Cleveland Hopkins International Airport
IATA: CLE – ICAO: KCLE – FAA LID: CLE + CLE Location of the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport
Summary
Airport type		Public
Owner		City of Cleveland
Operator		City of Cleveland
Serves		Cleveland, Ohio
Location		Cleveland, Ohio
Hub for		Continental Airlines
Elevation AMSL		791 ft / 241 m
Coordinates		41°24′42″N 081°50′59″W / 41.41167°N 81.84972°W / 41.41167; -81.84972Coordinates: 41°24′42″N 081°50′59″W / 41.41167°N 81.84972°W / 41.41167; -81.84972
Website		www.clevelandairport.com
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
	ft	m
6L/24R	9,000	2,743	Concrete
6R/24L	9,955	3,034	Concrete
10/28	6,017	1,834	Asphalt/Concrete
Statistics (2009)
Aircraft operations			200,268
Total Passengers			9,715,604
Source: Federal Aviation Administration and CLE airport.

Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (IATA: CLE, ICAO: KCLE, FAA LID: CLE) is a public airport located nine miles (14 km) southwest of the central business district of Cleveland, a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The airport lies just within the city limits of Cleveland and is the largest airport in the state of Ohio.

The airport was founded in 1925, making it the first municipally owned airport in the United States. The airport has been the site of many other airport firsts: the first air traffic control tower, ground to air radio control and the first airfield lighting system, all in 1930, and the first U.S. airport to be directly connected to a local or regional rail transit system, in 1968. The airport was named after its founder, former city manager William R. Hopkins, on his 82nd birthday in 1951.

The airport handled 9,715,604 passengers in 2009, representing a 12.5% decrease compared to 2008. There were 200,268 operations (takeoffs and landings) in 2009. The airport handles more than 325 daily nonstop flights to over 85 destinations. It is the third largest hub for Continental Airlines and its regional carriers ExpressJet, Chautauqua, and CommutAir, which operates its largest hub from the airport. Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, along with Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport comprise the Cleveland Airport System operated by the city of Cleveland's Department of Port Control.

In 2006, Cleveland Hopkins International Airport unveiled a new marketing and branding campaign. The slogan, "CLE Going Places", is said to depict the airport's pursuit of improving passengers' experience as they upgrade the airport facility and negotiate additional air services. Improvements include upgrades to the restaurant and store concessions program, taxi service, on-site parking, customer service areas, and the attraction of additional flights to new destinations with the airport's new air service development program (begun in 2007).

Operational history

FAA Airport Diagram of CLE

North American international service

• Air Canada offers daily non-stop flights to Toronto via its regional affiliate, Air Canada Jazz. Air Canada is currently the only foreign-flag carrier to serve Cleveland on a regular basis.
• Continental offers service to Cancún and seasonal service to Québec City, which use the U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspection facility upon arrival. Continental also offers several daily flights to Toronto and Montréal, along with seasonal service to Nassau.
• USA3000 Airlines offers international service to Cancún and Punta Cana.
• In February 2006, Aeroméxico applied for and received approval to begin non-stop service to Mexico City, but the service never began and Aeroméxico did not seek renewal of the route authority. Aeromexico operated charter flights to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico during the 2007–2008 winter season.

Intercontinental service

An outside view of the terminal

• Continental Airlines began offering seasonal nonstop flights from Hopkins to London Gatwick Airport in 1999. For the 2009 seasonal London service, Continental switched to Heathrow Airport instead of Gatwick because of the airline's entrance to Heathrow as part of the EU–U.S. Open Skies Agreement. However, this service was cancelled when Continental announced that the global recession had hurt demand for the flight, leaving Cleveland without any nonstop service to Europe.

• Continental has begun to market flights from Cleveland to Shanghai via Newark. Service between Cleveland and Newark will be aboard a Boeing 737 aircraft, and service between Newark and Shanghai will be aboard a Boeing 777 aircraft. Passengers flying from Shanghai to Cleveland will complete U.S. Customs and Border Protection processing in Newark.

• Continental launched a new route between Cleveland and Paris, France on May 22, 2008, but then announced elimination of the service in December 2008.

