John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport is an international
airport located in
Jamaica, Queens, in the south-eastern portion of
New York City.
JFK is the top international air passenger gateway to the
United States and is also the leading freight gateway to the country by value of shipments.
[Bureau of Transportation Statistics, United States Department of Transportation. See "Top 20 U.S. Gateways for Nonstop International Air Travel: 1990, 1995, and 2000" here and "John F. Kennedy International Airport, NYâ€"Air Freight Gateway" here.] It is the home airport for
JetBlue Airways, a major international gateway and fourth-largest hub for
Delta Air Lines, and a major secondary hub for
American Airlines.
British Airways has a major presence, with 9 flights per day.
The airport is operated by the
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which manages the three other major airports in the New York metropolitan area,
Newark Liberty International Airport,
LaGuardia Airport and
Teterboro Airport.
|
An Air India 747 landing at JFK, with El Al Israel and Swiss International jets at Terminal 4. JFK is a major entry point for international arrivals in the United States. |
Although JFK is known as the premier international hub for both New York City and the United States, it also handles domestic flights, mostly to the West Coast. In 2005 the airport handled 41 million passengers; Newark International handled about 33 million and LaGuardia about 26 million, making for a total of approximately 100 million travelers using New York's airports as the city's airspace surpassed Chicago's to become the busiest in the United States.
["NYC airports handled record traffic in 2005." New York Business.com 6 January 2006.[1]]JFK's outbound international travel accounted for 17% of all U.S. travelers who went overseas in 2004, the largest share of any U.S. airport. In 2000, JFK handled an average of about 50,000 international passengers each day. The JFK-
London Heathrow route is the leading U.S. international airport pair with over 2.9 million passengers in 2000.
["U.S. International Travel and Transportation Trends." 2002.Bureau of Transportation Statistics, United States Department of Transportation [2]] Other top international destinations from JFK are
Paris,
Frankfurt, and
Tokyo. Nearly 100 airlines from over 50 countries operate regularly scheduled flights from JFK.
A 2006 survey by
J.D. Power and Associates in conjunction with
Aviation Week found JFK ranked second in overall traveller satisfaction among large airports in the United States, behind McCarran International in Las Vegas.
["Survey: JetBlue is best low-cost carrier." 29 June 2006. Associated Press.[3]]JFK is undergoing a US$10.3 billion redevelopment, one of the largest airport reconstruction projects in the world. The airport recently opened a new Terminal One, Terminal Four and Terminal Seven. Construction has begun on a new Terminal Five, while leaving the current landmark building in place. Terminals 8 and 9 are currently undergoing redevelopment as one single terminal. Terminals Eight, Two, and Three are slated for demolition or reconstruction.
The airport has been operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey under a lease with New York City since 1947. About $60 million was spent on the construction of the airport. Currently, estimates predict some $6.6 billion of economic activity and 207,000 jobs in the New York metropolitan region thanks to JFK International.
Construction of the airport began in 1942 with modest ambitions. Only 1,000 acres (4 km²) of land on the site of Idlewild golf course were earmarked for use. The golf course provided the airport's original namesake, Idlewild Airport.
The airport saw its first commercial flight on
July 1,
1948. It was dedicated as
'New York International Airport on July 31 of that same year, although the name Idlewild remained in common use and the official
IATA airport code was IDL.
As aviation grew, so did Idlewild. New York's importance as an international center of business and commerce meant there was an ever-greater need for more and more capacity. 4,000 acres (16 km²) and eight terminals were eventually added to the original airport. Over the years many illustrious airlines made the airport a major hub, including
Pan Am,
TWA,
Eastern,
National,
Tower Air, and
Flying Tiger Line.
The 1948 Temporary Terminal was the sole terminal until 1957, when the International Arrivals Building opened. Eight other "Unit Terminals" were constructed from 1958 to 1971, each designed by one of the airport's main airlines.
