
As of 2011, Midway is Southwest's largest focus city. For over 16 years, Chicago Midway International Airport had been the main hub
for Indianapolis
-based ATA Airlines
(ATA), but that service was reduced to four destinations in November 2007, and was scheduled to end by June 7, 2008 before the airline filed for bankruptcy in April 2008, immediately discontinuing all flights.
runway that primarily served airmail
services. The site was selected following the destruction of the Wingfoot Air Express
when it crashed into the Illinois Trust and Savings Building, killing thirteen people, and the city decided to close the Grant Park air strip. In 1926, the Chicago City Council
leased the land for commercial purposes from the Chicago Board of Education at a rate of $1560 per year. On December 12, 1927, Midway was dedicated as Chicago Municipal Airport by Chicago Mayor William H. Thompson
, and became known as "Munie" to many early pilots. The unique one-square-mile footprint of Midway Airport is due to its connection to the Chicago Board of Education. Under the Land Ordinance of 1785
, land was divided into townships. Each township
included a one-square-mile (640 acre) section devoted to education. In most instances, one-room school houses
were located on this land, the balance of which was farmed to provide funds for the operation of the school. As township school districts consolidated, much of this excess land was typically sold for other purposes. The Chicago Board of Education continued to own the Midway Airport section and rent it to the City of Chicago for airport operations until 1982, when an education funding crisis forced the Board of Education to sell the land to the City of Chicago for $16 million.
During its first full year of operation in 1928 the airfield had twelve hangar
s and four runways, lit for night operations. Air traffic control was handled by flagmen who would be positioned at the end of the runways; they were responsible for controlling 14,498 flight operations carrying 41,660 passengers that year. The official observation site for Chicago's weather records was also moved to Midway during that year from the downtown area and would remain there until it was moved again, this time to O'Hare, in 1980.
A new passenger terminal and administration building, funded by a bond issue, was dedicated in 1931 by Chicago mayor Anton Cermak
, and in the following year Midway Airport earned the title of "World's Busiest
" with over 100,846 passengers riding on 60,947 flights. During some years thereafter New York's airport (Newark, then LaGuardia) was the busiest airline airport in the United States, but Midway passed LaGuardia around 1950 and retained the title until O'Hare claimed it in 1961.
In 1941, Midway Airport joined World War II efforts because of its long runway
s and mid-continent position. The war years proved to be a boon for Midway, which saw new construction funded in part by $1 million in federal monies from the Works Progress Administration
, and work on additional runways moved forward in 1941 when a court ordered the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad
to reroute tracks in the vicinity of the airfield. Midway handled a full 25% of the nation's 417,000 passengers during that year.
The airport was officially renamed on July 8, 1949 by a unanimous vote in the City Council to "Chicago Midway Airport" in honor of the World War II Battle of Midway
. Midway saw 3.2 million passengers carried on 223,000 flights during 1949. The number of passengers rose to 3.5 million the next year and reached a height of 10 million in 1959. This video of Chicago Midway Airport in 1954 shows the increase in traffic that Midway Airport experienced throughout the 1950s.
The April 1957 OAG shows 414 weekday fixed-wing departures from Midway: 83 American, 83 United, 56 TWA, 40 Capital, 35 North Central, 28 Delta, 27 Eastern, 22 Northwest, 19 Ozark, 11 Braniff, 5 Trans-Canada and 5 Lake Central. Air France, Lufthansa and REAL (of Brazil) had a few flights a week.
But Midway was running out of room, and in any case could not handle the 707 and DC-8 jetliners that began appearing in 1959; every Chicago jet flight had to use O'Hare, which opened to the airlines in 1955. Electras and Viscounts could have continued to fly out of Midway, but O'Hare's capacious new terminal opened in 1962, allowing airlines to consolidate their flights. From July 1962 until the 727 appeared in July 1964 Midway's only scheduled airline was Chicago Helicopter. In August 1966, a total of four fixed-wing arrivals were scheduled, all United: three 727s from Baltimore and one from La Guardia.
, which proved to be a major route for passengers to the airport, and Midway saw the return of major airlines during that year, serving 1,663,074 passengers on jets such as the McDonnell Douglas DC-9
, Boeing 727
, and Boeing 737
that could use Midway's runways, which the Boeing 707
and Douglas DC-8
could not.
In 1979 Midway Airlines began operations, the first to do so after the Airline Deregulation Act
of 1978, and became the flagship carrier at Midway until it ended operations in 1991. Midway Airlines helped revitalize the airport and led the way for other discount carriers, who benefited from Midway's lower costs and close proximity to Chicago's Loop, to prosper. Southwest Airlines
, which began operations at Midway in 1985, was one such beneficiary. Three years earlier, in 1982, the City of Chicago purchased Midway Airport from the Chicago Board of Education for $16 million.
The Chicago Transit Authority
displaced the original location of the Carlton Midway Inn to open a new CTA terminal
at the airport on October 31, 1993, for the newly established Chicago 'L'
Orange Line
, which connected Midway to Chicago's Loop. The CTA's Orange Line connects Midway to downtown Chicago
via elevated train transportation. Midway Airport is the terminus of the line, which traverses the southwest portion of the city before ending in the Loop and cycling back to Midway again. The Orange Line does not run 24 hours a day (unlike the Blue Line, which provides 24-hour service to O'Hare & the Red Line), but does operate extensive hours from about 4:00 am to 1:00 am, running at an average of 8-minute intervals. The train journey from Midway Airport to the Loop takes 25 minutes.
announced the Midway Airport Terminal Development Program, which was launched the following year. At the time, it was the largest public works project in the state. The Midway Airport parking garage opened in 1999, bringing covered parking to the airport for the first time. The garage, offering 3,000 hourly and daily parking spaces, is connected to the Midway terminal building for convenient access to ticket counters and baggage claim areas.
Continuing with the expansion project, a pedestrian bridge over Cicero Avenue was constructed in 2000 connecting the new terminal to the new concourses. In 2001, the new 900000 square feet (83,612.7 m²) Midway Airport terminal building opened, offering expanded ticket counters, spacious baggage claim areas, traveler information and a short walking distance to airline gates. A 50000 square feet (4,645.2 m²) food court opened with Chicago-style food 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 facility in Concourse A.
In June 2004, Mayor Daley and airline officials celebrated the completion of the Terminal Development Program. The expansion project resulted in the addition of 14 gates (from 29 to 43), with the airport now providing 43 gates on 3 concourses. A new 6,300-space economy parking garage, including a new bridge and roadway used exclusively for buses shuttling passengers to and from the terminal, opened in December 2005.
Simultaneous to Midway's expansion, ATA Airlines
began rapid expansion at Chicago Midway in the early 2000s, and prior to 2004, ATA offered significant scheduled service to destinations from Midway Airport and was the airport's dominant carrier, occupying and operating 14 of the 17 gates in Concourse A. However, after the airline declared bankruptcy in October 2004, scheduled service from Midway significantly decreased.
Due to repeated cancellations to its schedule, ATA
then offered non-stop flights to 4 destinations, and mainly operated out of only 2 gates in Concourse B. On May 11, 2007, the airline added new service from Chicago to Oakland
and Ontario, California
. These new additions marked the first time ATA increased service at Chicago Midway in almost three years. However, just five months later, ATA announced it would end service to Ontario on January 7, 2008. On April 3, 2008, ATA Airlines discontinued all operations.
