A plan to renovate and modernize
Chicago's biggest airport is falling apart without two of its principal
backers.
American Airlines and United Airlines
want out of a deal they agreed to five
years ago to update O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. The two carriers
want the project to slow down, if not stop entirely.
The reason appears to be cost
overruns. The construction is already $1.5
billion over budget.
Work on a new terminal has yet to
begin as part of the overall project, which has risen from $8.7 billion to a
projected $12.1 billion. While the airlines have been heavily criticized for
wanting to back out, they want to get out before costs increase. The new
terminal is expected to support domestic and international flights.
Whether Chicago Mayor Brandon
Johnson will ask the airline to honor the original agreement they signed in
2018 is still being determined. Chicago is the headquarters for
United Airlines and a hub for American.
Former Chicago Mayor and
current Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel has taken both airlines to task, but
he did say that when United and American signed off on the deal, it was at a
specific price point that was already way over budget.
Empathy aside, Emanuel said the
airlines had already received the promised runway upgrades at O'Hare and should
finish the entire project.
However, the airlines argue that
esthetics and beautification projects contribute to the cost overruns and can
be eliminated.
Officials are
still discussing possible flights
between O’Hare and Chicago’s other large airport, Midway.
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