Tampa International Airport (IATA: TPA, ICAO: KTPA, FAA LID: TPA) is an international airport six miles (9.7 km) west of Downtown Tampa, in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The airport is publicly owned by Hillsborough County Aviation Authority (HCAA). It has been praised for its architecture and Landside/Airside design of a central terminal (landside) connected by people movers to four satellite air terminals and gates (airsides), a pioneering concept when designed in the late 1960s. The airport was called Drew Field Municipal Airport until 1952. The United States Army Air Corps began negotiating for the use of Drew Field in 1939 during the buildup of military forces prior to World War II. After World War II, the Army Air Forces vacated the facility and Drew Field was returned to the City of Tampa. The Peter O. Knight Airport and Drew Field reversed roles as the main Tampa airport because Drew Field was greatly expanded by the United States Army Air Forces during the war years. Airlines (Eastern Air Lines and National Airlines) moved to Drew Field from Peter O. Knight Airport on Davis Island, which was too small to handle the Douglas DC-4, DC-6 and Lockheed Constellation prop-liners then coming on line in the mid-1940s. During this period, the airlines were housed in the former Drew AAF Base Operations building. Trans Canada Airlines international flights began in 1950 and Drew Field was renamed Tampa International Airport. The airport's second terminal opened in 1952 near the intersection of Columbus Drive and West Shore Blvd. The April 1957 Official Airline Guide shows 30 departures a day on Eastern Air Lines
Today, the airport is served by over twenty major air carrier airlines, four regional airlines, and three air cargo carriers. Three of the regional airlines operate under the banner of mainline air carriers, while a fourth, Silver Airways, is independent and utilizes Tampa International Airport as a hub for its operations. Southwest Airlines carries the airport's largest share of passengers, operating up to 121 daily flights.
The airport presently serves 93 non-stop destinations throughout North America, Central America, the Caribbean, and Europe. The airport handled 22,497,953 passengers in 2019, making it the 28th-busiest airport by passenger movements in North America.
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