Roberta Aguirre
Kansas City International Airport, commonly referred to as KCI, has the airport code MCI. The airport was originally called Mid-Continent International Airport, and the International Air Transportation Association (IATA) adopted MCI as the airport's designator code. Kansas City renamed the airport Kansas City International Airport in 1972, but the airport code MCI was retained. The city government has since requested to change the airport code to KCI, but the FAA is reluctant to change names that have already appeared on navigational charts.
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What You'll Learn
- The airport was originally called Mid-Continent International Airport
- The IATA adopted MCI as the airport's designator code
- Kansas City International Airport was assigned its code before it opened in 1972
- The FAA and FCC regulations make it unlikely that the code will change
- Kansas City International Airport is referred to as KCI by many
The airport was originally called Mid-Continent International Airport
The airport code for Kansas City International Airport is MCI, which was originally called Mid-Continent International Airport. The airport was opened in 1972, and a new complex was completed in 2023, replacing the old one. MCI replaced Kansas City Municipal Airport (MKC) in 1972, with all scheduled passenger airline flights moved from MKC to MCI.
Kansas City International Airport (IATA: MCI, ICAO: KMCI, FAA LID: MCI) is a public airport in Kansas City, Missouri, located 15 miles (24 km) northwest of Downtown Kansas City in Platte County, Missouri. The airport has always been a civilian airport and has never been assigned an Air National Guard unit. Since the 2020 pandemic shutdown, the number of peak-day scheduled aircraft departures has been steadily recovering.
Kansas City International Airport has a unique airport code, MCI, which has been a source of confusion for some travellers. Many people refer to the airport as KCI, which is not incorrect as the acronym KCI is also used for the airport. However, the official airport code is MCI, which was assigned by the International Air Transport Association (IATA). This has been a common occurrence, as regional areas often call their airports something different from their official IATA codes.
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The IATA adopted MCI as the airport's designator code
The IATA, or International Air Transportation Association, adopted MCI as the airport's designator code because the airport was originally called Mid-Continent International Airport. The airport's name was changed to Kansas City International Airport, but its code remained the same.
Kansas City International Airport (IATA: MCI, ICAO: KMCI, FAA LID: MCI) was originally known as Mid-Continent International Airport. The name change to Kansas City International Airport occurred when commercial air service was moved from the downtown airport to the one in the Northland. The airport's code, however, stayed the same. This is a common occurrence, as regional areas often call their airports something different from their official IATA codes. For example, in Orange County, California, people refer to John Wayne Airport as JWA, even though the airport code is SNA.
Kansas City International Airport has a long history that dates back to the 1950s. The airport and airfield opened in the mid-1950s as an overhaul base for Trans World Airlines. At that time, the Kansas City Municipal Airport was the primary airport for Kansas City. The new airport was called Mid-Continent International Airport, and it received the official code of MCI. The name was chosen because it was located in the middle of the continent. The airport served as the landing strip for the TWA overhaul base and as an alternate airport for the old Kansas City Municipal Airport.
In 1966, voters approved a $150 million bond issue to move the city's main airport to an expanded Mid-Continent. The airport was dedicated on October 23, 1972, by U.S. Vice President Spiro Agnew and officially opened for business on November 11, 1972, at 1:22 am. When the new airport opened, the Kansas City Municipal Airport was renamed the Kansas City Downtown Airport and later the Kansas City Wheeler Downtown Airport (MKC).
The city government has requested to change the airport's code from MCI to KCI, but this has been unsuccessful due to the code already being registered on navigational charts and the FAA's stringent naming regulations. The KCI designation is also already assigned to another airport in East Timor.
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Kansas City International Airport was assigned its code before it opened in 1972
Kansas City International Airport was originally called Mid-Continent International Airport, or MCI. The International Air Transportation Association (IATA) adopted MCI as the airport's designator code. The airport and the airfield opened in the mid-1950s as an overhaul base for Trans World Airlines. At that time, the Kansas City Municipal Airport was the primary airport for Kansas City. It wasn't until commercial air service was moved from the downtown airport to the one in the Northland that Mid-Continent International was renamed Kansas City International. The code, however, stayed the same.
Kansas City International Airport (IATA: MCI, ICAO: KMCI, FAA LID: MCI) was assigned its code before it opened in 1972. The airport officially opened for business on November 11, 1972, at 1:22 am. Kansas City International Airport was first built in 1951 as an industrial airport after the Great Flood destroyed the facilities at Fairfax Airport. The airport property was in an unincorporated area of Platte County until the small town of Platte City, Missouri, annexed the airport during construction. Kansas City eventually annexed the airport.
