NEWARK INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT




The new EWR terminal, decorated for its grand opening in 1953.

Newark Airport had been the busiest airport in the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area before World War II. After the war, this honor went to the newer LaGuardia Airport in Queens (which in just a few years would be supplanted by the new Idlewild Airport.) Nevertheless, traffic through EWR remained robust and by 1950, it was apparent that the 1920s-vintage airport terminal was in need of replacement.

A new million-dollar terminal building was therefore commissioned in 1953, on a site just west of the existing terminal. The architects, following a directive from the Port Authority, designed the building to be converted to a hangar someday, hence its tall, flat roof and rather blank landside facade. On the airside, the architects included a huge glass curtain wall overlooking the airfield, which could easily be replaced with hangar doors.

The facility's layout was simple: a vast ticketing hall/departure lounge on the ground level, with baggage reclaim stations at either end. A newsstand and coffee shop were located on the street side of the building, opposite the ticket counters; on the mezzanine was the lavish Newarker Restaurant and a large indoor/outdoor observation area.


Two views of the EWR airside in the 1950s, showing the glass curtain wall. The photo on the left was taken at the building's dedication ceremony in 1953.


The interior of the new EWR in 1953 - a long, high-ceilinged space.


A view of the new EWR terminal shortly after it opened - note the fresh concrete surrounding the gates.

Branching off each end of the main building was a narrow, enclosed boarding pier, along which the actual aircraft parked. EWR was one of the first postwar terminals to include piers, although its piers were little more than corrugated-steel hallways punctuated by doors to the apron. American, United, Mohawk, Capital and TWA used the west arcade, while the other airlines - Delta, Eastern, Northwest Orient, Allegheny, National, Northeast and Pan Am - used the east arcade. Both arcades were extended in the late 1950s as more airlines were granted EWR routes.

Traffic at Newark continued to grow, albeit at a slower pace than LGA and IDL. By the mid-1960s, it was clear that it was time for some serious expansion; however, the terminal site was hemmed in by cargo buildings and the threshold of EWR's main jet runway. The Port Authority acquired several hundred acres of marshy swamp southwest of the airport and, in 1965, began work on a massive new terminal complex.


An aerial view of EWR in the early 1960s, showing the two concourses and central terminal. By this time both arcades have been extended.


Another overhead view of EWR, this one from the mid-1960s. Jet aircraft have arrived - note the TWA 727, United DC8 and Delta Convair 880 parked at the gates.


A diagram of Newark in 1968, showing airline ticket counter and gate locations.

By the early 1970s, the first two units of the new terminal were ready for passengers, and not a moment too soon: American, United, TWA, National and Eastern had all introduced widebodies, and the crush of passengers was choking the terminal building.

In its final configuration, the terminal had changed little from its 1953 setup. I don't know exactly how gates were assigned, but judging from old photos, it appears that Northwest Orient, National, Braniff, Eastern, Delta and Allegheny used the east concourse, and American, Mohawk, United and TWA used the west concourse. I'm not sure where Piedmont or Northeast fit into the setup.


Diagrams of the EWR terminal in 1971 (right) and 1972 (left) showing where airlines were located prior to the move to the new terminal area in 1973. Note that automated luggage belts have apparently been added to the east baggage claim area, while Eastern and TWA have built their own baggage claim areas adjacent to their gates.

The new terminal complex was opened in stages between August and September 1973. The old terminal was renamed the North Terminal, and was relegated to the occasional commuter or VIP flight. A Federal Inspection Service station was also set up in the building for international arrivals. Activity in the old building was fairly sporadic.

Things changed dramatically in 1981 when a new start-up airline, People Express, began flights from the North Terminal with used 727s and 737s. People Express made superficial renovations to the building - half of the original ticket counters were removed to make way for automated baggage carousels - but most of the building was kept in its original state.


A People Express 737 parked on the east concourse of the North Terminal in 1983.
Reprinted from Airport World magazine

The low-cost, high-frequency formula proved to be extremely successful, and before long the North Terminal was handling almost as many passengers as the two newer terminals. By the mid-1980s, the North Terminal was jammed to the gills with People Express passengers. When People introduced 747s on transcontinental and transatlantic flights in 1984, the passenger loads proved to be greater than the building could handle. Airport officials began construction on the third unit of the EWR terminal complex, which would be exclusively for People Express' use.


Diagrams of the North Terminal in the 1980s, showing People Express' complete occupancy of the terminal. In the second map, the first increment of Terminal C is complete and handling international arrivals.
From a 1985 People Express timetable

In 1985 a small section of the new Terminal C was completed, allowing People to transfer its 747 flights and greatly ease the strain at the North Terminal. By 1987, however, People Express had run into financial trouble following its disastrous acquisition of Denver-based Frontier Airlines. Continental, seeking to gain a market share in the Northeast, offered to buy People and take over its EWR hub.

The merger coincided with the transfer of operations to Terminal C, which today is home to Continental's strong and thriving Newark hub. The North Terminal was again relegated to a charter and VIP facility.


Continental staff move equipment from the North Terminal to the new Terminal C in 1987.


The deserted interior of the North Terminal in 1988. The facility was used for international arrivals until 1989, when a new FIS facility was opened at Terminal B. From 1990 onward, the building was used only for office space.

The North Terminal saw various non-aviation use until 1997, when it was demolished to make way for the extension of Newark's two primary runways. The runways take up the eastern portion of the site today; the western half is now occupied by new cargo and aviation support buildings.


A satellite view of the old EWR site in 1999. No trace of the building remains.

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