The airport serves as an
hub for
Silver Airways, an operating base for
Avelo Airlines,
JetBlue,
Southwest Airlines and
Spirit Airlines, as well as a focus city for
Frontier Airlines. Southwest is the airport's largest carrier by passengers carried. The airport is also a major international gateway for the Florida region, with over 850 daily flights on 44 airlines. The airport also serves 135 domestic and international destinations. At 11,605 acres (4,696 ha), MCO is one of the largest commercial airports in terms of land area in the United States.[3][7] In addition, the airport is home to a maintenance base for
United Airlines.[8] The airport was also a hub for
Delta Air Lines until 2007.
During the
Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962, McCoy AFB became a temporary forward operating base for more than 120
F-100 Super Sabre and
F-105 Thunderchief fighter bombers and the primary base for
U-2 reconnaissance aircraft flying over Cuba. One of these U-2s was shot down by Soviet-operated
SA-2 Guideline surface-to-air missiles near Banes, Cuba. Its pilot, Major
Rudolf Anderson Jr., USAF, was the crisis' only combat death. Following the crisis, McCoy AFB hosted a permanent U-2 operating detachment of the
100th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing until 1973.
McCoy AFB was identified for closure in early 1973 as part of a post-Vietnam reduction in force. The following year, McCoy's
306th Bombardment Wing was inactivated, its
B-52D Stratofortress and
KC-135A Stratotanker aircraft reassigned to other SAC units and most of the McCoy AFB facility turned over to the city of Orlando by the
General Services Administration (GSA) in late 1974 and early and mid 1975. USAF responsibility for the airfield's air traffic control tower was turned over to the
Federal Aviation Administration (
FAA) and the airport established its own crash, fire and rescue department, initially utilizing equipment transferred by the GSA.
Civil-military years
In the early 1960s, when jet airline flights came to Orlando, the installation became a joint civil-military facility.
Early jetliners such as the
Boeing 707,
Boeing 720,
Douglas DC-8 and
Convair 880 required longer and sturdier runways than the ones at Herndon Airport (now
Orlando Executive Airport). Nearby lakes and commercial and residential development made expansion impractical, so an agreement was reached between the
City of Orlando and the
United States Air Force in 1962 to use McCoy AFB under a joint arrangement. The military offered a large
AGM-28 Hound Dog missile maintenance hangar and its associated flight line ramp area in the northeast corner of the field for conversion into a civil air terminal. The city would then cover the cost of building a replacement missile maintenance hangar on the main base's western flight line. The new civil facility would be known as the Orlando Jetport at McCoy and would operate alongside McCoy AFB. This agreement became a model for other joint civil-military airports in operation today.[9][10]
Airline flights to the Orlando Jetport began shortly after an agreement was signed by the city and USAF in October 1961.[11] Over the next few years airline flights shifted from the old Herndon Airport (renamed in 1982 as the
Orlando Executive Airport). In 1971 scheduled airlines were
Delta Air Lines,
Eastern Air Lines,
National Airlines and
Southern Airways. As the years progressed many other airlines have also begun to offer regularly scheduled flights to Orlando Executive Airport, including Spirit Airlines, Copa Air,[12] LATAM Airlines and many more.[citation needed]
When McCoy AFB closed in 1975, part of the facility stayed under military control to support Naval Training Center Orlando and several tenant commands.
There are only a few enclaves on the original McCoy AFB site that the military still uses such as the
164th Air Defense Artillery Brigade from the
Florida Army National Guard in the former McCoy AFB Officers Club complex, an
Army Reserve intelligence unit in the former SAC Alert Facility, the 1st Lieutenant David R. Wilson Armed Forces Reserve Center supporting multiple units of the
Army Reserve,
Navy Reserve and
Marine Corps Reserve that was constructed in 2002, and a large
Navy Exchange for active, reserve and retired military personnel and their dependents.
Civil years
In 1975, the final Air Force contingent departed McCoy AFB and the
Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) was established as a state-chartered local governmental agency and an enterprise fund of the city of Orlando. GOAA's mission was to operate, manage and oversee construction of expansions and improvements to both 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 retained its old IATA airport code MCO and
ICAO airport code KMCO.
The airport became a U.S. Customs Service Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) in 1978, said zone being designated as FTZ #42.[citation needed] In 1979, the facility was also designated as a large hub airport by the FAA based on flight operations and passenger traffic.
In 1978, construction of the current Landside Terminal and two Airsides on the west side of the terminal (known today as Airsides 1 and 3) began, opening in 1981. In 1983 a small chapel was opened memorializing Michael Galvin who died during the construction of the airport's expansion.[14] The original International Concourse was housed in Airside 1 and opened in 1984. Funding to commence developing the east side of the airport was bonded in 1986, with Runway 17/35 (now 17R/35L) completed in 1989. Airside 4 opened in 1990 and also contains an International Concourse for the processing of international flights. Airside 2, which filled out what will become known as the North Terminal complex, was completed in 2000, with the last additional gates added in 2006. Runway 17L/35R was opened in 2003, providing the airport with a total of four runways.
