Miami International Airport (IATA Airport Code: MIA, ICAO Airport Code: KMIA), is located in unincorporated Miami, Florida between the suburbs of Hialeah, Doral, Fontainbleau, and Miami Springs. It has flights to airports throughout the United States, Canada, Latin America, The Caribbean, and Western Europe. Along with Atlanta's Hartsfield International Airport, MIA is one of the largest aerial gateways into the American South. The airport has long enjoyed such a lofty status because of Miami's proximity to tourist attractions, local economic growth, and large Latin American and European populations.

The airport is currently a hub of American Airlines, American Eagle, cargo airline Fine Air, and charter airline Miami Air. In the past, it has been a hub of Eastern Airlines, Air Florida, the original National Airlines, the original Pan Am, and Iberia.

Gulfstream International Airlines operates regular flights between MIA and several airports in Cuba, the only commercial air links between the two countries. However, these flights must be booked through agents with special authorization from the Office of Foreign Assets Control, and are only generally available to government officials, journalists, researchers, professionals attending conferences, or expatriates visiting Cuban family.

History

Overhead view of Miami International Airport, overlaid with the runways of the original Pan American Field

MIA was opened to flights in 1928 as Pan American Field, the operating base of Pan American Airways Corporation, on the north side of the modern airport property. After Pan Am acquired the New York, Rio, and Buenos Aires Line, it shifted most of its operations to the Dinner Key seaplane base, leaving Pan Am Field largely unused until Eastern Airlines began flying there in 1934, followed by National Airlines in 1937.

In 1945, the City of Miami established a Port Authority and raised bond revenue to purchase the airport, now known as 36th Street Airport, from Pan Am. It was merged with an adjoining Army airfield in 1949 and expanded further in 1951. The old terminal on 36th Street was closed in 1959 when the modern passenger terminal (since greatly expanded) opened for service.

Pan Am and Eastern remained Miami's main tenants until 1991, when both carriers went bankrupt. Their hubs at MIA were taken over by United Airlines and American Airlines. United slowly trimmed down its Miami operation through the 1990s, and eventually shut down its crew base and other operations facilities in Miami. At the same time, American expanded its presence at the airport, winning new routes to Latin America and transferring employees and equipment from its failed domestic hubs at Nashville and Raleigh-Durham. Today, Miami is American's largest air freight hub, and forms the main connecting point in the airline's north-south oriented international route network.

For many years, the airport was a common connecting point for passengers traveling from Europe to Latin America. However, stricter visa requirements for aliens in transit (a result, in part, of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks) have lessened MIA's role as an intercontinental connecting hub. In 2004, Iberia Airlines ended its hub operation in Miami, opting instead to run more direct flights from Spain to Central America.

Disasters involving MIA

Airline crashes involving MIA include the 1972 crash of an Eastern Airlines L-1011 in the Everglades (the subject of Hollywood movie, The Ghost Of Flight 401), the 1982 crash of a Miami-bound Air Florida Boeing 737 in Washington, DC, the 1995 crash of American Airlines Flight 965 into a mountain while en route from Miami to Cali, the 1996 crash of ValuJet Flight 592 in the Everglades, and the 1997 Crash of Fine Air 101, a cargo plane that crashed onto NW 72nd Avenue less than a mile from the airport. Another flight that almost ended in death was Miami-bound American Airlines Flight 63, the target of "shoe bomber" Richard Reid.

Terminal, Airlines, and Destinations

Current diagram of Miami International Airport, reflecting the ongoing construction of the American and Star Alliance concourses

The main terminal at MIA is semicircular and has eight pier-shaped concourses, lettered A through H in a counter-clockwise direction. Ticketing and departures are located on the upper level: immigration and baggage carousels are located on the lower level. Each gate can route arriving passengers to the main level (for domestic arrivals) or to the immigration halls downstairs (for international arrivals). Concourse E has a third-floor people mover that transports passengers to a satellite terminal.

A parking garage is located inside the terminal's curvature, and is connected to the terminal by overhead walkways. There is a heliport on top.

At present, the terminal is being dramatically altered. Concourses A, B, C, and D, which primarily house American's flights, are being merged into a single linear concourse. Portions of the new concourse have already been built as extensions of concourses A and D: concourses B and C will eventually be demolished to accommodate the new pier. The merged complex is slated to be called the "North Terminal." The remaining "South Terminal", consisting of concourses E through H, will also be expanded. Another new concourse, Concourse J, is under construction with the support of fifteen Star Alliance and SkyTeam carriers: it will be seven stories tall and have fifteen gates, with a total floor area of 1.3 million square feet (120,000 m²) including space for airline lounges and offices. American plans to use the old portion of the South Terminal to handle overflow from the North Terminal. Although this construction was originally slated for completion by 2005, it now appears more likely that the opening will be delayed until 2006 because of the ongoing need for security upgrades and other capital improvements.

Airlines at MIA

Note: This list contains Airline Check-in Counter locations at MIA. Some airlines may have a counter at one concourse and have their flights depart out of another.

- For Example: AirTran uses gates G2 and G4, but have counters in Concourse F.

