Shortened as DFW, this airport is located halfway between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. The second largest airline hub (for American) in the world after Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport, it’s also the third busiest airport in the world when measuring by aircraft movements. An in-between place that overlaps the towns of Grapevine, Irving, Euless, Coppell, and both Dallas as well as Tarrant counties, the airport has even been given its own ZIP code and city designation, “DFW Airport, TX,” by the United States Postal Service. It also has its own police, fire, and emergency medical services. One of a handful of airports that provides nonstop service to over 200 destinations, DFW served nearly 65 million passengers in 2015 alone.
Though the city of Dallas proposed a shared airport with Fort Worth as early as 1927, the cities had frequent disagreements and fallings out over the decades and both ended up constructing their own airports: Love Field in Dallas and Meacham Field in Fort Worth. It wasn’t until 1961, when the Federal Aviation Administration declined to invest further funds into the separate airports, that the two cities decided to work together. They selected a location and purchased the land in 1966, and began building three years later. Originally named the North Texas Regional Airport—fairly self-explanatory—it was re-presented as the Dallas/Fort Worth Regional Airport—another straightforward descriptive name—in 1973, when it opened for commercial flights. It didn’t officially become an “International” airport (at least in name) until 1985.
If you wind up in Terminal D, you’ll be welcomed by the airport’s impressive public art program. Terrazzo medallions cover the floors while sculpture (by the likes of Dennis Oppenhein and Christopher Janney) provide visual interest while you walk to your gate. Travelers with long layovers should step outside to the sculpture garden.
The Trinity Railway Express commuter rail system connects downtown Dallas, downtown Fort Worth, and the DFW airport. The Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) system also offers buses to and from that city’s public light rail. The airport is bisected by International Parkway, which runs north-south and connects to state highway 183, 114, and I-635.