• From 1988 to 1992, JAT Yugoslav Airlines operated once-weekly service to Belgrade, the largest city in what was then the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Upon the break-up of Yugoslavia and UN sanctions that followed, JAT service was suspended, leaving Cleveland without transatlantic, non-stop flights for nearly eight years until Continental Airlines began flights to London in 1999.

Facilities and concourses

Satellite view of the airport

Cleveland Hopkins International Airport covers an area of 1,900 acres (769 ha) which contains three runways:

• Runway 6R/24L: 9,955 x 150 ft. (3,034 x 46 m), concrete
• Runway 6L/24R: 9,000 x 150 ft. (2,743 x 46 m), concrete
• Runway 10/28: 6,017 x 150 ft. (1,834 x 46 m), asphalt and concrete

The older parallel runway, formerly designated Runway 6C/24C, is 7,096 x 150 ft. (2163 x 46 m). Its ends are prominently marked with lighted "X" signs to prevent its inadvertent use, as it has now been decommissioned as an active runway.

For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2007, the airport had 244,717 aircraft operations, an average of 670 per day: 65% air taxi, 29% scheduled commercial, 5% general aviation and <1% military. There are 44 aircraft based at this airport: 21 jet, 10 single engine, 7 multi-engine and 6 military aircraft.

Since 2008, BAA Cleveland has developed and managed retail and dining locations at the airport. A redevelopment project will add 76,000 square feet (7,100 m) of new locations.

An American Eagle counter at gate A3 in concourse A

Hopkins airport is known for its fanciful giant "paper" airplane sculptures located in the underground walkway between Concourses C and D.

Cleveland Airport consists of one passenger terminal which is divided into four concourses:

• Concourse A (gates A1-A12, A14), originally known as "North Concourse", was the first of the airport's original two concourses and was built in 1962.
• Concourse B (gates B1-B11) was the first extension pier to the airport and was built in 1966.
• Concourse C (gates C1–C12, C14, and C16–C29) houses all mainline Continental Airlines services, except for international arrivals which are handled in Concourse A instead. The concourse (being the third-oldest one) was originally known as "South Concourse" when it opened in 1968. Until 1985, it was one of the main hub operations for United Airlines. United slowly cut flights from Hopkins as it built a new hub at Washington Dulles International Airport. By 1987, United had closed its hub at Hopkins and moved its operations to the B Concourse. Continental Airlines quickly established a hub in Cleveland to fill the void left by United. However, with the pending merger of Continental and United, as well as Continental joining the Star Alliance, United as well as Air Canada Jazz have since relocated their Cleveland operations to Concourse C.
• Concourse D (gates D2–D12, D14, D17, D21, D25, and D28) is a newly erected separate terminal that is connected to the main terminal by an underground walkway. It handles exclusively regional aircraft.

Airlines and destinations

Comair and Atlantic Southeast Airlines Canadair Regional Jets on Delta Air Lines's ramp.

Ground transportation

Public transit

Airport welcome sign.

Hopkins International Airport is connected to the Cleveland Rapid Transit system. Passengers can board Red Line trains at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (RTA Rapid Transit station) airport terminal. During late night/early morning hours, service is provided by the # 75 bus from Hopkins to Downtown Cleveland.

Rental cars

In 1998, Hopkins moved rental car operations off the airport grounds to a new consolidated rental car center. The facility has drawn mixed reviews from travelers because of its distance from the airport, inconsistent bus service, and fees and taxes that are very high relative to those of other airports; the charges cover costs of not only operating the center but also supporting other local projects, such as the Cleveland Browns stadium.

Incidents and accidents

• In 1971 Jane Fonda was arrested by police at the airport for being belligerent and obstructing public safety because she refused to go through security screening. After an increase in aviation related skyjackings, the FAA had in 1969 ordered all airports to use metal detectors.

• On January 4, 1985 Pan Am flight 558, a Boeing 727, was scheduled to fly from Cleveland to New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport. While still on the ground at Cleveland, the aircraft was hijacked and the hijacker demanded to be taken to South America. The plane was stormed by Cleveland police and the hijacker arrested. The duration of the hijacking was less than one day.

• On January 6, 2003, a Continental Express Embraer ERJ-145LR overran the runway upon landing from Bradley International Airport in Hartford, CT. After touchdown, the flight crew was unable to stop the airplane on the runway. The airplane continued beyond the departure end, on extended runway centerline, and struck the ILS runway 6 localizer antenna. It came to rest with the nose about 600 feet (180 m) beyond the end of the runway. The nose landing gear had collapsed rearward and deformed the forward pressure bulkhead.

