Raleigh-Durham International Airport
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Raleigh-Durham International Airport Template:Airport codes is an airport located near Morrisville, North Carolina, between Raleigh and Durham.
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History
RDU opened for commercial service on May 1, 1943. Eastern Airlines, then led by Eddie Rickenbacker, wanted to make the Raleigh/Durham area a stop on its New York-Miami route. After World War II, Capital Airlines and Piedmont Airlines joined Eastern at RDU. Delta Air Lines and Allegheny Airlines began service in the 1970s, and Trans World Airlines and American Airlines began service in the 1980s.
In 1987, RDU doubled in size when American opened a north-south hub in a new terminal with a new apron and runway. The hub was operational until 1996, and brought RDU its first international flights (to Bermuda, Cancun, and Paris Orly). American's hub drew most of its profit-generating traffic from the nearby Research Triangle Park, which came to host many key companies in the strong IT and biotechnology industries. The 1995 merger of RTP-based Glaxo Pharmaceuticals and Surrey-based Burroughs Wellcome (now both part of GlaxoSmithKline) prompted American to start nonstop service to London Gatwick Airport.
However, after Miami International Airport became an AA hub in 1989, the need for concentrated service at RDU gradually diminished. American's hub was having difficulty competing with USAir's hub in Charlotte and Delta's hub in Atlanta for passengers travelling between smaller cities in the North and South. American began downsizing its RDU operation in 1993 and eventually discontinued many of its mainline flights there, although it still runs mainline flights to its hubs in Chicago, Miami, and Dallas, as well as a daily service to Gatwick and a healthy number of commuter flights through American Eagle to points in the Northeast.
American's presence at RDU was replaced by Midway Airlines, which opened a new hub in Terminal C as American pulled out. In 2000, RDU set its all-time traffic record, thanks to the strong high-tech economy, the Midway hub, and the growing presence of Southwest Airlines. However, after the dot com bust and the September 11, 2001 attacks, Midway went bankrupt and the airport's traffic numbers decreased.
Terminals
In December 2003, the airport authority announced plans to expand and renovate the existing 300,000 square foot (28,000 m²) Terminal C, transforming it into a new 900,000 ft² (84,000 m²) facility. Construction is expected to begin in 2005 and be complete by 2008. [1] (http://www.nbc17.com/travelgetaways/2716372/detail.html) There are also long-term plans to link the airport to the proposed Triangle Transit Authority light rail system.
Terminal A
Terminal A opened in 1981.
- AirTran Airways Gate 19 (Atlanta)
- America West Airlines Gate 14 (Las Vegas and Phoenix)
- Continental Airlines Gates 7-9 (Houston/Intercontinental and Newark)
- Continental Express Gates 7-9 (Cleveland, Houston/Intercontinental, and Newark)
- Delta Air Lines Gates 15-18 (Atlanta, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky (Covington, KY), and Salt Lake City)
- Comair dba Delta Connection Gates 15-18 (Boston, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky (Covington, KY), Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood, New Orleans, New York/Kennedy, New York/LaGuardia, and Orlando)
- Independence Air Gate 11 (Washington/Dulles)
- Northwest Airlines Gates 5 and 6 (Detroit, Memphis, and Minneapolis/St. Paul)
- Pinnacle Airlines dba Northwest Airlink (Memphis)
- Southwest Airlines Gates 25-28 (Baltimore/Washington, Chicago/Midway, Las Vegas, Nashville, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Tampa)
- US Airways Gates 20-23 (Charlotte, Philadelphia, and Washington/Reagan)
- Chautauqua Airlines dba US Airways Express Gates 20-23 (New York/LaGuardia)
- Mesa Airlines dba Air Midwest dba US Airways Express Gates 20-23 (Charleston and Norfolk/Southern Virginia)
- MidAtlantic Airways dba US Airways Express Gates 20-23 (Washington/Reagan)
- Piedmont Airlines dba US Airways Express Gates 20-23 (Pittsburgh)
- PSA Airlines dba US Airways Express Gates 20-23 (Charlotte and Washington/Reagan)
- Trans States Airlines dba US Airways Express Gates 20-23 (Pittsburgh)
Terminal B
Terminal B was the airport's first terminal, built in 1955. After the opening of Terminal A, Terminal B housed Piedmont and Allegheny, which later merged into US Airways. The terminal was permanently closed in the mid-1990s, and was eventually torn down.
Terminal C
Terminal C was built in 1987 to house American Airlines' hub.
- Air Canada Jazz Gate 20 (Toronto)
- American Airlines Gates 14-19 and 23-26 (Chicago/O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, London/Gatwick, and Miami)
- American Eagle (Austin, Boston, Columbus, Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood, Hartford, Newark, New York/Kennedy, New York/LaGuardia, Orlando, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and Washington/Reagan)
- Mesa Air dba United Express Gates 20-22 (Chicago/O'Hare and Washington/Dulles)
- Trans States Airlines dba United Express Gates 20-22 (Chicago/O'Hare and Washington/Dulles)
External Links
- Raleigh-Durham International Airport Homepage (http://www.rdu.com/)