In 1978, the airport handled 5 million
passengers. By 2018, that number had risen to 47 million.[15] Today it covers 47 square kilometers (18.1 sq mi) and is the fifth-largest airport in the United States by land area after
Denver International Airport which covers 136 square kilometers (52.4 sq mi),
Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport which covers 70 square kilometers (26.9 sq mi),
Southwest Florida International Airport which covers 55 square kilometers (21.2 sq mi), and
Washington Dulles International Airport which covers 53 square kilometers (20.3 sq mi). MCO has North America's fourth tallest
control tower at 345 feet, replacing two earlier Air Force and FAA control towers.
Orlando was a designated
Space Shuttle emergency landing site. The west-side runways, Runway 18L/36R and Runway 18R/36L, were designed for
B-52 Stratofortress bombers and due to their proximity to
NASA's
John F. Kennedy Space Center, were an obvious choice for an emergency landing should an emergency return to launch site (RTLS) attempt to land at KSC have fallen short. The runway was also an emergency divert site for NASA's
Boeing 747 Shuttle Transport Aircraft when relocating orbiters from either west coast modification work or divert recoveries at
Edwards AFB, California or the
White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.[citation needed]
Delta Air Lines began operating a hub at MCO in 1987. Airside 4, which opened in 1990, was primarily designed for Delta's hub operation and it included a ramp tower, an international arrivals facility, and a wing for regional aircraft under the
people mover guideway.[13][16][17] Delta would later pull much of its large aircraft from its hub operations and focused its service there on regional flights via their
Delta Connection affiliate
Comair. Comair operated intra-Florida flights as well as flights to other southeastern cities and to the Caribbean. In 2002,
Chautauqua Airlines replaced Comair as the primary
Delta Connection carrier at MCO.[18] Delta closed the Orlando hub entirely in 2007.[19]
Orlando-based
AirTran Airways also operated a hub at MCO from 1993 to 2014. After Delta closed their hub in 2007, AirTran relocated their hub to Airside 4, using some of Delta's former gates which allowed them to double their capacity.[20] AirTran merged with
Southwest Airlines in 2014, which is today the busiest carrier at MCO.
Saudi Arabian Airlines began service to Orlando in 1994.[21] Its seasonal flights to Jeddah proved popular among Saudi tourists. Bookings declined after the
September 11 attacks, however, so Saudi Arabian terminated the link.[22][23]
On February 22, 2005, the airport 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 (Beachline Expressway) and
SR 417 (Central Florida GreeneWay), use these systems for
automatic toll collection.
The original terminal building, a converted hangar, was described as inadequate for the task at hand even when it was first opened as Orlando Jetport. After its closure in 1981, it passed through several tenants, the last of which was
UPS. It was demolished in May 2006.[24]
On February 1, 2010,
Allegiant Air began operations at the airport. The company moved one half of its
Orlando Sanford International Airport (SFB) schedule to Orlando to test revenue at the higher cost airport. After evaluating the routes out of Orlando, the carrier decided to consolidate and return its Orlando area operations to Sanford citing an inability to achieve a fare premium at Orlando as anticipated, passenger preference for Orlando Sanford International Airport, higher costs at Orlando than expected and a more efficient operating environment at Sanford.[25]
In March 2015, Emirates announced that they would begin daily service to the airport from
Dubai International Airport beginning September 1, 2015.[26] The airport had tried to attract Emirates for five years before the service was announced.[27][28] Orlando International was the first airport in Florida served by Emirates. The airline expects three major markets for the flights: leisure and corporate travelers along with locals of Asian heritage traveling to Asia, which is well-served by the airline.[29] Greater Orlando Aviation Association Chair Frank Kruppenbacher called the new service "without question the biggest, most significant move forward for our airport"[28] and estimates that the local economic impact of the new service will be up to $100 million annually.[30] The inaugural flight was made with an
Airbus A380. Regularly scheduled flights operate with Boeing
777-300ERs. Gate 90 was updated in the summer of 2018 with 3 jetways to be able to properly handle the A380, 3 years after the airplane first arrived at Orlando, docking at Gate 84.[31][32]
In May 2016, the airport launched its own radio station, FlyMCO 105.1 HD2, a subchannel of
WOMX-FM.[33] FlyMCO 105.1 HD2 provides access to airport information, local weather, and music.[34] In 2017, the airport reached 44.6 million passengers, surpassing
Miami International Airport to become the busiest airport in the state of Florida.[35]
The
Orlando International Airport Intermodal Terminal, which was partially funded by the Florida Department of Transportation, opened in November 2017 and is connected to the Terminal A/B complex by an
automated people mover (APM) line.[37] The $684 million station is directly connected to Terminal 3, a new 2,500 space parking garage, and the Orlando station for the
Brightlinehigher speed regional rail service to South Florida.[38] The station reused some of the plans of the Orlando Airport station of the now defunct
Florida High Speed Rail project. Phase 1 of the South Terminal Complex includes the new Parking Garage C, the Rail Station, and the 20 gate Terminal C. Phase 1 officially opened in September 2022, adding several new and old airlines to MCO's new terminal.