The Pan Am Worldport, now Terminal 3, opened in 1962. It featured a large, elliptical roof suspended by 32 sets of radial posts and cables. The roof extended far beyond the base of the terminal and covered the passenger loading area. It introduced special bridges that connected to the terminal and that could be moved to provide an easy walkway for passengers from the terminal to a docked aircraft.
The TWA Flight Center, now Terminal 5, also opened in 1962. Designed by
Eero Saarinen, it was sculpted as an abstract symbol of flight. It is considered one of the most architectually distinguished airport terminal designs in the world. With the demise of
TWA, however, it is no longer in use. The main building will be kept as a part of
jetBlue Airways's new reconstructed Terminal 5.
The airport was renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport in 1963, one month after the
assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The airport received the new IATA airport code of JFK, and since then the airport has become widely referred to by this abbreviation.
As air traffic in New York continued to grow, both Terminal 5 and Terminal 3 were modified in the 1970s to accommodate new
Boeing 747s. The supersonic
Concorde, operated by
Air France and
British Airways, provided scheduled trans-Atlantic supersonic service to JFK from 1977 until 2003, when the Concorde was retired by both carriers. JFK had the most Concorde operations annually of any airport in the world.
In 1998, the airport began construction of the
AirTrain JFK rapid transit system. The rail network links each airport terminal to New York City subways and regional commuter trains at
Howard Beach and
Jamaica.
The $1.4 billion replacement for the International Arrivals Building, Terminal 4, opened in 2001. Replacements for other original terminals have since been completed or are under development.
After the
September 11, 2001 attacks, JFK was one of the first airports in the United States to be temporarily closed.
|
Map showing New York City and the locations of JFK (1), LaGuardia (2) and Newark (3). |
Rail
JFK is connected to New York's subway and commuter rail system by the recently-constructed
AirTrain. AirTrain stops at all terminals, car rental lots, and two subway stations. It is free within the airport, but the fare is $5 to reach the subway stations. Using AirTrain and the
Long Island Rail Road at
Jamaica Station, travel time between JFK and
Midtown Manhattan is about 45 minutes.
Bus
Various city buses connect to the
New York City Subway and
Long Island Rail Road, with free transfers provided for Subway connections. The buses are handicapped accessible, but connections may not be.
New York City SubwayB15: BrooklynQ3: JamaicaQ10: Lefferts BLVD
Taxi
New York City's yellow cabs, operated by the
New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission, offer a flat rate service of $45 (as of 2005) from JFK airport to Manhattan, excluding tips and tolls. This flat rate is in effect only inbound to Manhattan from the airport; from Manhattan to JFK, taxi passengers pay the metered rate.
Helicopter
The fastest mode of travel between lower Manhattan and JFK airport is with
US Helicopter, which has scheduled helicopter flights every hour from the
Downtown Manhattan Heliport. The flights last 8 minutes and costs $159 each way. Included in the price is the luxury of avoiding long security screening lines at the airport. Passengers travelling by helicopter pass through X-ray and bomb-detection machines at a security checkpoint operated at the heliport.
Two pairs of parallel runways, four in all, surround the airport's central terminal area. Runway 13R-31L is the second longest commercial runway in North America, at a length of 14,572 ft (4,441 m). There are also numerous large facilities north and west of the central terminals for air cargo handling and loading.
Terminal 1
The site was originally occupied by
Eastern Air Lines' 1958 terminal. The original terminal was demolished and replaced by a new terminal, financed by a consortium of four international airlines (Air France, Japan Airlines, Korean Air, and Lufthansa), which was completed in 1998 and has eleven gates.
