Orlando International Airport

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"KMCO" redirects here. For other uses, see KMCO (disambiguation).
Orlando International Airport
IATA: MCO - ICAO: KMCO
Summary
Airport type public
Operator Greater Orlando Aviation Authority
Serves Orlando, Florida
Elevation AMSL 96 ft (29.3 m)
Coordinates 28°25′46″N, 81°18′32″W
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
18L/36R 12,005 3,659 Paved
18R/36L 12,004 3,659 Paved
17R/35L 10,000 3,048 Paved
17L/35R 9,000 2,743 Paved

MCO redirects here. For the book, see Modern Chess Openings.

Orlando International Airport (IATA: MCO, ICAO: KMCO) is an airport located in Orlando, Florida. It is the busiest airport in Florida (by the number of passengers) owing to Orlando's popularity as a tourist destination and its enormous residential and commercial growth. The airport serves as a mini-hub for Delta Connection carriers Chautauqua Airlines and Freedom Airlines (all part of the Delta Connection) and a focus city for AirTran Airways and Delta Air Lines. In 2005 it was visited by 34.1 million passengers, making it the 12th busiest airport in the United States and the 21st-busiest in the World. It is the nation's 15th busiest international gateway, behind Philadelphia International Airport; JFK International in New York City ranks first.[1] Floridians joke that the airport code MCO stands for "Mickey's Corporate Office", as the Orlando area is the location of Disney and Walt Disney World; it actually stands for its former name - McCoy Air Force Base and Colonel Michael N. W. McCoy, who died during an annual competition held at the base.

The Greater Orlando area is also served by Orlando Sanford International Airport (SFB), and more indirectly by Daytona Beach International Airport (DAB) and Melbourne International Airport (MLB). The Miami airspace, however, is still larger as it includes the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, Miami International Airport, and Palm Beach International Airport.

Contents

[edit] History

View of the interior of MCO, showing the on-site hotel rooms
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View of the interior of MCO, showing the on-site hotel rooms

Before 1974, the land the airport now sits on was largely owned by the United States Air Force who operated an airbase there. The base was known as McCoy Air Force Base and the civilian airport was known as the Orlando Jetport at McCoy. Commercial service to the Jetport began in 1962 as flights were migrated from the old Herndon Airport, now the Orlando Executive Airport. The airport was under control of the city of Orlando for just one year, and in 1975 the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) was founded. Their mission was to manage and build the Orlando International Airport and the Orlando Executive Airport. The airport gained its current name and international airport status a year later in 1976, but kept its old IATA airport code MCO and ICAO airport code KMCO.

In 1978, MCO handled 5 million passengers. By 2000, that number had soared to 30 million. Today, MCO covers 23 square miles (60 km²), and is the third-largest airport in the United States by area (after Denver and Dallas). MCO also has North America's second tallest control tower.

MCO is a designated Space Shuttle emergency landing site. The west-side runways, Runway Complex 18/36, was designed to accommodate B-52 Stratofortress bombers, and due to their proximety to John F. Kennedy Space Center, were an obvious choice for an emergency landing should an attempt to land at KSC fall short. [2]

Eastern Air Lines used Orlando as a hub during the 1970s and early 1980s, and became "the official airline of Walt Disney World." Following Eastern's demise, Delta Air Lines assumed this role, although it later pulled most of its large aircraft operations (With the exception on flights to and from Atlanta) from Orlando and focused its service there on regional jet flights specifically with ComAir, Freedom Airlines, and Chautauqua Airlines all part of the Delta Connection.

In 2004, Hurricane Charley caused some damage to the airport when it struck on the evening of August 13.

On February 22, 2005, MCO became the first airport in Florida to accept E-Pass and SunPass toll transponders as a form of payment for parking. The system allows drivers to enter and exit a parking garage without pulling a ticket or stopping to pay the parking fee. The two toll roads that serve the airport, SR 528 and SR 417, use these systems for automatic toll collection.