As of November, 2008, Porter Airlines
flies between Midway and Toronto, Canada, as the only international route served from Chicago-Midway, since ATA Airlines
ceased operations in April that year; it had flights to Mexico
before the airline closed operations, until Volaris
started operations from Guadalajara on December 13, 2010.
In early 2009, construction began on an expansion of Concourse A. Construction is complete and a new walkway, food court, and viewing have been built to connect gates A4A and A4B to the main A concourse. Construction was completed in the spring of 2010.
, Citi
Infrastructure Investors and Boston's John Hancock Life Insurance
. It was awarded the contract in October 2008 by the City Council which voted 49–0 to approve it. The consortium would have operated the airport and collected airport parking, concession and passenger facility charges. However, Chicago would have continued to provide fire and police services. Chicago privatized the Chicago Skyway
in 2007.
after Chicago O'Hare International Airport
. In 2009 17,089,365 passengers traveled through Chicago Midway, second behind O'Hare International Airport, and ahead 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 passenger traffic. In its 80-year history of passenger traffic, Midway Airport has had 21 incidents and accidents, and only one accident since 1976.
Southwest
is the dominant carrier at Midway, controlling 31 of the airport's 43 gates. Currently, the airline offers 236 daily departures to 55 nonstop destinations.
Chicago Midway International Airport ranked third amongst large airports in the nation for "Best On-Time Arrival Rates" in June 2007, with 75.4% of all flights (8,087) arriving on time, a 3.8% increase from the previous year. It ranked highest in customer satisfaction among medium-sized airports (10 million to 30 million passengers per year) in J. D. Power and Associates' 2008 study.
s that crisscrossed the 8-by-8-block (one square mile) property. All terminals and hangars were on the square periphery. By the late 1970s the shorter north–south and east–west runway pairs had been closed, though some were converted to taxiways. The other four runways remain in use, all strengthened and enhanced, but about the same lengths as always. A short runway (13R/31L) for light aircraft was added in 1989.
Chicago Midway International Airport covers one square mile (640 acre, 2.59 km2) and currently has five runways:
Because Midway is surrounded by buildings and other development, the landing thresholds of the runways are displaced
to provide a proper obstacle clearance. Both the FAA
and the airlines ensure safety by adhering to calculated load limits and various weather minimums. Because of the displaced landing thresholds, the runways have shorter distances available for landings than for takeoffs. 13C-31C, the longest runway, only has an available landing distance of 6059 feet (1,846.8 m) in the southeast direction, and 5826 feet (1,775.8 m) operating to the northwest. All the other runways have a landing distance below 5930 feet (1,807.5 m). The largest aircraft normally seen at Midway is the Boeing 757
. Due to the short runways, widebody aircraft are impractical, and even Boeing 737
s must occasionally take off less than fully loaded on hot summer days when aircraft performance is substantially reduced. Normally, the commercial planes only takeoff and land on runways 4R, 22L, 31C, and 13C. The other runways are used by smaller aircraft. Out of the four large runways, all are used about evenly, with the exception of 13C. 13C is only used occasionally in certain weather conditions.
The carriers transporting the most passengers from Chicago Midway Airport are Southwest
and AirTran
. In 2008, a total of 17,340,497 passengers were carried through MDW, a 10.52% decrease from the previous year. Also in 2008, 253,901 aircraft passed through Midway Airport, a 16.66% decrease from 2007. Since the merger of Northwest Airlines into Delta, Delta is now the second largest carrier at Midway, surpassing AirTran in number of daily flights and year round destinations.
For complete information on flights to and from Chicago Midway International Airport, please see the airport's website.
Midway has 43 aircraft gates on three concourses (A, B, and C)
Note: All international arrivals are handled in Concourse A.
and one of the hubs of the U.S. airline system. United Airlines
was headquartered at Midway in the pre-O'Hare days, and American Airlines
was originally based at Midway until it moved its headquarters to New York City in the mid-1930s. TWA
and Eastern Air Lines
and several other airlines had many flights. The terminal was extensively renovated in 1958 and again in 1967, after which several legacy carrier
s resumed service.
The December 1970 OAG shows 86 weekday arrivals (77 jet) on 13 fixed-wing airlines from 31 airports, but the August 1974 shows 14 arrivals (all jet) on four airlines, and in 1976–79 Midway had only the two or three Delta DC-9s from St Louis. Midway Airlines arrived on October 31, 1979 with DC-9 nonstops to Kansas City, Detroit and Cleveland Lakefront; they expanded greatly in the 1980s. Midway was a focus city for Vanguard Airlines
from 1997 to 2000.
Both American Airlines
and United Airlines
ended all scheduled service to Midway in September 2006, in favor of concentrating Chicago-area operations at the larger nearby O'Hare International Airport
.
Big Sky Airlines
started nonstop service on December 3, 2006 between Springfield, Illinois
and Midway and added daily nonstop flights to Eau Claire, Wisconsin
, beginning on March 17. However, citing poor demand, both the Springfield and Eau Claire flights were discontinued on June 9, 2007.
Mesa Airlines
, which began nonstop service from MDW in early 2007, discontinued all flights to Decatur
and Quincy, Illinois
, effective November 9, 2007. The flights, which were operated by Air Midwest
, were terminated citing poor passenger demand.
Chicago Midway International Airport was once the largest hub of ATA Airlines
and its wholly owned regional airline partner Chicago Express Airlines, which operated as ATA Connection
. ATA had operated a hub at Midway since 1992. As recently as 2004, ATA operated over 100 daily flights to over 30 destinations. The airline cut back service from Chicago after declaring bankruptcy in late 2004. On April 3, 2008, the airline again declared bankruptcy and ended all scheduled operations, including service to the four cities it still served at Chicago-Midway.
Continental Airlines
provided daily service from Chicago-Midway to Cleveland and Newark
until May 2008. The airline discontinued Chicago-Midway service on May 31, 2008, citing high fuel prices.
Among the other airlines that used to frequent Midway were Access Air, Kiwi International Airlines, US Airways
, MetroJet
, Ozark Air Lines (2000–2001), and Pan American Airways (1998–2004).
On June 30, 1956, United Airlines Flight 718
, a Douglas DC-7
, was headed for Midway Airport. Over the Grand Canyon
it collided with a TWA
Super Constellation
, killing all 128 people on both planes. This became the impetus for the modern air traffic control system.
, a Boeing 737-200, crashed into a residential area outside Midway during landing. The crash of the 737-200 killed 43 of the 61 on board, and two on the ground.
Exactly 33 years later, on December 8, 2005, Southwest Airlines Flight 1248
, a Boeing 737-700 inbound from Baltimore-Washington International Airport
in Baltimore, Maryland
, slid off the runway while attempting to land at the airport in a heavy snow storm. The airplane broke through the barrier fence of the airport, and came to rest at the intersection of 55th Street and Central Avenue bordering the airport at its northwest corner. A 6-year-old boy was killed as a passenger in a vehicle that was struck by the plane after it skidded into the street.
INFORMATION SOURCED FROM: Civil Aeronautics Board archives, NTSB records, bukiri-research.
