In 2023, LAX handled 75,050,875 passengers, making it theworld's eleventh-busiest airport, according to theAirports Council International rankings.[8] In 2024, LAX served 76,587,980 passengers, a 2.04% increase from 2023. As the largest and busiest international airport on theWest Coast of the United States, LAX is a major international gateway for the country, serving as a connection point for passengers traveling internationally (such as East and Southeast Asia,Australasia, Mexico, and Central America).
The airport holds the record for the world's busiest origin and destination airport,[9] because relative to other airports, many more travelers begin or end their trips in Los Angeles than use it as a connection. In 2019, LAWA reported approximately 88% of travelers at LAX were origination and destination passengers, and 12% were connecting.[10] It is also the only airport to rank among the top five U.S. airports for both passenger and cargo traffic.[11] LAX serves as ahub,focus city, or operating base for more passenger airlines than any other airport in the United States.
Hangar No. 1 was the first structure at LAX, built in 1929 and restored in 1990. It remains in use.[12]
In 1926, theLos Angeles City Council and theChamber of Commerce recognized the need for the city to have its own airport to tap into the fledgling, but quickly growing, aviation industry. Several locations were considered, but the final choice was a 640-acre (1 sq mi; 259 ha) field in the southern part ofWestchester. The location had been promoted by real estate agent William W. Mines, andMines Field as it was known had already been selected to host the 1928 National Air Races. On August 13, 1928 the city leased the land and the newly formed Department of Airports began converting the fields, once used to growwheat,barley, andlima beans, into dirt landing strips.[13]
The airport opened on October 1, 1928[14] and the first structure,Hangar No. 1, was erected in 1929. The building still stands at the airport, remaining in active use and listed on theNational Register of Historic Places.[15] Over the next year, the airport started to come together: the dirt runway was replaced with an all-weather surface and more hangars, a restaurant, and a control tower were built. On June 7, 1930, the facility was dedicated and renamed Los Angeles Municipal Airport.[13]
The airport was used by private pilots and flying schools, but the city’s vision was that Los Angeles would become the main passenger hub for the area. However, the airport failed to entice any carriers away from the establishedBurbank Airport or theGrand Central Airport in Glendale.[13]
World War II put a pause on any further development of the airport for passenger use. Before the United States entered the war, the aviation manufacturers located around the airport were busy providing aircraft for theAllied powers, while the flying schools found themselves in high demand. In January 1942, the military assumed control of the airport, stationing fighter planes there, and building naval gun batteries in the ocean dunes to the west.[13]
Meanwhile, airport managers published a master plan for the land and, in early 1943, convinced voters to back a $12.5 million bond for airport improvements. With a plan and funding in place, the airlines were finally convinced to make the move.
The temporary terminals remained in place for 15 years but quickly became inadequate, especially as air travel entered the "jet age" and other cities invested in modern facilities. Airport leaders once again convinced voters to back a $59 million bond on June 5, 1956.
The current layout of the passenger facilities was established in 1958 with a plan to build a series of terminals and parking facilities, arranged in the shape of the letter U, in the central portion of the property. The original plan called for the terminal buildings to be connected at the center of the property by a huge steel-and-glass dome. The dome was never built, but a smallerTheme Building, constructed in the central area, became a focal point for people coming to the airport.
The first of the new passenger buildings, Terminals 7 and 8, were opened forUnited Airlines on June 25, 1961, following opening festivities that lasted several days.[17][18] Terminals 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 opened later that same year.
There was a major expansion of the airport in the early 1980s, ahead of the1984 Summer Olympic Games. In November 1983, a second-level roadway was added,[19] Terminal 1 opened in January 1984[20] and the Tom Bradley International Terminal opened in June 1984.[21] The original terminals also received expansions and updates in the 1980s.
