When I learned that Kansas City International (MCI) would become the location of a mass airplane storage site, I ignored it. COVID-19 has brought unprecedented and rapid change upon us all. And we are all coping with it differently. For me, rather than accept the fact that my passion has ground to a halt, I have done my best to ignore the bad news while focusing internally on my family and friends.
But history is in the making and after a few weeks of airplane stockpiling I had to go see. I don’t know what I expected. I was excited to visit the airport for the first time in months. But when we drove past the threshold of runway 19L the site was… heartbreaking. Words truly cannot describe the feeling of seeing over a hundred planes in “active storage” lining a once busy runway and taxiway at an airport that has seen consistent and impressive growth over the past few years.
Parked Plane Stats:
I called my good friend Nick Benson, chief AvGeek over at JetTip to see just how many planes have been parked at Kansas City International since the pandemic took hold.
BONUS: JetTip Watches for the Good Stuff So You Don’t Have To
The golden hour glow sure makes those widget tails pop.
JetTip’s analysis of the 102 planes currently stored on MCI’s 19L/1R and taxiway, as of May 2.
Delta – 83
- 7 A320
- 16 A321
- 2 737-700
- 11 737-800
- 44 737-900
- 2 757-200
- 1 767-300
Air Canada – 6
- 2 767-300
- 1 787-8
- 3 787-9
Air Canada Rouge – 13
- 13 767-300
This diversity is impressive. And in any other circumstance these planes at our medium-sized airport would be something to celebrate. But in there is no joy in seeing these birds grounded.
%CODE1%
Above is a silent two-minute slow drive-by offering a look at the planes lining 19L’s taxiway.
Conclusion:
On one hand, it’s great to see our airport use one of its parallel runways to provide parking space for an airline partner. On the other, it’s a total bummer to see planes which just a few months ago were packed and in high demand now no longer needed. Our thoughts with healthcare, essential workers and our many friends in the airline industry. We will recover.
Terrible sight to see! Makes me sad.
Indeed. Thanks for reading Andrew. Be well.
wondering why they did not use KCK instead, downtown??
There”s not a lot of space at the downtown airport. At MCI by taking out just one of the parallel runways we still have use of 1L/19R and runway 27 for crosswind ops should it be needed.
Thanks for reading.
gotcha how is the new terminal coming along
Last update I saw was on time, on budget. There”s really no hint of the old terminal at this stage. The roads have even been reconfigured. Change is good!
What a terrible sight to see, all due to a lie to the world. It is proven that Covit 19 is a lie but the media refuses to accept it. Look at Flightradar 24 and you see that only about 40% of all aircraft is still in the air.
Just imagine the losses, unthinkable.
Get your head out of the sand and stop listening to Fox News! This pandemic is real and every country in the world is suffering from it and a lot of people in every one of those countries are dead from it!
Let us agree to disagree. But do some fact checking before watching CNN again.
JL, Just wondering if there are any major maintenance facilities there? Delta? wonder why so many Delta jets are there or just the renting space price was right? by the way, flew into KC last year to watch a ball game and love the ease of your home airport! I’m sure the new terminal will be even better!
Howdy, MCI is home to what was a massive TWA and later AA overhaul base.
Today the facility is rented out to folks like ATS (big Boeing partner) and JetMidwest.
Agree on airport convenience most of the time. Looking forward to the more consistent new terminal.
Thanks for reading!
JLJ
The real question is when, if ever, do most of these jets see service again, and what does this do to the carriers balance sheets? It sounds like American has the biggest debt load, and even Alaska has advised that without drastic spending cuts they’d be out of cash in eleven months. My company normally spends hundreds of millions on corporate travel and that’s not coming back anytime soon.