Midway International Airport

Chicago Midway International Airport
IATA: MDW – ICAO: KMDW – FAA LID: MDW – WMO: 72534
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	City of Chicago
Operator	Chicago Department of Aviation
Serves	Chicago, Illinois, US
Location	Chicago, Illinois, US
Opened	December 1927 (1927-12)(89 Years Ago)[1]
Focus city for	Southwest Airlines
Elevation AMSL	620 ft / 189 m
Coordinates	41°47′10″N 87°45′09″W / 41.78611°N 87.75250°W / 41.78611; -87.75250Coordinates: 41°47′10″N 87°45′09″W / 41.78611°N 87.75250°W / 41.78611; -87.75250
Website	www.flychicago.com
Maps
FAA airport diagram
MDW Show map of Chicago MDW Show map of Illinois MDW Show map of the US Location of airport in Chicago
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 4L/22R 5,507 1,679 Asphalt 4R/22L 6,445 1,964 Asphalt/Concrete 13C/31C 6,522 1,988 Concrete 13L/31R 5,141 1,567 Asphalt 13R/31L 3,859 1,176 Concrete
Statistics (2015)
Aircraft operations 253,519 Passenger volume 22,221,499 Cargo tonnage 25,217.9
Source: FAA[2] and airport website[3]

Chicago Midway International Airport (IATA: MDW, ICAO: KMDW, FAA LID: MDW) is an international airport on the southwest side of Chicago, Illinois, eight miles (13 km) from the Loop.

Dominated by low-cost carrier Southwest Airlines, Midway is the Dallas-based carrier's largest focus city, as of 2013.^[4][5] Both the Stevenson Expressway and the 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 O'Hare International Airport on the Northwest Side.^[6]

History

Early history (1923–1962)

Originally named Chicago Air Park,^[7] Midway Airport was built on a 320-acre (130 ha) plot in 1923 with one cinder runway mainly for airmail flights. In 1926 the city leased the airport and named it Chicago Municipal Airport on December 12, 1927.^[1] By 1928, the airport had twelve hangars and four runways, lit for night operations.^[8]

A major fire early on June 25, 1930, destroyed two hangars and 27 aircraft, "12 of them tri-motor passenger planes." The loss was estimated at more than two million dollars. The hangars destroyed were of the Universal Air Lines, Inc., and the Grey Goose Airlines, the latter under lease to Stout Air Lines. The fire followed an explosion of undetermined cause in the Universal hangar.^[9]

In 1931 a new passenger terminal opened at 62nd St;^[8] the following year the airport claimed to be the "World's Busiest" with over 100,846 passengers on 60,947 flights.^[10] (The July 1932 Official Aviation Guide shows 206 scheduled airline departures a week.)

More construction was funded in part by $1 million from the Works Progress Administration; the airport expanded to fill the square mile in 1938–41 after a court ordered the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad to reroute tracks that had crossed the square along the northern edge of the older field.

The March 1939 OAG shows 47 weekday departures: 13 on United, 13 American, 9 TWA, 4 Northwest, and two each on Eastern, Braniff, Pennsylvania Central, and C&S.^[11] New York's airport (Newark, then LaGuardia by the end of 1939) was then the busiest airline airport in the United States, but Midway passed LaGuardia in 1948 and kept the title until 1960.^[8] The record-breaking 1945 Japan–Washington flight of B-29s refueled at the airport on their way to Washington DC.

In July 1949 the airport was renamed after the Battle of Midway.^[10] That year Midway saw 3.2 million passengers; passengers peaked at 10 million in 1959.^[12] The diagram on the January 1951 C&GS approach chart shows four parallel pairs of runways, all 4240 ft or less except for 5730-ft runway 13R and 5230-ft runway 4R. Airport diagram for 1959

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 per week.^[13] Midway was running out of room and in any case could not handle the 707 and DC-8 jets that appeared in 1959; every Chicago jet flight had to use O'Hare, which had 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 727s.

Post-O'Hare reconstruction (1963–1993)

By 1967 reconstruction began at the airport, adding three new concourses with 28 gates and three ticket counters,^[10] and in 1968 the city invested $10 million in renovation funds.^[8] The funds partly supported construction of the Stevenson Expressway, and Midway saw the return of major airlines that year, with 1,663,074 passengers on jets such as the McDonnell Douglas DC-9, BAC One-Eleven, Boeing 727, and Boeing 737 that could use Midway's runways, which the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8 could not.