Since 2008, the airport has been undergoing another major expansion. All of the terminals are being refurbished, and the Tom Bradley International Terminal was substantially rebuilt, with a West Gates satellite concourse added.[22] Outside of the terminal area, theLAX West Intermodal Transportation Facility with 4,300 parking spaces opened in 2021, replacing the former Lot C.[23] A newLAX/Metro Transit Center and aLAX Consolidated Rent-A-Car Facility (ConRAC) are being built. All will be connected to the terminal area by theLAX Automated People Mover.[24] Altogether, those projects are expected to cost $30 billion and bring LAX's total gates from 146 to 182.[25][26]Ultra low-cost carriers say project costs have made operations at LAX unsustainable under their low-fare model, with fees hitting around $50 per departing passenger. As a result,Allegiant Air is shutting its LAX crew base and cutting several routes.[27]
Before the 1930s, US airports used a two-letter abbreviation and "LA" served as the designation for Los Angeles Airport.[28] With rapid growth in the aviation industry, in 1947, the identifiers were expanded to three letters, and "LA" received an extra letter to become "LAX". The "X" does not have any specific meaning.[29] "LAX" is also used for thePort of Los Angeles inSan Pedro and byAmtrak forUnion Station inDowntown Los Angeles.
The light towers, first installed in preparation for theDemocratic National Convention in 2000, feature a light installation by artistPaul Tzanetopoulos in which the towers change colors throughout the night.
Runways 24R/06L and 24L/06R (designated the North Airfield Complex) are north of the airport terminals, while runways 25R/07L and 25L/07R (designated the South Airfield Complex) are south of the airport terminals.
Runways at Los Angeles International
W
Length
Width
E
06L →
8,926 ft 2,721 m
150 ft 46 m
← 24R
06R →
10,885 ft 3,318 m
150 ft 46 m
← 24L
Terminal area
07L →
12,923 ft 3,939 m
150 ft 46 m
← 25R
07R →
11,095 ft 3,382 m
200 ft 61 m
← 25L
LAX is located with the Pacific Ocean to the west and residential communities on all other sides. Since 1972, Los Angeles World Airports has adopted a "Preferential Runway Use Policy" to minimize noise levels in the communities closest to LAX.[30]
Typically, the loudest operations at an airport are from departing aircraft, with engines operating at high power, so during daytime hours (6:30am to midnight), LAX prefers to operate under the "Westerly Operations" air traffic pattern, named for the prevailing west winds. Under "Westerly Operations", departing aircraft take off to the west, over the ocean, and arriving aircraft approach from the east. To reduce noise to areas north and south of the airport, LAX prefers to use the "inboard" runways (06R/24L and 07L/25R) for departures, closest to the central terminal area and further from residential areas, and the "outboard" runways for arrivals. Historically, over 90% of flights have used the "inboard" departures and "outboard" arrivals scheme.[30]
During night-time hours, when there are fewer aircraft operations and residential areas tend to be more noise sensitive, additional changes are made to reduce noise. Between 10pm and 7am, air traffic controllers try to use the "outboard" runways as little as possible and, between midnight and 6:30am, the air traffic pattern shifts to "Over-Ocean Operations", under which departing aircraft continue to take off to the west, but arriving aircraft also approach from the west, over the ocean.[30]
There are times when the Over-Ocean and Westerly operations are not possible, particularly when the winds originate from the east, typically during inclement weather and whenSanta Ana winds occur. In those cases, the airport shifts to the non-preferred "Easterly Operations" air traffic pattern, under which departing aircraft take off to the east, and arriving aircraft approach from the west.[30]
The South Airfield Complex tends to see more operations than the North, because there are a larger number of passenger gates and air cargo operations areas on the south side of the airport grounds.[30] In 2007, the southernmost runway (07R/25L) was moved 55 feet (17 m) to the south to accommodate a new central taxiway.[31][32] Runways in the North Airfield Complex are separated by 700 feet (210 m).[33] There were plans to increase the separation by 260 feet (79 m), which would have allowed a central taxiway between runways to have been built, but faced opposition from residents living north of LAX.[34] These plans were scrapped in 2016, in favor of lifting a gate cap at the airport and building a new park on the airport's north side.[35]
Map of LAX showing Terminals 1 through 8, plus the Tom Bradley International Terminal (B) and the Regional Terminal (R)Los Angeles International Airport has 161 gates in nine passenger terminals arranged in the shape of the letter U or a horseshoe. On thelandside of the airport,LAX Shuttle route A buses allow passengers to move between all terminals. On theairside, various pedestrian corridors allow passengers to move between all terminals on foot without having toexit and reenter airport security. Additionally, by June 2026,[36] the airport will be served by theLAX Automated People Mover, which will connect terminals to one another on thelandside, along with providing connections to theLAX Consolidated Rent-A-Car Facility, parking facilities, and theLAX/Metro Transit Center, which is served by theLos Angeles Metro Rail system and public bus routes.[37] In addition to these terminals, there are 2 million square feet (190,000 m2) of cargo facilities.
