Kansas City International Airport , originally named Mid-Continent International Airport, is a public airport located 15 miles (24 km) northwest of the central business district of Kansas City, in Platte County, Missouri, United States. In 2008, 10,469,892 passengers used the airport.

Kansas City International was ranked No. 1 among large-size airports in the J.D. Power and Associates 2007 North America Airport Satisfaction Study (receiving five out of five stars in all categories except baggage claim in which it got four)

In February 2008, U.S. News & World Report ranked the airport the "3rd least miserable airport" in the United States, based on the 47 busiest airports in the country.

The airport's largest carrier is Southwest Airlines which operates a large number of daily flights and serves as a secondary airline hub for Midwest Airlines.

The airport has always been a civilian airport and has never had an Air National Guard unit assigned to it unlike many major comparably sized airports.

In 2009 the airport was reported as having the highest number of wildlife strikes of any airport in the United States based on take offs and landings (57 per 100,000). FAA records show there were 146 strikes in 2008 -- up from 37 in 2000.

History

Kansas City Industrial Airport

The airport (originally informally called Kansas City Industrial Airport) was built after the Great Flood of 1951 destroyed the facilities of both of Kansas City's hometown airlines Mid-Continent Airlines and TWA at Fairfax Airport across the Missouri River from the city's main Kansas City Downtown Airport (which was not as severely damaged in the flood).

Fairfax was the main hub for passenger and airmail traffic handled by Mid-Continent. TWA had its main overhaul base in a former B-25 Bomber factory at Fairfax although TWA commercial flights flew out of the main downtown airport.

Kansas City was planning to build an airport that could handle runways and recognized that its expansion options were limited at the Downtown airport.

At the time, Kansas City already owned Grandview Airport south of the city which had ample room for expansion. However, Kansas City chose to build an entirely new airport north of the city away from the Missouri River following intense lobbying by Platte County native Jay B. Dillingham, president of the Kansas City Stockyards which had also been destroyed in the flood.

The specific site just north of the then unincorporated hamlet of Hampton, Missouri was picked in May 1953 (with an anticipated cost of $23 million) under the guidance of City Manager L.P. Cookingham. Cookingham Drive is now the main access road to the airport. Ground was broken in September 1954. The first jet runways opened in 1956. At about the same time the city donated the southern Grandview Airport to the United States Air Force to become Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base.

The airport site was directly across U.S. 71 (now I-29) from the Red Crown Tourist Court where outlaws Bonnie & Clyde engaged in a 1933 shootout with law enforcement which ultimately resulted in the death of Clyde's brother Buck Barrow and the capture of Buck's wife Blanche Barrow.

Mid-Continent International Airport

Although Mid Continent merged with Braniff in 1952, Kansas City decided to name the new airport on the basis of Mid Continent's historic roots (serving the Mid-continent Oil Field).

TWA formally signed an agreement to move its overhaul base to the airport in 1954 in which the city built and owned the $18 million base but lease it back to TWA.

The airport did not have scheduled passenger service until a 1963 Federal Aviation Agency memo called the Downtown Airport "one of the poorest major airports in the country for large jet aircraft" and recommended against spending any more federal dollars on it.

In addition to the expansion limits there were questions whether it could handle the new Boeing 747. Jets had to make steep climbs and descents to avoid the downtown skyscrapers on the high Missouri River bluffs at Quality Hill at the south end of the runway. Further, Downtown Kansas City was right in the flight path for takeoffs and landings, resulting in a constant roar downtown while Mid-Continent was surrounded by open farm land.

TWA's "Airport of the Future"

In 1966 voters in a 24:1 margin approved a $150 million bond issue following a campaign by Mayor Ilus W. Davis to move the city's main airport to an expanded Mid-Continent. The city had considered building its new airport five miles (8 km) north of downtown Kansas City in the Missouri River bottoms as well as locations in southern Jackson County, Missouri, but decided to stick with the property it already owned.

At the time the airport property was in an unincorporated area of Platte County. During construction the small town of Platte City, Missouri, annexed the airport.