• On April 27, 2006 police officers confronted a man at the United Airlines ticket counter. The man fired a handgun, critically wounding a patrolman, but another officer shot and killed the attacker.

• On February 18, 2007, at 3:14pm, a Shuttle America Embraer 170 operating as Delta Connection flight 6448 from Atlanta skidded off snow-covered runway 28 and crashed through a fence. None of the 70 passengers and four crew on board were injured.

• On January 10, 2010, the airport lost power for more than seven hours after a transformer exploded at about 6:50am. All power inside the terminals was lost and air traffic was halted; however the control tower, runways, and taxiways remained lit, powered by backup generators. About 800 people were affected by the loss of power, and most flights didn't resume until 3:00pm. According to a spokesperson, the transformer exploded due to a buildup of road salt, causing corrosion.

Relationship with Continental Airlines

Continental Airlines, the largest tenant at Cleveland Hopkins, handles roughly 60% of all passenger traffic through the airport. Continental and Hopkins have both made substantial investments in support of Continental's presence at the airport, but Cleveland clearly remains the airline's third-tier hub behind George Bush Intercontinental Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport. This was reinforced in March 2009 when Continental CEO Larry Kellner omitted Cleveland but referenced Newark and Houston when commenting on the airline's strengths: "We are strong in the Atlantic, we are strong in Latin America, we are strong in New York, we're strong in Houston." Unlike Continental's other hubs, its Cleveland operation has only a handful of flights to any international destinations, has not been able to sustain year-round service from the airport to Europe or other trans-oceanic destinations, handles an overwhelming majority (83% as of June 2009) of its traffic via Continental Express regional aircraft rather than mainline jets (e.g., in Continental's case, its Boeing jets), and does not use any twin-aisle, wide-body aircraft (e.g., in the case of Continental, its Boeing 767 or Boeing 777 planes). Further, Continental has reduced the size of its board of directors by halving the number of representatives from the Cleveland area, local passenger traffic volume has received scrutiny, and the airline has closed its four off-airport ticket offices in the Greater Cleveland area while maintaining offices near its Houston and Newark hubs.

In 2003, Continental CEO Gordon Bethune publicly scolded the Cleveland business community and encouraged business flyers to support Hopkins rather than to take cheaper fights from neighboring Akron-Canton Airport, which advertises itself as the "preferred alternative" to Hopkins, and which is undertaking an ambitious expansion in response to substantial increases in enplanements while Hopkins boardings have remained nearly flat or declined.

On September 14, 2007, Continental announced a "major expansion" at Hopkins that would have increased the hub's capacity by some 40% over a two-year period. The expansion would have entailed some 20 new destinations served primarily on regional aircraft, followed later by a dozen new destinations served on mainline aircraft. This expansion was supposed to have created 700 jobs, and the state of Ohio offered a $16 million incentive package to help make the expansion happen. However, when record-high fuel prices forced Continental to cut capacity in the summer of 2008, the airline reduced its workforce, eliminated service between Cleveland and 24 cities (including 12 cities that were part of Phase I of its hub expansion program), and reduced the frequency of its flights to a number of others; the service cuts in Cleveland were deeper as a percentage of overall flight volume than concurrent cuts at Continental's Houston and Newark hubs. In March 2009, Continental indicated that it would continue to make capacity cuts in response to reduced demand for seats.

It remains to be seen how Continental's October 2009 departure from the SkyTeam alliance, its subsequent entry into the Star Alliance, its enhanced code-sharing and cooperative agreement with United Airlines, Lufthansa, and Air Canada, and its pending merger with United Airlines might affect the airline's present Cleveland operations; Continental's previous merger talks with Star Alliance founding partner United were viewed in some circles as a serious threat to Continental's future at Hopkins, and the planned merger with United prompted Cleveland area politicians to propose hearings to investigate the potential impact of the 2010 Continental-United merger on the community. One possible outcome is that a post-merger United would reduce or eliminate direct service from Cleveland to a number of cities and instead route passengers through United's hubs in Chicago and Washington. The international component for which antitrust immunity has been granted – "Atlantic Plus-Plus" – may also substantially affect Continental's international flights from Cleveland. On March 11, 2009, Continental's chief operating officer Jeff Smisek stated, "Our prior relationship [SkyTeam alliance membership] was a bit of a forced marriage. This (the United/Lufthansa partnership) is one where we are actually in love." On July 10, 2009, the US Department of Transportation approved Continental's membership in Star Alliance and most aspects of the code-share agreement it had requested with United and other Star Alliance members.

