Historical facts for Los Angeles International Airport

Time Line

October 1, 1928
Los Angeles Municipal Airport, originally known as Mines Field, begins operation.

1929
The first structure, Hangar No. 1, is built.

June 7,  1930
Official dedication

December 5, 1946
Commercial airline service begins

June, 1961
Vice  President  Lyndon  B. Johnson  dedicates  the  new  Jet  Age Satellite terminals.

October 1, 1978
50th Anniversary of LAX

November, 1983
Second-level roadway and ticketing connector buildings are completed.

January, 1984
Terminal One is completed.

June 11, 1984
Official dedication of the Tom Bradley International Terminal

July, 1984
LAX welcomes participants and spectators to the XXIII Olympic Games.

June, 1991
Hangar No. 1, refurbished in 1990, is accepted as a National Historic Landmark and listed in the Register of Historical Places.

December 18, 1992
Los Angeles City Council designates the Theme Building, built in 1961, as a City Cultural and Historical Monument.

December 5, 1996
50th Anniversary of commercial airline service at LAX.

January 31, 1997
Encounter Restaurant in the Theme Building, with its space-age interior opens.

August 2000
LAX Lighting Ceremony for pylons.
New Gateway to Southern California
 
GEOGRAPHY
* The airport occupies 3,425 acres (1,386 hectares) within the City of Los Angeles
* Reference point coordinates are 33o 56' north latitude by 118o 24' west longitude.
* Elevation is 125.55 feet GENERAL STATISTICS
* LAX is the third busiest airport in the world (behind Atlanta Hartsfield and Chicago O'Hare) based on number of passengers.
* In 2001, 61.6 million passengers used LAX (15.9 million international; 45.6 million domestic).
* LAX ranks third worldwide in tons of air cargo handled, with more than 2.2 million tons of freight and mail shipped in 2001.
* There were 738,114 operations (takeoffs and landings) in 2001.
* LAX has more than 25,000 airport parking spaces.
* Approximately 80 passenger carriers and 20 cargo carriers serve LAX, including all major airlines. There are nine terminals with more than 140 aircraft parking spots for commercial airlines.
* Area in the terminals total 3,829,052 square feet (355,860 square meters). Cargo terminals have over two million square feet of handling area.
* The airport has four east/west parallel runways: 24R/6L is 8,925 ft.; 24L/6R is 10,285 ft.; 25R/7L is 12,090 ft.; and 25L/7R is 11,095 ft. All are 150 feet wide except for 25L/7R which is 200 ft. wide.
* The FAA Control Tower began operation in April 1996. It stands 277 feet above ground and utilizes state-of-the-art equipment. The old Control Tower, built in 1961, is 172 feet tall and served LAX for 35 years. ECONOMICS
* The annual budget for LAX is more than $352 million.
* LAX Airport contributes $61 billion to the economy each year or $167 million each day.
* Approximately 408,000 jobs are directly or indirectly due to the airport, including more than 59,000 jobs at 254 firms at the airport itself.

For more information, please contact
Lax Airport Public Relations
1 World Way, Los Angeles CA 90045

LAX Airport History

LAX Parking