The distinctiveTheme Building in theGoogie style was built in 1961 and resembles a flying saucer that has landed on its four legs. A restaurant with a sweeping view of the airport is suspended beneath two arches that form the legs. TheLos Angeles City Council designated the building aLos Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 1992. A $4 million renovation, withretro-futuristic interior and electric lighting designed byWalt Disney Imagineering, was completed before the Encounter Restaurant opened there in 1997. The restaurant is no longer in business.[38] Visitors are able to take the elevator up to the observation deck of the "Theme Building", which had previously been closed after theSeptember 11, 2001 attacks for security reasons.[39] A memorial to the victims of the 9/11 attacks is located on the grounds, as three of the four hijacked planes were originally destined for LAX.[40] The Bob Hope USO expanded and relocated to the first floor of the Theme Building in 2018.[41]
In 2017,LAWA adopted a plan to modernize LAX at a cost of $30 billion.[26] The improvements are included in either the Airfield & Terminal Modernization Project (ATMP) or the Landside Access Modernization Program (LAMP). These include terminal and runway improvements, which will "enhance the passenger experience, reduce overcrowding, and provide airport access to the latest class of very large passenger aircraft"; this will bring the number of LAX's total gates from 146 to 182.[25]
Renovations of Terminal 1 (completed 2018),[43] Terminals 7 and 8 (completed 2019),[44] and Terminals 2 and 3 (completed 2023)[45][46]
Terminal 1.5, a junction building connecting Terminals 1 and 2, with a bus gate to take passengers to boarding gates in the Tom Bradley International Terminal (completed 2021)[47]
The Midfield Satellite Concourse (West Gates at Tom Bradley International Terminal) adding 15 gates (completed 2021)[48]
Economy Parking facility, a 4,300-stall parking structure with passenger pick-up/drop-off areas, to later be connected to the terminal area by the APM (completed 2021)[49]
Renovation of Terminals 4 and 5 (under construction, scheduled completion 2028)[57]
Roadway improvements (ATMP) to improve flow between Sepulveda Boulevard and the Central Terminal Area (under construction, scheduled completion 2030)[58][59]
Construction of new Terminals 0 and 9 (ATMP, in planning)[60]
It is theworld's eighth-busiest airport by passenger traffic andeleventh-busiest by cargo traffic,[296] serving over 87 million passengers and 2 million tons of freight and mail in 2018. It is the busiest airport in the state of California, and thefifth-busiest (2022) airport by passenger boardings in the United States. In terms of international passengers, the second busiest airport for international traffic in the United States, behind only JFK in New York City.The number of aircraft movements (landings and takeoffs) was 700,362 in 2017, the third most of any airport in the world.
In the secure area of the airport, tunnels or above-ground connectors link all the terminals except for theregional terminal.
LAX Shuttle route A operates in a counter-clockwise loop around the Central Terminal Area, providing frequent service for connecting passengers. However, connecting passengers who use these shuttles must leave and then later re-enter security.
LAX operates several shuttle routes to connect passengers and employees around the airport area:[303]
Route A – Terminal Connector operates in a counter-clockwise loop around the Central Terminal Area, providing frequent service for connecting passengers. However, connecting passengers who use these shuttles must leave and then later re-enter security.
Route M – Metro Connector connects the Central Terminal Area with theLAX/Metro Transit Center on the MetroC andK lines.
Route X – LAX Employee Lots connects the Central Terminal Area and the Employee Parking Lots. The route has three service patterns: the East Lot route only stops at Terminals 1, 2, 3, and B; the West Lot route only stops at Terminals 4, 5, 6, and 7; and the South Lot route stops at all terminals and also stops at the City Bus Center as Route C.
FlyAway buses stop at every LAX terminal in a counter-clockwise direction, starting at terminal 1. The service hours vary based on the line, with most leaving on or near the top of the hour. Buses use the regional system ofhigh-occupancy vehicle lanes andhigh-occupancy toll lanes (Metro ExpressLanes) to expedite their trips.
LAX does not currently have a direct connection to theLos Angeles Metro Rail system. LAX Shuttle route M offers free connections between the Central Terminal Area and theLAX/Metro Transit Center on theC andK, about1+1⁄2 miles (2.4 km) away.