NOTE: The runway now designated 13C-31C was designated 13R-31L until 1989, when a new Runway 13R-31L was built. Runways 27L and 36L have been closed since the 1970s.
's "L" trains
. Passengers can board Orange Line
trains at a station in the airport terminal, which runs to downtown Chicago and the Loop (transit time about 25 minutes). This same station doubles as a stop for many CTA-run buses that serve the surrounding areas. Midway is one of the few airports in the United States that have rapid transit
train to terminal service.
Chicago Loop
The Loop or Chicago Loop is one of 77 officially designated Chicago community areas located in the City of Chicago, Illinois. It is the historic commercial center of downtown Chicago...
. The airport's current IATA code
IATA code
IATA codes are abbreviations that the International Air Transport Association publishes to facilitate air travel. They are typically 1-, 2-, 3-, or 4-character combinations that uniquely identify locations, equipment, companies, and times to standardize international flight operations...
MDW has been used since 1949 when Chicago Municipal Airport was renamed Chicago Midway Airport, although the airline schedule books continued to call it CHI until airline flights began at O'Hare. It is bordered by 55th Street, Cicero Avenue (terminal entrance), 63rd Street, and Central Avenue. The airport's northern half is within the Garfield Ridge
Garfield Ridge, Chicago
Garfield Ridge is one of the 77 official community areas of Chicago, Illinois, and is located on the southwest side of the city. The northern half of Chicago Midway International Airport is located in this community area.-General information:...
community area
Community areas of Chicago
Community areas in Chicago refers to the work of the Social Science Research Committee at University of Chicago which has unofficially divided the City of Chicago into 77 community areas. These areas are well-defined and static...
, and the southern half is within the Clearing
Clearing, Chicago
Clearing, one of the 77 official community areas, is located on the southwest side of the City of Chicago, Illinois. The southern portion of Chicago Midway International Airport is located in this community area.- History :...
community area. The airport is managed by the Chicago Airport System, which also oversees operations at O'Hare International Airport
O'Hare International Airport
Chicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop...
and Gary/Chicago International Airport
Gary/Chicago International Airport
Gary/Chicago International Airport is a public airport located three miles northwest of the central business district of Gary, a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The airport, which serves the Chicago metropolitan area, is 25 miles southeast of the Chicago Loop...
. The airport is named after the Battle of Midway
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway is widely regarded as the most important naval battle of the Pacific Campaign of World War II. Between 4 and 7 June 1942, approximately one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea and six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States Navy decisively defeated...
during World War II.
Midway is dominated by low-cost carrier
Low-cost carrier
A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline is an airline that generally has lower fares and fewer comforts...
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
. AirTran Airways
AirTran Airways
AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of the Dallas, Texas-based Southwest Airlines, is an American low-cost airline headquartered in Orlando, Florida. AirTran operates over 650 daily flights , primarily in the eastern and midwestern United States...
and Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
are the airport's other major operators. Both the Stevenson Expressway
Stevenson Expressway
The Stevenson Expressway is the major Interstate highway leading southwest out of the city of Chicago in Illinois. It is signed as Interstate 55 for the entire length....
and Chicago Transit Authority's
Chicago Transit Authority
Chicago Transit Authority, also known as CTA, is the operator of mass transit within the City of Chicago, Illinois and some of its surrounding suburbs....
Orange Line
Orange Line (Chicago Transit Authority)
The Orange Line, is a rapid transit line in Chicago, Illinois run by the Chicago Transit Authority as part of the 'L' system. It is approximately long, and runs below grade and elevated on existing railroad embankments and new concrete and steel structures from Chicago Midway International...
provide passengers access to downtown Chicago. Midway Airport is the second largest passenger airport in the Chicago metropolitan area, as well as the state of Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, after Chicago O'Hare International Airport
O'Hare International Airport
Chicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop...
.
Today, Midway Airport serves as a focus city
Focus city
In the airline industry, a focus city is a location that is not a hub, but from which the airline has non-stop flights to several destinations other than its hubs...
for Dallas-based Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
As of 2011, Midway is Southwest's largest focus city. For over 16 years, Chicago Midway International Airport had been the main hub
Airline hub
An airline hub is an airport that an airline uses as a transfer point to get passengers to their intended destination. It is part of a hub and spoke model, where travelers moving between airports not served by direct flights change planes en route to their destinations...
for Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
-based ATA Airlines
ATA Airlines
ATA Airlines, Inc., formerly known as American Trans Air, was an American low-cost scheduled service and charter airline based in Indianapolis, Indiana. ATA operated scheduled passenger flights throughout the US mainland and Hawaii, as well as military and commercial charter flights around the world...
(ATA), but that service was reduced to four destinations in November 2007, and was scheduled to end by June 7, 2008 before the airline filed for bankruptcy in April 2008, immediately discontinuing all flights.
Early history (1923–1962)
Originally named Chicago Air Park, Midway Airport was built on a 320 acres (1.3 km²) plot in 1923 and consisted of a single cinderCinder
A cinder is a pyroclastic material. Cinders are extrusive igneous rocks. Cinders are similar to pumice, which has so many cavities and is such low-density that it can float on water...
runway that primarily served airmail
Airmail
Airmail is mail that is transported by aircraft. It typically arrives more quickly than surface mail, and usually costs more to send...
services. The site was selected following the destruction of the Wingfoot Air Express
Wingfoot Air Express Crash
The Wingfoot Air Express was a dirigible that crashed into the Illinois Trust and Savings Building in Chicago on Monday July 21, 1919. The Type FD dirigible, owned by the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company was transporting people from Grant Park to the White City amusement park...
when it crashed into the Illinois Trust and Savings Building, killing thirteen people, and the city decided to close the Grant Park air strip. In 1926, the Chicago City Council
Chicago City Council
The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 aldermen elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms...
leased the land for commercial purposes from the Chicago Board of Education at a rate of $1560 per year. On December 12, 1927, Midway was dedicated as Chicago Municipal Airport by Chicago Mayor William H. Thompson
William Hale Thompson
William Hale Thompson was Mayor of Chicago from 1915 to 1923 and again from 1927 to 1931. Known as "Big Bill", Thompson was the last Republican to serve as Mayor of Chicago, and ranks among the most unethical mayors in American history.Thompson was born in Boston, Massachusetts to William Hale...
, and became known as "Munie" to many early pilots. The unique one-square-mile footprint of Midway Airport is due to its connection to the Chicago Board of Education. Under the Land Ordinance of 1785
Land Ordinance of 1785
The Land Ordinance of 1785 was adopted by the United States Congress on May 20, 1785. Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress did not have the power to raise revenue by direct taxation of the inhabitants of the United States...
, land was divided into townships. Each township
Township (United States)
A township in the United States is a small geographic area. Townships range in size from 6 to 54 square miles , with being the norm.The term is used in three ways....
included a one-square-mile (640 acre) section devoted to education. In most instances, one-room school houses
One-room school
One-room schools were commonplace throughout rural portions of various countries including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Ireland and Spain in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In most rural and small town schools, all of the students met in a single room...
were located on this land, the balance of which was farmed to provide funds for the operation of the school. As township school districts consolidated, much of this excess land was typically sold for other purposes. The Chicago Board of Education continued to own the Midway Airport section and rent it to the City of Chicago for airport operations until 1982, when an education funding crisis forced the Board of Education to sell the land to the City of Chicago for $16 million.