[edit] Structure and function

People mover stop
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People mover stop

Orlando International Airport has a single main terminal building, connected by people mover to four airside terminals. There are passenger check-in and baggage claim facilities on the main terminal building's north side (referred to as Terminal A), and on the building's south side (referred to as Terminal B). Airsides 1 and 2 use baggage claim "A", while airsides 3 and 4 use baggage claim "B." Unlike its smaller counterpart at Tampa International Airport, MCO's airsides are much larger in capacity.

Arriving international passengers who require immigration and/or customs clearance are processed through those checkpoints in the airside terminal where they arrive. After clearing US immigration, passengers collect their bags and clear US customs. They must then turn in their bags to have them transported to the main terminal. International passengers then ride the people mover to the main terminal, where they can reclaim their bags a second time in one of the main terminal's baggage claims. Because the people mover is located inside the secure part of the airport, international passengers must go through a security inspection upon leaving the customs area.

[edit] Airside 1 (gates 1-29)

People mover infrastructure
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People mover infrastructure

[edit] Airside 2 (gates 100-129)

  • AirTran Airways (Akron, Atlanta, Baltimore/Washington, Bloomington, Boston [begins December 21, 2006], Buffalo, Charlotte, Chicago-Midway, Dallas/Fort Worth, Dayton, Detroit, Flint, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Moline, Newburgh [begins January 11, 2007], Newport News, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Richmond, Rochester (NY), Washington-Dulles, White Plains)
  • JetBlue Airways (Aguadilla, Boston, New York-JFK, New York-LaGuardia, Newark, Newburgh [begins December 19, 2006], San Juan (PR), Syracuse)
  • Southwest Airlines (Albany, Albuquerque, Austin, Baltimore/Washington, Birmingham (AL), Buffalo, Chicago-Midway, Cleveland [begins March 11, 2007], Columbus, Denver, Detroit [begins December 20, 2006], Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Hartford, Houston-Hobby, Indianapolis, Jackson, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Long Island/Islip, Louisville, Manchester (NH), Nashville, New Orleans, Norfolk, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Providence, Raleigh/Durham, San Antonio, St. Louis, Washington-Dulles)

[edit] Airside 3 (gates 30-59)

  • Air Canada (Calgary, Halifax, Montréal, Ottawa, Toronto-Pearson)
  • Northwest Airlines (Detroit, Flint [seasonal], Grand Rapids [seasonal], Indianapolis, Memphis, Milwaukee [ends January 2, 2007], Minneapolis/St. Paul)
  • Spirit Airlines (Atlanta [begins January 11, 2007], Atlantic City, Detroit, Fort Lauderdale, San Juan)
  • United Airlines (Los Angeles, San Francisco)
  • US Airways Gates 50-58 (Albany, Baltimore/Washington, Bermuda [seasonal], Buffalo, Charlotte, Columbus [seasonal], Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Providence [seasonal], Washington-Reagan)

[edit] Airside 4 (gates 60-99)

  • Aeroméxico (Mexico City)
  • British Airways (London-Gatwick)
  • Condor (Frankfurt)
  • Delta Air Lines (Atlanta, Boston, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Hartford, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Mexico City, New York-JFK, New York-LaGuardia, Salt Lake City, San Juan)
    • Delta Connection operated by Chautauqua Airlines (Columbus, Greensboro, Greenville (SC), Louisville, Miami, Norfolk, Raleigh/Durham, Tallahassee)
    • Delta Connection operated by Comair (Atlantic City, Charleston (SC), Greensboro, Norfolk, Raleigh/Durham)
    • Delta Connection operated by Freedom Airlines (Akron/Canton, Asheville, Atlanta, Baton Rouge, Birmingham (AL), Columbia, Dayton, Fort Lauderdale, Huntsville, Key West, Knoxville, Lexington, Little Rock, Miami, Nashville, Nassau, New Orleans, Panama City, Pensacola, Raleigh/Durham, Richmond, Tallahassee, Tri-Cities (TN))
    • Delta Connection operated by Shuttle America (Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth)
  • Frontier Airlines (Denver)
  • Midwest Airlines (Kansas City, Milwaukee)
  • Sun Country Airlines (Minneapolis/St. Paul)
  • Virgin Atlantic Airways (Glasgow [seasonal/begins June 23, 2007], London-Gatwick, Manchester (UK))

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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