Future
The airport is currently building a new terminal south of the North Terminal A/B complex. In May 2015, the Board of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) voted unanimously to approve construction of the $1.8 billion South Terminal Complex.[39] The South Terminal Complex will be built adjacent to the
Orlando International Airport Intermodal Terminal, which was completed in late 2017 and is connected to the existing terminal by a
Automated People Mover (APM) line. At full buildout, the South Terminal Complex will have 120 new gates between two terminals, C and D.[40]
Phase I (which will be known as "Terminal C") of South Terminal Complex will encompass approximately 300 acres (120 ha) and will include new aircraft taxiways and aprons, a 2.7-million-square-foot (250,000 m2) terminal building with 20 gates. Construction of Terminal C began in 2017, and it was opened on September 19, 2022.[41] Terminal D will start construction when the airport reaches 70 million passengers annually. The final estimated capacity of the airport is set at 100 million passengers annually when completed.
The Orlando International Airport Intermodal Terminal was built to accommodate an extension of the
SunRail commuter rail service. The route to the current SunRail line would travel along an
Orlando Utilities Commission rail spur, before either branching off to the intermodal station, or have an intermediate transfer point on to light rail to complete the journey to this station.[42][43]
Orlando International Airport has 3 terminals. The North Terminal Complex consists of a large main terminal building divided into north and south sides, and four airside concourses accessible with elevated
people movers, with a total of 93 gates.[47]
Terminal A consists of the northern half of the main terminal, with tramway systems to Airside 1 (Gates 1–29) and Airside 2 (Gates 100–129).[47]
Terminal B consists of the southern half of the main terminal, with tramway systems to Airside 3 (Gates 30–59), Airside 4 (Gates 70–99) and Terminal C.[47]
Terminal C , also known as the South Terminal Complex contains gates 230–245 with a pre-security tramway connecting to Terminals A & B. Terminal C accommodates international flights by non-US airlines as well as all JetBlue flights.[47] The terminal is also connected to the
Intermodal Terminal by an elevated enclosed walkway and a shared parking garage.
Hotel
The airport features an on-site
Hyatt Regency hotel within the main terminal structure. The hotel is located on the east side of the Terminal A/B complex with a fourth floor lobby level and guest rooms beginning on level five and above. The airport features an expansive lobby area for guests awaiting flights, convention space, several bars, and two restaurants including a signature restaurant on the top level of the terminal building overlooking the airport facility and runways below.[48]
Interfaith Chapel
In 1981, an
interfaith chapel was constructed behind the security for Gates 1-59.[49][50] Prior to 2019, the chapel held religious services, but this moved to a nearby hotel because of an uptick in religious violence.[49]
^GOAA; Authority, Greater Orlando Aviation.
"US Service". Orlando International Airport (MCO).
Archived from the original on January 2, 2019. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
^Schneider, Howard (July 8, 2002). "Ties Binding U.S. to Arab World Are Weakened; Education, Tourism And Trade Hurt by Sept. 11, Mideast Strife". The Washington Post.
ProQuest409323024.
^"Saudi Arabian Airlines Focused on Privatization, Growth". World Airline News. 7 (40):
part 1,
part 2. October 3, 1997.
^Mouawad, Jad (March 16, 2015).
"Expansion by Mideast Airlines Sets Off a Skirmish in the U.S."The New York Times.
Archived from the original on June 20, 2015. Retrieved June 20, 2015. [Philip Brown, the director of OIA] has been trying to lure Emirates to Orlando for the last five years
^Barnes, Susan (September 2, 2015).
"Emirates touches down in Orlando, shows off its Airbus A380 superjumbo". USA Today.
Archived from the original on September 4, 2015. Retrieved September 2, 2015. The estimated economic impact of the new daily flight from Dubai to Orlando is upwards of $100 million annually, according to Frank Kruppenbacher, chairman of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority.
^GOAA; Authority, Greater Orlando Aviation.
"Fly MCO 105.1 HD2". Orlando International Airport (MCO). Archived from
the original on January 9, 2019. Retrieved January 9, 2019.