Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owner/Operator | CVG Airport Authority (formerlyKenton County Airport Board) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Serves | Cincinnati metropolitan area | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | 2939 Terminal Drive Boone County,Kentucky, U.S. (Hebron postal address) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | January 10, 1947; 79 years ago (1947-01-10)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Hub for | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating base for | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 896 ft / 273 m | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 39°02′56″N084°40′04″W / 39.04889°N 84.66778°W /39.04889; -84.66778 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Maps | |||||||||||||||||||||||
 FAA airport diagram | |||||||||||||||||||||||
 Interactive map of Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2025) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Source: CVG Airport[2][3] | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (IATA:CVG,ICAO:KCVG,FAALID:CVG) is a publicinternational airport located inBoone County, Kentucky, United States, near the community ofHebron. It is the primary commercial airport forCincinnati, Ohio and thetri-state area. The airport's code, CVG, is derived from the nearest city at the time of the airport's opening,Covington, Kentucky. The airport covers an area of 7,000 acres (10.9 sq mi; 28.3 km2).[4][5] It is included in theFederal Aviation Administration (FAA)National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2023–2027, in which it iscategorized as a medium-hub primary commercial service facility.[6]
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport offersnonstop passenger service to over 50 destinations inNorth America andEurope,[7] handling numerous domestic and international cargo flights every day.[8] The airport is a cargo global hub forAmazon Air,Atlas Air,ABX Air,Kalitta Air, andDHL Aviation. The airport is currently the5th busiest airport in the United States by cargo traffic and 12th largest in the world. CVG is the fastest-growing cargo airport in North America.[9][10][11]
PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt's administration approved preliminary funds for site development of the Greater Cincinnati Airport on February 11, 1942. This was part of theUnited States Army Air Corps program to establish training facilities duringWorld War II. At the time, air traffic in the area centered onLunken Airport just southeast of central Cincinnati.[12] Lunken opened in 1926 in the Ohio River Valley; it frequently experienced fog, and the1937 flood submerged its runways and two-story terminal building.[13] Federal officials wanted an airfield site that would not be prone to flooding, but Cincinnati officials hoped to build Lunken into the region's main airport.[14]
Officials fromBoone,Kenton, andCampbell counties in Kentucky took advantage of Cincinnati's short-sightedness and lobbied Congress to build an airfield there.[15] Boone County officials offered a suitable site on the provision that Kenton County paid the acquisition cost. In October 1942, Congress provided $2 million to build four runways.[12]
The field opened August 12, 1944, with the firstB-17 bombers beginning practice runs on August 15. As the tide of the war had already turned, the Air Corps only used the field until it was declared surplus in 1945.[12] However, this was not before the first regularly scheduled air freight shipment in the United States arrived in mid-September, signalling the future importance of the airport.[16]
On October 27, 1946, a small wooden terminal building opened and the airport prepared for commercial service under the nameGreater Cincinnati Airport.Boone County Airlines was the first airline to provide scheduled service from the airport and had its headquarters at the airport.[12][a]
The first commercial flight, anAmerican AirlinesDC-3 from Cleveland, landed on January 10, 1947, at 9:53 am. A Delta Air Lines flight followed moments later.[18] The April 1957 Official Airline Guide shows 97 weekday departures: 37 American, 26 Delta, 24 TWA, 8 Piedmont, and 2 Lake Central. As late as November 1959 the airport had four 5,500 ft (1,700 m) runways at 45-degree angles, the north–south runway eventually being extended into today's runway 18C/36C.
In the 1950s Cincinnati city leaders began pushing for expansion of a site inBlue Ash to both compete with the Greater Cincinnati Airport and replace Lunken as the city's primary airport.[19] The city purchased Hugh Watson Field in 1955, turning it intoBlue Ash Airport.[20] The city's Blue Ash plans were hampered by community opposition, three failedHamilton County bond measures,[21] political infighting,[22] and Cincinnati's decision not to participate in the federal airfield program.[23]
On December 16, 1960, the jet age arrived in Cincinnati when a Delta Air LinesConvair 880 from Miami completed the first scheduled jet flight. The airport needed to expand and build more modern terminals and other facilities; the original Terminal A was expanded and renovated. The north–south runway was extended from 3,100 to 8,600 ft (940 to 2,620 m). In 1964, the board approved a $12 million bond to expand the south concourse of Terminal A by 32,000 sq ft (3,000 m2) and provide nine gates forTWA, American, and Delta.[12] A new east–west runway crossing the longer north–south runway was constructed in 1971 south of the older east–west runway.
