Cleveland Hopkins International Airport is an

international airport An international airport is an airport with customs and border control facilities enabling passengers to travel between countries around the world. International airports are usually larger than domestic airports and they must feature longer ...

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It is the primary airport serving

Greater Cleveland The Cleveland metropolitan area, or Greater Cleveland as it is more commonly known, is the metropolitan area surrounding the city of Cleveland in Northeast Ohio, United States. According to the 2020 United States Census results, the five-county ...

and

Northeast Ohio The region Northeast Ohio, in the US state of Ohio, in its most expansive usage contains six metropolitan areas ( Cleveland–Elyria, Akron, Canton–Massillon, Youngstown–Warren, Mansfield, and Weirton–Steubenville) along with eight m ...

, the largest and busiest airport in the state, and the 43rd busiest airport in the U.S. by passenger numbers. Located in Cleveland's

Hopkins Hopkins is an English, Welsh and Irish patronymic surname. The English name means "son of Hob". ''Hob'' was a diminutive of ''Robert'', itself deriving from the Germanic warrior name ''Hrod-berht'', translated as "renowned-fame". The Robert spell ...

neighborhood A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; see spelling differences) is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural area, ...

southwest of

Downtown Cleveland Downtown Cleveland is the central business district of Cleveland, Ohio. The economic and symbolic center of the city and the Cleveland-Akron-Canton, OH Combined Statistical Area, it is Cleveland's oldest district, with its Public Square laid out b ...

, it is adjacent to the

Glenn Research Center NASA John H. Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field is a NASA center within the cities of Brook Park and Cleveland between Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and the Rocky River Reservation of Cleveland Metroparks, with a subsidiary facilit ...

, one of

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

's ten major field centers., effective January 27, 2022 The airport has been at the forefront of several innovations that are now commonplace. It was the first airport with an air traffic

control tower Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airsp ...

and a two-terminal design separating arrivals from departures. It was also the first airport to be directly connected with a mass transit system. Cleveland was a hub for

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

from the post–World War II era until the mid-1980s. After United moved its hub operations to Washington–Dulles,

Continental Airlines Continental Airlines, simply known as Continental, was a major United States airline founded in 1934 and eventually headquartered in Houston, Texas. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers. Continental started o ...

opened a hub which made it the dominant carrier at the airport in the 1990s and 2000s. After United and Continental merged under the United brand in 2010, United closed the Cleveland hub, though it still has a flight attendant base, pilot base, and maintenance facilities at the airport and is its largest carrier by passenger count. United's hub closure created an opening for new airlines like

Frontier Airlines Frontier Airlines is a major ultra-low-cost U.S. airline headquartered in Denver, Colorado. It operates flights to over 100 destinations throughout the United States and 31 international destinations, and employs more than 3,000 staff. The ca ...

and

Spirit Airlines Spirit Airlines Inc. (stylized as spirit) is a major ultra-low-cost U.S. carrier headquartered in Miramar, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area. Spirit operates scheduled flights throughout the United States, the Caribbean and Latin Ameri ...

to enter the market. Within a few years after United closed the hub, passenger traffic rebounded to where it was before the closure. Cleveland Hopkins offers non-stop passenger service to nearly 40 destinations. Cleveland Hopkins is operated by the Cleveland Department of Port Control, which also includes

Burke Lakefront Airport Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport is a public airport on the shore of Lake Erie, in the northeast part of downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It's classified as a general aviation airport and is an FAA designated reliever to Cleveland Ho ...

located downtown. In 2018, Airports Council International ranked Cleveland Hopkins the most improved North American airport in the 2017 Airport Service Quality Survey.

History

Cleveland Hopkins is of particular importance to the history of commercial air travel due to a number of first-in-the-world innovations that would eventually become the global standard. Founded in 1925, it was one of the first

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

-owned facility of its kind in the United States. It was the site of the first air traffic

, the first ground-to-air radio control system, and the first airfield

lighting system Lighting or illumination is the deliberate use of light to achieve practical or aesthetic effects. Lighting includes the use of both artificial light sources like lamps and light fixtures, as well as natural illumination by capturing dayligh ...