Hangar
A hangar is a closed structure to hold aircraft or spacecraft in protective storage. Most hangars are built of metal, but other materials such as wood and concrete are also sometimes used...
s and four runways, lit for night operations. Air traffic control was handled by flagmen who would be positioned at the end of the runways; they were responsible for controlling 14,498 flight operations carrying 41,660 passengers that year. The official observation site for Chicago's weather records was also moved to Midway during that year from the downtown area and would remain there until it was moved again, this time to O'Hare, in 1980.
Anton Cermak
Anton Joseph Cermak was the mayor of Chicago, Illinois, from 1931 until his assassination by Giuseppe Zangara in 1933.-Early life and career:...
, and in the following year Midway Airport earned the title of "World's Busiest
World's busiest airport
The definition of the world's busiest airport has been specified by the Airports Council International in Geneva, Switzerland. The ACI defines and measures the following three types of airport traffic:...
" with over 100,846 passengers riding on 60,947 flights. During some years thereafter New York's airport (Newark, then LaGuardia) was the busiest airline airport in the United States, but Midway passed LaGuardia around 1950 and retained the title until O'Hare claimed it in 1961.
In 1941, Midway Airport joined World War II efforts because of its long runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
s and mid-continent position. The war years proved to be a boon for Midway, which saw new construction funded in part by $1 million in federal monies from the Works Progress Administration
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
, and work on additional runways moved forward in 1941 when a court ordered the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad
Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad
The Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad was the owner of Dearborn Station in Chicago and the trackage leading to it. It was owned equally by five of the railroads using it to reach the terminal, and kept those companies from needing their own lines into the city...
to reroute tracks in the vicinity of the airfield. Midway handled a full 25% of the nation's 417,000 passengers during that year.
The airport was officially renamed on July 8, 1949 by a unanimous vote in the City Council to "Chicago Midway Airport" in honor of the World War II Battle of Midway
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway is widely regarded as the most important naval battle of the Pacific Campaign of World War II. Between 4 and 7 June 1942, approximately one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea and six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States Navy decisively defeated...
. Midway saw 3.2 million passengers carried on 223,000 flights during 1949. The number of passengers rose to 3.5 million the next year and reached a height of 10 million in 1959. This video of Chicago Midway Airport in 1954 shows the increase in traffic that Midway Airport experienced throughout the 1950s.
The April 1957 OAG shows 414 weekday fixed-wing departures from Midway: 83 American, 83 United, 56 TWA, 40 Capital, 35 North Central, 28 Delta, 27 Eastern, 22 Northwest, 19 Ozark, 11 Braniff, 5 Trans-Canada and 5 Lake Central. Air France, Lufthansa and REAL (of Brazil) had a few flights a week.
But Midway was running out of room, and in any case could not handle the 707 and DC-8 jetliners that began appearing in 1959; every Chicago jet flight had to use O'Hare, which opened to the airlines in 1955. Electras and Viscounts could have continued to fly out of Midway, but O'Hare's capacious new terminal opened in 1962, allowing airlines to consolidate their flights. From July 1962 until the 727 appeared in July 1964 Midway's only scheduled airline was Chicago Helicopter. In August 1966, a total of four fixed-wing arrivals were scheduled, all United: three 727s from Baltimore and one from La Guardia.
Post-O'Hare reconstruction (1963–1993)
By 1967, reconstruction began at the airport, adding three new concourses with 28 gates and three ticket counters, and in 1968 the city invested $10 million in renovation funds. The funds partly supported construction of the Stevenson ExpresswayStevenson Expressway
The Stevenson Expressway is the major Interstate highway leading southwest out of the city of Chicago in Illinois. It is signed as Interstate 55 for the entire length....
, which proved to be a major route for passengers to the airport, and Midway saw the return of major airlines during that year, serving 1,663,074 passengers on jets such as the McDonnell Douglas DC-9
McDonnell Douglas DC-9
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is a twin-engine, single-aisle jet airliner. It was first manufactured in 1965 with its maiden flight later that year. The DC-9 was designed for frequent, short flights. The final DC-9 was delivered in October 1982.The DC-9 was followed in subsequent modified forms by...
, Boeing 727
Boeing 727
The Boeing 727 is a mid-size, narrow-body, three-engine, T-tailed commercial jet airliner, manufactured by Boeing. The Boeing 727 first flew in 1963, and for over a decade more were built per year than any other jet airliner. When production ended in 1984 a total of 1,832 aircraft had been produced...
, and Boeing 737
Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a short- to medium-range, twin-engine narrow-body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has developed into a family of nine passenger models with a capacity of 85 to 215 passengers...
that could use Midway's runways, which the Boeing 707
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
and Douglas DC-8
Douglas DC-8
The Douglas DC-8 is a four-engined narrow-body passenger commercial jet airliner, manufactured from 1958 to 1972 by the Douglas Aircraft Company...
could not.
In 1979 Midway Airlines began operations, the first to do so after the Airline Deregulation Act
Airline Deregulation Act
The Airline Deregulation Act is a United States federal law signed into law on October 24, 1978. The main purpose of the act was to remove government control over fares, routes and market entry from commercial aviation...
of 1978, and became the flagship carrier at Midway until it ended operations in 1991. Midway Airlines helped revitalize the airport and led the way for other discount carriers, who benefited from Midway's lower costs and close proximity to Chicago's Loop, to prosper. Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
, which began operations at Midway in 1985, was one such beneficiary. Three years earlier, in 1982, the City of Chicago purchased Midway Airport from the Chicago Board of Education for $16 million.
The Chicago Transit Authority
Chicago Transit Authority
Chicago Transit Authority, also known as CTA, is the operator of mass transit within the City of Chicago, Illinois and some of its surrounding suburbs....
displaced the original location of the Carlton Midway Inn to open a new CTA terminal
Orange Line (Chicago Transit Authority)
The Orange Line, is a rapid transit line in Chicago, Illinois run by the Chicago Transit Authority as part of the 'L' system. It is approximately long, and runs below grade and elevated on existing railroad embankments and new concrete and steel structures from Chicago Midway International...
at the airport on October 31, 1993, for the newly established Chicago 'L'
Chicago 'L'
The L is the rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago and some of its surrounding suburbs. It is operated by the Chicago Transit Authority...
Orange Line
Orange Line (Chicago Transit Authority)
The Orange Line, is a rapid transit line in Chicago, Illinois run by the Chicago Transit Authority as part of the 'L' system. It is approximately long, and runs below grade and elevated on existing railroad embankments and new concrete and steel structures from Chicago Midway International...
, which connected Midway to Chicago's Loop. The CTA's Orange Line connects Midway to downtown Chicago
Chicago Loop
The Loop or Chicago Loop is one of 77 officially designated Chicago community areas located in the City of Chicago, Illinois. It is the historic commercial center of downtown Chicago...
via elevated train transportation. Midway Airport is the terminus of the line, which traverses the southwest portion of the city before ending in the Loop and cycling back to Midway again. The Orange Line does not run 24 hours a day (unlike the Blue Line, which provides 24-hour service to O'Hare & the Red Line), but does operate extensive hours from about 4:00 am to 1:00 am, running at an average of 8-minute intervals. The train journey from Midway Airport to the Loop takes 25 minutes.