Concourse A

• Aeropostal (Caracas and Maracaibo)
• British Airways (London Heathrow)
• TACA (Guatemala City, Managua, Roatan, San Pedro Sula, San Salvador, and Tegucigalpa)
• LACSA (Managua and San Jose (CR))
• LAN Airways (Bogota, Caracas, Cancun, Guayaquil, Santiago (Chile), Lima, Punta Cana, and Santo Domingo)
• Swiss International Airlines (Zurich)
• TAM (Sao Paolo)

Concourse B

No Check-in Counters

Concourse C

• American Airlines (International) (Belize City, Bogota, Buenos Aires, Cali, Cancun, Caracas, Guatemala City, Guayaquil, La Paz, Lima, London Heathrow, Madrid, Managua, Manchester, Maracaibo, Medellin, Mexico City, Montevideo, Quito, Panama City, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Rio de Janeiro, San Salvador, Sao Paolo, Santiago (Chile), and Tegucigalpa)

Concourse D

• American Airlines (First Class/Carribean/Domestic) (Atlanta, Aruba, Barbados, Baltimore/Washington, Bermuda, Bogota, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago O'Hare, Cleveland, Curaçao, Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Detroit, Grand Cayman, Hartford, Houston Intercontinental, Indianapolis, Kingston, La Romana, Las Vegas, Liberia (Costa Rica), Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Montegomery, Montreal, New Orleans, New York Kennedy, New York LaGuardia, Nashville, Newark, Orlando, Philadelphia, Port au Prince, Port of Spain, Providenciales, Puerto Plata, Punta Cana, Raleigh/Durham, St. Croix, St. Kitts, St. Louis, St. Lucia, St. Maarten, St. Thomas, San Francisco, San Jose (C.R.), San Juan, San Pedro Sula, Santiago (Dom. Rep.), Santo Domingo, Tampa, Tegucigalpa, Toronto, Washington Dulles, Washington Reagan)

Concourse E

Concourse E is divided into two sections: a pier concourse, called "low E," and a satellite terminal, called "high E." Low E is mostly used by American Airlines; high E is used by other carriers.

• Aeroméxico (Merida and Mexico City)
• Aeromar (Santo Domingo)
• AeroHonduras (San Pedro Sula)
• Air Jamaica (Kingston and Montego Bay)
• Air Transat (Charter Only - Toronto and Montreal)
• Alaska Airlines (Seattle/Tacoma)
• Alitalia (Milan)
• American Airlines (Domestic) (See Concourse D)
• American Eagle (Charlotte, Columbus, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Louisville (Service Begins June 9, 2005), Nashville, Norfolk (Service Begins June 9, 2005), Pittsburgh, and Richmond)
• AVIACSA (Monterrey, Mexico)
• Cayman Airways (Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman (via Grand Cayman))
• Executive Air dba American Eagle (Fort Myers, Freeport, Exuma, Jacksonville, Key West, Marsh Harbour, and Nassau)
• European Air (Charter)
• Falcon Air (San Salvador)
• Finnair (Helsinki)
• LAB (Cochabomba, Manaus, Santa Cruz, and La Paz (via Cochabomba))
• LTU (Dusseldorf, and Munich)
• Martinair (Amsterdam and San Jose (CR))
• Mexicana (Cancun, Mexico City)
• Miami Air (Charter)
• North American
• Nuevo Continente (Guayaquil, Lima, Port au Prince, Santo Domingo) - Suspended indefinitely
• Santa Barbara Airlines (Caracas)
• Sun Country Airlines (Minneapolis/St. Paul)
• Virgin Atlantic (London Heathrow)

Concourse F

• Air France (Paris Charles de Gaulle and Port au Prince)
• AirTran (Atlanta)
• Avianca (Barranquilla, Bogota, Cali (via Barranquilla), Cartagena (Sun. & Wed. Only), Medellin)
• Dutch Caribbean (Curaçao and Port au Prince)
• Southern Winds (Buenos Aires)
• Surinam Airways (Paramaribo)
• United Airlines (Chicago/O'Hare, Denver, and Washington/Dulles)

Concourse G

• Aerolíneas Argentinas (Buenos Aires)
• Air Canada (Montreal and Toronto)
• America West Airlines (Phoenix and Las Vegas)
• BWIA (Barbados and Port of Spain)
• COPA (Panama City)
• El Al (Tel Aviv (via Newark))
• Iberia Airlines (Madrid, Barcelona (via Madrid))
• Lufthansa (Frankfurt, Munich (Seasonal))
• Northwest/KLM (Detroit, Memphis, and Minneapolis/St. Paul)
• Varig (Sao Paolo)

Concourse H

• Bahamasair (Nassau, Freeport)
• Chautauqua Airlines dba Delta Connection (Orlando and Tallahassee)
• Continental Airlines (Houston/Intercontinental and Newark)
• Continental Express (Cleveland)
• Comair dba Delta Connection (Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky (Covington, KY), Orlando, and Tallahassee)
• Delta Air Lines (Atlanta and Cincinnati)
• Gulfstream International Airlines dba Continental Connection (Freeport, Key West, Marsh Harbour, Nassau, North Eleuthera, Orlando, Tampa, and Treasure Cay)
• US Airways (Baltimore, Charlotte, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh)