*
Aeroflot (Moscow-Sheremetyevo)
*
Aeroméxico (Mexico City)
*
Air China (Beijing)
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Air France (Paris-Charles de Gaulle)
*
Air Plus Comet (Madrid)
*
Alitalia (Milan-Malpensa, Rome-Fiumicino)
*
Austrian Airlines (Vienna)
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China Airlines (Taipei-Chiang Kai Shek)
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Japan Airlines (São Paulo-Guarulhos, Tokyo-Narita)
*
Korean Air (Seoul-Incheon)
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Lufthansa (Frankfurt, Munich)
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MAXjet (London-Stansted)
*
Olympic Airlines (Athens)
*
Royal Air Maroc (Casablanca)
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Turkish Airlines (Istanbul-Atatürk)
Terminal 2
Terminal 2 was completed in 1962 for
Northwest Airlines,
Northeast Airlines, and
Braniff Airways. It later evolved as an extension of the Pan Am terminal (see below) for domestic flights.
Delta Air Lines acquired the terminal in Pan Am's wake and is now used for Delta's domestic and international flights. T2 has ten gates, numbered 20 through 29.
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Delta Air Lines (Destinations listed under Terminal 3)
*
Saudi Arabian Airlines (departures) (Jeddah, Riyadh)
Terminal 3
Terminal 3, which opened in 1960, was constructed for
Pan American World Airways and was originally known as the
Pan Am Terminal. In 1971 it was expanded and renamed as the "Pan Am Worldport". It is particularly famous for its "flying saucer" roof and noted for its rooftop parking facilities: upon its expansion in 1972, it was also briefly the world's largest airline terminal.
Delta Air Lines purchased the terminal lease from failing Pan Am in 1991, and announced plans to demolish the terminal entirely in 2000, but later opted to refurbish the terminal instead. T3 has fourteen jetway equipped gates with two gates (Gates 11 & 18) being used as remote pads for Delta Connection Operations.
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Delta Air Lines (Acapulco, Accra (starts December 11, 2006), Amsterdam, Athens, Atlanta, Barcelona, Berlin-Tegel, Boston, Brussels, Budapest, Chennai (ends September 11, 2006), Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Cozumel (starts December 16, 2006), Dublin, Fort Lauderdale, Frankfurt, Istanbul-Atatürk, Kiev, Las Vegas, London-Gatwick [Starts November 15th, 2006, pending approval of a transfer of
United Airlines daily New York-London Heathrow flight], Los Angeles, Los Cabos, Madrid, Manchester (UK), Mexico City, Milan-Malpensa, Moscow-Sheremetyevo, Mumbai (starts November 1, 2006), Nice, Oranjestad, Orlando, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Puerto Vallarta, Punta Cana (Starts December 9, 2006), Rome-Fiumicino, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, San Juan, Santiago (DR), Santo Domingo (DR), São Paulo-Guarulhos, Seattle/Tacoma, Shannon, Tampa, Venice, West Palm Beach)
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Delta Connection operated by
Atlantic Southeast Airlines (Atlanta)
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Delta Connection operated by
Chautauqua Airlines (Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Columbus, Indianapolis)
**
Delta Connection operated by
Comair (Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Buffalo, Burlington, Chicago-O'Hare, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis, Miami, Montreal, Nashville, Norfolk, Pittsburgh, Raleigh/Durham, Richmond, Rochester (NY), Tampa, Toronto, Washington-Reagan)
**
Delta Connection operated by
Freedom Airlines (Albany, Baltimore/Washington (starts September 5, 2006), Burlington (starts September 15, 2006), Hartford (starts August 15, 2006), Manchester (NH) (starts September 15, 2006), Norfolk, Philadelphia, Portland (ME) (starts September 15, 2006), Providence (starts August 15, 2006), Syracuse (NY), Washington-Dulles, Washington-Reagan (starts September 15, 2006))
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Delta Connection operated by
Shuttle America (Atlanta, Austin)
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Miami Air (Non-Miami Air Operated Charters)
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Saudi Arabian Airlines (arrivals)
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Sun Country Airlines (Minneapolis/St. Paul)
Terminal 4
|
Immigration control for incoming passengers at Terminal 4. |
Terminal 4 opened in 2001 to replace the former International Arrivals Terminal. (The International Arrivals Terminal was an
international style building that was built in the 1950s, and was one of the airport's earliest terminals.) It is the only 24-hour terminal at the airport, and features a modular design that will allow it to be expanded further if necessary. The terminal is run by a private consortium comprising
Lehman Brothers, real estate developer LCOR Inc. and Dutch-based airport operator
Schiphol USA. It currently has sixteen gates.
