Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Jump to: navigation, search
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
IATA: ATL - ICAO: KATL
Summary
Airport type public
Operator Department of Aviation of the City of Atlanta
Serves Atlanta, Georgia
Elevation AMSL 1,026 ft (313 m)
Coordinates 33° 28' 21.1" N

84° 25' 39.6" W

Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
9R/27L 9,000 2,743 Paved
9L/27R 11,889 3,624 Paved
8R/26L 10,000 3,048 Paved
8L/26R 9,000 2,743 Paved
(10/28) (9,000) (2,743) (2006)

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (IATA: ATL, ICAO: KATL) is located in the Atlanta, Georgia, USA metropolitan area, and is one of two airports considered the busiest airport in the world, rivaling Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.

The airport is located partly within the southern city limits of Atlanta and is adjacent to the city of College Park, Georgia, which is south of the city limits of Atlanta. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is the primary hub of Delta Air Lines and AirTran Airways. The airport is located within both Fulton and Clayton counties.

Contents

History

Hartsfield-Jackson had its beginnings with a five-year, rent free lease on 287 acres that had been the home of an abandoned auto racetrack. The lease was signed on April 16, 1925 by Mayor Walter Sims, who committed the city to develop it into an airfield. As part of the agreement, the property was renamed Candler Field after its former owner, Coca-Cola tycoon and former Atlanta mayor Asa Candler. The first flight into Candler Field was on September 15, 1926, a Florida Airways mail plane flying from Jacksonville. In May 1928, Pitcairn Aviation began service to Atlanta, followed in June 1930 by Delta Air Service. Later these two airlines, known as Eastern Airlines and Delta Air Lines, respectively, would both use Atlanta as their chief hubs.

Candler Field's first control tower was opened March 1939 and in October 1940 the U.S. government declared it an air base. During World War II, the airport doubled in size and set a record of 1,700 takeoffs and landings in a single day, making it the nation's busiest airport in terms of flight operation.

In 1946 Candler Field was renamed Atlanta Municipal Airport. In 1948, more than one million passengers passed through a war surplus hangar that served as a terminal building. On June 1, 1956 an Eastern Airlines flight to Montreal, Canada was the first international flight out of Atlanta. In 1957, work on a new terminal was begun to help alleviate congestion. Atlanta was the busiest airport in the country with more than two million passengers passing through that year and, between noon and 2 p.m. each day, it became the busiest airport in the world.

On May 3, 1961, the new $21 million terminal opened, the largest in the country, being able to accommodate over six million travelers a year. The new airport was stretched past its capacity the very first year when nine and half million people passed though. In 1967, the city of Atlanta and the airlines began to work on a master plan for future development of Atlanta Municipal Airport.

Construction was begun on the world's largest air complex in January 1977 under the administration of Mayor Maynard Jackson. It was the largest construction project in the South, costing $500 million. Named for former Atlanta mayor William Berry Hartsfield, who did much to promote air travel, William B. Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport opened on September 21, 1980, on-time and under budget. It was designed to accommodate up to 55 million passengers per year and covered 2.5 million square feet (230,000m²). In December 1984 a 9000-foot (3km) fourth parallel runway was completed, and another runway was extended to 11,889 feet (3.6km) the following year.

In 2003, Atlanta's city council voted on October 20 to change the name from Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport to the current Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, in honor of former mayor Jackson who had died on June 23.

Layout

FAA diagram of Hartsfield, showing construction on the south side of the airport.
Enlarge
FAA diagram of Hartsfield, showing construction on the south side of the airport.

Hartsfield-Jackson International is the chief hub to Delta Air Lines and mostly handles air traffic to other parts of the United States and Canada. Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport has international service to Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. It has two terminals where persons check in, the North Terminal and the South Terminal. They link to a main terminal for security screening, before passengers head to Concourse T, or to the underground train.

Six concourses exist for passenger boarding. Moving sidewalks and an underground "people mover" train made by Westinghouse connect the concourses, and the terminals building. Concourse T is attached to the terminal, and was formerly for international flights, before Concourse E was built prior to the 1996 Centennial Summer Olympics.

Hartsfield-Jackson also has its own train station on the city's rapid transit system, MARTA. The above-ground station is inside in the main building, between the north and south terminals on the west end. Built as part of the airport, it was not connected until the south line could be extended to it in 1988. It is currently the southermost point on MARTA, though there are talks of adding a second station for a planned second terminal. This could possibly be a substitute for adding a second people-mover.

Expansion

Major construction projects are underway at the airport during the 2000s, each part of an overall expansion plan costing several billion dollars.