Arriving passengers take a shuttle or walk to the LAXit waiting area east of Terminal 1 for taxi orride-share pickups.[311][312][313]Taxi services are operated by nine city-authorized taxi companies and regulated by Authorized Taxicab Supervision Inc. (ATS).[314] ATS queues up taxis at the LAXit waiting area.
Unlike many major airports of comparable size, it is easy to walk onto the land side LAX grounds from the abutting neighborhoods including Westchester and the Lennox area of Inglewood. There are several hotels, notably the Hyatt Regency LAX, restaurants and other support services on Sepulveda Blvd that are short walk from the terminals, and adequate sidewalks are provided to allow pedestrians with luggage to easily walk to/from the terminals to the neighborhood.
The Flight Path Museum LAX, formerly known as the Flight Path Learning Center,[323] is a museum located at 6661 Imperial Highway and was formerly known as the "West Imperial Terminal". This building used to house some charter flights. It sat empty for 10 years until it was re-opened as a learning center for LAX.
The center contains information on the history of aviation, several pictures of the airport, as well as aircraft scale models, flight attendant uniforms, and general airline memorabilia such as playing cards, china, magazines, signs, and aTWA gate information sign.
The museum's library contains an extensive collection of rare items such as aircraft manufacturer company newsletters/magazines, technical manuals for both military and civilian aircraft, industry magazines dating back to World War II and before, historic photographs and other invaluable references on aircraft operation and manufacturing.[324]
The museum has on display "The Spirit of Seventy-Six," aDC-3 that flew in commercial airline service, before serving as a corporate aircraft forUnion 76 Oil Company for 32 years. The plane was built in theDouglas Aircraft Company plant inSanta Monica in January 1941, which was a major producer of both commercial and military aircraft.[325]
On January 23, 1939, the sole prototypeDouglas 7B twin-engine attack bomber, designed and built as a company project, suffered a loss of the vertical fin and rudder during a demonstration flight over Mines Field, flat spun into the parking lot ofNorth American Aviation, and burned. Another source states that the test pilot, in an attempt to impress the Gallic passenger, attempted a snap roll at low altitude with one engine feathered, resulting in a fatal spin.[327] Douglas test pilot Johnny Cable bailed out at 300 feet, his chute unfurled but did not have time to deploy, he was killed on impact, the flight engineer John Parks rode in the airframe and died, but 33-year-old French Air Force Capt. Paul Chemidlin, riding in the aft fuselage near the top turret, survived with a broken leg, severe back injuries, and a slight concussion. The presence of Chemidlin, a representative of a foreign purchasing mission, caused a furor in Congress by isolationists over neutrality and export laws. The type was developed as theDouglas DB-7.[328]
On June 1, 1940, the firstDouglas R3D-1 for theU.S. Navy, BuNo1901, crashed at Mines Field, before delivery. The Navy later acquired the privately ownedDC-5 prototype, fromWilliam E. Boeing as a replacement.[329]
On November 20, 1940, the prototypeNA-73X Mustang,NX19998,[330] first flown October 26, 1940, by test pilotVance Breese, crashed.[331] According to P-51 designerEdgar Schmued, the NA-73 was lost because test pilot Paul Balfour refused, before a high-speed test run, to go through the takeoff and flight test procedure with Schmued while the aircraft was on the ground, claiming "one airplane was like another". After making two high speed passes over Mines Field, he forgot to put the fuel valve on "reserve" and during the third pass ran out of fuel. An emergency landing in a freshly plowed field caused the wheels to dig in, the aircraft flipped over, the airframe was not rebuilt, the second aircraft being used for subsequent testing.[332]
On October 26, 1944,WASP pilotGertrude Tompkins Silver of the 601st Ferrying Squadron, fifth Ferrying Group,Love Field, Dallas, Texas, departed Los Angeles Airport, in aNorth American P-51D Mustang,44-15669,[333] at 1600 hrs PWT, headed for the East Coast. She took off into the wind, into an offshore fog bank, and was expected that night at Palm Springs. She never arrived. Owing to a paperwork foul-up, a search did not get under way for several days, and while the eventual search of land and sea was massive, it failed to find a trace of Silver or her plane. She is the only missing WASP pilot. She had married Sgt. Henry Silver one month before her disappearance.[334]
On January 13, 1969,Scandinavian Airlines System Flight 933, aDouglas DC-8-62, crashed intoSanta Monica Bay, approximately 6 nautical miles (11 km) west of LAX at 7:21 pm, local time. The aircraft was operating as flight SK933, nearing the completion of a flight fromSeattle. Of nine crewmembers, three drowned, while 12 of the 36 passengers also drowned.