Recent history (1994–)
In 1996, after failing to get his Lake Calumet Airport and having received harsh criticism for the idea of turning the airport into an industrial park, Chicago Mayor Richard M. DaleyRichard M. Daley
Richard Michael Daley is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party, and former Mayor of Chicago, Illinois. He was elected mayor in 1989 and reelected in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007. He was the longest serving Chicago mayor, surpassing the tenure of his...
announced the Midway Airport Terminal Development Program, which was launched the following year. At the time, it was the largest public works project in the state. The Midway Airport parking garage opened in 1999, bringing covered parking to the airport for the first time. The garage, offering 3,000 hourly and daily parking spaces, is connected to the Midway terminal building for convenient access to ticket counters and baggage claim areas.
Continuing with the expansion project, a pedestrian bridge over Cicero Avenue was constructed in 2000 connecting the new terminal to the new concourses. In 2001, the new 900000 square feet (83,612.7 m²) Midway Airport terminal building opened, offering expanded ticket counters, spacious baggage claim areas, traveler information and a short walking distance to airline gates. A 50000 square feet (4,645.2 m²) food court opened with Chicago-style food 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 facility in Concourse A.
In June 2004, Mayor Daley and airline officials celebrated the completion of the Terminal Development Program. The expansion project resulted in the addition of 14 gates (from 29 to 43), with the airport now providing 43 gates on 3 concourses. A new 6,300-space economy parking garage, including a new bridge and roadway used exclusively for buses shuttling passengers to and from the terminal, opened in December 2005.
Simultaneous to Midway's expansion, ATA Airlines
ATA Airlines
ATA Airlines, Inc., formerly known as American Trans Air, was an American low-cost scheduled service and charter airline based in Indianapolis, Indiana. ATA operated scheduled passenger flights throughout the US mainland and Hawaii, as well as military and commercial charter flights around the world...
began rapid expansion at Chicago Midway in the early 2000s, and prior to 2004, ATA offered significant scheduled service to destinations from Midway Airport and was the airport's dominant carrier, occupying and operating 14 of the 17 gates in Concourse A. However, after the airline declared bankruptcy in October 2004, scheduled service from Midway significantly decreased.
ATA Airlines
ATA Airlines, Inc., formerly known as American Trans Air, was an American low-cost scheduled service and charter airline based in Indianapolis, Indiana. ATA operated scheduled passenger flights throughout the US mainland and Hawaii, as well as military and commercial charter flights around the world...
then offered non-stop flights to 4 destinations, and mainly operated out of only 2 gates in Concourse B. On May 11, 2007, the airline added new service from Chicago to Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
and Ontario, California
Ontario, California
Ontario is a city located in San Bernardino County, California, United States, 35 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Located in the western part of the Inland Empire region, it lies just east of the Los Angeles county line and is part of the Greater Los Angeles Area...
. These new additions marked the first time ATA increased service at Chicago Midway in almost three years. However, just five months later, ATA announced it would end service to Ontario on January 7, 2008. On April 3, 2008, ATA Airlines discontinued all operations.
As of November, 2008, Porter Airlines
Porter Airlines
Porter Airlines is a regional airline headquartered at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport on the Toronto Islands in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Porter operates regularly scheduled flights between Toronto and locations in Canada and the United States using Canadian-built Bombardier Dash-8 Q 400...
flies between Midway and Toronto, Canada, as the only international route served from Chicago-Midway, since ATA Airlines
ATA Airlines
ATA Airlines, Inc., formerly known as American Trans Air, was an American low-cost scheduled service and charter airline based in Indianapolis, Indiana. ATA operated scheduled passenger flights throughout the US mainland and Hawaii, as well as military and commercial charter flights around the world...
ceased operations in April that year; it had flights to Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
before the airline closed operations, until Volaris
Volaris
Concesionaria Vuela Compañía de Aviación, S.A. de C.V., operating as Volaris, is a low-cost airline from Mexico, and the country's second largest airline after Aeroméxico, thus being a leading competitor in the Mexican domestic market, with a market share of around 13-14% of domestic...
started operations from Guadalajara on December 13, 2010.
In early 2009, construction began on an expansion of Concourse A. Construction is complete and a new walkway, food court, and viewing have been built to connect gates A4A and A4B to the main A concourse. Construction was completed in the spring of 2010.
Privatization
On April 20, 2009, a $2.5 billion deal to privatize the airport via a 99-year lease fell through when the consortium could not put together financing. The City is to keep $125 million in the downpayment. The consortium operating under the name of Midway Investment and Development Company LLC consisted of Vancouver Airport ServicesVancouver Airport Services
Vancouver Airport Services is an airport management company with 19 airports worldwide. It is a subsidiary of the Vancouver Airport Authority which manages Vancouver International Airport....
, Citi
Citigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
Infrastructure Investors and Boston's John Hancock Life Insurance
John Hancock Insurance
John Hancock Financial is a loose term for a United States insurance company which existed, in various forms, from its founding on April 21, 1862, until its acquisition in 2004 by the Canadian insurance company Manulife Financial. It was named in honor of John Hancock, a prominent patriot...
. It was awarded the contract in October 2008 by the City Council which voted 49–0 to approve it. The consortium would have operated the airport and collected airport parking, concession and passenger facility charges. However, Chicago would have continued to provide fire and police services. Chicago privatized the Chicago Skyway
Chicago Skyway
The Chicago Skyway, also known as Chicago Skyway Toll Bridge System, is a toll road in Chicago, Illinois, United States, carrying Interstate 90 from the Indiana Toll Road to the Dan Ryan Expressway on Chicago's South Side leading into the Chicago Loop....
in 2007.
Statistics
Chicago Midway Airport is the second largest passenger airport in the Chicago metropolitan area, and is the second busiest in the state of IllinoisIllinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
after Chicago O'Hare International Airport
O'Hare International Airport
Chicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop...
. In 2009 17,089,365 passengers traveled through Chicago Midway, second behind O'Hare International Airport, and ahead of Gary/Chicago International Airport
Gary/Chicago International Airport
Gary/Chicago International Airport is a public airport located three miles northwest of the central business district of Gary, a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The airport, which serves the Chicago metropolitan area, is 25 miles southeast of the Chicago Loop...
and Chicago Rockford International Airport. In 2005, Chicago Midway International Airport was the 30th busiest airport in the United States in terms of passenger traffic. In its 80-year history of passenger traffic, Midway Airport has had 21 incidents and accidents, and only one accident since 1976.
Southwest
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
is the dominant carrier at Midway, controlling 31 of the airport's 43 gates. Currently, the airline offers 236 daily departures to 55 nonstop destinations.