A fifth runway (10/28) is being built and will open in the summer of 2006. It bridges Interstate 285 (the Perimeter) on the south side of the airport. The massive project, which involved putting fill dirt eleven stories high in some places, destroyed some surrounding neighborhoods, and families will be only be able to visit two cemeteries on the property occasionally.

In July 2003, current Atlanta mayor Shirley Franklin announced a second international concourse, which will also have its own terminal. A second international Concourse F with its own terminal was slated to open in 2006, however time and cost overruns led general manager Ben DeCosta to cancel the contract in August 2005. The very next day the company sued the airport claiming "fraud" and "bad faith", blaming the airport authority for the problems. This will likely push back the terminal's completion to 2010. [1]

Also scheduled to be completed for 2010 (though it too may be pushed back now) is a new terminal south of the current terminals. The new terminal is expected to include approximately 31 gates.

There have been concerns that income to cover the cost of these projects may decline if Delta files for bankruptcy. Delta passengers account for a majority of those passing through the airport.

A consolidated rental car structure is also under construction.

Check-in and baggage claim

North Terminal

South Terminal

East International Terminal

  • (to be built in 2006)

Fourth Terminal

  • (to be built in 2010)

Departure and arrival halls

Concourse T

  • American Airlines (Chicago/O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami, New York LGA)
  • American Eagle (Chicago/O'Hare, St. Louis)
  • Delta Air Lines (Domestic and Transborder) (Albany (NY), Albuquerque, Anchorage (seasonal), Austin, Baltimore/Washington, Baton Rouge, Birmingham (AL), Boise, Boston, Buffalo, Burbank, Charleston (SC), Charlotte, Chicago/Midway, Chicago/O'Hare, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Colorado Springs, Columbia (SC), Columbus, Dallas/Fort Worth, Dayton, Daytona Beach, Denver, Detroit, El Paso, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Fort Walton Beach, Grand Rapids, Greensboro, Greenville (SC), Gulfport, Gunnison, Hartford, Honolulu, Houston/Hobby, Houston/Intercontinental, Huntsville, Indianapolis, Jackson, Jackson Hole, Jacksonville, Knoxville, Las Vegas, Lexington, Little Rock, Los Angeles, Louisville, Manchester (NH), Melbourne, Memphis, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Mobile, Montreal, Myrtle Beach, Nashville, New Orleans, Newark, New York/JFK, New York/LaGuardia, Norfolk, Oakland, Oklahoma City, Omaha, Ontario (CA), Orange County, Orlando, Palm Springs, Pensacola, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland (ME), Portland (OR), Providence, Raleigh/Durham, Reno/Tahoe, Richmond, Sacramento, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose (CA), San Juan, Sarasota/Bradenton, Savannah, Seattle/Tacoma, Steamboat Springs (seasonal), Syracuse, Tallahassee, Tampa, Toronto, Tucson, Tulsa, Vail, Vancouver, Washington/Dulles, Washington/Reagan, West Palm Beach)
  • United Airlines (Chicago/O'Hare, Denver, Hong Kong(via Chicago/O'hare), San Francisco, Washington/Dulles)

Concourse A

Concourse B

Concourse C

  • AirTran Airways (Akron, Baltimore/Washington, Bloomington, Boston, Buffalo, Cancun(beg. Dec 15, 2005), Chicago/Midway, Dallas/Fort Worth, Dayton, Denver, Flint, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Grand Bahama Island, Gulfport, Houston/Hobby, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Memphis, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Moline, Newark, New Orleans, Newport News, New York/LaGuardia, Orlando, Pensacola, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Raleigh/Durham, Rochester, San Francisco, Sarasota/Bradenton, Savannah, Tampa, Washington/Dulles, Washington/Reagan, West Palm Beach, Wichita)
  • Delta Air Lines
    • Atlantic Southeast Airlines dba Delta Connection (Akron, Albany (GA), Alexandria, Allentown/Bethlehem, Appleton, Asheville, Augusta (GA), Baton Rouge, Beaumont, Brunswick, Buffalo, Charleston (SC), Charleston (WV), Charlotte, Charlottesville, Chattanooga, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Cleveland, Columbia (SC), Columbus (GA), Columbus/Starkville (MS), Corpus Christi, Dallas/Fort Worth, Daytona Beach, Des Moines, Dothan, Evansville, Fayetteville (AR), Fayeteville (NC), Flint, Florence (SC), Fort Walton Beach, Fort Wayne, Gainesville, Grand Bahama Island, Grand Rapids, Greensboro, Greenville (SC), Gulfport, Harrisburg, Houston/Hobby, Houston/Intercontinental, Huntsville, Indianapolis, Jackson, Key West, Knoxville, Lafayette, Lexington, Little Rock, Islip, Lynchburg, Macon, Manchester (NH), Melbourne, Meridian, Milwaukee, Mobile, Monroe, Monterrey (MX), Montgomery, Montreal, Myrtle Beach, Naples, New Orleans, Newport News, Norfolk, Omaha, Ottawa, Panama City Beach, Pensacola, Peoria, Providenciales (Turks and Caicos), Roanoke, Rochester (NY), St. Louis, San Antonio, Sarasota/Bradenton, Savannah, Shreveport, South Bend, Tallahassee, Toledo, Toronto, Tri-Cities, Valdosta, Washington/Dulles, Washington/Reagan, White Plains, Wichita, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Wilmington)
    • Comair dba Delta Connection (Akron, Allentown/Bethlehem, Baltimore/Washington, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Dayton, Daytona Beach, Des Moines, Fort Walton Beach, Louisville, New York/JFK, Rochester (NY), Syracuse, Toledo, Toronto)

