Major Changes Announced at General Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee

Big changes are in the works at Mitchell International. United Airlines and Air Canada flights are moving from Concourse E to Concourse C. That way Concourse E can become an international terminal. 

"My idea is to go ahead and not only do an international terminal, but you can arrive international and depart domestically or you can use that terminal, what we call a "flexible terminal" where we can use it for both," said Ismael Izzy Bonilla, Airport Director at General Mitchell International Airport.

The airport already has an international arrivals terminal, but it's disconnected from the rest of the airport and makes it very inconvenient.

"It's only arrivals, you do not do departures from that building," Bonilla said. "It only has one passenger loading bridge, so, if that loading bridge breaks, then you have issues when it's 30 below outside and five feet of snow."

Bonilla says some international airlines have been, as he put it, courting Milwaukee airport already, but are getting turned off by the existing international building. So, the airport is acting quickly to improve the look. Passengers, who already like General Mitchell over the busier O'Hare and Midway in Chicago, are on board with the idea.

"It's awesome," said Doug Bainbridge of Illinois. "I'm sure we'll be up here many more times after this."

Air Canada is expected to relocate to Concourse C in mid-August, followed by United Airlines in early September. Call your airline though, just in case things get pushed back. Additional news about the future international terminal is expected later this year.