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Aer Lingus (Dublin, Shannon)
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AerolÃneas Argentinas (Buenos Aires-Ezeiza)
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Aerosvit Airlines (Kiev)
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Air India (Chennai (starts November 3, 2006), Delhi, London-Heathrow, Mumbai)
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Air Jamaica (Barbados, Grenada, Kingston, Montego Bay, St. Lucia)
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Air Tahiti Nui (Papeete, Paris-Charles de Gaulle)
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Asiana Airlines (Seoul-Incheon)
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Avianca (Barranquilla, Bogotá, Cali, Medellin, Pereira)
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BWIA West Indies Airways (Antigua, Barbados, Georgetown, Port of Spain)
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Continental Airlines (Houston-Intercontinental)
**
Continental Express operated by
ExpressJet Airlines (Cleveland)
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Copa Airlines (Panama City)
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Corsair (Paris-Orly [seasonal])
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Czech Airlines (Prague)
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Egyptair (Cairo)
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El Al (Tel Aviv)
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Emirates (Dubai, Hamburg (Starting October 29, 2006))
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Eos Airlines (London-Stansted)
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Etihad Airways (Abu Dhabi) (Service begins 26th October 2006)
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Eurofly (Bologna, Rome-Fiumicino, Palermo, Naples)
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Harmony Airways (Vancouver)
*
Israir (Tel Aviv)
*
JetBlue Airways (International arrivals, San Juan)
*
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (Amsterdam)
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Kuwait Airways (Kuwait City, London-Heathrow)
*
LAN Airlines (Guayaquil, Lima, Santiago de Chile)
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LÃneas Aéreas Azteca (Monterrey, Puebla)
*
LOT Polish (Krakow, Warsaw)
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LTU (Düsseldorf)
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Mexicana (Mexico City)
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Miami Air (Miami-Air Operated Charters)
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North American Airlines (Accra, Georgetown, Lagos)
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Northwest Airlines (Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul)
**
Northwest Airlink operated by
Pinnacle Airlines (Minneapolis/St. Paul)
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Pakistan International Airlines (Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Manchester (UK))
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Royal Jordanian Airlines (Amman)
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Singapore Airlines (Frankfurt, Singapore)
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South African Airways (Dakar, Johannesburg)
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Swiss International Air Lines (Geneva, Zürich)
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TACA (Guatemala City, Guayaquil, Quito, San Pedro Sula, San Salvador)
**
TACA operated by
Lacsa (San Jose (CR))
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TAM (São Paulo-Guarulhos)
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Thai Airways International (Bangkok)
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Uzbekistan Airways (Riga, Tashkent)
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Virgin Atlantic Airways (London-Heathrow)
Terminal 5 (closed)
Terminal 5 was formerly the
TWA hub terminal. It was designed by
Eero Saarinen, sculpted as an abstract symbol of flight often described as
"gull winged." It was completed in 1962 and is the airport's most famous landmark. It was built before the age of terrorism and hijackings. Gates in the terminal were close to the street and this made it difficult to create centralized ticketing and security checkpoints.
Following American Airlines' buyout of TWA in 2001, Terminal 5 went out of service. The Port Authority had proposed converting the main portion of the building into a restaurant and conference center, but some architectural critics opposed this move.
In December 2005,
JetBlue, which occupies the adjacent Terminal 6, began construction of an expanded terminal facility, which will utilize the front portion of Saarinen's Terminal 5 as an entry point. The peripheral air-side parts of Terminal 5 have been demolished to make space for a mostly new terminal that follows the conventional hub and spoke design with 26 gates. It is expected to be complete by 2008.