Concourse D

International Concourse E

  • Aeroméxico (Cancun, and Mexico City)
  • Air France (Paris/CDG)
  • Air Jamaica (Montego Bay)
  • British Airways (London/Gatwick)
  • Delta Air Lines (International) (Amsterdam, Antigua (starts Dec. 18, 2005), Aruba, Athens (starts May 29, 2006), Barbados, Barcelona, Belize City, Bermuda, Bogota, Bridgetown (starts Dec. 8, 2005), Brussels, Buenos Aires, Cancun, Caracas, Copenhagen (starts May 1, 2006), Cozumel, Dublin, Dusseldorf (starts Apr. 3, 2006), Edinburgh (starts May 4, 2006), Frankfurt, Grand Cayman, Guadalajara, Guatemala City, Liberia (CR), Lima, London/Gatwick, Los Cabos, Madrid, Managua (starts Dec. 15, 2005), Manchester (UK), Mazaltan(beg. March 5, 2006), Mexico City, Milan/Malpensa, Montego Bay, Moscow Sheremetyevo, Munich, Nassau, Nice (starts May 9, 2006), Panama City (Panama), Paris/CDG, Providenciales (Turks and Caicos), Puerto Vallarta (starts Dec. 15, 2005), Punta Cana, Rio de Janeiro, Roatan (starts March 4, 2005), Rome/Fiumicino, St. John's(beg. Dec. 18, 2005), St. Lucia, St. Maarten, St. Thomas, San Jose(CR), San Pedro Sula (starts March 1, 2006), San Salvador, Santiago, Santo Domingo (starts. Dec. 1, 2005), Sao Paulo, Shannon, Stuttgart, Tel Aviv (starts Mar. 27, 2006), Tokyo/Narita, Venice (starts Jun. 6, 2006), Zurich)
  • KLM (Amsterdam)
  • Korean Air (Seoul/Incheon)
  • Lufthansa (Frankfurt)
  • South African Airways (Johannesburg)

International Concourse F

  • (to be announced)

Fourth Terminal

  • (to be announced)

Cargo airlines

External links

 

Atlanta landmarks
Atlanta Botanical Garden | Atlanta Civic Center | Atlanta Cyclorama | Atlanta History Center | Atlanta Symphony Hall | Atlantic Station | Bobby Dodd Stadium | Centennial Olympic Park | Chattahoochee River | Clermont Lounge | CNN Center | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Fernbank Science Center | Fox Theatre | Georgia Aquarium | Georgia Dome | Georgia Governor's Mansion | Georgia State Capitol | Georgia World Congress Center | Grant Park | Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport | High Museum of Art | Jimmy Carter Library and Museum | Lenox Square | Margaret Mitchell House and Museum | Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site | Oakland Cemetery | Philips Arena | Phipps Plaza | Piedmont Park | Stone Mountain | The Varsity | Turner Field | Underground Atlanta | Woodruff Arts Center | World of Coca-Cola | Zoo Atlanta
Former: Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium | Coca-Cola Olympic City | Loew's Grand Theatre | Omni Coliseum | SciTrek | Rich's

 

Airports of metro Atlanta
International: Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL)
Municipal: Cobb County Airport (RYY) | Cherokee County Airport (47A) | Clayton County Airport (4A7) | Cartersville Airport (VPC) | Gwinnett County Airport (LZU) | Coweta County Airport (CCO) | Peachtree-DeKalb Airport (PDK) | Fulton County Airport (FTY) | Paulding County Airport (tba)
Military: Naval Air Station Atlanta and Dobbins Air Reserve Base (MGE)

Personal tools
In other languages