How a landlocked airport survived the jet age by shrinking its footprint

Countries & Cities · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Chicago Midway was once the world's busiest airport, but the arrival of massive jetliners in 1959 nearly rendered it obsolete. Hemmed in by city streets, it could not expand its runways. Instead of closing, it reinvented itself as a compact, efficient hub for modern, smaller-capacity aircraft and regional travel.

Established in 1927, Midway served as Chicago's primary aviation gateway until the opening of O'Hare in 1944. By 1932, it famously claimed the title of the world's busiest airport, a distinction it held until 1960. However, the dawn of the jet age brought a technical crisis: the new Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8 required longer runways than Midway’s constrained, one-square-mile site could provide. Surrounded by dense urban development, the airport faced a slow decline, with scheduled airline service nearly vanishing by the mid-1960s.

The airport's survival hinged on a pivot toward smaller, more versatile aircraft like the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 and Boeing 737. This shift allowed Midway to reclaim its relevance, supported by massive infrastructure investments. In 2001, a new 900,000-square-foot terminal opened, followed by a major expansion of the security checkpoint and parking facilities. Today, the airport functions as a vital, high-efficiency hub, serving over 22 million passengers in 2023, with Southwest Airlines accounting for more than 90% of its traffic.

Midway’s unique geography continues to dictate its operations. Because the airport is landlocked, pilots must navigate displaced landing thresholds to clear surrounding buildings, and large commercial jets are restricted to specific runways. Despite multiple failed attempts to privatize the facility between 2009 and 2013, Midway remains a city-operated asset. Its integration with the Chicago 'L' Orange Line, which provides rapid transit to downtown, underscores its role as a critical, accessible link in the metropolitan transportation network.

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