12/02/1939: New York's LaGuardia Airport Begins Operations
The much-criticized LaGuardia Airport first opened for business on this day in 1939.
The much-criticized LaGuardia Airport first opened for business on this day in 1939.
DALLAS — In 1939, New York City's LaGuardia Airport (LGA) opened for business in East Elmhurst, Queens. The aviation history of the site in Queens can be traced back to June 1929, when New York Air Terminal Inc. established a seaplane base.
The facility underwent several developments and name changes, including being renamed Glenn H. Curtiss Airport in September 1930 and later North Beach Airport in 1935.
However, it was Fiorello LaGuardia, the newly elected mayor, who played a significant role in transforming the airport. After being dissatisfied with landing at Newark (EWR), La Guardia demanded to be taken to "New York" and worked towards converting North Beach into a commercial facility.
Over US$20 million was invested in a complete redesign and upgrade, resulting in the renaming of the airport to New York Municipal Airport. Finally, in June 1947, the airport received its current name, LaGuardia Airport, in honor of Fiorello LaGuardia's contributions.
Currently, LGA serves as a major hub for American Airlines (AA) and Delta Air Lines (DL), offering a range of domestic and limited international flights. However, the airport is subject to the perimeter rule, which restricts international flights to a maximum distance of 1,500 miles. In 2019, LGA accommodated a total of 31,084,894 passengers.
Over the years, LGA has faced criticism for its outdated facilities, often earning a reputation as one of the country's worst airports. In response, a comprehensive airport reconstruction project commenced in the spring of 2016, aiming to consolidate all four terminals into a single integrated facility. This ambitious endeavor is projected to reach completion by 2025, promising significant improvements and modernization of the airport's infrastructure.
Earlier last year, DL debuted its brand new, state-of-the-art Terminal at LGA, which features its largest Delta Sky Club.
Featured Image: LGA in 1948, the same year that the Port Authority took over the running of the airport. Photo: The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
.webp)
David H. Stringer, the History Editor for AIRWAYS Magazine, has chronicled the story of the commercial aviation industry with his airline history articles that have appeared in AIRWAYS over two decades. Here, for the first time, is a compilation of those articles.
Subjects A through C are presented in this first of three volumes. Covering topics such as the airlines of Alaska at the time of statehood and Canada's regional airlines of the 1960s, the individual histories of such carriers as Allegheny, American, Braniff, and Continental are also included in Volume One. Get your copy today!