On January 18, 1969,United Airlines Flight 266, aBoeing 727-100 bearing the registration number N7434U, crashed intoSanta Monica Bay approximately 11.3 miles (18.2 km) west of LAX at 6:21 pm local time. The aircraft was destroyed, resulting in the death of all 32 passengers and six crew members aboard.
On the evening of June 6, 1971,Hughes Airwest Flight 706, aDouglas DC-9 jetliner that had departed LAX on a flight to Salt Lake City, Utah, was struck nine minutes after takeoff by a U.S. Marine CorpsMcDonnell DouglasF-4 Phantom II fighter jet over theSan Gabriel Mountains. The midair collision killed all 44 passengers and five crew members aboard the DC-9 airliner and one of two crewmen aboard the military jet.
On August 6, 1974, abomb exploded near thePan Am ticketing area at Terminal 2; three people were killed and 35 were injured.[336]
On March 1, 1978, two tires burst in succession on aMcDonnell Douglas DC-10-10 onContinental Airlines Flight 603 during its takeoff roll at LAX and the plane, bound forHonolulu, veered off the runway. A third tire burst and the DC-10's left landing gear collapsed, causing a fuel tank to rupture. Following the aborted takeoff, spilled fuel ignited and enveloped the center portion of the aircraft in flames. During the ensuing emergency evacuation, a husband and wife died when they exited the passenger cabin onto the wing and dropped down directly into the flames. Two additional passengers died of their injuries approximately three months after the accident; 74 others aboard the plane were injured, as were 11 firemen battling the fire.
On the evening of March 10, 1979,Swift Aire Flight 235, a twin-engineAerospatiale Nord 262A-33 turboprop en route toSanta Maria, was forced toditch inSanta Monica Bay after experiencing engine problems upon takeoff from LAX. The pilot, co-pilot, and a female passenger drowned when they were unable to exit the aircraft after the ditching. The female flight attendant and the three remaining passengers—two men and a pregnant woman—survived and were rescued by several pleasure boats and other watercraft in the vicinity.
In January 1985, a woman was found dead in a suitcase that was lying on the baggage carousel for a while. The suitcase had arrived on a Lufthansa flight. The woman was later discovered to have been an Iranian citizen who had recently married another Iranian with UGreen card status. She had been denied a US visa in West Germany and therefore decided to enter the US in this way.[337]
On August 31, 1986,Aeroméxico Flight 498, aDC-9 en route fromMexico City, Mexico, to Los Angeles, began its descent into LAX when aPiper Cherokee collided with the DC-9's lefthorizontal stabilizer overCerritos, causing the DC-9 to crash into a residential neighborhood. All 67 people on the two aircraft were killed, in addition to 15 people on the ground. 5 homes were destroyed and an additional 7 were damaged by the crash and resulting fire. The Piper went down in a nearby schoolyard and caused no further injuries on the ground. As a result of this incident, the FAA required all commercial aircraft to be equipped withTraffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS).