Terminal 6
Terminal 6 was originally built for
National Airlines in 1969:
TWA procured the building lease after National was sold to
Pan Am. During the late 1990's, TWA leased part of the terminal to United Airlines who used it to fly to Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego. Following TWA's demise, T6 was partly renovated for the use of
JetBlue Airways, requiring $7.5 million of capital investment for new terminal facilities and roadway upgrades. JetBlue's main operations hub is now housed in Terminal 6. It has fourteen gates.
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JetBlue Airways (Aguadilla, Austin, Bermuda, Boston, Buffalo, Burbank, Burlington, Charlotte, Columbus - starts October 3, Denver, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Houston-Hobby (starts September 7, 2006), Jacksonville (FL), Las Vegas, Long Beach, Nashville (starts August 31, 2006), Nassau, New Orleans, Oakland, Ontario, Oranjestad (starts September 15, 2006), Orlando, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Ponce, Portland (ME), Portland (OR), Raleigh-Durham, Richmond (VA), Rochester (NY), Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Jose (CA), Santiago DR (departures), Sarasota/Bradenton (starts September 21, 2006), Seattle/Tacoma, Syracuse, Tampa, Tucson (starts September 28, 2006), Washington-Dulles (starts August 17, 2006), West Palm Beach)
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Terminals 6 and 7 with Air China landing. |
Terminal 7
Terminal 7 was originally known as the British Airways Terminal. It was completed in 1970 and extensively expanded and refurbished in 1991 and again in 2003. It is shaped like a rectangle, and has twelve gates around its airside perimeter.
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Air Canada (Calgary, Vancouver)
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All Nippon Airways (Tokyo-Narita)
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British Airways (London-Heathrow, Manchester (UK))
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Cathay Pacific Airways (Hong Kong, Vancouver)
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Iberia Airlines (Madrid)
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Icelandair (Reykjavik)
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Qantas (Sydney)
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United Airlines (London-Heathrow [
to be discontinued in late 2006 with a transfer of United's daily New York-London flight frequencies transfered to Delta Air Lines for their proposed JFK-London Gatwick service], Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seoul-Incheon [ends October 28], Tokyo-Narita [ends October 28])
**
United Express operated by
Mesa Airlines (Washington-Dulles)
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US Airways**
US Airways operated by
America West Airlines (Las Vegas, Phoenix)
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US Airways Express operated by
Mesa Airlines (Charlotte [begins Sept. 6, 2006]
Terminal 8
Terminal 8 was completed in 1960 and originally known as the American Airlines Terminal. It is easily recognizable by its colorful stained-glass façade created by the American artist Robert Sowers. It has fifteen gates on two concourses, A (gates 1-10) and B (gates 20-24).
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American Airlines (Barbados, Bermuda, Buenos Aires-Ezeiza, Cabo San Lucas (starts December 16th), Cancún, Kingston [seasonal], Montego Bay, Oranjestad, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Port-au-Prince, Providenciales, Puerto Plata [seasonal], Punta Cana, Rio de Janeiro-Galeão, São Paulo-Guarulhos, St. Maarten, Santiago (DR), Santo Domingo, St. Thomas)
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Finnair (Helsinki)
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Malév Hungarian Airlines (Budapest)
Terminal 9
Terminal 9 is a mid-field satellite terminal connected to the landside by underground walkway. The current concourse opened on
August 24,
2005, completing a phase-out of the old Terminal 9, which was completed in 1959 and previously known as the United Airlines Terminal. Both Terminal 8 and Terminal 9 will eventually be replaced by a $1.4 billion, 2.2 million square foot (200,000 m²) "mega-terminal," which will accommodate American Airlines' international and domestic passengers in one facility, in 2007: the next step is to demolish Terminal 8 and the old Terminal 9 to make way for the rest of the new terminal, which will eventually consist of two piers and a satellite [
4][
5].
