OKC Will Rogers International Airport
The airport is named for comedian and legendary cowboy Will Rogers, an Oklahoma native who died in an airplane crash near Utqiagvik, Alaska in 1935.[7] Southwest Airlines carries the most passengers at OKC Will Rogers International Airport, with a market share of nearly 48% as of April 2022.Great Plains Airlines, a regional airline based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, made Will Rogers World Airport a hub in 2001 with non-stop flights to Tulsa, Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Colorado Springs, Colorado and direct or connecting flights to Nashville, Tennessee, St. Louis, Chicago, and Washington.The airline had hoped to reach additional East- and West-Coast markets but declared bankruptcy and ceased operations on January 23, 2004.The path of the tornado passed over the facilities of MetroTech, the FAA, the Oklahoma National Guard, AAR, the Four Points Hotel, and the passenger terminal and hangars on the north and east side of the airport.A $110 million multi-phase expansion and renovation project, designed by Atkins Benham Inc. and Gensler and built by Oscar J. Boldt Construction Company,[15] began in 2001.[16] Phase III project calls for the construction of a new concourse to the east, with at least eight more gates as well as expanded retail, restaurant, and baggage areas.In 2008, Will Rogers World Airport officials approved a contract with Frankfurt Short Bruza Associates to begin planning for expansion.[17] Officials later agreed to postpone the expansion plan due to the industry-wide decline in passenger traffic caused by the Great Recession.The new facility will have customs and immigration on the lower level accessed by the two easternmost gates and would serve international arrivals.The East expansion will include onsite USAA military welcoming facilities, expanded concessions and office space, and an updated terminal lobby.This design is intended to provide visitors the experience of airports of old; where one could walk all the way to the gate – albeit today completely separated from the secured concourse space.This would give the terminal a final configuration with three concourses, East, West, and Central, and would provide the airport with 30+ gates.Advantage, Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Hertz, National, and Thrifty rental companies[34] offer service at Will Rogers World Airport.The Federal Aviation Administration Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center is located on the west side of the airport.Southwest Airlines has one of its largest customer service and support centers on the northern grounds of Will Rogers World Airport.It features a repository for a unique collection of the papers, personal items and other historic artifacts of some of the most significant achievements and adventures of the international community of women pilots.Its library and exhibit areas will provide new insights into the role women pilots played in the development of aviation.On March 26, 1939, Braniff International Airways Trip 1, a Douglas DC-2, registration NC13727, crashed while attempting to return to the airport.Subsequent drag from the torn cowling resulted in a stall on the wing, and the plane cartwheeled on to the airport grounds, just yards from the safety of the runway.[47] A Rockwell Sabreliner, registration N5565 crashed on January 15, 1974, after descending below minimums on an ILS approach in low clouds and fog.[48] On November 15, 2016, a Southwest Airlines employee, Michael Winchester was shot and killed in a parking garage; a 45-year-old suspect, Lloyd Dean Buie, was subsequently found dead of an apparently self-inflicted wound.
Wiley Post–Will Rogers Memorial AirportWill Rogers–Wiley Post Memorial Seaplane BaseOklahoma City metropolitan areaCoordinatesRunwaysOklahoma Citydowntown areaWill RogersUtqiagvik, AlaskaWiley Post AirportWiley PostSouthwest AirlinesWorld War IIUnited States Army Air Forces44th Bombardment Group46th Bombardment Group47th Bombardment Group48th Bombardment Group (Light)86th Bombardment Group (Light)311th Bombardment Group (Light)312th Bombardment Group409th Bombardment Group410th Bombardment Group411th Bombardment Group (Light)416th Bombardment Group (Light)417th Bombardment Group (Light)9th Photographic Group (Reconnaissance)2d Reconnaissance Group70th Tactical Reconnaissance GroupBell P-39 AiracobraBraniff International AirwaysAmerican AirlinesCentral AirlinesContinental AirlinesWichita, KansasDallasGreat Plains AirlinesTulsa, OklahomaAlbuquerque, New MexicoColorado Springs, ColoradoNashville, TennesseeSt. LouisChicagoWashingtonMay 31, 2013The Parking SpotTinker AFBairshowShuttle by UnitedBoeing 737-500Genslerbrushed metalGreat RecessionAlaska AirlinesSeattle/TacomaAllegiant AirDestin/Fort Walton BeachLas VegasOrlando/SanfordCharlotteDallas/Fort WorthWashington–NationalAmerican EagleChicago–O'HareLos AngelesNew York–LaGuardiaPhoenix–Sky HarborDelta Air LinesAtlantaDelta ConnectionMinneapolis/St. PaulSalt Lake CityFrontier AirlinesDenverOrlandoAustinChicago–MidwayHouston–HobbyNashvilleSan AntonioUnited ExpressHouston–IntercontinentalFedEx ExpressBillingsEl PasoFort Worth/AllianceMemphisOaklandMartinaireUPS AirlinesLouisvilleSioux FallsDallas/Fort Worth, TexasDenver, ColoradoAtlanta, GeorgiaHouston–Hobby, TexasPhoenix–Sky Harbor, ArizonaHouston–Intercontinental, TexasLas Vegas, NevadaChicago–O'Hare, IllinoisCharlotte, North CarolinaSt. Louis, MissouriSkyWest AirlinesMesa AirlinesOklahoma Air National Guard137th Airlift WingLockheed C-130 HerculesBase Realignment and Closure CommissionTinker Air Force BaseBoeing KC-135 Stratotanker137th Air Refueling Wing507th Air Refueling WingAir Force Reserve CommandAir Force Special Operations CommandBeechcraft MC-12 LibertyL3Harris OA-1KOklahoma Army National GuardFederal Aviation AdministrationMike Monroney Aeronautical CenterCivil Aerospace Medical InstituteDepartment of JusticeJustice Prisoner and Alien Transportation SystemFederal Transfer CenterU.S. Customs and Border ProtectionCBP Air and Marine OperationsCivil Air Patrol