LaGuardia's Marine Air Terminal

The Marine Air Terminal, circa 1940 (Courtesy Library of Congress)

The saga of LaGuardia Airport began when Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia struck a blow for all proud New Yorkers when he refused to call Newark Airport New York. LaGuardia was flying on a TWA flight which arrived into Newark, and pointing out his ticket said New York, refused to leave the plane until he was flown there. TWa ended up flying him to Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn. On the flight over, LaGuardia staged a press conference where he urged a new airport for New York City that actually was in New York.

American Airlines accepted an offer to try scheduled service to Floyd Bennett Field, but the program failed. The city was already working on a plan for an alternate airport. New York Municipal Airport opened in December of 1939. During the ceremony, a banner was flown from the back of a plane, with the words, “Name it LaGuardia.” It was done in 1947, when the Port Authority took control of the airport. Although it was a very large airport when opened, it is now painfully small for the amount of traffic it handles. In 1984, a perimeter rule banning flights in excess of 1500 miles(except on Saturdays), was imposed.

LaGuardia consists of 680 acres, and about 72 aircraft gates. The Marine Air Terminal, once known as the Overseas Terminal, was the original airport terminal building. It served international flights on flying boats through the 1940s. Delta has used the Terminal for Shuttle Operations since September of 1991.

Marine Air Terminal - Courtesy PANYNJ.

The first Pan Am Yankee Clipper departed March 31, 1940 for Lisbon. The terminal, now a historic landmark, has a round shape with a large central hall and a circular aviation mural, “Flight” by James Brooks, which has been restored. The last Clipper flight left in February of 1952, bound for Bermuda. The circular counter at the center of the central hall has been removed, replaced by a stone bust of Fiorello LaGuardia. Most people bypass the entrance hall and enter the building through the addition, which leads directly to the Delta check-in desks, baggage claim, and security checkpoint.

As mentioned, Delta has had the building since 1991, and now, in the latest move by the airline, they will be swapping the space with the US Airways Shuttle, which will now operate out of the iconic building. Personally, we’d love to see a guild of smaller carriers take over the building and put US Airways in the Central Terminal, but this will be an interesting change.

The changing of the guard should occur sometime next year, pending approval. We hope US Airways gives the iconic building some love, encouraging people to enter through the old entrance, perhaps take some of the old check-in areas there and use them for some purpose.

The US Airways Shuttle is a direct descendant of the Eastern Airlines Shuttle. when it was started, it was considered highly innovative, as it required no reservations and guaranteed a seat. The airline had backup planes standing by and promised to put one into service on any flight, even if it meant carrying only one passenger. Those days are long gone, alas. Eastern sold it to Donald Trump in 1989, who later had US Airways operate it until they took it over outright. Delta’s Shuttle was once the Pan Am Shuttle, which Delta bought and still operates.

Original Interior - Courtesy PANYNJ

Delta and US Airways Swap for Fun and Profit (flightwisdom.com)

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