..

^^Just in time for the new global terminal to be completed :D
(I'm kidding...?)

Yes, still have a long way to go. You have wait for a while.

The new int’l T2 is supposed to house United and American int’l flights along with their alliance partners. How American is going at ORD, they might not have any long-haul int’l out of ORD by the time it is completed.

Hi all,

FAA has a great video on the opening of the new RWY 9/27C in November and planned revised airfield configuration in the east and west flows after it opens:

https://www.faa.gov/airports/airport_development/omp/

I don't understand the rationale behind this, but maybe someone more familiar with the airline industry can comment. . .

https://www.chicagotribune.com/busin...pti-story.html

. . .

I'm guessing it's a combination of Southwest feeling maxed out at Midway but even more likely that they feel they are losing precious market share to ORD airlines by some people from the North/NW burbs who automatically avoid Midway due to distance.

Yeah this was kind of expected eventually since their ops are (were) pretty tapped out at MDW during peak hours.

I realize that. MDW is too extremely overcrowded. Soon new TSA checkpoints expansion will opened soon. They don't have worry about it anymore.

Hi all,

New ORD runway 9C/27C set to open on Thursday November 5, 2020.


https://www.chicagotribune.com/subur...oci-story.html

I've always thought that Midway lost out when they cancelled the Crosstown Expressway, the only good direction to approach Midway is from downtown or directly southwest. Even people to the south face a long, slow slog through Oak Lawn (from the Tri-State) or Englewood (from the Dan Ryan)

Still, Midway is arguably better sited for the North Lakefront than O'Hare, certainly if you don't drive a car. You can get to Midway with only two rail rides, or a speedy Uber trip on LSD->Stevenson.

I've actually taken advantage of the unusual "brownge" line routing to get a 1-seat el ride from Lincoln Square all the way down to MDW.

but it's a pretty long ride. I think ORD is still quicker for me on transit, even with the montrose bus to blue line transfer. That said, we're out by western, so not really "north lakefront". The montrose blue line stop is only 2.5 miles west of me, and then it's only 5 stops on the blue line into ORD.

more details emerge about Southwest's new ops at ORD:

source: https://thepointsguy.com/news/southw...prings-routes/



i wonder if these new flights to these 5 cities from ORD is an add, or if flights to them from MDW will be reduced?

^ I hope not! I have used several of those connections from MDW for business travel in the last year. As a South Sider I love the convenience of Midway (usually drive or Uber but occasionally I do CTA).

That is correct. WN will be at T5 and gate number is M1, M2 and M3 (RON).

Yes, they have 20 flights out of ORD. Only 5 routes from ORD to 6x DEN, 2x PHX, 4x BWI, 4x DAL and 4x BNA, as well. Still no LAS or Florida flights. Still not yet.

No, they won't be reduced MDW flights. Because they are running out of gates.

https://www.finanzen.ch/nachrichten/...ive-1029783673

Chicago (City of) IL O'Hare Airport Ent. -- Moody's revises outlook for Chicago IL O'Hare Airport Enterprise revenue and PFC-backed bonds to negative

Hi all,

She back on the news again. She went to the court by last month, but Marilyn Hartman's court hearing was delayed after judge who had a tests positive COVID19. A new court date is on December 4, 2020.

https://chicago.cbslocal.com/2020/10...hartman-court/

As long if she behave well. She must listen to the judge or me.

AIR INDIA PLANNING NEW ORD ROUTE TO HYDERABAD

"From Jan. 9, the carrier will start direct flights between Hyderabad (HYD) and Chicago O’Hare (ORD), marking the first nonstop service to the US from the city in southern India. The route will operate 2X-weekly.

Chicago has the second-highest population of Indian-Americans in the US, so Air India’s new route will likely target VFR traffic, taking advantage of the current demand that exists to see friends and family."

https://www.routesonline.com/news/29...sco-additions/

Lots of people from that part of India live in the Chicago area

I realize that. I knows a lots of Indian population who live in the Chicago area. They wants fly to India to see the families & friends and business traveler, as well.

Got to make it easier to farm out our tech jobs.....it is what it is.

The American tech industry it what it is because of visas and immigration, don’t be an ass. If anything we are stealing THEIR highly educated workers.

Just calling what i see. I used to manage 9 people here....now i manage 11 from india. Our top devs are all here on work visas while we let go of others. Some are more talented i grant that, but plenty are not. But they sure are cheaper either way.

that's your beloved American capitalism at work, baby

apparently some guy was living at O'Hare for three months. pretty amazing...

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/...5~5~5~art%20no

I saw that. No need to posts here. Go on FlyerTalk or Airliners.Net.

Brand new 11,245' runway 9C/27C is now apparently open and in use for aircraft operations, per airliners.net forum.

Here's the new FAA diagram.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...iagram.svg.png


Once the work to extend 9R/27L from its current 8,000' to 11,500' is done, then ORD's runway work will finally be 100% complete, making the airport the first one in the world with 6 parallel runways, with 4 of those being very long, ranging between 10,800' - 13,000'.

I noticed a blurb that Aeroterm and the city have green lit Phase III of their cargo project due to high demand. Supposed to start construction next month.



https://i.imgur.com/bVnMPo6.jpg

Terminal 5 Expansion - Progress?
 

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/xF45...rminal_5.0.jpg

Does anybody know how much progress had been made on the Terminal 5 Expansion? I herd this broke ground in 2019 and was planned to be finished sometime this year in 2021, but I haven't herd/seen anything on the progress.

T5 expansion is progressing even though there are basically no pics of it from the construction side of things. If more people were flying we'd have more updates. I think interior build out permits were issued a few weeks ago.

That is good progress then. I'm pretty sure there is long-range plans to include a roadside pickup/drop ramp and curb along with the new expansion but I wonder just what the timeline on that is. That is a long walk from the main entrance at T5 all the way east to the new extension.


