Chicago Midway Airport is situated 16 kilometres south-west of downtown Chicago, serving major carriers such as Southwest, Delta and Continental. It is the city’s second largest airport in the Chicago metropolitan area after O'Hare International Airport.
The Chicago Midway Airport has five concourses. Together with award-winning comprehensive services and amenities that include shops and restaurants, Midway Airport can also offer facilities and services for disabled travellers and can treat medical emergencies. The airport covers 260 hectares with a new slogan emerging in 2010 naming the airport “The busiest square mile in the world.”
Midway is also popular because of its overall accessibility and excellent connections to and from the city. These can be reached in less than 30 minutes using the Chicago Transit Authority’s choice of regional, downtown and suburban shuttle buses. The airport has easy Interstate freeway access and offers both short and long-term parking, with straightforward, direct entry to the terminal building.
The airport was built in 1927 and primarily used for airmail passage. By 1928 it housed 100 planes, an additional 12 hangars, taxiways and ramps, more runways and modern airfield lighting for evening air traffic. In 1929 Municipal Airport was established as the busiest in the world.