, all in 1930; and it was the first U.S. airport to be directly connected to a local or regional rail transit system, in 1968. It was also the first airport to employ a two-level terminal design separating arrivals from departures. The airport was named after its founder, former

city manager A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city, in a "Mayor–council government" council–manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are sometimes referred to as the chief execu ...

William R. Hopkins William Rowland Hopkins (July 26, 1869 – February 9, 1961) was an American politician of the Republican Party who served as the first city manager of Cleveland, Ohio from 1924 to 1929, during the brief period that Cleveland had a council ...

, on his 82nd birthday in 1951.

First closure of United hub and establishment of Continental hub

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

established its easternmost domestic hub in Cleveland after World War II, which it maintained until the mid-1980s, when it closed its Cleveland hub and moved capacity to a new hub at Washington–Dulles. Following the closure of the United hub,

(which at the time was a separate carrier and lacked a Midwest hub) responded by adding capacity to Cleveland, as did

USAir US Airways (formerly USAir) was a major United States airline that operated from 1937 until its merger with American Airlines in 2015. It was originally founded in Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called All American Aviation, which soon b ...

, which was the dominant carrier at the airport from 1987 until the early 1990s. While USAir soon reduced its schedule from Cleveland, Continental substantially increased its hub capacity, becoming the airport's largest tenant and eventually accounting for upwards of 60 percent of passenger traffic. Continental and the airport both made substantial operational and capital investments in the airport's infrastructure. In 1992, the airport completed a $50 million renovation of Concourse C, which housed all of Continental's flights. The renovation included the installation of a continuous skylight, a Continental President's Club lounge, and a new Baggage Claim area. In 1999, the airport completed an $80 million expansion that included the construction of the new Concourse D (now closed), which was built to accommodate

Continental Express Continental Express was the operating brand name used by a number of independently owned regional airlines providing commuter airliner and regional jet feeder service under agreement with Continental Airlines. In 2012 at the time of the merger be ...

and

Continental Connection Continental Connection was a brand name under which several commuter airline carriers and their holding companies operated services marketed exclusively by Continental Airlines. As such, all Continental Connection banner carrier services were ope ...

flights.

launched daily seasonal flights to London's

Gatwick Airport Gatwick Airport (), also known as London Gatwick , is a major international airport near Crawley, West Sussex, England, south of Central London. In 2021, Gatwick was the third-busiest airport by total passenger traffic in the UK, after H ...

in June 1999, Cleveland's first transatlantic service since cancellation of Jat Airways' once-weekly route from Cleveland to

Ljubljana, Slovenia Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

was cancelled in the 1980s. The airline also flew to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

in summer 2008 but terminated the route due to economic concerns. The following year, Continental stated that its London route, which by then had switched to

Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...

, would not return in 2010. The carrier pointed to the

recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...

and an inability to obtain affordable seasonal slots at Heathrow as reasons behind its decision. At the same time, an article in ''

The Plain Dealer ''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. In fall 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily and 15th on Sunday. As of Ma ...

'' suggested additional factors were at play, such as the notion that rising collaboration between Continental and

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

meant passengers could transit through United's hub at

Chicago-O'Hare Chicago O'Hare International Airport , sometimes referred to as, Chicago O'Hare, or simply O'Hare, is the main international airport serving Chicago, Illinois, located on the city's Northwest Side, approximately northwest of the Loop business ...

instead. The cancellation of the route left Cleveland without a direct link to Europe for the next several years.