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American Airlines (Brussels, Dallas/Fort Worth, London-Heathrow, Los Angeles, Miami, Rome-Fiumicino (seasonal), San Diego, San Francisco, San Juan, Seattle/Tacoma, Tokyo-Narita, Zürich)
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American Eagle (Boston, Baltimore/Washington, Chicago-O'Hare, Cleveland, Halifax, Montreal, Raleigh/Durham, St. Louis, Toronto, Washington-Reagan)
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US Helicopter (
Downtown Manhattan Heliport, Pier 6 - East River)
New Destinations and Airlines
*
China Eastern Airlines (Shanghai-Pudong [December 2006])
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Etihad Airways (Abu Dhabi) (Service begins 26th October 2006)
JFK is the nation's busiest international air freight gateway by value of shipments and the second busiest overall by value including all air, land and sea U.S. freight gateways. Over 21% of all U.S. international air freight by value and 11% by tonnage moved through JFK in 2003.
[Bureau of Transportation Statistics, United States Department of Transportation. "John F. Kennedy International Airport, NYâ€"Air Freight Gateway."[6]]JFK is a major hub for air cargo between the United States and Europe. London, Brussels and Frankfurt are JFK's three top trade routes.
[Bureau of Transportation Statistics, United States Department of Transportation. "John F. Kennedy International Airport, NYâ€"Air Freight Gateway."[7]] The European airports are mostly a link in a global supply chain, however. The top destination markets for cargo flying out of JFK in 2003 were Tokyo, Seoul and London. Similarly, the top origin markets for imports at JFK were Seoul, Hong Kong, and Taipei, with London taking the fourth spot.
[Bureau of Transportation Statistics, United States Department of Transportation. "John F. Kennedy International Airport, NYâ€"Air Freight Gateway."[8]]Some of the cargo imported and exported through JFK includes electrical machinery, woven and knit apparel, medical instruments, footwear, plastics and paper.
In 2000
Korean Air Cargo opened a new $102 million
cargo terminal at JFK that became one the largest air freight facilities on the East Coast. It has a total warehouse floor area of more than 55,000 sq. ft (16, 764 sq. m) and is capable of handling 200,000 tons annually.
Lufthansa,
FedEx,
Japan Airlines,
Singapore Airlines Cargo,
Air France and
Asiana are among some of the other major air cargo carriers at JFK.
JFK has dedicated cargo terminals for
Continental Airlines,
Emirates SkyCargo,
Evergreen International Airlines,
EVA Air,
Fed Ex,
Japan Airlines,
Korean Air,
Nippon Cargo Airlines,
Northwest Airlines,
United Airlines, and
UPS.
Most cargo and maintenance facilities at JFK are located north and west of the main terminal area.
JetBlue Airways built a central maintenance and operations base at JFK, which was completed in May of 2005.
JFK has been the site of several notable air disasters.
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December 18,
1954 - a
Linee Aeree Italiane Douglas DC-6 crashed on its fourth approach attempt to land at Idlewild (the former name of JFK), after circling for 2.5 hours. 26 of the 32 passengers on board were killed.
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December 16,
1960 - a
United Airlines Douglas DC-8 collided with a
TWA Super Constellation on approach to the airport; the United jet crashed in a
Brooklyn neighborhood, the TWA plane on
Staten Island, killing 127 people on board and five on the ground.
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March 1,
1962 - an
American Airlines Boeing 707 crashed on takeoff from Idlewild after its rudder separated from the tail. All 95 passengers and 12 crew members were killed.
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November 30,
1962 - an
Eastern Air Lines Douglas DC-7 crashed into the ground during a
missed approach.
*
February 8,
1965 - an Eastern Air Lines Douglas DC-7 crashed off
Jones Beach after takeoff when the pilots found themselves on an apparent collison course with an inbound
Pan Am Boeing 707 and made evasive maneuvers.