Chicago Midway International Airport ranked third amongst large airports in the nation for "Best On-Time Arrival Rates" in June 2007, with 75.4% of all flights (8,087) arriving on time, a 3.8% increase from the previous year. It ranked highest in customer satisfaction among medium-sized airports (10 million to 30 million passengers per year) in J. D. Power and Associates' 2008 study.
| Midway | O'Hare | |
|---|---|---|
| 1958 | 337421 | 66205 |
| 1959 | 345170 | 82417 |
| 1960 | 298582 | 163351 |
| 1961 | 187978 | 235908 |
| 1962 | 46873 | 331090 |
| 1963 | 19054 | 358266 |
| 1964 | 19017 | 389640 |
| 1965 | 16716 | 443026 |
| 1966 | 5090 | 478644 |
| 1967 | 4427 | 573506 |
| 1968 | 26941 | 628632 |
| 1969 | 31394 | 632030 |
| 1970 | 43553 | 598973 |
| 1971 | 51734 | 565826 |
Airfield
The original fully developed 1940s layout included eight runwayRunway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
s that crisscrossed the 8-by-8-block (one square mile) property. All terminals and hangars were on the square periphery. By the late 1970s the shorter north–south and east–west runway pairs had been closed, though some were converted to taxiways. The other four runways remain in use, all strengthened and enhanced, but about the same lengths as always. A short runway (13R/31L) for light aircraft was added in 1989.
Chicago Midway International Airport covers one square mile (640 acre, 2.59 km2) and currently has five runways:
- Runway 13C-31C: 6522 by 150 ft (1,987.9 by 45.7 m), air carrier runway, ILSInstrument Landing SystemAn instrument landing system is a ground-based instrument approach system that provides precision guidance to an aircraft approaching and landing on a runway, using a combination of radio signals and, in many cases, high-intensity lighting arrays to enable a safe landing during instrument...
equipped. - Runway 4R-22L: 6446 by 150 ft (1,964.7 by 45.7 m), air carrier runway, ILS equipped.
- Runway 4L-22R: 5507 by 150 ft (1,678.5 by 45.7 m), general aviation and air taxi.
- Runway 13L-31R: 5141 by 150 ft (1,567 by 45.7 m), general aviation and air taxi.
- Runway 13R-31L: 3859 by 60 ft (1,176.2 by 18.3 m), light aircraft only.
Because Midway is surrounded by buildings and other development, the landing thresholds of the runways are displaced
Displaced threshold
A displaced threshold is a runway threshold located at a point other than the physical beginning or end of the runway. The portion of the runway so displaced may be used for takeoff but not for landing...
to provide a proper obstacle clearance. Both the FAA
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
and the airlines ensure safety by adhering to calculated load limits and various weather minimums. Because of the displaced landing thresholds, the runways have shorter distances available for landings than for takeoffs. 13C-31C, the longest runway, only has an available landing distance of 6059 feet (1,846.8 m) in the southeast direction, and 5826 feet (1,775.8 m) operating to the northwest. All the other runways have a landing distance below 5930 feet (1,807.5 m). The largest aircraft normally seen at Midway is the Boeing 757
Boeing 757
The Boeing 757 is a mid-size, narrow-body twin-engine jet airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Passenger versions of the twinjet have a capacity of 186 to 289 persons and a maximum range of , depending on variant and cabin configuration...
. Due to the short runways, widebody aircraft are impractical, and even Boeing 737
Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a short- to medium-range, twin-engine narrow-body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has developed into a family of nine passenger models with a capacity of 85 to 215 passengers...
s must occasionally take off less than fully loaded on hot summer days when aircraft performance is substantially reduced. Normally, the commercial planes only takeoff and land on runways 4R, 22L, 31C, and 13C. The other runways are used by smaller aircraft. Out of the four large runways, all are used about evenly, with the exception of 13C. 13C is only used occasionally in certain weather conditions.
Terminals, airlines and destinations
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
and AirTran
AirTran Airways
AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of the Dallas, Texas-based Southwest Airlines, is an American low-cost airline headquartered in Orlando, Florida. AirTran operates over 650 daily flights , primarily in the eastern and midwestern United States...
. In 2008, a total of 17,340,497 passengers were carried through MDW, a 10.52% decrease from the previous year. Also in 2008, 253,901 aircraft passed through Midway Airport, a 16.66% decrease from 2007. Since the merger of Northwest Airlines into Delta, Delta is now the second largest carrier at Midway, surpassing AirTran in number of daily flights and year round destinations.
For complete information on flights to and from Chicago Midway International Airport, please see the airport's website.
Midway has 43 aircraft gates on three concourses (A, B, and C)
Note: All international arrivals are handled in Concourse A.
Top Destinations
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Denver, CODenver International Airport Denver International Airport , often referred to as DIA, is an airport in Denver, Colorado. By land size, at , it is the largest international airport in the United States, and the third largest international airport in the world after King Fahd International Airport and Montréal-Mirabel... |
454,000 | Frontier, Southwest |
| 2 | .svg.png) Atlanta, GAHartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport , known locally as Atlanta Airport, Hartsfield Airport, and Hartsfield–Jackson, is located seven miles south of the central business district of Atlanta, Georgia, United States... |
446,000 | AirTran, Delta |
| 3 |  Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN |
387,000 | Delta, Southwest |
| 4 |  Orlando, FLOrlando International Airport Orlando International Airport is a major international airport located southeast of the central business district of Orlando. It is the second busiest airport in Florida, after Miami International Airport... |
375,000 | AirTran, Southwest |
| 5 |  Las Vegas, NVMcCarran International Airport McCarran International Airport is the principal commercial airport serving Las Vegas and Clark County, Nevada, United States. The airport is located five miles south of the central business district of Las Vegas, in the unincorporated area of Paradise in Clark County. It covers an area of and... |
341,000 | Southwest |
| 6 |  Phoenix, AZPhoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport located southeast of the central business district of the city of Phoenix, in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States... |
262,000 | Southwest |
| 7 |  Kansas City, MOKansas City International Airport Kansas City International Airport , originally named Mid-Continent International Airport, is a public airport located 15 miles northwest of the central business district of Kansas City, in Platte County, Missouri, United States. In 2008, 10,469,892 passengers used the airport... |
261,000 | Southwest |
| 8 | St. Louis, MO Lambert-St. Louis International Airport Lambert-St. Louis International Airport is a Class B international airport serving Greater St. Louis. It is located approximately northwest of downtown St. Louis in unincorporated St. Louis County between Berkeley and Bridgeton. It is the largest and busiest airport in the state with 250 daily... |
258,000 | Southwest |
| 9 |  Detroit, MIDetroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport , usually called Detroit Metro Airport, Metro Airport locally, or simply DTW, is a major international airport covering in Romulus, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. It is Michigan's busiest airport.... |
249,000 | Delta, Southwest |
| 10 |  Nashville, TNNashville International Airport Nashville International Airport is a joint civil-military airport in southeastern Nashville, Tennessee. The IATA Airport Code BNA is derived from the early name of the facility—Berry Field, NAshville. Berry Field was the name of the airport until 1988, when the name was changed to reflect... |
225,000 | Southwest |
Previous airline service
During the 1950s, before the rise of O'Hare, Midway was the world's busiest airportWorld's busiest airport
The definition of the world's busiest airport has been specified by the Airports Council International in Geneva, Switzerland. The ACI defines and measures the following three types of airport traffic:...
and one of the hubs of the U.S. airline system. United Airlines
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
was headquartered at Midway in the pre-O'Hare days, and American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
was originally based at Midway until it moved its headquarters to New York City in the mid-1930s. TWA
Trans World Airlines
Trans World Airlines was an American airline that existed from 1925 until it was bought out by and merged with American Airlines in 2001. It was a major domestic airline in the United States and the main U.S.-based competitor of Pan American World Airways on intercontinental routes from 1946...
and Eastern Air Lines
Eastern Air Lines
Eastern Air Lines was a major United States airline that existed from 1926 to 1991. Before its dissolution it was headquartered at Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida.-History:...
and several other airlines had many flights. The terminal was extensively renovated in 1958 and again in 1967, after which several legacy carrier
Legacy carrier
A legacy carrier, in the United States, is an airline that had established interstate routes by the time of the route liberalization which was permitted by the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 and was thus directly affected by that act...
s resumed service.
