John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport[a] (IATA: JFK, ICAO: KJFK, FAA LID: JFK) is a major international airport serving New York City, New York. The airport is the busiest of the seven airports in the New York airport system, the 6th-busiest airport in the United States, and the busiest international air passenger gateway into North America.[5] The facility covers 5,200 acres (2,104 ha) and is the largest and busiest airport in the New York City area.[6]
For other airports around the city, see Greater New York airports. For the Wisconsin airport, see John F. Kennedy Memorial Airport. For other uses, see JFK (disambiguation) and KJFK (disambiguation).
John F. Kennedy International Airport
Public
Jamaica, Queens, New York City, New York, U.S.
July 1, 1948
EDT (UTC−04:00)
13 ft / 4 m
480,793
480,793
62,440,306
1,576,766
Over 90 airlines operate from the airport, with nonstop or direct flights to destinations in all six inhabited continents.[7][8]
JFK is located in the Jamaica neighborhood of Queens,[9] 16 miles (26 km) southeast of Midtown Manhattan. The airport features five passenger terminals and four runways. It is primarily accessible via car, bus, shuttle, or other vehicle transit via the JFK Expressway or Interstate 678 (Van Wyck Expressway), or via train. JFK is a hub for American Airlines and Delta Air Lines as well as the primary operating base for JetBlue.[10]
JFK is also a former hub for Braniff, Eastern, Flying Tigers, National, Northeast, Northwest, Pan Am, Seaboard World, Tower Air and TWA.
The facility opened in 1948 as New York International Airport[11][12][13] and was commonly known as Idlewild Airport.[14]
Following the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, the airport was renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport as a tribute to the 35th President of the United States.[15][16][17]
Other[edit]
Information services[edit]
In the immediate vicinity of the airport, parking and other information can be obtained by tuning to a highway advisory radio station at 1630 AM.[346] A second station at 1700 AM provides information on traffic concerns for drivers leaving the airport.
Kennedy Airport, along with the other Port Authority airports (LaGuardia and Newark), uses a uniform style of signage throughout the airport properties. Yellow signs direct passengers to airline gates, ticketing and other flight services; green signs direct passengers to ground transportation services and black signs lead to restrooms, telephones and other passenger amenities. In addition, the Port Authority operates "Welcome Centers" and taxi dispatch booths in each airline terminal, where staff provide customers with information on taxis, limousines, other ground transportation and hotels.
Former New York City traffic reporter Bernie Wagenblast provides the voice for the airport's radio stations and the messages heard on board AirTrain JFK and in its stations.[347]
Notable staff[edit]
Stephen Abraham, colloquially known as Kennedy Steve, was an air traffic controller at JFK between 1994 and 2017.[348] Abraham was known for his distinct "informal" tone and controlling-style while handling ground traffic at the airport. Many of his interactions with pilots were recorded and featured on various social media platforms, including various YouTube channels. In 2017, Abraham was awarded the Dale Wright Award by the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) for distinguished professionalism and exceptional career service to NATCA and the National Air Space System.[349][350] In 2019, he was hired as Airside Operations and Ramp Manager at JFK's Terminal 1.[351]