Kansas City eventually annexed the airport. Kivett and Myers designed the terminals and control tower. It was dedicated on October 23, 1972 by Vice President Spiro Agnew. Labor strife and interruptions raised its cost to $250 million. Kansas City renamed the airport Kansas City International Airport (although it kept MCI as its airport code). Kansas City's two major hub airlines TWA and Braniff, along with other carriers, moved to the airport.

Many of the design decisions of the airport were driven by primary tenant TWA which envisioned it would be its hub with 747s and Supersonic Transports whisking people from America's heartland to all points on the globe. Streets around the airport had the names of Mexico City Avenue, Brasilia Avenue, Paris Street, London Avenue, Tel Aviv Avenue and so forth.

TWA vetoed concepts to model the airport on Washington Dulles International Airport and Tampa International Airport because those two airports had people movers which it deemed would be too expensive. TWA insisted on a "Drive to Your Gate" concept with flight gates only from the roadway (signs along the roadway identified the specific flights leaving each gate). The single-level terminals had no stairs. A similar layout was to be implemented at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.

TWA's flawed vision

TWA's vision for the future of flight which had been pioneered by the TWA Flight Center at JFK Airport in New York City (which also featured cars close to the gates design) proved obsolete almost from the start.

The terminals turned out to be unfriendly to the 747 since passengers spilled out of the gate area into the halls. Further, when security checkpoints began being instituted in the 1970s to stem the tide of hijackings, they were difficult and expensive to implement since security checkpoints had to be installed at each gate area rather than at a centralized area.

As a result, passenger services were non-existent downstream of the security checkpoint in the gate area. No restrooms were available, and there were no shops, restaurants, newsstands, ATMs or any other passenger services available without exiting the secure area and being rescreened upon re-entry.

Shortly after the airport opened TWA asked that the terminals be rebuilt to address these issues. Kansas City, citing the massive cost overruns on a newly built airport to TWA specification, refused, prompting TWA to move its hub to Lambert-Saint Louis International Airport in St. Louis, Missouri.

Design

MCI passenger terminals have a unique structure comprising 3 terminals in the shape of rings. Each ring has short term parking in the center of the ring. Thus, it is possible for a traveler to park, walk no more than a hundred feet, and go directly to their gate. Arriving travelers can leave their gate, and walk immediately out of the terminal without passing through any corridors. The Kansas City Airport also has several off site airport parking facilities. Slogans at the time of the bond issue were "The world's shortest walk to fly" and "Drive to your gate."[37220] A proposed 4th ring as well as a fourth runway have never been built. Though, until the new rental car facility was built, one could see the foundation laid for the 4th terminal.

Kansas City and the airlines have opted against any "people movers" connecting the three rings. Instead frequent buses take passengers around the rings. Initially there was a charge of 25 cents to ride the bus. However following a massive outcry by travelers the charge was lifted and transportation is now free.

A similar airport design can be found at Berlin-Tegel Airport and Cologne Bonn Airport, both in Germany.

Security

After the establishment of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), MCI was one of five airports where the TSA has experimented with using independent contractors to provide all traveler inspector services. The airport uses FirstLine Transportation Security, an independent contractor who conforms to TSA's recruiting and training standards. TSA supervises these independent contractors, but they are not federal employees.

See: TSA Announcement of Private Security Screening Pilot Program

Renovations

A $258 million Terminal Improvement Project was completed in November 2004. Under lead designer 360 Architecture, the following improvements were made:

• Increased the size of each structural bay to provide larger vestibules, additional space for concessions, more public seating and improved customer service
• The addition of retail space at curbside and airside to provide improved customer service
• A more functional and cost effective signage solution that relocates associated mechanical ductwork to the apron level below, thus exposing more of the existing concrete and original structure while allowing more natural light into the concourse areas.

Other improvements include new finishes throughout, new entrance vestibules to improve the air lock between the building interior and exterior, new baggage claim devices, updated retail areas, new exterior glazing and a common design for ticket counters that includes sunshade devices.