In the early 1970s, in addition to airlines that served both O'Hare and Midway (Ozark, TWA, United, Allegheny, Delta, American, Northwest, Eastern, and North Central), several airlines flew only to Midway Airport in Chicago. These were Mohawk, Piedmont, Northeast, Frontier and Southern.

In 1979 Midway Airlines began operations,^[10] the first to do so after the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978; it ended operations in 1991.^[8] Midway Airlines helped to revitalize the airport and lead the way for other discount carriers, who benefited from Midway's lower costs and proximity to Chicago's Loop.^[8] Southwest Airlines, which began operations at Midway in 1985,^[14] 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.^[8]

The Chicago Transit Authority displaced the Carlton Midway Inn to open a new CTA terminal at the airport on October 31, 1993, for the new Chicago 'L' Orange Line that connected Midway to Chicago's Loop.^[10] Midway Airport is the end of the line, which crosses the southwest part of the city before ending at the Loop. The Orange Line does not run 24 hours a day (unlike the Blue Line, which has 24-hour service to O'Hare), but does operate from about 4:00 am to 1:00 am, at an average of 8-minute intervals. The trip from Midway to the Loop takes 25 minutes.

Years of ATA (1994–2008)

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. Daley 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.^[15] The Midway Airport parking garage opened in 1999, bringing covered parking to the airport for the first time. The garage is connected to the Midway terminal building for convenient access to ticket counters and baggage claim areas.^[10]

Continuing with the expansion project, a pedestrian bridge over Cicero Avenue was built in 2000, connecting the new terminal to the new concourses.^[8] In 2001 the new 900,000-square-foot (84,000 m²) Midway Airport terminal building opened, with larger ticket counters, spacious baggage claim areas, traveler information, and a short walking distance to gates.^[10] A 50,000-square-foot (4,600 m²) food court opened with Chicago-style food and retail options.

The expansion project culminated with a short lived period of great airline diversity at Midway as Vanguard Airlines, National Airlines and AirTran Airways all expanded their services to the airport.

ATA took over Chicago Express Airlines, also known as ATA Connection, whose primary hub was at Midway. Chicago Express served as a regional airline connecting to airports around the great lakes regions.

Following the September 11 attacks, which resulted in a drop in passenger service, along with other problems for the airline industry, both Vangaurd and National ceased operations at Midway and became defunct in 2002, with MetroJet being dissolved and refolded into US Airway's main line in late 2001.

In 2002 Midway welcomed the return of international service after a 40-year absence with the opening of the new Federal Inspection Service facility in Concourse A.^[16]

In June 2004, Mayor Daley and airline officials celebrated the completion of the Terminal Development Program.^[8] The project, designed by HNTB^[17] resulted in the addition of 14 gates (from 29 to 43), with the airport now having 43 gates on 3 concourses.^[8] A new 6,300-space economy parking garage, including a new bridge and roadway for buses shuttling passengers to and from the terminal, opened in December 2005.^[8]

Simultaneous to Midway's expansion, ATA Airlines began rapid expansion at Midway in the early 2000s (decade), and was the airport's dominant carrier prior to 2004, using 14 of the 17 gates in Concourse A.^[18] However, after the airline declared bankruptcy in October 2004, scheduled service from Midway significantly decreased.

For over 16 years, Midway had been the main hub for Indianapolis-based ATA, but the airline shut down on June 7, 2008.^[19][20] Earlier, the airline filed for bankruptcy in April 2008; on April 3, 2008, ATA Airlines discontinued all operations.^[20]

In November 2008, Porter Airlines, which flies between Midway and Toronto, Canada, was the only international route served from Chicago–Midway after ATA Airlines, which had flights to Mexico, ceased operations in April that year. On December 13, 2010, a second carrier, Volaris, began flights between Guadalajara and Midway.

Rapid Southwest Expansion (2009–present)

Starting in early 2009, a construction project added a new walkway and food court to Concourse A. The project also connected gates A4A and A4B to the main A concourse. Expansions were completed in the spring of 2010.

Chicago has considered privatizing the airport, but the deals fell through in 2009 and 2013.

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 down payment. The consortium operating under the name of Midway Investment and Development Company LLC consisted of Vancouver Airport Services, 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.^[21] In 2010 a new slogan emerged calling the airport The busiest square mile in the world.