Continental–United merger and second closure of United hub

In 2010, Continental and United Airlines announced that they would merge operations. The merger prompted concerns that a post-merger United would reduce or close its hub in Cleveland and instead route passengers through the new United's nearby hubs at O'Hare Airport in Chicago and Dulles Airport in Washington. On November 10, 2010, Continental CEO Jeff Smisek stated in a speech in Cleveland that "Cleveland needs to earn its hub status every day" and added that overall profitability would be the determining factor in whether the new United kept or closed the Cleveland hub. United continued to reduce its capacity in Cleveland following the merger, which already had been substantially reduced in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. On February 1, 2014, United announced that the airline would shut down its Cleveland hub, stating as justification that the airline's hub at Cleveland "hasn't been profitable for over a decade." By June 5, 2014,

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

effectively terminated its hub operation at the airport, reducing its daily departures by more than 60%. United also closed Concourse D and consolidated all of its remaining operations in Concourse C, although it is required to continue to pay the airport $1,112,482 a month in rent for the facility until 2027.

Post-hub history

The airport initially experienced a sharp decline in passenger counts following the closure of United's hub in 2014. Several other airlines, however, increased their service to Cleveland in subsequent years.

significantly increased its service to the airport and declared

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

a focus city. Other low-cost airlines such as

and

Allegiant Air Allegiant Air (usually shortened to Allegiant) is an ultra low-cost U.S. carrier that operates scheduled and charter flights. It is a major air carrier, the fourteenth-largest commercial airline in North America. Allegiant was founded in 1 ...

began new service to the airport as well, and existing airlines such as

American Airlines American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the List of airlines by foundation date, world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atla ...

, and

Southwest Airlines Southwest Airlines Co., typically referred to as Southwest, is one of the major airlines of the United States and the world's largest low-cost carrier. It is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and has scheduled service to 121 destinations in the U ...

also increased their number of daily flights and destinations. As a result, by 2017, the airport's passenger count exceeded levels achieved during the last full year that United maintained a hub in Cleveland. Despite the closure of its hub, as of 2017 United still maintained roughly 1,200 employees in

, including a flight attendant and pilot base as well as maintenance facilities. United also remains the largest carrier at Hopkins. Regional airline

CommutAir CommuteAir, operating as United Express, is a U.S. regional airline founded in 1989. Today, CommuteAir operates more than 1600 weekly flights to over 75 U.S. destinations and 3 in Mexico, with Embraer ERJ-145 aircraft, from its bases at Denver, ...

, which flies exclusively on behalf of

United Express United Express is the brand name for the regional branch of United Airlines, under which six individually owned regional airlines operate short- and medium-haul feeder flights. On October 1, 2010, UAL Corporation and Continental Airlines merged t ...

, is headquartered in nearby

North Olmsted North Olmsted is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city population was 32,442. North Olmsted is a west side suburb of Cleveland, Ohio, and is the 8th most ...

Icelandair Icelandair is the flag carrier airline of Iceland, with its corporate head office on the property of Reykjavík Airport in the capital city Reykjavik. Linked from here It is part of the Icelandair Group and operates to destinations on both si ...

and WOW air reconnected Cleveland with Europe in May 2018, inaugurating flights to

Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...

. Nevertheless, both airlines had left Northeast Ohio by 2019. WOW air had been suffering financially, while Icelandair faced the grounding of the aircraft it operated to Cleveland and potentially the low profitability of the service.

Facilities

Cleveland Hopkins International Airport recent satellite view

Terminal

Cleveland Hopkins consists of one two-level passenger terminal, which was completed in 1978, and renovated in 2016. There are four concourses, three of which are currently in use. *Concourse A houses

Frontier A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts o ...

Spirit Spirit or spirits may refer to: Liquor and other volatile liquids * Spirits, a.k.a. liquor, distilled alcoholic drinks * Spirit or tincture, an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol * Volatile (especially flammable) liquids, ...

