Wichita Mid-Continent Airport History: #5

9-11 hit and the way we traveled changed dramatically. When air traffic ceased over the country we started receiving flights and we had, if I remember correctly, 243 aircraft landed in Wichita and we had planes bumper-to-bumper on all the runways and all the taxiways. So many people in the terminal building it was it was just crazy. We had to have teams that would go around and they would be at the gate and they would screen the passengers a second time as they right before they boarded the airplane. We started out with with two lanes, two x-rays, and they were centered right at the at the top of the T there and so the line would go down the long hallway and occasionally around the corner. New security protocols were in place. The Transportation Security Administration adopted the 3-1-1 rule which means only three ounce containers of liquids can be carried on your flight. In order to allow time for security screening passengers no longer spent time in the restaurant before heading to the gate. Food and beverages were now needed on the concourses. New dining options, bars, and retail shops on the concourse were eventually built but there were operational difficulties as there was no plumbing to the concourses. The old airport is very challenging because there's a lot of it was not convenient for the customer most of the time especially went after the 9-11. It was a long line at the checkpoint because they have to check their IDs. This was not convenient for the customers. There's a lot of people that upset and things like that. It was very challenging during that time.