Other Carriers

• ABC Airlines (Charter)
• Allegro Airlines (Charter)
• Aserca Airlines
• C & T Airlines (Charter)
• Gulfstream International Airlines (Charter Flights - Charter Flight Schedule to Cuba includes: Havana, Cayo Coco, Santiago de Cuba, and Guantanamo)
• My Travel Airways (Charter)
• Wilson International Airlines (Charter)

Ground transportation

MIA's only direct public transport link is to Miami-Dade Transit's Metrobus network, although free shuttles are provided to and from the Miami Airport Station (Tri-Rail) and the Tri-Rail/Metrorail Transfer Station. MDT is currently planning to link the airport by people mover to the upcoming Miami Intermodal Center , which will provide access to Metrorail as well as the future BayLink light rail to South Beach.

Freight

In addition to the highway network, CSX Transportation's Miami Subdivision serves the airport.

Destinations Served Non-Stop

• Aruba, Aruba
• Amsterdam, the Netherlands
• Atlanta, GA, USA
• Baltimore, MD, USA
• Barranquilla, Colombia
• Belize City, Belize
• Bogotá, Colombia
• Boston, MA, USA
• Bridgetown, Barbados
• Buenos Aires, Argentina
• Cali, Colombia
• Cancun, Mexico
• Caracas, Venezuela
• Cartagena, Colombia
• Cayman Brac, Cayman Islands
• Charlotte, NC, USA
• Chicago-O'Hare, IL, USA
• Cincinnati, OH, USA
• Cleveland, OH, USA
• Columbus, OH, USA
• Cochabamba, Bolivia
• Curaçao, Netherland Antilies
• Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX, USA
• Denver, CO, USA
• Detroit, MI, USA
• Dusseldorf, Germany
• Fort Myers, FL, USA
• Frankfurt, Germany
• Freeport, the Bahamas
• Gainesville, FL, USA
• George Town, the Bahamas
• Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands
• Guanacaste Liberia, Costa Rica
• Guatemala City, Guatemala
• Guayquil, Ecuador
• Helsinki, Finland
• Houston-George Bush, TX, USA
• Hartford, CT, USA
• Indianapolis, IN, USA
• Key West, FL, USA
• Kingston, Jamaica
• La Paz, Bolivia
• La Romana, Dominican Republic
• Las Vegas, NV, USA
• Lima, Peru
• London-Heathrow, United Kingdom
• Los Angeles, CA, USA
• Louisville, KY, USA (service begins 9 June 2005)
• Madrid, Spain
• Managua, Nicaragua
• Manaus, Brazil
• Manchester, United Kingdom
• Maracaibo, Venezuela
• Marsh Harbour, the Bahamas
• Medellin, Colombia
• Memphis, TN, USA
• Merida, Mexico
• Mexico City, Mexico
• Milan, Italy
• Minneapolis, MN, USA
• Montego Bay, Jamaica
• Monterrey, Mexico
• Montevideo, Uruguay
• Montreal, Canada
• Munich, Germany
• Naples, FL, USA
• Nashville, TN, USA
• Nassau, the Bahamas
• New Orleans, LA, USA
• New York-JFK, NY, USA
• New York-LaGuardia, NY, USA
• Newark, NJ, USA
• Norfolk, VA, USA (service begins 9 June 2005)
• North Eluethera, the Bahamas
• Orlando, FL, USA
• Panama City, Panama
• Paris-CDG, France
• Philadelphia, PA, USA
• Phoenix, AZ, USA
• Pittsburgh, PA, USA
• Port Au Prince, Haiti
• Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago
• Providenciales, Turks & Caicos
• Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
• Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
• Quito, Ecuador
• Raleigh, NC, USA
• Richmond, VA, USA
• Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Roatan, Honduras
• Salvador da Bahia, Brazil
• San Francisco, CA, USA
• San José, Costa Rica
• San Juan, PR, USA
• San Pedro Sula, Honduras
• San Salvador, El Salvador
• Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia
• Santiago, Dominican Republic
• Santiago, Chile
• Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
• Sao Paolo, Brazil
• Seattle, WA, USA
• St. Croix, VI, USA
• St George's, Bermuda
• St. Kitts & Nevis, Leeward Islands
• St. Louis, MO, USA
• St. Lucia, West Indies
• St. Maarten, Netherland Antilies
• St. Thomas, VI, USA
• Tampa, FL, USA
• Tegucigalpa, Honduras
• Tel Aviv, Israel
• Toronto, Canada
• Treasure Cay, the Bahamas
• Vail/Eagle County, CO, USA
• Washington, D.C.-Dulles, DC, USA
• Washington, D.C.-National, DC, USA
• Zurich, Switzerland

(NOTE: CERTAIN DESTINATIONS SERVED SEASONALLY)

External links

• Miami International Airport Homepage
• Miami-Dade County