The History of Los Angeles International Airport

‍DALLAS — Southern California is home to some of the world’s most congested airspace. Handling thousands of flights daily, this airspace is one of the most challenging to navigate and control, and at its epicentre is Los Angeles International Airport, commonly referred to as LAX. 

Handling 75 million passengers and serving five continents, as of 2023, LAX is the world’s eighth busiest airport by passenger numbers, sitting between Istanbul Airport and Chicago O’Hare. 

With an area of nearly 3,000 acres being used for airport operations, LAX has grown to vastly dwarf the site it once occupied. With four runways and nine terminals, the airport is the main gateway to Los Angeles, and its 3.8 million population, serving almost any kind of airline, from ultra low cost to the most prestigious, freighter or private aircraft, and most things in between. 

However, LAX traces its history back to humble beginnings.

Early Years

Los Angeles International started life in 1928 as an unpaved airfield, known as “Mines Field”, named after the real estate agent who initially promoted the field’s use for aviation. Mine's Field initially found aviation usage in its early months as the host for the 1928 National Air Race, before being prepared for commercial use by August of that year.

The need for an air corridor to the city was outlined two years prior, in 1926. At this time, their population was around the 1 million mark. At the time, the town was becoming one of the most important on the Pacific coast, as well as in the wider United States. 

The city was already a central logistics and industrial hub, with numerous markets to cater to. Not to mention catering for those who could afford to fly. At this time, Los Angeles had established itself as the film and entertainment capital of the world, thanks to the immense growth of Hollywood's film studios. 

The city needed an air link, which was established in October 1928. It was opened with the initial dirt runway; however, to entice airlines to establish themselves there, the airport would receive a paved runway within two years, allowing for larger aircraft to land there in worse weather conditions. By 1930, the airport would also be renamed from Mines Field to “Los Angeles Municipal Airport.”

While Los Angeles Municipal was undoubtedly an important aviation hub for the city, it wasn’t yet the city’s main air gateway, with that title being held by Burbank Airport, 15 miles further north.

Opened in 1930, Burbank benefited from being established by the United Aircraft and Transport Corporation, a company with holdings in numerous small passenger and postal airlines, as well as aircraft manufacturing. From this, Burbank was a more established airport from its inception, giving it an advantage over Los Angeles Municipal.

At the time, Los Angeles Municipal was home to flight schools and private aviation operations, far from what the city had intended.

The airport would largely remain in its current form until the United States entered World War II, which would be the primary catalyst for its development. The airfield played a crucial role in the production of aircraft for the Allied war effort.

As a result, the airfield’s military use was prioritized over its commercial development. However, during the war, US$12.5 million was allocated to augment the airport’s facilities, including improvements to its runways and buildings. These investments allowed Los Angeles Municipal to surpass what Burbank to the north had to offer, and this soon caught the eyes of prospective airlines.

The airport officially reopened to commercial traffic on October 9, 1946, but instead of the pre-war general aviation it was used to, the airport now had clients. Known clients. The airport, with a rudimentary assortment of tents serving as terminals, now hosted the likes of Pan Am, TWA, United Airlines, and American Airlines, among others.

“X” Marks the Hub

The airport also traded in its old name, dropping the “municipal” to become Los Angeles International Airport. In addition, it gained its signature code, which became its iconic branding: LAX.

The X in LAX doesn’t specifically stand for anything. The airport’s original code was simply “LA”; however, following the exponential growth of aviation and the expansion of landing strips in the area during the 1940s, a need arose to differentiate between them. And as a result, the letter X was added to its prefix. 

That simple differentiation between airports in the area allowed it to become an iconic brand for the city, and for the two to become synonymous with one another.

40s Onwards

By 1948, the airport’s terminals had been built, and the informal tents had been removed. The airport also had one main runway, runway 25/07, where runway 25R now is, but it would quickly grow. With the post-war economic boom, Los Angeles’s population had now grown to 1.9 million by 1950, and grew by another 500,000 a decade later, by which time, LAX had entered the jet age. 

The introduction of aircraft like the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8, along with other jet-powered aircraft, superseded the propeller-powered aircraft that preceded them. With jet engines comes larger aircraft that need longer runways to accommodate them.

In June of 1956, public money funded the building of new terminals in the U shape with parking in the middle, which provided the airport with the beginnings of its current form today. The first of these terminals opened in 1961, along with the so-called “theme building”, the iconic white focal point of LAX. This was initially meant to be a glass dome; however, the dome was never constructed, and the Theme building was built in its place.