On February 1, 1991,USAir Flight 1493 (arriving fromColumbus, Ohio), aBoeing 737-300, landing on runway 24L at LAX, collided on touchdown withSkyWest Airlines Flight 5569, aFairchild Metroliner, preparing to depart toPalmdale. The collision was caused by a controller who told the SkyWest plane to wait on the runway for takeoff, then later gave the USAir plane clearance to land on the same runway, forgetting that the SkyWest plane was there. The collision killed all 12 occupants of the SkyWest plane and 23 of the 89 people aboard the USAir 737.[338][339]
Al-Qaeda attempted to bomb LAX on New Year's Eve 1999/2000. The bomber, AlgerianAhmed Ressam, was captured inPort Angeles, Washington, the U.S. port of entry, with a cache of explosives that could have produced a blast 40 times greater than that of acar bomb hidden in the trunk of the rented car in which he had traveled from Canada.[340][341] He had planned to leave one or two suitcases filled with explosives in an LAX passenger waiting area.[342][343] He was initially sentenced to 22 years in prison, but in February 2010 an appellate court ordered that his sentence be extended.[344]
On January 31, 2000,Alaska Airlines Flight 261, attempted to land at LAX after experiencing problems with its tail-mounted horizontal stabilizer. Before the plane could divert toLos Angeles, it suddenly plummeted into the Pacific Ocean approximately 2.7 miles (4.3 km) north ofAnacapa Island of theCalifornia coast, killing all 88 people aboard.[345]
In the2002 Los Angeles International Airport shooting of July 4, 2002, Hesham Mohamed Hadayet killed two Israelis at the ticket counter ofEl Al Airlines at LAX. Although the gunman was not linked to any terrorist group, the man was upset at U.S. support for Israel, and therefore was motivated by political disagreement. This led theFBI to classify this shooting as a terrorist act,[346] one of the first on U.S. soil since the September 11 attacks.
On September 21, 2005,JetBlue Flight 292, anAirbus A320 discovered a problem with its landing gear as it took off fromBob Hope Airport inBurbank. It flew in circles for three hours to burn off fuel, then landed safely at Los Angeles International Airport on runway 25L, balancing on its back wheels as it rolled down the center of the runway. Passengers were able to watch their own coverage live from the satellite broadcast onJetBlue in-flight TV seat displays of their plane as it made an emergency landing with the front landing gear visibly becoming damaged. BecauseJetBlue did not serve LAX at the time, the aircraft was evaluated and repaired at aContinental Airlines hangar.[347][348]
On 19 December 2005,Air India flight 136, a Boeing 747-400M (registered as VT-AIM) flying from Los Angeles toDelhi viaFrankfurt, suffered a tire blowout after take-off.[349] The plane dumped fuel and returned to Los Angeles after conducting an emergency landing. There were no injuries among 267 passengers and crew, however a woman passenger was hospitalized after fainting on landing.[350]
On June 2, 2006, anAmerican Airlines Boeing 767 was about to complete a flight fromJohn F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City when the plane's pilots noted that the number 1 engine lagged the number 2 one by 2 percent. The plane landed safely and passengers disembarked, but when maintenance personnel retarded its throttle to idle, the number one engine, which had been put to maximum power, suffered an uncontained rupture of the high pressure turbine stage 1 disk, causing the engine to explode.[351] There were no injuries among the three people on board the aircraft at the time (all of them maintenance workers), but the airplane was written off.
On July 29, 2006, afterAmerica West Express Flight 6008, aCanadair Regional Jet operated byMesa Airlines fromPhoenix, Arizona, landed on runway 25L, controllers instructed the pilot to leave the runway on a taxiway known as "Mike" and stop short of runway 25R. Even though the pilot read back the instructions correctly, he accidentally taxied onto 25R and into the path of a departingSkyWest AirlinesEmbraer EMB-120 operatingUnited Express Flight 6037 toMonterey. They cleared each other by 50 feet (15 m) and nobody was hurt.[352]
On August 16, 2007, arunway incursion occurred betweenWestJet Flight 900 andNorthwest Airlines Flight 180 on runways 24R and 24L, respectively, with the aircraft coming within 37 feet (11 m) of each other. The planes were carrying a combined total of 296 people, none of whom were injured. The NTSB concluded that the incursion was the result of controller error.[353] In September 2007,FAA AdministratorMarion Blakey stressed the need for LAX to increase lateral separation between its pair of north runways in order to preserve the safety and efficiency of the airport.[354]
