Chicago Midway International Airport

Chicago Midway International Airport is the secondary airport for the Chicago metropolitan area and the primary operating base for Southwest Airlines in Chicago. MDW handles around 22 million passengers per year and sits about eight miles southwest of downtown Chicago. Southwest operates approximately 90 percent of the traffic at MDW, making it one of the most Southwest-dominated major airports in the country. The airport is significantly smaller than O'Hare both in passenger volume and physical footprint, with a single main terminal and a compact gate configuration. MDW's location inside Chicago's urban area and its short runways limit the aircraft types that can operate there, which is one reason larger mainline carriers prefer O'Hare. The airport is convenient for travelers in the south and west sides of the Chicago region and has good connectivity to downtown via the Orange Line of the Chicago Transit Authority. MDW has historically been known for tight operations and efficient gate turnarounds, which support Southwest's high-frequency scheduling approach.