Replacing the old ones, LAX received eight terminals, as well as four runways, giving the airport its current layout, seemingly futureproofing it against any challenges it could face. Any challenge except the Olympics. 

LAX required a substantial expansion in the early 1980s to accommodate the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Expansions included renovations and expansions to the terminals, as well as the opening of terminal 1, the construction of a satellite terminal, and the expansion of road access to the central terminal area.

The so-called “Tom Bradley” terminal, also known as Terminal B, was opened in the summer of 1984, named after the city’s longest-serving mayor, and bridges the gap between Terminals 3 and 4.

Following the 1984 Olympics, LAX largely kept its form until 2008, when it entered its next evolution of expansion. This expansion was greatly needed and substantial. From 2008, the airport built another satellite terminal off the Tom Brady terminal to increase capacity further for both widebody and narrowbody aircraft. A further renovation and rebuilding of the terminals, which had become outdated and no longer fit for purpose.

Additionally, plans were put in place to connect the airport to the Los Angeles Metro network.

The Present and Future: Airside

The future of LAX is planned out for the coming years. In 2028, the city will again be hosting the summer Olympics, and it will be one of the hosts of the 2026 World Cup before that. Therefore, the airport will again experience a significant influx of traffic.

Los Angeles and LAX have various chronic issues that need to be addressed, often with temporary fixes that, in some cases, have been known to exacerbate problems in the long term.

Congestion is a significant issue that LAX will need to address. Los Angeles is known for its extensive car travel and resulting congestion. 

Furthermore, the airport has a somewhat negative view in terms of the customer experience. With disjointed terminals and a reputation for unhelpful staff members, the airport now has three years to improve its hard and soft products.

In recognition of these problems, the airport and the city have allocated US$14 billion. And these improvements are extensive. 

Airside inter-terminal connectability is a top priority for the airport, with improvements such as shared departures concourses, an airside inter-terminal bus service, and connection bridges being implemented over the coming years to reduce transit times and save passengers from having to go through security again.

New and improved baggage and screening systems, as well as expanded check-in areas and passenger security facilities, are also expected across multiple terminals to streamline and speed up the passenger experience. 

Moving upwards, LAX is expected to add yet another satellite terminal, known as the “Midfield Satellite Concourse.” This is part of the US$2 billion upgrade to the Tom Bradley International Terminal. 

Outside of the terminal, the tarmac itself is also due for some major renovations, with the resurfacing of much of the airport’s taxiway and runway network, ensuring that it is as ready as possible to handle what’s on the horizon.

Looking further ahead, the airport can eventually expect Terminal 9 and Concourse 0 to enter the fray. However, timelines for this have not yet been disclosed.

Future: Landside

Lanside passenger logistics is also a significant concern that needs to be addressed, with US$5.5 billion of the budget allocated to it. But LAX has also thought of this, with the “Landside Access Modernisation Program”, or “LAMP” for short, and is designed to tackle the airport’s crippling traffic car problem. This involves many modes of transport, with rail taking centre stage. 

LAX expects to implement an automated people mover system. This will be an elevated rail network connecting the airport’s landside facilities, such as the terminals, car parks, and rental facilities, and in particular, the LA Metro. With a length of 2.25 miles, or approximately 3.5 kilometers, this network will enable passengers to bypass the bottleneck that is LAX’s road network entirely. 

One of the stops on the automated people mover will be a facility known as the “CONRAC”, or “consolidated rent-a-car” facility. To keep rental facilities close to the airport itself, a dedicated building will be constructed near the terminal complex, saving passengers time in what is currently a journey in itself to pick up their car rental. 

In terms of connections to the city itself, LAX has plans for that too, in the form of the two “intermodal transportation facilities”. This will be where the majority of road-based public transportation connections will be located at LAX, with local buses, shuttles, and more, making it far less challenging to connect to the city itself.

Conclusion

LAX is unrecognizable from what it was all the way back in 1928. The airport it was is so far away from what it has become, which is not only a brand in itself, but also one of the most critical and pivotal gateways to the United States. 

It’s an establishment and an asset that the city of Los Angeles arguably owes much of its existence to. It’s an airport that has undergone many changes over the years, but it still strives for more, with challenges to overcome. 

The airport and the city have proven themselves to be adaptable and not afraid of a challenge, with little hesitation and no time for reluctance. And, in their centenary year, they aim to strive for their finest hour yet.