On October 13 and 14, 2013, two incidents ofdry ice bomb explosions occurred at the airport. The first dry ice bomb exploded at 7:00 p.m. in an employee restroom in Terminal 2, with no injuries. Terminal 2 was briefly shut down as a result. On the next day at 8:30 p.m., a dry ice bomb exploded on the ramp area near the Tom Bradley International Terminal, also without injuries. Two other plastic bottles containing dry ice were found at the scene during the second explosion. On October 15, a 28-year-old airport employee was arrested in connection with the explosions and was booked on charges of possession of an explosive or destructive device near an aircraft.[355][356][357] On October 18, a 41-year-old airport employee was arrested in connection with the second explosion, and was booked on suspicion of possessing a destructive device near an aircraft.[358] Authorities believe that the incidents were not linked to terrorism.[355] Both men subsequently pleaded no contest and were each sentenced to three years' probation. The airport workers had removed dry ice from a cargo hold into which a dog was to be loaded, because of fears that the dry ice could harm the animal.[359]
In the2013 Los Angeles International Airport shooting of November 1, 2013, at around 9:31 a.m. PDT, a lone gunman entered Terminal 3 and opened fire with asemi-automatic rifle, killing aTransportation Security Administration (TSA) officer and wounding three other people. The gunman was later apprehended and taken into custody. Until the situation was clarified and under control, a few terminals at the airport were evacuated, all inbound flights were diverted and all outbound flights were grounded until the airport began returning to normal operation at around 2:30 p.m.[360][361]
On August 28, 2016, there was a false report of shots fired throughout the airport, causing a temporary lock down and about 3 hours of flight delays.[362]
On May 20, 2017,Aeroméxico Flight 642, aBoeing 737-800, collided with a utility truck on a taxiway near Runway 25R, injuring 8 people, two of them seriously.[363]
On July 25, 2018, jetblast from a Dash 8 caused some dollies to crash into a United 737.[364]
On November 21, 2019,Philippine Airlines Flight 113, operated by aBoeing 777-300ER suffered an engine compressor stall shortly after take off from the airport's Runway 25R, forcing the flight to return. The flight made a successful emergency landing just 13 minutes after departure. There were 342 passengers and 18 crew on board the flight, with no injuries reported.[365]
On August 19, 2020,FedEx Express Flight 1026, aBoeing 767, made an emergency landing when its left main landing gear failed to extend. One of the pilots was injured while leaving the aircraft.[366]
On July 8, 2024, aBoeing 757-200 ofUnited Airlines, registration N14107, was in the initial climb out of runway 25R bound forDenver when one of the main wheels detached. The aircraft continued to Denver and landed safely with no casualties.[367]
On July 18, 2025, aBoeing 767-400ER under the registration: N836MH that was servingDelta Air Lines Flight 446, returned back to LAX after suffering an engine fire that caused the flight to be delayed 6 hours.[368][369]
The "Imperial Hill" area ofEl Segundo is a prime location foraircraft spotting, especially for takeoffs. Part of the Imperial Hill area has been set aside as a city park, Clutter's Park.
Another popular spotting location sits under the final approach for runways 24 L&R on a lawn next to theWestchesterIn-N-Out Burger on Sepulveda Boulevard. This is one of the few remaining locations in Southern California from which spotters may watch such a wide variety of low-flying commercial airliners from directly underneath a flight path.
Another aircraft spotting location is at a small park in the take-off pattern that normally goes out over the Pacific. The park is on the east side of the street Vista Del Mar, from which it takes its name, Vista Del Mar Park.
Numerous films and television shows have been set or filmed partially at LAX, at least partly due to the airport's proximity toHollywood studios and Los Angeles. Film shoots at the Los Angeles airports, including LAX, produced $590 million for the Los Angeles region from 2002 to 2005.[371]
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^"World Airline Directory".Flight International. March 30, 1985.83Archived April 10, 2010, at theWayback Machine". Retrieved on July 23, 2009. "7401 World Way West, Los Angeles International Airport, California 90009, United States"
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^Matthews, Birch, "Cobra!: Bell Aircraft Corporation 1934–1946", Schiffer Publishing Limited, Atglen, Pennsylvania, 1996, Library of Congress card number 95-72357,ISBN0-88740-911-3, pp.112–113.
^Swanborough, Gordon, and Bowers, Peter M., "United States Navy Aircraft since 1911", Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland, 1976, Library of Congress card number 90-60097,ISBN978-0-87021-792-0, pp.487.
^Waag, Robert, "NA 73 – The Forgotten Mustang",Airpower, Granada Hills, California, November 1971, Volume 1, Number 2, p. 9.
^Editors, "Mustang",Airpower, Granada Hills, California, July 1985, Volume 15, Number 4, p. 12.
^Mizrahi, Joseph V., "Airmail", Wings, Granada Hills, California, December 1985, Volume 15, Number 6, p. 5.
^U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (February 2, 2010)."U.S. v. Ressam"(PDF). Archived fromthe original(PDF) on October 4, 2012. RetrievedFebruary 27, 2010.
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