The December 1970 OAG shows 86 weekday arrivals (77 jet) on 13 fixed-wing airlines from 31 airports, but the August 1974 shows 14 arrivals (all jet) on four airlines, and in 1976–79 Midway had only the two or three Delta DC-9s from St Louis. Midway Airlines arrived on October 31, 1979 with DC-9 nonstops to Kansas City, Detroit and Cleveland Lakefront; they expanded greatly in the 1980s. Midway was a focus city for Vanguard Airlines
Vanguard Airlines
Vanguard Airlines was an airline based out of Kansas City, Missouri. For a time, Vanguard also had significant operations at Chicago Midway International Airport in Chicago, Illinois, until late 2000. It ceased operations on July 29, 2002, after filing for bankruptcy...
from 1997 to 2000.
Both American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
and United Airlines
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
ended all scheduled service to Midway in September 2006, in favor of concentrating Chicago-area operations at the larger nearby O'Hare International Airport
O'Hare International Airport
Chicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop...
.
Big Sky Airlines
Big Sky Airlines
Big Sky Airlines was an American regional airline that operated from 1978 to 2008. Headquartered in Billings, Montana, United States. Big Sky was wholly owned by Big Sky Transportation Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of MAIR Holdings....
started nonstop service on December 3, 2006 between Springfield, Illinois
Springfield, Illinois
Springfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...
and Midway and added daily nonstop flights to Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Eau Claire is a city located in the west-central part of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 65,883 as of the 2010 census, making it the largest municipality in the northwestern portion of the state, and the 9th largest in the state overall. It is the county seat of Eau Claire County,...
, beginning on March 17. However, citing poor demand, both the Springfield and Eau Claire flights were discontinued on June 9, 2007.
Mesa Airlines
Mesa Airlines
Mesa Airlines, Inc. is an American regional airline based in Phoenix, Arizona. It is a FAA Part 121 certificated air carrier operating under air carrier certificate number MASA036A issued on June 29, 1979. It is a subsidiary of Mesa Air Group. It was known briefly as Mountain West Airlines from...
, which began nonstop service from MDW in early 2007, discontinued all flights to Decatur
Decatur, Illinois
Decatur is the largest city and the county seat of Macon County in the U.S. state of Illinois. The city, sometimes called "the Soybean Capital of the World", was founded in 1823 and is located along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in Central Illinois. In 2000 the city population was 81,500,...
and Quincy, Illinois
Quincy, Illinois
Quincy, known as Illinois' "Gem City," is a river city along the Mississippi River and the county seat of Adams County. As of the 2010 census the city held a population of 40,633. The city anchors its own micropolitan area and is the economic and regional hub of West-central Illinois, catering a...
, effective November 9, 2007. The flights, which were operated by Air Midwest
Air Midwest
Air Midwest, Inc., was a Federal Aviation Administration Part 121 certificated air carrier operating under air carrier certificate number AMWA510A issued on May 15, 1965. It was headquartered in Wichita, Kansas, United States, and was a subsidiary of Mesa Air Group. It operated flights as US...
, were terminated citing poor passenger demand.
Chicago Midway International Airport was once the largest hub of ATA Airlines
ATA Airlines
ATA Airlines, Inc., formerly known as American Trans Air, was an American low-cost scheduled service and charter airline based in Indianapolis, Indiana. ATA operated scheduled passenger flights throughout the US mainland and Hawaii, as well as military and commercial charter flights around the world...
and its wholly owned regional airline partner Chicago Express Airlines, which operated as ATA Connection
ATA Connection
C8 and ATA Connection are the defunct IATA code designator and DBA name of Chicago Express Airlines, which in its later years was doing business as ATA Connection, and was the trademark codeshare name and brand used by the renamed parent company of ATA Holdings Inc...
. ATA had operated a hub at Midway since 1992. As recently as 2004, ATA operated over 100 daily flights to over 30 destinations. The airline cut back service from Chicago after declaring bankruptcy in late 2004. On April 3, 2008, the airline again declared bankruptcy and ended all scheduled operations, including service to the four cities it still served at Chicago-Midway.
Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines was a major American airline now merged with United Airlines. On May 3, 2010, Continental Airlines, Inc. and UAL, Inc. announced a merger via a stock swap, and on October 1, 2010, the merger closed and UAL changed its name to United Continental Holdings, Inc...
provided daily service from Chicago-Midway to Cleveland and Newark
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
until May 2008. The airline discontinued Chicago-Midway service on May 31, 2008, citing high fuel prices.
Among the other airlines that used to frequent Midway were Access Air, Kiwi International Airlines, US Airways
US Airways
US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
, MetroJet
MetroJet
MetroJet was a no-frills "airline within an airline" brand operated as a division of US Airways from 1998 to 2001.-History:After the conclusion of painstaking labor negotiations in 1997, US Airways sought to head off burgeoning competition from low-cost carriers in its strongest region, the U.S....
, Ozark Air Lines (2000–2001), and Pan American Airways (1998–2004).
Significant incidents
1956 Grand Canyon mid-air collision
The 1956 Grand Canyon mid-air collision occurred on Saturday, June 30, 1956 at 10:30 AM Pacific Standard Time when a United Airlines passenger airliner struck a Trans World Airlines airliner over the Grand Canyon in Arizona, resulting in the crash of both planes and 128 fatalities...
, a Douglas DC-7
Douglas DC-7
The Douglas DC-7 is an American transport aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1953 to 1958. It was the last major piston engine powered transport made by Douglas, coming just a few years before the advent of jet aircraft such as the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8.-Design and...
, was headed for Midway Airport. Over the Grand Canyon
Grand Canyon
The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in the United States in the state of Arizona. It is largely contained within the Grand Canyon National Park, the 15th national park in the United States...
it collided with a TWA
Trans World Airlines
Trans World Airlines was an American airline that existed from 1925 until it was bought out by and merged with American Airlines in 2001. It was a major domestic airline in the United States and the main U.S.-based competitor of Pan American World Airways on intercontinental routes from 1946...
Super Constellation
Lockheed Constellation
The Lockheed Constellation was a propeller-driven airliner powered by four 18-cylinder radial Wright R-3350 engines. It was built by Lockheed between 1943 and 1958 at its Burbank, California, USA, facility. A total of 856 aircraft were produced in numerous models, all distinguished by a...
, killing all 128 people on both planes. This became the impetus for the modern air traffic control system.
December 8 incidents
On December 8, 1972, United Airlines Flight 553United Airlines Flight 553
United Airlines Flight 553 was a Boeing 737-222 that crashed on approach to Chicago Midway International Airport at 2:28 p.m. CST, on December 8, 1972. After the crew was told to go around and abort their first landing attempt on runway 31L at Midway Airport, the aircraft struck trees and then...
, a Boeing 737-200, crashed into a residential area outside Midway during landing. The crash of the 737-200 killed 43 of the 61 on board, and two on the ground.