In 1977, before theAirline Deregulation Act was passed, CVG, like many small airports, anticipated the loss of numerous flights; creating the opportunity for Patrick Sowers, Robert Tranter, and David and Raymound Mueller to establishComair to fill the void. The airline began service to Akron/Canton, Cleveland, and Evansville. In 1981, Comair became a public company, added 30-seat turboprops to its fleet, and began to rapidly expand its destinations. In 1984, Comair became aDelta Connection carrier withDelta's establishment of a hub at CVG. That same year, Comair introduced its first international flights from Cincinnati to Toronto. In 1992, Comair moved into Concourse C, as Delta Air Lines gradually continued to acquire more of the airline's stock. In 1993, Comair was the launch customer for theCanadair Regional Jet, of which it would later operate the largest fleet in the world. By 1999, Comair was the largest regional airline in the country worth over $2 billion, transporting 6 million passengers yearly to 83 destinations on 101 aircraft. Later that year, Delta Air Lines acquired the remaining portion of Comair's stock, causing Comair to solely operate Delta Connection flights.[24]
In 1988, two founders of Comair, Patrick Sowers and Robert Tranter launched a new scheduled airline from CVG namedEnterprise Airlines, which served 16 cities at its peak. The airline spearheaded the regional jet revolution in a unique manner by operating 10-seatCessna Citation business jets in scheduled services. The flights became popular with Cincinnati companies. The airline served destinations including Baltimore, Boston, Cedar Rapids, Columbus (OH), Green Bay, Greensboro, Greenville, Hartford, Memphis, Milwaukee, New York–JFK, and Wilmington (NC).[25] The airline also became the first international feed carrier by feeding theBritish AirwaysConcorde at JFK. In 1991, the airline ceased operations because of high fuel prices and the suspension of the British Airways contract after the first Gulf War.[citation needed]
In the mid-1980s, Delta opened a hub in Cincinnati and constructed Terminals C and D with 22 gates. During the decade, Delta ramped up both mainline and Comair operations and establishedDelta Connection. Delta's continued growth at CVG then prompted them to spend $550 million to build their own terminal facility in the 1990s.[26] The new terminal, known then as Terminal 3, opened in 1994 and would largely replace Terminal D. Terminal 3 consisted of three airside concourses, with most of Terminal D's gate space being repurposed into Terminal 3's Concourse A while Concourses B and C were new construction. Concourses A and B were parallel concourses connected to Terminal 3's main building by an underground walkway which also includeda people mover (a similar layout to Delta's main hub atHartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport). Concourse C was only accessible by shuttle buses and was a ground-level facility for regional aircraft used byDelta Connection (operated byComair). After the opening of Terminal 3, the former Terminals B and C were renamed Terminals 1 and 2 respectively, which continued to house non-Delta airlines.[27]
Aircraft operations dramatically increased from around 300,000 to 500,000 yearly aircraft movements. In turn, passenger volumes doubled within a decade from 10 million to over 20 million. This expansion prompted the building of runway 18L/36R and the airport began making preparations to construct Concourse D while adding an expansion to Concourse A and B.[28]
At its peak, CVG became Delta's second largest hub, handling over 600 flights daily in 2005.[29] It was the fourth largest hub in the world for a single airline, based on departures, ranking only behind Atlanta, Chicago–O'Hare, and Dallas/Fort Worth.[30] The hub served everything from a 64-mile flight to Dayton, to a daily nonstop to Honolulu and Anchorage, to transatlantic destinations including Amsterdam, Brussels, Frankfurt, London, Manchester, Munich, Paris, Rome, and Zürich.[31] Additionally,Air France operated flights into CVG for several periods for over a decade before finally terminating the service in 2007.[32][33]
When Delta went into bankruptcy in September 2005, a large reduction at CVG eliminated most early-morning and night flights.[31] These initial cuts caused additional routes to become unprofitable, causing the frequency of low-volume routes to be further cut from 2006 to 2007. Planning for the new east–west runway stopped, along with all expansions to current terminals; Terminal 1 was closed due to lack of service.[29]
In 2008, Delta merged withNorthwest Airlines and cut flight capacity from the Cincinnati hub by 22 percent with an additional 17 percent reduction in 2009.[29] Concourse C, which had opened in 1994 at a cost of $50 million, was permanently closed in 2008 and demolished in 2016, since it was built for smaller regional jets which were going out of fashion, and it was not connected to the people mover system.[34] Further reductions in early 2010 caused Delta to close Concourse A in Terminal 3 on May 1, consolidating all operations into Concourse B. This resulted in the layoff of more than 800 employees.[35]
By 2011, Delta was down to roughly 130 flights per day at CVG.[36] After several years of cuts to its older fleet, which were cited as being cut due to high costs associated with rising oil prices, Delta's wholly owned and CVG-based subsidiary,Comair, ceased all operations in September 2012, ending over three decades of operations.[37] In 2017, the hub was downgraded to a focus city, which was eliminated in 2021.[38]
