In 1925 the City of Atlanta got a five-year, rent-free lease on an abondoned auto racetrack. By 1926, the airfield was served by Florida Airways mail and passenger flights to Miami. In 1928 Pitcairn Aviation (forerunner of Eastern Airlines) scheduled air service and In 1932 American Airlines erected an administration building but in 1933 President Roosevelt cancelled all mail contracts. There was a rebid the next year which Delta Air Lines won. Atlanta was declared a naval base in 1940 and during the war years the airport almost doubled in size.

After the war the airport continued to grow rapidly. The first jet flights took place in 1958. International service began in 1978. In 1971, the airport was named William B. Hartsfield Atlanta Airport after former Atlanta mayor William B. Hartsfield, who had died that year.


Management The City of Atlanta, Department of Aviation

Land 3,750 Acres

Runways 5 runways -

Concourse T contains 17 gates
Concourse A contains 29 gates
Concourse B contains 32 gates
Concourse C contains 34 gates
Concourse D contains 40 gates
Concourse E contains 28 gates
Concourse F contains 15 gates

Flights Daily flights to and from 180 U. S. cities and 32 major foreign centers.

Air Carriers 28 (domestic and international)

Passengers 1110,531,300 in 2019

Cargo 600,000 tons

Parking 25,000 parking spaces

Employment Approximately 38,000 employees