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June 24,
1975 -
Eastern Air Lines Flight 66, a
Boeing 727 on final approach from
New Orleans, crashed into the runway lights short of runway 22L, killing 112 passengers and crew. The cause of the crash was
wind shear during a heavy thunderstorm.
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January 25,
1990 -
Avianca Flight 52, a
Boeing 707-321B arriving from Bogota and Medellin, crashed at
Cove Neck,
Long Island, after a missed approach at JFK and subsequently running out of fuel.
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November 12,
2001 - The most recent disaster at JFK was
American Airlines Flight 587, an
Airbus A300 that crashed while en route to
Santo Domingo in the
Dominican Republic. During climb, the aircraft lost most of its vertical fin due to the co-pilot's overcontrol of the rudder (an aircraft design flaw), and crashed into the
Belle Harbor neighborhood of Queens. The crash killed all 260 persons on the plane and five people on the ground.
Other disasters involving JFK
*
Sabena Flight 548 (1961), outbound from JFK, crashed while trying to land in
Brussels,
Belgium*
Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 (1972), outbound from JFK, crashed while trying to land in
Miami,
Florida*
Pan Am Flight 1736 (1977), originated from JFK, collided with another 747 at
Tenerife*
Korean Air Flight 007 (1983), originated from JFK, shot down off the coast of
Sakhalin*
Pan Am Flight 103 (1988), bound for JFK, with continued service to Detroit, exploded over
Lockerbie,
Scotland*
Avianca Flight 52 (1990), crashed into the town of Cove Neck, Long Island, New York after running out of fuel trying to land at JFK.
*
TWA Flight 800 (1996), outbound from JFK, exploded soon after takeoff, and crashed off the coast of
Long Island*
Swissair Flight 111 (1998), outbound from JFK, crashed off the coast of
Nova Scotia*
EgyptAir Flight 990 (1999), outbound from JFK, crashed off the coast of
Nantucket*
Air France Flight 4590 (2000), a
Concorde bound for JFK, crashed in
Gonesse,
France*
Korean Air Flight 85 (2001), bound for JFK on
September 11, was escorted by fighter jets to
Whitehorse International Airport during
Operation Yellow Ribbon on fears it may have been hijacked. This wasn't the case; the plane was low on fuel, and according to a public affairs official at the airport, there was also a communication problem with the air crew. When the plane landed, witnesses reported that the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police ordered the crew out at gunpoint. The entire incident was a misunderstanding caused by a malfunctioning transponder.
Several aircraft based at JFK were also targets of the failed
Project Bojinka terrorist plot in 1995.
As one of the major international gateways in the United States, JFK has enjoyed a high profile in popular culture. The
British Invasion began with the arrival of
The Beatles at JFK in 1964, who held their first American press conference at the airport. Rapper
Notorious B.I.G. references the airport's code name in the song
"Going to Cali." The theme song of the 1960s comedy TV series
Car 54, Where Are You? contained a line reading:
"There's a scout troop short a child, Khruschev's due at Idlewild." Many films have used JFK as a setting, including:
Live and Let Die (1973)
Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
Moonstruck (1987)
Big Business (1988)
Coming to America (1988)
Goodfellas (1990) (as Idlewild Airport)
Quick Change (1990)
*The Wedding Banquet (1993)
*Turbulence {1997}
*Final Destination (2000)
*Catch Me If You Can (2002)
*The Terminal (2004)
*Taxi (2004)
*White Chicks (2004)
*Friends (2004) (Series Finale)
*Kangaroo Jack'' (2003) (Cameo appearance)
*
John F. Kennedy International Airport (official site)
*
JFK Airport Monitor (from Passur.com)
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ATC Tower Ground and
ATC Approach Departure (
streaming audio from LiveATC.net)
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New York State DOT Airport Diagram (
PDF)
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LaGuardia Airport*
Newark Liberty International Airport*
Transportation in New York City*
Transportation to New York City area airports, which details bus and rail connections to the three major area airports
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Busiest airports in the United States by international passenger traffic*
Thin-shell structure