Until 2015, CVG consistently ranked among the most expensive major airports in the United States.[39] Delta operated over 75% of flights at CVG, a fact often cited as a reason for relatively high domestic ticket prices.[40] Airline officials suggested that Delta was practicingpredatory pricing to drive away discount airlines.[39][41] From 1990 to 2003, ten discount airlines began service at CVG, but later pulled out,[42] includingVanguard Airlines, which pulled out of CVG twice.[43] AfterDelta downsized its hub operations, low cost carriers began operations and have been sustained at the airport ever since.[44][45]
Terminal 2 was closed in May 2012, and CVG re-opened and consolidated all non-Delta airlines to Concourse A in Terminal 3 at that time, which became the sole terminal.[46] Renovation and expansion of the ticketing/check-in area and Concourse A took place that year to accommodate the move.[47][48] Terminals 1 and 2 were torn down in early 2017 to construct an overnight parking and deicing area.[49] Both concourses, the customs facility, baggage claim, and ticketing areas were renovated in late 2017 to mid 2018 under a $4.5 million plan.[50][51] In 2021, the airport opened a new rental car and ground transportation center adjacent to the main terminal.[52]
The airport has one terminal and two concourses with a total of 51 gates.[53] Both concourses are islands and are only accessible by an underground moving walkway andpeople mover.[54] All international arrivals without pre-clearance are handled in Concourse B.[54]
The current airport is home to 5 of 16 largeArt Deco murals created for the train concourse building atCincinnati Union Terminal during the station's construction in 1932. Mosaic murals depicting people at work in local Cincinnati workplaces were incorporated into the interior design of the railroad station byWinold Reiss, a German-born artist with a reputation in interior design. When the train concourse building was designated for demolition in 1972, a "Save the Terminal Committee" raised funds to remove and transport 14 of the murals in the concourse to new locations in the Airport. They were placed in Terminal 1, as well as Terminals 2 and 3, which were then being constructed as part of major airport expansion and renovation. When Terminals 1 and 2 were demolished, the murals in those areas were stored and the new Security Screening building was designed to accommodate the heavy weight of the murals with the eastern "store front" windows designed to be removable to permit the future installation of the murals. The murals were also featured in a scene in the filmRain Man starringDustin Hoffman andTom Cruise. In addition, a walkway to one of the terminals at CVG was featured in the scene in the film when Hoffman's character, Raymond,refused to fly on a plane. The nine murals located in the former Terminals 1 & 2 were relocated to theFirst Financial Center in downtown Cincinnati, while five murals remain in Terminal 3 to this day.[55]
Additionally, there are several pieces ofCharley Harper artwork in the Concourse B food court.[56]
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In 1984, DHL opened its CVG hub and began operations throughout the world. For a five-year period beginning in 2004, DHL moved its hub toWilmington Air Park in Wilmington, Ohio. In 2009, DHL reversed course and moved back to CVG to resume its original operations. CVG now serves as the largest of DHL's three global hubs (the other two beingLeipzig/Halle andHong Kong) with numerous flights each day to destinations across North America, Europe, Middle East, Asia, and the Pacific.[citation needed] DHL has completed a $105 million expansion and employs approximately 2,500 at CVG. Because of this growth, CVG stood as the 4th busiest airport in North America based on cargo tonnage and 34th in the world at the time.[57]
On May 28, 2015, DHL announced a $108M expansion to its current facility, which doubled the current cargo operations. The money was used to double the gate capacity for transferring cargo, an expansion to the sorting facility, and various technical improvements, which was completed in Autumn 2016. In addition, this has provided many more jobs for the Cincinnati area, and will dramatically increase the airport's operations.[58][59]
On January 31, 2017,Amazon announced that its new cargo airline,Amazon Air would pick CVG as its main worldwide shipping hub, following an investment of $1.49B in the construction and expansion of a cargo facility on the airport grounds.[60] The company usedDHL's facilities prior to the construction of its new facility. The hub is Amazon's principal shipping hub and was constructed on 1,129 acres (457 ha) of land at the airport with a 3,000,000 ft2 (280,000 m2) sorting facility and parking positions for over 100 aircraft. On April 30, 2017, Amazon began operations at CVG with 75 Boeing 767-200ER/300ER aircraft based at the airport and planned to have 200 daily takeoffs and landings from its CVG hub to destinations across the U.S. and internationally.[61] The hub could create up to 15,000 jobs in the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky region.[62] On August 11, 2021, Amazon debuted its new cargo hub at CVG. On May 28, 2024, Atlas announced that "Atlas Air has successfully reached an agreement to fully exit their Amazon CMI operations, which no longer aligned with our company plans. Separately, through Titan, we are pleased to extend the dry leasing portion of our relationship with Amazon."[citation needed]
TheTANK 2X bus provides direct service to Florence and downtown Cincinnati.[63]
CVG is served byInterstate 275 via exit 4.
