ATLANTA AIRPORT - SERVING THE ATLANTA AREA FOR OVER 75 YEARS
1909, before anybody ever thought an airplane could or would fly
into Atlanta, the Atlanta Speedway was built by businessman Asa
Candler, founder of the Coca Cola Company. The speedway became
one of the country's finest automobile racetracks, but because
people did not attend the races, it only lasted about a year.
The question of what to do with the track was easily answered
in December of 1910 when a need arose to display a new and exciting
invention, the airplane, or "giant man-bird" as it was called.
Thousands of curious people showed up for a chance to see this
flying machine in action at Atlanta's first air show.
A few years
later, during World War I (1914-1918), airplanes became widely
used, and the U.S. government manufactured hundreds of them. When
there was no longer a need for them, many of the war-bedraggled
airplanes were sold off at extremely low prices. For instance,
at the time, a Model T Ford automobile was selling for around
$500, while you could purchase a 4H (Jenny) airplane for a bargain
price of $300.
the war years, air shows were not held at the old track and the
287 acres of land sat idle. But due to the farsightedness of one
of Atlanta's government officials, Alderman William B. Hartsfield,
who insisted that the city must move forward into aviation, the
land took on new life in 1925. At that time, Mayor Walter Sims
leased the land from Asa Candler's son, Charles Howard Candler,
for a five-year period so that it could be developed into an airfield,
which the city decided to call Candler Field.
Airways 200 horsepower plane, carrying a cargo of U.S. mail, made
the first flight into Atlanta on September 15, 1926. The next
year in October, Charles Lindberg, the first solo pilot in history
to fly nonstop across the Atlantic Ocean, was given a hero's welcome
when he landed the Spirit of St. Louis at Candler Field.
decade saw history move progressively forward at the airport,
when in June 1930, Delta Air Service (later renamed Delta Air
Lines) flew the first passengers into Atlanta; Pitcairn Aviation
(later, Eastern Airlines) began providing continuous passenger
service from Atlanta to New York in December 1930; Delta permanently
established passenger service with its Ft. Worth - Atlanta route
in 1934; And the airport's first control tower was opened in March
this decade got under way, Candler Field was declared an air base
by the U.S. government and later, during the war (WWII), the airport
doubled in size. The Airport made great strides in 1942 when it
set a record of 1700 takeoffs and landings in one day and was
named "the nation's busiest airport in terms of flight operations."
Candler Field's name was changed in 1946 to Atlanta Municipal
As the airport
became busier, more than one million people came through the terminal
in 1948 and a historic count of 360,082 takeoffs and landings
was recorded. During the same year, plans were also developed
to build a more accommodating passenger terminal facility. To
satisfy increased travel demands airport operations were moved
temporarily into a war-surplus hangar.
The 1950's were exciting times in the life of the Atlanta Municipal
Airport. The airport accommodated more than two million passengers
in 1957, making it yet again the busiest in the country. And between
noon and 2 p.m. each day, the airport became the busiest in the
world with 25 airplanes competing for gate spaces. It was clear
to airport officials that the congestion needed to be relieved,
so work began on another passenger terminal in 1957.
officials held a big celebration May 3, 1961 to christen the new
terminal, a facility designed to serve six million travelers annually.
The terminal cost $21 million to build and at the time was deemed
the largest single terminal in the country. It had 48 gates, one
mile of concourses, gate spaces for 52 airplanes and a new control
tower with approach radar that could reach 60 miles. Planners
intended for this "Jet Age" facility to last at least until the
mid-1980's, but by the time it was a year old, more than 9.5 million
visitors had come through. In 1967 a decision was reached by city
leaders and airline officials that it was time to put together
a Master Plan that would provide some guidance for how the airport
should be developed in the future.
Airlines made the first international flight out of Atlanta when
it flew to Mexico City, July 1, 1971. Following the Master Plan,
construction began in January 1977 on the world's largest airport
complex, which had a price tag of $500 million. Also in this decade,
Sabena Belgian World Airlines became Atlanta's first foreign international
carrier and began providing four-times-a-week trips to Brussels,
Belgium, June 1, 1978.
years after breaking ground, the new airport opened its doors
September 21, 1980. Sporting a new name, which honored a former
Atlanta mayor who was a strong airport advocate, the William B.
Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport was the largest airport
facility in the world. Two-and-a-half million square feet in size,
the complex could accommodate 55 million passengers a year and
16 airlines - including five foreign airlines; and it had 138
gates and an underground rapid transit system.
underwent even more construction, and in 1984 a 9,000-foot fourth
parallel runway was completed. In the spring of 1985, work on
an additional 11,889-foot runway capable of handling the largest
commercial airplane in use or being developed was successfully
out to meet the needs of the public in other ways, the airport
linked up with Atlanta's rapid transit system, and a Metropolitan
Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) station was opened In
1990's were years of tremendous growth for the airport, especially
in the international arena. Concourse E, the largest, single international
facility in the nation, with 1.3 million square feet of space,
opened in September 1994. Just in time for the 1996 Olympics,
the $250 million Hartsfield Improvement Program for 1996 (HIP
'96) was completed. This project involved renovations and restructuring
designed to make the airport a more user-friendly place. One of
the most dramatic improvements was the addition of the beautiful,
three-story, 250,000 square foot Atrium.
played a significant role in the success Atlanta enjoyed as host
for the 1996 Olympics. The Airport was the first stop for more
than 10,000 athletes and approximately two million fans. No doubt,
adding to the positive impression the airport made on many of
those visitors is the fact that international travelers can reach
Atlanta from almost anywhere on the globe with a single connection.
developments that took place in the decade of the 1990's included
the opening of the Atlanta Perishable and Equine Complex, the
launching of a new Master Plan covering the airport's needs into
the 2000's, and the airport's reaching a new high in the number
of Hartsfield-Jackson passengers - 68 million in 1997!