In September 2013, Mayor Rahm Emanuel terminated negotiations to privatize the airport, noting that the process was no longer competitive after one of the two finalists had backed out. The one remaining was Great Lakes Airport Alliance – a partnership of Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets and Ferrovial. Macquarie was one of the investors in the Chicago Skyway. The group that had backed out was a group that included the Australia-based Industry Funds Management and Manchester Airports Group. The Great Lakes proposal had been valued at $2 billion and would have involved a 40-year lease.^[22][23]

Airfield

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 (1 square mile (640 acres; 260 ha)) and currently has five runways:^[24]

• Runway 13C/31C: 6,522 ft × 150 ft (1,988 m × 46 m), air carrier runway, ILS-equipped.
• Runway 4R/22L: 6,445 ft × 150 ft (1,964 m × 46 m), air carrier runway, ILS-equipped.
• Runway 4L/22R: 5,507 ft × 150 ft (1,679 m × 46 m), general aviation and air taxi.
• Runway 13L/31R: 5,141 ft × 150 ft (1,567 m × 46 m), general aviation and air taxi. Used as an Emergency Runway for commercial aircraft.
• Runway 13R/31L: 3,859 ft × 60 ft (1,176 m × 18 m), light aircraft only. Used as an Emergency Runway for commercial aircraft.

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 6,059 feet (1,847 m) in the southeast direction, and 5,826 feet (1,776 m) operating to the northwest. The largest aircraft normally seen at Midway is the Boeing 757. Normally, the commercial planes only take off from and land on runways 4R, 22L, 31C, and 13C. The other runways are used by smaller aircraft.

Terminals

The carrier transporting the most passengers from Chicago Midway Airport is Southwest Airlines. 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.^[25]

Midway has 43 aircraft gates on three concourses (A, B, and C)^[10]

The three concourses and their gates are:

• Concourse A – 17 gates (A1–A3, A4A–B, A5, A7, A9–A12, A14–A19)
• Concourse B – 23 gates (B1–B3, B5–B12, B14–B26)
• Concourse C – 3 gates (C1–C3)

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations	Concourse
Delta Air Lines	Atlanta Seasonal: Detroit	A
Delta Connection	Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul	A
North Country Sky operated by CFM	Charter: Manistee Seasonal Charter: Pellston	C
Porter Airlines	Toronto–Billy Bishop	A
Southwest Airlines	Albany, Albuquerque, Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Birmingham (AL), Boston, Buffalo, Cancún, Charleston (SC), Charlotte, Cleveland, Columbus (OH), Dallas–Love, Dayton, Denver, Detroit, Flint, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Grand Rapids, Hartford, Houston–Hobby, Indianapolis, Jacksonville (FL), Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Louisville, Manchester (NH), Memphis, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Montego Bay, Nashville, New Orleans, New York–LaGuardia, Newark, Norfolk, Oakland, Oklahoma City, Omaha, Ontario, Orange County, Orlando, Pensacola, Philadelphia, Phoenix–Sky Harbor, Pittsburgh, Portland (OR), Providence, Punta Cana, Raleigh/Durham, Sacramento, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose (CA), Seattle/Tacoma, Tampa, Tucson, Washington-National Seasonal: Boise, Portland (ME), Reno/Tahoe, Spokane, West Palm Beach	A, B
Ultimate Air Shuttle	Charter: Cincinnati–Lunken	FBO
Volaris	Durango, Guadalajara, León/Del Bajío, Morelia, Zacatecas	A

Statistics

Chicago Midway Airport is the second-largest passenger airport in the state of Illinois, with only O'Hare being larger.^[6] In 2005, Chicago Midway International Airport was the 30th-busiest airport in the United States in terms of passenger traffic.^[26]

Chicago Midway 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.^[27]

Southwest is the dominant carrier at Midway, controlling 34 of the airport's 43 gates. Currently, the airline offers around 250 daily departures to 60 nonstop destinations.^[28]

Top destinations

Busiest domestic routes from MDW (September 2015 – August 2016)^[29]

Rank	City	Passengers	Carriers
1	Atlanta, Georgia	524,000	Delta, Southwest
2	Las Vegas, Nevada	438,000	Southwest
3	Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota	429,000	Delta, Southwest
4	Denver, Colorado	403,000	Southwest
5	Orlando, Florida	391,000	Southwest
6	Phoenix–Sky Harbor, Arizona	370,000	Southwest
7	Dallas–Love, Texas	320,000	Southwest
8	New York City–LaGuardia, New York	301,000	Southwest
9	Los Angeles, California	292,000	Southwest
10	Kansas City, Missouri	292,000	Southwest

