Chicago Midway International Airport - Chicago IL Chicago Midway Flights Airport

The Chicago area is home to some of the world's busiest airports, and Chicago Midway International Airport is no exception. It has been called the "world's busiest square mile'' as the eight runways that support the airport are laid out in a square mile formation that looks like a big "X'' from the air. Although the total airport complex is now bigger than a mile, the square mile was the original land allotment for the airport.

Chicago Midway International Airport was the world's busiest airport from 1930 - 1960, or basically right up until O'Hare airport opened to take the strain off of Midway. Unfortunately, O'Hare proved to be too new and attractive to airline firms, who abandoned Midway almost instantly. Briefly out of service, the airport was renovated and low-cost carriers began moving in to the airport.

Midway is now known as the low-cost carrier home in Chicago. Southwest has a major presence at the airfield. AirTran is the second largest carrier there. 18 million people fly through annually, mainly on one of the two main carriers. Even with the notoriously inclement Illinois weather, Midway has been able to work with the two airlines to consistently be in the top five airports for on-time arrivals and departures in the country.

Midway is extremely accessible for travelers. The small footprint makes the airport easy to navigate for gate transfers, and the ground transportation system provides many options as well. The "L'' trains from the Chicago Transit system go out to the airport. From the Loop to the airport the Orange Line is about a 25 minute journey and the train will take passengers right to the terminal. Additionally, bus service to the terminal is available from CTA and a large number of private shuttles are available to run between O'Hare and Midway for transfers.