All three terminals now include blue terrazzo floors [37221] (which won a 2002 Honor Award from The National Terrazzo and Mosaic Association), updated arrival/departure screens and restrooms and concessions are now available inside passenger holding areas. In May 2007, the final portion of the project (a new rental car facility and additional art fixtures) were completed.

One major problem remains after the renovation. The modifications necessary to implement TSA security created a situation where many 'sanitized' gate areas have only a single restroom stall each for men and women (added during the renovation); the remaining restrooms are across the hall, which is now outside the secured area, necessitating an extra trip through TSA security.

In 2006 the airport began offering free Wi-Fi.

As part of the renovation, the airport became one of several in the United States to offer a washing area for Muslim taxicab drivers, allowing them to perform their religious ablutions in a safe and sanitary manner. The installation was funded by the airport taxi license fee.

Facilities and aircraft

Kansas City International Airport covers an area of 10,200 acres (4,128 ha) which contains three runways. For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2007, the airport had 194,969 aircraft operations, an average of 534 per day.

Proposed Central Terminal

Airport officials and city leaders say the merger of MCI's three terminals into one terminal is inevitable. They cite the expense of operating several security checkpoints within each terminal, lack of concessions and retail space beyond security as well as the operating costs of the airport itself as reason for a new terminal. Consultants have been hired and five concepts for the future of the airport have been sketched out.

Through the years Kansas City had continued to invest in the three decentralized terminal concept by building multi-level parking structures on the inside fields of each of the "C" terminals—connected via tunnels.

On December 7th 2007, an update to the airport's master plan (Required every 10 years for every major U.S. airport by the FAA) unveiled new plans for a central terminal.

Under the proposed master plan, the central terminal would be built on vacant property south of the airfield and would hold a centralized security checkpoint, a concourse for concessionaires and shops, and four wings for gates. Those wings could be expanded later, the consultant said. Since the south portion of the airfield is vacant, construction would in no way hamper current operations.

An extension of runway 1R to the length of has been proposed, as well as a 4th runway just west of current runway 1L has also been discussed. The architects working on the new master plans are Landrum & Brown. A resolution will be offered to the city council in regards to the plan in the summer of 2008.

MCI instead of KCI

Despite requests from Kansas City, the airport has been unable to change its original International Air Transport Association (IATA) Mid-Continent designation of MCI which had already been registered on navigational charts. Further complicating requests to change the designation, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) at the time reserved all call letters with "K" or "W" for radio and television stations and so KCI was not viable.

Wichita, Kansas in 1973 laid claim to the Mid-Continent name for its Municipal Airport (IATA: ICT, ICAO: KICT) after Kansas City abandoned it. However, Wichita had no luck in changing its IATA designation for the same reasons (including the forbidden "W").

The downtown Kansas City airport got around the "K" restriction because it was originally called Municipal Airport and so its designation is MKC and for added incentive it was in Missouri.

The "W" and "K" restrictions have since been lifted but the IATA is reluctant to change names that have appeared on navigational charts.

Hubs

MCI currently is a hub for Midwest Airlines. Southwest Airlines also operates a high number of flights (68 daily on weekdays) and is the airport's largest carrier. However, it does not classify MCI as a focus city (as Southwest doesn't refer to any city as a "hub").

This airport served as a hub for the now defunct Eastern Air Lines, Vanguard Airlines, and Braniff Airways. It was also a hub for TWA and US Airways. TWA (through its successor American Airlines) continues to use the overhaul base, until September of 2010, when they will close all operations at the overhaul facility and attempt to move a quarter of 900-employees to Tulsa, Oklahoma and lay off the rest. Smith Electric Vehicles will lease out the facility in March of 2010.

At 10,000 acres (40 km²), MCI is one of the larger airfields in the United States. In addition to passenger service, the airport is an active general aviation field, and a very active cargo airport. In 2006 it served 10.6 million passengers.