Exactly 33 years later, on December 8, 2005, Southwest Airlines Flight 1248
Southwest Airlines Flight 1248
Southwest Airlines Flight 1248 was a scheduled passenger flight from Baltimore-Washington International Airport, in Baltimore, Maryland, to Chicago Midway International Airport, in Chicago, Illinois, to Salt Lake City International Airport in Salt Lake City, Utah, and then to McCarran...
, a Boeing 737-700 inbound from Baltimore-Washington International Airport
Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport
Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport is an international airport serving the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area in the United States. It is commonly called BWI, BWI Airport or BWI Marshall, BWI being an initialism for "Baltimore/Washington International" and the...
in Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, slid off the runway while attempting to land at the airport in a heavy snow storm. The airplane broke through the barrier fence of the airport, and came to rest at the intersection of 55th Street and Central Avenue bordering the airport at its northwest corner. A 6-year-old boy was killed as a passenger in a vehicle that was struck by the plane after it skidded into the street.
| Date | Registration | Aircraft | Carrier | Location | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 1936 | NC14979 | DC-2 | Trans World Airlines | ||
| On approach to 27L, 1 engine out, strong gusts, crashed half a mile east of field | |||||
| December 4, 1940 | NC25678 | DC-3A | United Airlines | 6356 S. Keating Ave. | Pilot lost sight in bad weather and crashed on landing approach resulting in nine deaths. |
| May 21, 1943 | B-24 | US ARMY | 3625 W. 73rd St. | On approach, disoriented in bad weather, hit huge gas storage tank 2.5 miles (4 km) southeast | |
| September 26, 1946 | NC19939 | DC-3 | Trans World Airlines | West of 96th Ave. at 97th St. | Midair collision with Boeing PT-17, DC-3 limped in to Midway |
| July 2, 1946 | NC28383 | DC-3 | Trans World Airlines | ||
| Crashed 1.5 miles (2.4 km) northeast of field | |||||
| March 10, 1948 | NC37478 | DC-4 | Delta Air Lines | 5000 W. 55th St. | Plane took off 36L, at 150 feet (45.7 m) went vertical, at 500 feet (152.4 m) nosed over, crashed on 55th St. |
| March 26, 1949 | NC90736 | DC-6 | American Airlines | ||
| Hit power lines on approach | |||||
| December 18, 1949 | NC86501 | L-049 | Trans World Airlines | ||
| Landing too far down 13R, crashed through fence, ended up at 63rd and Cicero | |||||
| January 4, 1951 | N79982 | C-46 | Monarch Airlines | ||
| Overloaded taking off on 31L, could not climb, crashed on railroad tracks one half mile northeast | |||||
| September 16, 1951 | N74689 | C-46 | Peninsula Transport | ||
| Belly-landed 500 yards (457.2 m) away at northeast 63rd and Harlem | |||||
| March 3, 1953 | N6214C | L-1049 | Eastern Airlines | On field | Landed on 31L, gear collapsed, skidded southwest toward Hale School |
| July 17, 1955 | N3422 | Convair 340 | Braniff International Airways | On field | Hit gas station sign on approach to 13R, flipped over, crashed |
| August 5, 1955 | N74601 | Boeing 377 | Northwest Airlines | ||
| Landed 31L, could not stop, crashed through fence at 55th and Central | |||||
| February 20, 1956 | N7404 | Vickers Viscount | Capitol | On field | Landing on 31L, plane flopped in 300 feet (91.4 m) short of threshold |
| March 15, 1959 | N94273 | Convair 240 | American Airlines | ||
| Lost sight of 31L on approach, crashed in railroad yard one half mile south of field | |||||
| November 24, 1959 | N102R | L-1049H | Trans World Airlines | Came to rest 63rd and Kilpatrick | Plane departed 31L, fire on #2, circled to land 31L, crashed 0.2 mile (0.321868 km) southeast of field |
| September 1, 1961 | N86511 | L-049 | Trans World Airlines | ||
| Plane departed Midway, lost elevator bolt, crashed near Hinsdale, Illinois | |||||
| December 8, 1972 | N9031U | 737-200 | United Airlines | 71st and Springfield | Aircraft descended too low on approach to 31L and struck houses, crashed 1.25 miles (2 km) southeast of airport |
| March 25, 1976 | N1EM | Lockheed Jetstar | Executive | On field | Pilot unfamiliar with plane attempted take off 13R, never airborne, crashed into fence 63rd and Cicero |
| August 6, 1976 | N9446Z | TB-25N | Air Chicago | 61st and Moody Avenue | Poor maintenance, plane took off 4L, lost engine 2, crashed 0.4 mile (0.643736 km) west of field |
| December 8, 2005 | N471WN | 737-700 | Southwest Airlines | 55th & Central | Landed 31C during snowstorm, crashed through fence, hit 2 cars, killed child in car, 55th and Central |
INFORMATION SOURCED FROM: Civil Aeronautics Board archives, NTSB records, bukiri-research.
NOTE: The runway now designated 13C-31C was designated 13R-31L until 1989, when a new Runway 13R-31L was built. Runways 27L and 36L have been closed since the 1970s.
Transit
Midway Airport is served by the Chicago Transit AuthorityChicago Transit Authority
Chicago Transit Authority, also known as CTA, is the operator of mass transit within the City of Chicago, Illinois and some of its surrounding suburbs....
's "L" trains
Chicago 'L'
The L is the rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago and some of its surrounding suburbs. It is operated by the Chicago Transit Authority...
. Passengers can board Orange Line
Orange Line (Chicago Transit Authority)
The Orange Line, is a rapid transit line in Chicago, Illinois run by the Chicago Transit Authority as part of the 'L' system. It is approximately long, and runs below grade and elevated on existing railroad embankments and new concrete and steel structures from Chicago Midway International...
trains at a station in the airport terminal, which runs to downtown Chicago and the Loop (transit time about 25 minutes). This same station doubles as a stop for many CTA-run buses that serve the surrounding areas. Midway is one of the few airports in the United States that have rapid transit
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
train to terminal service.
See also
- O'Hare International AirportO'Hare International AirportChicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop...
- Gary/Chicago International AirportGary/Chicago International AirportGary/Chicago International Airport is a public airport located three miles northwest of the central business district of Gary, a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The airport, which serves the Chicago metropolitan area, is 25 miles southeast of the Chicago Loop...
- Chicago Rockford International Airport
- Proposed Chicago south suburban airportProposed Chicago south suburban airportProposed Chicago south suburban airport, Abraham Lincoln National Airport or Lincoln National Airport is a proposed airport in Peotone, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. There is no official name and two separate plans exist, one known as the South Suburban Airport and another known as Abraham Lincoln...
- Illinois World War II Army AirfieldsIllinois World War II Army AirfieldsDuring World War II, the United States Army Air Force established numerous airfields in Illinois for training pilots and aircrews of USAAF fighters and bombers....
External links
- Midway International Airport (official web site)
- Midway International Airport: Terminal and Concourse Maps
- TWA Crash of 1959
- 1972 Crash Summary
- Survey number HABS IL-305 – Midway Airport, South Terminal, Cicero Avenue between Fifty-fifth & Sixty-third Streets, Chicago, Cook County, IL
- openNav: MDW / KMDW charts