, charters, and all international arrivals. Delta Air Lines also uses it for overflow parking and sports charters. It also houses the airport's Federal Inspection Services (FIS) customs and border protection facility. Originally known as "North Concourse", it was opened in 1957 and rebuilt in 1978–79.

used this Concourse until January 2022 when it terminated all flights to Cleveland. *Concourse B houses

Delta Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), a letter of the Greek alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta") * Delta Air Lines, US * Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19 Delta may also re ...

and

Southwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

. Originally the “West Concourse”, it was built in 1954 as the first extension pier to the airport, and was rebuilt and expanded from 1982 to 1983. *Concourse C houses

Air Canada Express Air Canada Express is a brand name of regional feeder flights for Air Canada that are subcontracted to other airlines. As of March 2021, Jazz Aviation is the sole operator of Air Canada Express. They primarily connect smaller cities with Air Cana ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

JetBlue JetBlue Airways Corporation (stylized as jetBlue) is a major American low cost airline, and the seventh largest airline in North America by passengers carried. The airline is headquartered in the Long Island City neighborhood of the New York C ...

and all

United United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

services, except for international arrivals which are handled in Concourse A. Originally known as "South Concourse", it opened in 1969 and was renovated in 1992. *Concourse D has been vacant since 2014, when

closed its gates and consolidated all operations to Concourse C. Built in 1999, it is a separate terminal connected to Concourse C by an underground walkway. Although capable of handling larger jets such as the Boeing 737, it exclusively handled smaller regional aircraft during its operation. Concourse D contains 12

jet bridge A jet bridge (also termed jetway, jetwalk, airgate, gangway, aerobridge/airbridge, skybridge, finger, airtube, expedited suspended passenger entry system (E-SPES), or its official industry name passenger boarding bridge (PBB)) is an enclosed, ...

gates and 24 ramp loading positions. Gates A2, A6, and occasionally A7 are used by

. Gates A1, A8, A10, & A12 are used by

. Gates A14, occasionally A12 as well, are used for international arrivals. Gate A4 is not used and not in operable condition. Gate A3 and A5 are not currently used. Gates B2, B3, B4, B5, & B6 are used by

. Gates B7, B8, B9, B10, & B11 are used by

. Gate B1 is a stairwell and is not in use. Gates C2, C3, C5, C7, C8, C9, C10, C11, & C14 are used by

. American's primary gates are C3, C5, C7, C9, & C11. However, for overflow and from time to time they will use C8, C10, & C14. Gate C6 is used by

. Gates C17, C18, C19, C21, C22, C23, C24, C25, C26, C27, & C29 are used by

. Gate C20 is used by

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada by the size and passengers carried. Air Canada maintains its headquarters in the borough of Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled and ...

. Gates C16 & C28 aren't in use. Gate C4 is being used by Alaska Airlines as of June 2022.

Runways

Cleveland Hopkins covers an area of and has three

runway According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt concrete, as ...

s: * 06R/24L: concrete * 06L/24R: concrete * 10/28: asphalt/concrete

Other facilities

Cleveland Hopkins is home to both crew and maintenance bases for

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

. The airport is also home to one of five kitchens operated by airline catering company

Chelsea Food Services United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

, a subsidiary of

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

. Cleveland Airmall, a unit of Fraport USA, manages the retail and dining locations at the airport. Tenants include

Johnston & Murphy Johnston & Murphy is an American footwear and clothing company. A wholly owned subsidiary of Genesco Inc. and based in Nashville, Tennessee, Johnston & Murphy designs, sources, markets and distributes footwear, apparel, leather goods and lugga ...

Great Lakes Brewing Company Great Lakes Brewing Company is a brewery and brewpub in Cleveland, Ohio. The first brewpub and microbrewery in the state, Great Lakes Brewing has been noted as important to Cleveland's local identity and as one of the initial forces behind the ...

, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Museum Store, Bar Symon, and

Sunglass Hut Sunglass Hut is an international retailer of sunglasses and sunglass accessories founded in Miami, Florida, United States, in 1971. Sunglass Hut is part of the Italian-based Luxottica Group, the world’s largest eyewear company. As of December ...

