With a 25-year career in the airport management industry, Joseph Alesia oversees terminal operations at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. Joseph Alesia’s responsibilities are involved with the airport’s $8.7 billion expansion plan.
A key feature of former mayor Rahm Emanuel’s plans to grow the city’s economy, the project focuses on expanding O’Hare’s international terminal. Demand has increased in the recent past. When the building opened 25 years ago, O’Hare’s carriers flew to 30 international destinations; that number is now 75.
In the first phase of construction, 10 gates and 350,000 square feet of space will be added by 2021, as well as 15 locations for shops and restaurants. Six new lanes are also planned for security screening. The next year, passengers will be able to use a new baggage handling system with advanced identification technology, plus new roads, parking, and a hotel.
Delta Airlines will move to the new building after 2021, joined later by United and American. The old Terminal 2 will then be replaced by a “global terminal” that will handle domestic and international flights.
Another part of the master plan, runway expansion was slated to begin in 2019. Runway 9R/27L is to be lengthened to about 11,224 feet, the same length as a new strip, 9C/27C. When these runways are in service, O’Hare’s traffic handling will be much more efficient.
Joseph Alesia 