Cleveland Hopkins Intl

A Legacy of Private Aviation

CLE originated in 1925 (the oldest municipally owned airport in the U.S.), and by 1930 was a world leader in several categories: it was the site of the first air traffic control tower, the first ground-to-air radio control, and the first airfield lighting system. Furthermore, it also featured the first passenger terminal building and the first airport to schedule interstate passenger service. In 1951, the airport was named after its founder, former city manager William R. Hopkins. In the late ’60s, CLE was the site of more innovation, becoming the first airport in the U.S. to be directly linked to a mass transit system in 1968 and the first airport to employ a two-level terminal design separating arrivals and departures the following year. CLE is also known for its hubs, and after WWII, it was the easternmost hub for United Airlines until the mid-80s (at which point it closed the CLE hub and moved to Washington-Dulles). At that point, Continental Airlines and USAir added capacity at CLE. After 1990, USAir significantly reduced its schedule, whereas Continental significantly increased its hub capacity at the airport (accounting for over 60% of the airport’s traffic). Continental’s growing presence led to some heavy investment in airport infrastructure. $50 million were spent in 1992 on renovating Concourse C (home of all Continental flights), which included the installation of a continuous skylight, a Continental President’s Club lounge, and a new baggage claim area. This was followed by an $80 million expansion, which included the new Concourse D, intended to house Continental Express and Continental Connection flights (it is now closed). As for transatlantic service, in June 1999, Continental launched seasonal daily flights to London’s Gatwick Airport, which concluded in 2009. While the airline stated that the recession and the inability to obtain affordable seasonal slots at Heathrow (at some point, they switched airports in England) as reasons for the cancellation of service, The Plain Dealer suggested that the growing cooperation between Continental and United meant that passengers could transit through the United hub at Chicago-O’Hare instead of using CLE. And these suspicions were not for naught, as the following year Continental and United merged, and Continental’s CEO announced on November 10th that whether the CLE hub closed would be determined by its overall profitability. As such, United reduced its presence at CLE, and on June 5th, 2014, the hub was terminated (the airline claimed that the Cleveland hub had not been profitable in over a decade), thereby reducing daily departures at the airport by 60%. This brought about the closing of Concourse D, and United consolidated its remaining operations at CLE in Concourse C (although they are contractually obligated to pay the airport over $1.1 million a month until 2027 in rent for the facilities). The closure of the United hub (for the second time) brought about an initial decline in passengers at CLE, but other airlines began to increase their service. Frontier Airlines made CLE a focus city and significantly increased operations. They were soon joined by other low-cost airlines, including Spirit Airlines and Allegiant Air, whereas existing airlines American, Delta, and Southwest increased operations, so much so that by 2017 CLE exceeded the passenger levels attained during the last full year of the United hub. Nonetheless, United is still the largest carrier at CLE and maintains a flight attendant and pilot base at the airport (as well as maintenance facilities).