....Also first time I've given a really good look at that render but it looks like they plan to use all glass jetways and even all glass line-up areas for the jumbos in the new extension. That should make a nice first impression for those arriving from overseas to Chicago for the first time. A little thing to make a first good impression if they follow the render.

Not sure about that. All I'm aware of is that existing slate of improvements. Adding a new landslide facility to hook into this would be pretty pricy.


Fingers crossed they didn't just do steel when they saw the cost.

Glass jetways were prohibited until 2013 by fire code (NFPA 415 for the nerds like me). It wasn't necessarily a cost issue keeping them out of American airports.

Supposedly the cost is not significantly more than traditional steel designs, Wichita only found a 1.5% cost premium for glass:
https://www.bizjournals.com/wichita/...tways-for.html

Interesting, I'd previously read the bump was quite a bit more.

YMMV of course, that number seems suspiciously low but it looks like the cost premium is not huge in any case. Apparently jetways have a lot of the same market dynamics as train rolling stock with Buy America requirements, a Chinese lowball competitor, etc.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.pol...rt-jets-320491

Surprised this hasn't been posted yet. If this actually comes to fruition this would likely cut into a decent market portion of any future premium express train from downtown to O'hare. Would be interesting to see these suckers zooming overhead along the Kennedy corridor.

^ Lets not kid ourselves, a premier express train to OHare just ain't gonna happen.

Things like the above are clearly going to become more common and a preferred option for a lot of travelers

At least United Airlines is not calling the small electric powered helicopter a flying car.
Neve-the-less, how do they plan to fly small helicopters within O'Hare no fly flight paths frequently enough to make the business profitable. Is that air space not too busy already with long range commercial flights?:???:

Interesting info on why some airports only have people movers instead of direct public transportation links.

https://www.vice.com/en/article/z3v5...Z9VcNHPir0-Duw

Probably for corporate...

It is (more or less) in Metra's long range plan to offer express service every 15 minutes to O'Hare using existing tracks similar to Toronto's air rail link. There's a few capital projects they need to complete first, mainly the A-2 interlocking project. A-2's been kicking around for a long time but I'm more optimistic now that Sterling Bay is pushing for it, it would include a new station at Ogden.

I wonder if the idea for the Ogden stop would be to build a station connecting the Union Station lines AND the UP-West Line in one integrated station. I can't imagine the idea would be to serve only the Union Station lines and not the UP-West lines within the same complex. This station would shave off a good 5mins or more of a trip, a huge savings every day. Hard to imagine it wouldn't be a success.

the claim is that it would serve all 4 lines. That likely means two separate sets of platforms. Metra also wants to grade separate A2 here (not at the existing location out by Western) but that means each line will be on a grade, which complicates plans for a station.

At any rate this is probably years off but hopefully with the goal of 15 minute Metra service to OHare + a new Fulton Market station they can lock in the parameters for the project and start the process of begging for money.

O'Hare Terminal 5 Expansion
 

Here's an image I stumbled across online that someone took around 2 months ago when departing O'Hare of the Terminal 5 Expansion. Anybody know when this will be completed, and/or have any recent pictures of the expansion?

https://instagram.flwo4-1.fna.fbcdn....3b&oe=606A31C3

I'm not working on it, but my company is part of the design team for the main, Terminal 2 expansion and all of that associated work; I asked a colleague who is working on the project about time frame, and he said the City would like to issue final bid drawings this fall. Our firm started working on preliminary design drawings with the greater team in July of 2019, I believe, but given how massive the O'hare's expansion project is, 2+ years to create fully developed construction drawings is..about right..

New 'smart windows' used by Netflix and Google are coming to O'Hare Airport

It seems like new "smart windows" using AI will be installed in the ORD Terminal 5 expansion. :cool:

https://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/...e-airport.html

Serial stowaway got arrested again. She is at it again! She was not supposed to be there. This time she went to O'Hare airport today. She didn't listen to the judges. I am big pissed with her again!

https://chicago.cbslocal.com/2021/03...wUD6yxsbZoOIIw

That lady is amazing. We should all just be glad she's not sneaking into the pilots seat.

That timeline would make sense for the ORD21 site to update. It hasn't been touched since Studio ORD was chosen as the prime for the global terminal T2 expansion. There's been no detailed updates regarding the delayed ATS, the pedestrian tunnel upgrades, or as mentioned here current work at T5. You would think the major players of the city and O'Hare would want to promote the progress that is being made.

Also unrelated but does anyone have any thoughts about how O'Hare might look whenever the mythical 'western terminal' is built? It's predicated with completion of the Tollway's EOWA project which will connect 390 to the 90 and 294 via the new 490 beltway. That construction should all be done in 5-6 years and the terminal will sit just east of where Thorndale now intersects with York road. The Tollway has a drawing of all their ramps at that future 390 interchange and it labels a projected west terminal in that drawing too.

There would appear to be less impediment to build a connection from a western terminal to the main airport since 14R/32L is now gone. But how exactly would a connection be built? A long people mover to the far west satellite terminal at T1 or the global terminal? Extension of the ATS over or under T1 to the west terminal? O'Hare's layout just isn't easily conducive for easily identifiable connection.

Western access requires an underground people mover, but based on the phasing of new terminals I don't think they will add a people mover until the 2nd satellite terminal opens, which might not be until the mid 2030s.

T2 is landside and the 1st satellite will be directly connected to T1's remote concourse. You don't really need the people mover until the 2nd satellite comes online. At that point I imagine they would just continue digging the tunnel to the west and build a small, temporary check-in facility (pickup/dropoffs only, no checked bags). Basically just a few electronic kiosks for each airline and then a security screening.