These and other factors, such as the cost of operations at Hopkins, have led to speculation and news reports that the airport's hub status might be diminished or lost altogether, as has been the case with each of the metropolitan airports closest to Cleveland: the former US Airways hub at Pittsburgh International Airport, the former America West Airlines hub at Port Columbus International Airport, and the Delta Air Lines hub at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, which has seen a substantial reduction in flight volume and has as a result shut down an entire terminal. If Continental de-hubbed in Cleveland, it would not be the airline's first experience radically scaling back in a hub city – Continental abandoned its hub in Denver when Denver International Airport was built. It would also not be the first time that Hopkins lost an airline hub – United maintained a substantial hub in Cleveland before relocating it to Washington Dulles International Airport in the late 1980s. In an article about the Continental-United merger, the Wall Street Journal reported on May 3, 2010, that "One city that could feel the pinch from the latest consolidation is Cleveland, a small Continental hub. Analysts say that a combined United-Continental could shift more connecting traffic to Chicago, United's largest hub. Delta has continued to scale back flights at its small Cincinnati hub since it acquired Northwest, which had hubs in nearby Memphis and Detroit." .

(Click on the photo to enlarge)

(Click on the photo to enlarge)

Location & QuickFacts

Owner & Manager

Airport Operations and Facilities

Airport Communications

Airport Services

Runway Information

Runway 06L/24R

Runway 06R/24L

Runway 06X

Runway 10/28

Runway 24X

Radio Navigation Aids

Remarks

• DEER & BIRDS INCLUDING WATERFOWL ON & INVOF ARPT.
• NASA GLENN RESEARCH CENTER; NASA RAMP PPR CALL 216-433-2020; 0800-1730 MON-FRI. CONTACT NASA OPNS ON FREQ 122.925 WITHIN 50 NM.
• TWY 'L2' CLSD BTN RY 06R/24L & TWY 'L'. AREA MKD WITH CONES & REFLECTORS.
• ADCUS AVBL MON-FRI 0700-2100; SAT/SUN 0900-1700; ALL REQUEST FOR SVC MUST BE MADE WITH THE U.S. CUSTOMS SVC OFFICE LCTD AT GATE A-14 CALL (216) 267-3600 DURING LISTED HOURS.
• CLOSE PROXIMITY OF RYS 06R/24L, USE EXTREME CAUTION TO INSURE HOLDING AT THE PROPER HOLDING POSITION WHEN INSTRUCTED TO HOLD BTN THESE RYS.
• PAD 2 RESTRICTED TO GROUP II AIRCRAFT, LESS THAN 79 FT WINGSPAN.
• ALL APCHS ARE OVR NOISE SENSITIVE AREAS. ARPT LATE NGT NOISE ABATEMENT PROCEDURES ARE IN EFFECT 2300-0600. ADDITIONAL NOISE ABATEMENT PROCEDURES ARE IN EFFECT CALL AMGR NORMAL BUSINESS HRS AT 216-265-6090.
• THE FOLLOWING TWYS ARE CLSD ANNUALLY FR 15 OCT THRU 15 APR TO SUPPORT DEICING OPNS AT CLE: TWY M; TWY M1 BTN TWY L & TWY J1; TWY M2 BTN TWY L & TWY J1; TWY J2 BTN TWY A & TWY K.
• CLOSELY ALIGNED RY PAVEMENT GEOMETRY WHEN TAXIING TO RY 24L; AND/OR RY 28. ELEVATED & IN-PAVEMENT GUARD LGTS INSTALLED ON RY 28 AT RY 24L HOLDLINE.

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General Info
Country	United States
State	OHIO
FAA ID	CLE
Latitude	41-24-42.083N
Longitude	081-50-59.259W
Elevation	791 feet
Near City	CLEVELAND

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