Five years ago on this day change landed at Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport when it opened its new, state-of-the-art terminal building. Visitors from all over the world have marveled as they walk through the glass jet bridges and enter the modern terminal as they arrive at the Air Capital of the World. The new terminal offers a first impression of a region that is innovative and progressive, and showcases the city’s leadership in the world of aviation. Since June 3, 2015, over 7.9 million passengers have flown in and out of the new terminal.
Air Service Highlights
- Southwest began service to Phoenix and St. Louis in April 2016
- Allegiant began seasonal Orlando-Sanford service in May 2016
- Alaska Airlines began service to Seattle in April 2017
- Frontier Airlines began service to Denver in August 2018
- Allegiant began seasonal service to Destin-Fort Walton Beach in June 2019
- American began seasonal service to Phoenix in December 2019
- Passenger growth 11% (2015-2019)
- 7,948,474 total passengers between June 2015 – April 2020
Other Highlights
- 3 record traffic years – 2017, 2018, 2019
- 63 Kansas Honor Flights have been held in the new terminal
- A service animal relief area was opened on the concourse June 2018
- Introduced AIRA Technology for vision impaired passengers
- Demolition of the old terminal
- Received authorization to begin inspections utilizing drones
Awards, Recognition & Publications
- Voted #3 best small airport in the U.S. in USA Today’s 10Best Readers Choice Awards, 2020
- Named the 4th Best Small Airport in the US by a national customer survey of more than 200,000 passengers
- Received the Ad Astra Outstanding Achievement Award from the Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce in 2016
- Received the Wichita Society of Professional Engineers Outstanding Engineering Achievement Award
- Received the Award of Excellence from the Associated General Contractors of Kansas
- Received the Judges Choice Award from the Associated General Contractors of Kansas
- Received the 2016 Honor Award from the National Terrazzo & Mosaic Association
- Received the 2015 and 2016 Airport Safety Enhancement Award from the Federal Aviation Administration for zero discrepancy operation and maintenance of Eisenhower Airport
- Received the Excellence in Employee Training Award from the American Association of Airport Executives
- Received the American Concrete Pavement Association award for the best pavement construction project in the commercial service airports category in the state of Kansas
- Received Honorable Mention Award from the Airports Council International-North America for Excellence in Airport Marketing, Communications, and Customer Service in the Newsletter category for the Eisenhower Air e-magazine
- Nominated for the 2016 City Public Improvement Awards of the American Council of Engineering Companies of Kansas
Thank you for 5 great years!