Busiest international routes from MDW (2015)^[30]

Rank	Airport	Passengers	Annual Change	Carriers
1	Cancún, Mexico	185,264	049%	Southwest
2	Toronto (Billy Bishop), Canada	159,128	03.4%	Porter Airlines
3	Punta Cana, Dominican Republic	92,043	045%	Southwest
4	Montego Bay, Jamaica	90,544	082.6%	Southwest
5	Guadalajara, Mexico	86,411	00.8%	Volaris
6	Morelia, Mexico	64,756	09.9%	Volaris
7	Zacatecas, Mexico	32,438	015.9%	Volaris
8	León/Del Bajío, Mexico	25,930	013.1%	Volaris
9	Durango, Mexico	1,788	-	Volaris

Annual traffic

Recent Traffic^[3]

Year	Passenger volume	Change over previous year	Aircraft operations	Cargo tonnage
2000	15,672,688	015.34%	298,115	23,260.4
2001	15,628,886	00.37%	278,734	17,162.4
2002	16,959,229	08.51%	304,304	83,472.8
2003	18,644,372	09.94%	328,025	25,847.3
2004	19,718,236	05.70%	339,508	29,047.5
2005	17,862,838	09.42%	289,579	19,460.3
2006	18,868,388	05.63%	298,542	17,060.0
2007	19,378,855	02.71%	304,657	14,726.8
2008	17,345,635	010.49%	266,341	14,254.1
2009	17,089,365	01.48%	244,810	25,010.2
2010	17,676,413	03.44%	245,533	28,227.6
2011	18,883,170	07.00%	255,227	26,091.0
2012	19,516,127	03.35%	249,913	27,911.4
2013	20,474,552	04.91%	252,126	26,164.7
2014	21,179,833	03.44%	249,252	25,372.1
2015	22,221,499	04.92%	253,519	25,217.9

Historic operations

Historic Airline Operations

(Arrivals and Departures)

Year	Midway	O'Hare
1958	337,421	66,205
1959	345,170	82,417
1960	298,582	163,351
1961	187,978	235,908
1962	46,873	331,090
1963	19,054	358,266
1964	19,017	389,640
1965	16,716	443,026
1966	5,090	478,644
1967	4,427	573,506
1968	26,941	628,632
1969	31,394	632,030
1970	43,553	598,973
1971	51,734	565,826

Accidents and incidents

On December 8, 1972, United Airlines Flight 553, 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. One of the victims on the plane was Dorothy Hunt, the wife of Watergate conspirator E. Howard Hunt. She was carrying $10,000 in cash. James McCord alleged that she supplied the Watergate defendants with money for legal expenses.^[31]

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.^[32] 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.^[32] 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.^[32]

List of all major incidents at MDW

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.[33][34]
May 20, 1943	42–7053	B-24E	U.S. Army Air Force	3625 W. 73rd St.	On approach, disoriented in bad weather, hit huge gas storage tank 2.5 miles (4.0 km) southeast[35][36]
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 (46 m) went vertical, at 500 feet (150 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 (460 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 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 No. 2, circled to land 31L, crashed 0.2 miles (0.32 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 (2.01 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 miles (0.64 km) west of field
December 8, 2005	N471WN	737-700	Southwest Airlines	55th & Central	Landed 31C during a snowstorm, crashed through a fence, hit 2 cars, killed a child in car on 55th and Central

Source: Civil Aeronautics Board archives, NTSB records.

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 Authority'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 bus routes that serve the surrounding areas. Midway is one of the few airports in the United States that has rapid transit train to terminal service.^[37]

See also

• Gary/Chicago International Airport
• Chicago Rockford International Airport
• Meigs Field
• Illinois World War II Army Airfields
• 2014 air traffic control facility fire

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chicago Midway International Airport.

• Official website
• Midway: Terminal and Concourse Maps
• TWA Crash of 1959
• 1972 Crash Summary
• openNav: MDW / KMDW charts
• Early Midway images
• Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) No. IL-305, "Midway Airport, South Terminal, Cicero Avenue between Fifty-fifth & Sixty-third Streets, Chicago, Cook County, IL"
• FAA Airport Diagram (PDF), effective December 8, 2016
• Resources for this airport:
  • AirNav airport information for KMDW
  • ASN accident history for MDW
  • FlightAware airport information and live flight tracker
  • NOAA/NWS latest weather observations
  • SkyVector aeronautical chart for KMDW
  • FAA current MDW delay information