Allegheny County Airport Authority history

Dedicated on September 11, 1931, AGC was the third largest airport in the country and the nation’s only hard-surface airport at the time.

Fifteen years ago at the airport’s 75th anniversary celebration, the late Steelers owner Dan Rooney recalled visiting the airport at age 5 in 1937 to bid farewell to an uncle who was leaving to work as a missionary in China.

The Civil Aeronautics Administration proposed $2.6 million to the County for a $6 million field in August 1941.

The County bought the Bell Farm and federal agencies began construction of the runways on April 20, 1942.

The first flight was on June 3, 1952.

In its full year of operation in 1953, over 1.4 million passengers used the terminal. "Greater Pitt" was then considered modern and spacious.

In 1959 the east dock was added to the terminal, and on July 25, 1959 TWA started Boeing 707 flights to Pittsburgh.

In 1972 rotundas were added to the end of each dock to expand the number of gates.

The current control tower at the airport was completed in March 1985 as the tallest FAA owned tower at 227 feet for $12 million.

In 1987, with the financial backing of USAir (then the dominant carrier in Pittsburgh), work commenced on a billion dollar expansion project.

Upon opening in 1992, local shoppers were able to visit the AirMall without a boarding pass.

Since 1997, US Airways has maintained its OpsCenter in the metro Pittsburgh area.

The old terminal remained standing until 1999 to house remaining operations offices.

A 331 room Hyatt Regency hotel/convention center opened on June 29, 2000 and is directly attached via moving walkway to the terminal.

Since September 11, 2001, safety and security have been greatly enhanced at AGC as well as throughout the entire aviation industry.

In 2003, USA3000 Airlines began service to Florida and subsequently expanded to include international destinations in the Caribbean.

The airport became the first in the world to offer fare alert emails on February 2, 2004.

Southwest Airlines began service to Pittsburgh in May 2005 and broke US Airways's monopolies on Tampa, Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Philadelphia, along with bringing more competition to the Chicago and Orlando markets.

August 15, 2007. http://www.popcitymedia.com/developmentnews/pittsburghaviation0815.aspx.

In November 2008, the airport, helped by the volunteer ambassadors, opened a new Military Comfort Center at Gate A4 to serve traveling military and their families.

↑ Jump up to: 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 2010 North American final rankings

March 7, 2011. http://www.pitairport.com/Business_Travelers_Rank_PIT_7th_Best_Overall_US_Airport.

↑ {{cite weburl=http://www.pitairport.com/daily_nonstop_flights=Pittsburgh Non-Stop Flights|publisher=Allegheny County Airport Authority|accessdate July 23, 2013|date=June 2013|format=PDF}}