. A

Sheraton Hotel Sheraton Hotels and Resorts is an international semi-luxury hotel chain owned by Marriott International. As of June 30, 2020, Sheraton operates 446 hotels with 155,617 rooms globally, including locations in North America, Africa, Asia Pacific, Cen ...

also occupies the airport grounds immediately east of the terminal. Built in 1959, it has 243 rooms and was a popular layover point for passengers and crews during the airport’s hub days with United and Continental. The hotel closed in June 2022 after its ownership group defaulted on its loans. The airport subsequently acquired the building and intends to demolish it in order to add more parking spaces. The airport has two lounges: a

United Club United Club is the airport lounge associated with United Airlines and its regional affiliates. United operates fifty lounges at forty-five major airports in six countries, with the vast majority being in the United States. United Clubs feature co ...

in Concourse C and The Club CLE near the entrance to Concourse B in the Main Terminal.

Ground transportation

The airport is connected to the

Cleveland Rapid Transit RTA Rapid Transit (generally known as The Rapid) is a rapid transit, light rail, and bus rapid transit system. The system is owned and operated by the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA). The system serves Cleveland and surround ...

system with the Red Line

Rapid Transit station A metro station or subway station is a station for a rapid transit system, which as a whole is usually called a "metro" or "subway". A station provides a means for passengers to purchase tickets, board trains, and evacuate the system in the ...

beneath the terminal. The airport has a dedicated taxi service of 110 vehicles. Rental car operations are located at a

consolidated rental car facility A consolidated rental car facility (CRCF) or consolidated rental car center (CONRAC) is a complex that hosts numerous car rental agencies, typically found at airports in the United States. The largest incentive for building consolidated faciliti ...

off the airport property. Shuttle services are provided between the airport and the facility.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

Statistics

Airline market share

''* - Includes flights operated by American Eagle, Delta Connection and United Express partner airlines. Those numbers are not a part of mainline operation numbers.''

Top destinations

Annual passenger traffic

Accidents and incidents

* On May 24, 1938,

United Air Lines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

Flight 9, a

Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version ...

flying from

Newark Newark most commonly refers to: * Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States * Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area Newark may also refer to: Places Canada * Niagara-on-the ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

via Cleveland crashed on approach to Cleveland killing all seven passengers and three crew members on board. * On August 27, 1971, a Chicago & Southern Airlines

Volpar Turboliner The Beechcraft Model 18 (or "Twin Beech", as it is also known) is a 6- to 11-seat, twin-engined, low-wing, tailwheel light aircraft manufactured by the Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas. Continuously produced from 1937 to November ...

with 2 occupants on board suffered a loss of power on the no.1 engine shortly after takeoff, it stalled and crashed killing 1 crew member of the 2 on board. * On December 18, 1978, an Allegheny Commuter DeHavilland Heron (operated by Fischer Brothers Aviation) was landing at Cleveland from Mansfield Lahm Airport when a ground controller cleared a snow plow to cross the runway at the same time the aircraft was landing, resulting in a collision. The flight had a crew of 2 pilots and 15 passengers. There were no fatalities nor serious injuries. The aircraft was damaged beyond repair. * On January 4, 1985, an armed 42-year-old Cleveland woman named Oranette Mays hijacked Pan Am flight 558, a

Boeing 727 The Boeing 727 is an American narrow-body airliner that was developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After the heavy 707 quad-jet was introduced in 1958, Boeing addressed the demand for shorter flight lengths from smaller airpo ...

scheduled to fly from Cleveland to New York City's

John F. Kennedy International Airport John F. Kennedy International Airport (colloquially referred to as JFK Airport, Kennedy Airport, New York-JFK, or simply JFK) is the main international airport serving New York City. The airport is the busiest of the seven airports in the Ne ...

. During the boarding process for the flight in Cleveland, Mays shot her way onto the plane, shooting and injuring a USAir employee who tried to stop her in the process. Mays then commandeered the plane, took 7 hostages (including an 8-month-old baby), and demanded to be taken to

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. After a 6-hour stand-off, a SWAT team made up of Cleveland police and FBI agents stormed the plane. Mays and an officer were shot before police were able to arrest Mays. * On February 17, 1991,

Ryan International Airlines Flight 590 Ryan International Airlines Flight 590 was a cargo flight carrying mail for the United States Postal Service from Greater Buffalo International Airport (BUF) in Buffalo, New York, to Indianapolis International Airport (IND) in Indiana, with a s ...