Transportation to and from the airport

While MCI is conveniently located on major highways Interstate 29 and Interstate 435, it is from downtown and even further from common business destinations in the southern suburbs. The paucity of other transportation options make renting a car the default option. Most national franchises are represented at a consolidated rental car facility.

The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority operates one public bus service to the airport, route 129x. It only operates 18 times per day, between 6 AM and 6 PM, Monday–Friday. It operates between a stop in Terminal C (only) and the downtown bus center with intermediate stops. Systemwide fare is $1.25 as of 2006.

A number of private scheduled shared shuttle services operate from MCI to regional cities (including Saint Joseph, Missouri; Columbia, Missouri; Topeka, Kansas; Lawrence, Kansas); and military bases (Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri; Fort Riley, Kansas; Fort Leavenworth, Kansas; and Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri).

In November 2006, voters of Kansas City approved a 25-year extension of a 3/8-cent sales tax that will help pay for a light rail system. Initial plans call for a rail line extending from Kansas City International Airport in the north, to Swope Park, Starlight Theater Kansas City, and the Kansas City Zoo in the south, creating another transportation option for travelers in and out of MCI. This notion was later repealed by City Council in favor of a different proposal (which failed in the November 2008 ballots).

Incidents

• February 16, 1995 - An Air Transport International McDonnell Douglas DC-8 flight to Westover Metropolitan Airport, which had aborted a take off six minutes before because of loss of directional control, crashed on Runway 1L on another take off because of failure of the directional control when its tail hit the run way. All three on board were killed.
• September 8, 1989 - USAir Flight 105 from Pittsburgh International Airport clipped four power lines 75 feet above the ground 7,000 feet east of Runway 27 after making adjustments after being told by the MCI controller that lights were out on the south side of the airport. The flight then landed in Salina, Kansas. None of the 64 persons on board were injured.
• April 13, 1987 - Buffalo Airways Flight 721 operated by Burlington Air Express cargo flight from Wichita-Mid-Continent Airport descending in a thick fog with half mile visibility clipped a 950 high ridge three miles short of the runway. All four occupants were killed—the worst accident in the airport's history.

Wildlife strikes

In 2009 the airport was reported as having the highest number of wildlife strikes of any airport in the United States based on take offs and landings (57 per 100,000). FAA records show there were 146 strikes in 2008 -- up from 37 in 2000.

In the reporting period of January 1990 to September 2008 none of the encounters resulted in injury to people and all of the planes landed safely. The report listed the most serious incidents.

• March 31, 2006 - Boeing 737 struck a medium to large bird and damaged an engine on take off. It returned.
• February 25, 1999 - a Learjet 35 approaching Downtown Kansas City Airport struck a flock of snow geese over MCI. One hit the co-pilot's window, and one was ingested into an engine shutting it down. It landed safely.
• March 4, 1999 - A DC-9 landing at the airport struck a flock of snow geese ingesting geese in both engines shutting one down. The plane landed safely.
• April 28, 2000 - A Boeing 727 on take off struck a Canada goose destroying an engine. It returned safely.
• June 10, 2005 - A DC-9 on takeoff struck an American Kestrel stalling an engine. It returned safely.

Terminals, airlines, and destinations

Terminal A

Terminal A has 30 Gates: A1–A30 (A13, A14, and A16-A21 are closed)

Terminal B

Terminal B has 30 Gates: B31–B60 (B40-B55 are closed). Northwest now shares Delta Gates.

Terminal C

Terminal C has 30 Gates: C61–C90 (C61-C66, C70-C76 and C80-C83 are closed; Gates C86 to C90 handle international arrivals)

Popular culture

The Kansas City International Airport was featured in episode 63 of the Discovery Channel television series Dirty Jobs. The episode featured the Southwest Airlines baggage handling system and the airport incinerator. It originally aired on February 20, 2007. An episode set to air later in 2007 will feature Rowe cleaning out a paint truck at MCI.

References

External links

• Kansas City International Airport (official web site)
• KCI WiFi Internet Service