The city government has requested to change its original FAA location identifier of MCI for Mid-Continent, but the airport has been unable to do so as it had already been registered on navigational charts. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) at the time reserved all call letters with "K" or "W" for radio and television stations, so KCI was not viable. The "W" and "K" restrictions have since been lifted, but the FAA is reluctant to change names that have appeared on navigational charts.
Many people refer to the airport as KCI, even though its actual code is MCI. This is a common occurrence, as regional areas often call their airports something different from the official IATA code. For example, in Orange County, California, people refer to John Wayne Airport as JWA, even though the airport code is SNA.
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The FAA and FCC regulations make it unlikely that the code will change
Kansas City International Airport (IATA: MCI, ICAO: KMCI, FAA LID: MCI), originally named Mid-Continent International Airport, has always been a civilian airport. It was opened in 1972 and has since doubled its footprint, now covering 10,680 acres. The airport serves the Kansas City Metropolitan Area and is the primary airport for western Missouri and eastern Kansas.
Additionally, the FAA and FCC have specific requirements for aviation radio services. The FCC regulates Aviation Services in cooperation with the FAA, and both organizations' requirements must be met by aviation radio users. Aeronautical advisory stations, or Unicom stations, advise pilots of private aircraft about local airport conditions, while aeronautical multicom stations facilitate communication between private aircraft and ground facilities for various activities. The extensive involvement of the FAA and FCC in regulating aviation communication suggests that changing an airport code would require significant coordination and compliance with their respective regulations.
Furthermore, the FAA and FCC have specific guidelines for aeronautical radionavigation services. While these stations are typically operated by the FAA, the FCC licenses some stations when the FAA does not provide the service. However, private operators must comply strictly with FAA requirements. The involvement of both the FAA and FCC in radionavigation services indicates that changing an airport code would require careful consideration and adherence to the regulations set by both organizations.
The city government has requested to change the airport code from MCI to better reflect its current name, Kansas City International Airport. However, the FAA's reluctance to change names on navigational charts and the complex regulatory framework of the FAA and FCC make it challenging to alter airport codes. The code "MCI" has been registered on navigational charts since the airport's opening, and the FAA's priority on flight safety and adherence to regulations suggest that a code change is unlikely.
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Kansas City International Airport is referred to as KCI by many
Kansas City International Airport (MCI) is often referred to as KCI by many people in Kansas City. This is because the airport was originally called Mid-Continent International Airport, and the acronym for this name is MCI. The International Air Transportation Association (IATA) adopted MCI as the airport's designator code.
Kansas City International Airport was first built in 1951 as an industrial airport after the Great Flood destroyed the facilities at Fairfax Airport, which were used by Mid-Continent Airlines and TWA. The airport opened in 1972, and a new complex was completed in 2023, replacing the old one. When the airport opened, Kansas City Municipal Airport (now Kansas City Wheeler Downtown Airport) was the primary airport for Kansas City. It was decided that commercial air service would move from the downtown airport to the one in the Northland, and the Mid-Continent International Airport was renamed Kansas City International Airport. However, the code MCI remained the same.
The city government has requested to change the airport's code to KCI, but this has not been possible. The original FAA location identifier of MCI for Mid-Continent had already been registered on navigational charts, and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) reserved all call letters with "K" or "W" for radio and television stations, so KCI was not an option. Although the “W” and “K” restrictions have since been lifted, the FAA is reluctant to change names that have appeared on navigational charts. Additionally, the KCI IATA designation is already assigned to another airport in East Timor or Indonesia, which further complicates the request for a name change.
Kansas City International Airport is not the only airport with confusion over acronyms. For example, in Orange County, California, people refer to John Wayne Airport as JWA, even though the airport code is SNA. Sioux City, Iowa's airport code is SUX, and they have also been unable to change it.
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Frequently asked questions
Kansas City International Airport was originally called Mid-Continent International Airport, or MCI, and the International Air Transportation Association (IATA) adopted it as the airport's designator code. The code has remained the same despite the airport's name change.
The city government has requested to change the airport code to KCI, but the airport has been unable to do so as MCI had already been registered on navigational charts. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and its stringent naming regulations regarding identifiers also make it difficult to change the code.
MCI stands for Mid-Continent, which was the original name of the airport.