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| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Atlanta, Georgia | 421,520 | Delta, Frontier |
| 2 |  Chicago–O'Hare, Illinois | 272,710 | American, United |
| 3 |  Orlando, Florida | 271,980 | Delta, Frontier, Southwest |
| 4 |  Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas | 235,290 | American, Frontier |
| 5 |  Denver, Colorado | 212,460 | Allegiant, Delta, Frontier, Southwest, United |
| 6 |  Charlotte, North Carolina | 173,750 | American, Frontier |
| 7 |  New York–LaGuardia, New York | 148,750 | Delta, Frontier |
| 8 | Fort Lauderdale, Florida | 147,520 | Allegiant, Delta, Frontier |
| 9 |  Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota | 138,180 | Delta, Sun Country |
| 10 | Tampa, Florida | 117,330 | Delta, Frontier |
| Rank | City | Cargo (pounds) | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Anchorage, Alaska | 38,686,878 | AirBridgeCargo, DHL |
| 2 |  Leipzig/Halle, Germany | 14,447,211 | AirBridgeCargo, DHL |
| 3 | Miami, Florida | 14,427,248 | Amazon, American, DHL |
| 4 | Chicago–O'Hare, Illinois | 10,341,326 | Amazon, American, Delta, DHL, United |
| 5 | Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas | 8,819,609 | Amazon, American, Delta, DHL |
| 6 |  Phoenix–Sky Harbor, Arizona | 8,431,588 | Amazon, Delta, DHL |
| 7 |  Brussels, Belgium | 8,223,096 | AirBridgeCargo, DHL |
| 8 |  Guadalajara, Mexico | 7,990,928 | AeroUnion, Cargojet, DHL |
| 9 | Houston, Texas | 7,066,885 | Amazon, Delta, DHL, United |
| Rank | Airline | Passengers | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Delta Air Lines | 2,039,000 | 24.04% |
| 2 | Frontier Airlines | 1,134,000 | 13.36% |
| 3 | Allegiant Air | 997,000 | 11.75% |
| 4 | Endeavor Air | 794,000 | 9.35% |
| 5 | American Airlines | 740,000 | 8.73% |
| – | Other | 2,780,000 | 32.77% |
| Year | Passengers | Year | Passengers | Year | Passengers | Year | Passengers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 11,545,682 | 2002 | 20,812,642 | 2012 | 6,038,817 | 2022 | 7,573,416 |
| 1993 | 12,213,874 | 2003 | 21,197,447 | 2013 | 5,718,255 | 2023 | 8,718,443 |
| 1994 | 13,593,522 | 2004 | 22,062,557 | 2014 | 5,908,711 | 2024 | 9,212,348 |
| 1995 | 15,181,728 | 2005 | 22,778,785 | 2015 | 6,316,332 | 2025 | 8,971,128 |
| 1996 | 18,795,766 | 2006 | 16,244,962 | 2016 | 6,773,905 | 2026 | |
| 1997 | 19,866,308 | 2007 | 15,736,220 | 2017 | 7,842,149 | 2027 | |
| 1998 | 21,124,216 | 2008 | 13,630,443 | 2018 | 8,865,568 | 2028 | |
| 1999 | 21,753,512 | 2009 | 10,621,655 | 2019 | 9,103,554 | 2029 | |
| 2000 | 22,406,384 | 2010 | 7,977,588 | 2020 | 3,615,139 | 2030 | |
| 2001 | 17,270,475 | 2011 | 7,034,263 | 2021 | 6,282,253 | 2031 |
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)Cincinnati City Council voted 8-1 Wednesday for an agreement to sell 128 acres of the approximately 230-acre airport to the city of Blue Ash.... The city of Cincinnati purchased the airport, located six air miles northeast of Cincinnati, in 1946 from a private company that had been using it as an airfield since 1921. Cincinnati officials intended to use the land to build a new commercial airport after 1937 Flood completely submerged Lunken Field in the East End, then the only airport with commercial flights in the area. A series of failed bond issues and political infighting – and Northern Kentucky politicians' successes at securing federal funding – wound up with the region's major airport being developed in Boone County.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link){{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link){{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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