, a

McDonnell Douglas DC-9-15 The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is an American five-abreast single-aisle aircraft designed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It was initially produced by the developer company as the Douglas DC-9 until August 1967 and then by McDonnell Douglas. After ...

cargo flight bound for

Indianapolis International Airport Indianapolis International Airport is an international airport located seven miles (11 km) southwest of downtown Indianapolis in Marion County, Indiana, United States. It is owned and operated by the Indianapolis Airport Authority. The ...

stalled and crashed after takeoff from CLE due to wing contamination. While the DC-9 was on the ground for 35 minutes, there was no de-icing service on the aircraft and blowing snow accumulated on the wings, causing a stall and loss of control on takeoff. Both occupants were killed. * On December 15, 1992, a Mohican Air Service

II on a ferry flight crashed after its initial climb, the sole occupant was killed. Improper installation of the elevator during recent maintenance on the aircraft was the probable cause. * On January 6, 2003, a

Embraer ERJ-145LR overran the runway upon landing from

Bradley International Airport Bradley International Airport is a public international airport in Windsor Locks, Connecticut, United States. Owned and operated by the Connecticut Airport Authority, it is the second-largest airport in New England. The airport is about halfw ...

Windsor Locks, CT Windsor Locks is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 12,613. It is the site of Bradley International Airport, which serves the Greater Hartford-Springfield region and occupies approxim ...

. The airplane continued beyond the departure end, on the extended runway centerline, and struck the ILS runway 6 localizer antenna. It came to rest with the nose about beyond the end of the runway. The nose landing gear had collapsed rearward and deformed the forward pressure bulkhead. * On February 18, 2007, Delta Connection Flight 6448, operated by Shuttle America, landed at CLE in snowy weather & gusty winds. The flight arrived from Atlanta, Ga. and was an Embraer E-170 with 4 crew members and 71 passengers. Despite the use of full reverse and braking, the aircraft didn't slow down, left the runway and partially went through a fence 150 feet from the end of the runway. Of the 75 on board, there were no fatalities. Even though the aircraft was substantially damaged, it was repaired and put back into service.

Controversies

Ground Transportation Center

In May 2015, the airport moved the pick-up and drop off location for most shuttles to the former limo lot, requiring most passengers to take two escalators underneath the former shuttle parking in the arrivals lane at the airport. Originally meant to be a temporary fix, the airport made the Ground Transportation Center a permanent fixture in May 2017. This angered many travelers, who complained on various social media platforms, as well as local media outlets, garnering negative publicity for the airport's plans. In March 2019, the pick ups and drop offs location for most of the shuttles (except for limo shuttles) have moved to the north end of the baggage claim level.

Parking

In May 2013, the airport demolished its aging, 2,600-space Long Term Garage, replacing it with a 1,000 space surface lot for $24M. This in turn created a parking shortage, and daily lot closings when parking lots would become full. The airport's Twitter account became a daily update of parking closures at the airport. The airport converted the Short Term Garage to a so-called Smart Garage, and valet parking garage. The airport eliminated its free half-hour courtesy parking perk, and began to charge $3 for a half-hour.

References

Sources

External links

* * *
OPShots.net -CLE Spotters Site

Master Plan
{{Authority control Airports in Ohio Airports established in 1925 Transportation buildings and structures in Cleveland Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces Technical Service Command Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in Ohio Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks 1925 establishments in Ohio Historic American Engineering Record in Ohio

History

First closure of United hub and establishment of Continental hub

Continental–United merger and second closure of United hub

Post-hub history

Facilities

Terminal

Runways

Other facilities

Ground transportation

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

Statistics

Airline market share

Top destinations

Annual passenger traffic

Accidents and incidents

Controversies

Ground Transportation Center

Parking

See also

References

Sources

External links