Crowded skies, expanding airports
As the number of airline passengers grows, major U.S. airports are expanding to keep up with the demand.
This story was created prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Projections and completion dates have changed since its publication.
Nationwide, 200 million more passengers boarded commercial planes in 2018 than in 2000.
As everyone who has recently traveled within the U.S. in the past few years knows, the nation's major airports are straining to serve ever-growing crowds of travelers. Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson airport (shown below and in the cover), the busiest in the nation with almost 52 million passenger boardings in 2018, is one of many major air travel hubs with ambitious expansion plans.
One of Atlanta's seven concourses.
Nearly 5 percent more passengers flew on U.S. airlines in 2018 than in the previous year.
The 25 busiest airports in the United States
The nation's 50 busiest airports—many of them hubs for major airlines—are linked by a dense web of airline routes. Over 26,500 commercial airline flights criss-cross American skies every day.
Airport expansions
Below, a selection of expansion projects among the nation's largest airports
ATL
A 20-year plan for Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport includes expansion and addition of concourses, huge new parking structures, and a hotel. Centerpieces of ongoing improvements to the main terminal building are two glass and steel canopies being built over passenger pick-up and drop-off areas.
More info: Atlanta Next
LAX
Los Angeles International, the nation's second-busiest airport, is in the midst of a $14 billion expansion and renovation of its terminals, including a new midfield concourse west of the Tom Bradley International Terminal.
More info: LAWA MSC North
LAX continued
Latest plans call for a new terminal east of the main terminal complex, to provide additional capacity in anticipation of the city's hosting of the 2028 Summer Olympic Games.
More info: Giant expansion coming...
ORD
Expenditure of some $8.5 billion is planned for O'Hare International Airport near Chicago. Among the plans: replacement of Terminal 2, the Y-shaped concourses on the left in the satellite image, with a new and much larger Y-shaped terminal.
O'Hare ranks third in the nation in number of passenger boardings, but tops the list in number of arriving and departing flights—more than 900,000.
More info: Studio shares designs...
DFW
Dallas-Fort Worth, the nation's fourth busiest, plans to add a sixth terminal, filling in the southwest corner of its sprawling terminal complex. The $3 billion plan also includes improvements to its C Terminal.
More info: A Whole New Experience...
JFK
A massive renovation of New York's JFK International's tangled infrastructure is projected to cost $13 billion and will include two new terminals.
More info: JFK Vision Plan
SEA
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is building a $968-million international arrivals facility at the south end of its existing terminal. The project is also expanding the southern midfield concourse and linking it to the new facility via an elevated walkway.
More info: International Arrivals Facility
EWR
Newark Airport is replacing its Terminal A (the lower cluster of three circular boarding areas in this image) with a $2.7 billion new terminal.
More info: Terminal One Briefing Book
MCO
A $2.8 billion south terminal is under construction at Orlando's international airport. The terminal will add 19 new gates and is slated for completion in late 2021.
More info: South Terminal Complex
LGA
New York's La Guardia airport, notorious among frequent fliers for its crowding and delays, is undergoing an $8 billion upgrade and expansion.
An entirely new terminal, and a 3,000-car parking garage, are being built between the existing facility and the Grand Central Parkway—no mean feat while the airport continues to serve passengers.
More info: HOK Architects
MSY
In November 2019 New Orleans opened a billion-dollar terminal directly across the main runway from its older sister.
New terminals offer a big advantage over most older ones: spacious, dedicated security areas. Older airport facilities have often had to squeeze security functions into existing corridors and waiting areas.
More info: The New MSY
MCI
Kansas City's bunker-like, 1970s-era terminal will be replaced by a soaring new facility. It will occupy the area near the upper left of the three horseshoe-shaped structures. The remaining terminal buildings will be demolished.
More info: Build KCI
PIT
Pittsburgh, ranking number 45 on the list of busiest airports, plans a $1.1 billion terminal that will occupy the parking lot between the existing terminal and the X-shaped gate concourses.
More info: Business Traveller
The Federal Aviation Administration forecasts that U.S. passenger boardings will increase from 816 million in fiscal year 2019 to 1.1 billion in 2039. It's safe to say that we'll be seeing lots more airport construction in the coming years.
