John Glenn Columbus Intl

A Legacy of Private Aviation

CMH originates as the eastern air terminus of the Transcontinental Air Transport air-rail New York to the Los Angeles transcontinental route. It opened on July 8th, 1929, on a site selected by Charles Lindbergh. This meant that passengers would travel by rail from New York to Colombus, fly from Colombus to Waynoka, Oklahoma, then travel by rail again to Clovis, New Mexico, before flying to L.A. The old hangars and terminal remain today, although only the hangars are still in use. During WWII (in 1942), the U.S. Navy used most of the facility, and it was known as Naval Air Station Colombus. Furthermore, the government built an aviation factory on airport grounds known as Air Force Factory 85 (it was later operated by North American Aviation, although the U.S. government still owned it). With the war's culmination, the naval base was closed, and the airport was returned to civilian authorities in 1946. As of 1951, there were four runways: 006/186, which was 3,550 feet long; 052/232, which was 4,400 feet long; 096/276, which was 4,500 feet long; and 127/307, which was 5,030 feet long. On September 21st, 1958, a new terminal building opened at the cost of $12 million. In 1957 the airport was served by TWA (which was the first major airline to service CMH and continued to operate at the airport for over 70 years), American Airlines, Eastern Air Lines, Lake Central, and Piedmont. The first jets arrived in April 1964, Boeing 707s by American Airlines. In 1981 a $70 million renovation of the airport’s facilities were completed, which added Concourse B and fully enclosed jetways to every gate, thus allowing CMH to increase capacity to over 250 flights per day. Further enhancements occurred in 1989, with the opening of what is now Concourse A, featuring seven gates at the cost of $15.5 million (which at the time housed a hub for U.S. Airways). Over the years, America West Airlines had a hub at CMH during the 1990s, but it was forced to close the hub in 2003 due to financial losses and the post-9/11 decline in air travel. Furthermore, CMH was the home base to Skybus Airlines (the self-proclaimed cheapest airline in the U.S.), which was only in operation for less than a year, from May 22nd, 2007, to April 4th, 2008. Both hubs were located in Concourse A. In 1996 another concourse was completed on the north side of the airport, now Concourse C (it was expanded in 2002). Other expansions in the late 90s include a terminal renovation in 1998 that added more retail shops, a new food court, new flight information displays, enhanced lighting, and upgraded flooring at the cost of $25 million. In 1999 new office spaces and hangars were completed for NetJets. The following year a new parking garage was added, which included an underground terminal entrance, new car rental facilities, a dedicated ground transportation area, improved eight-lane terminal access, and a new atrium (at the cost of $92 million). On April 25, 2004, a new 195-foot-control tower was unveiled. Furthermore, on October 21, a new arrivals/departures board was completed in the main entrance area. In 2013 a runway improvement project was completed that moved the two runways further apart, thus creating a buffer zone that would allow simultaneous takeoffs and landings (costing $140 million). In early 2016 the Terminal Modernization Program was completed, adding new terrazzo flooring throughout the airport, new ceilings, new restrooms, new LED lighting, and more security lines for the TSA. Finally, in 2021 a new car rental facility opened, moving car rentals from out of the garage, thereby opening more parking spaces. The project cost was $140 million.