VintageAirTravel.com

In a short quick answer the “rotunda” and all has been demolished according to Google Earth.

As a young child growing up in southern California, I have visited that old terminal 3 on several occasions back in the 80s. When we were allowed to meet relatives at their gate, or if I had a flight, I recall going through terminal 3 at LAX.

I recall visiting the Eastern Airlines side of the terminal when family members flew from Philadelphia to LAX on a couple of occasions. I recall seeing Delta Airlines at the next terminal 2.

When I flew TWA for the flight to Philadelphia via John F. Kennedy International Airport, I can recall boarding the aircraft at the northwest part of the terminal 3. You can read about that flight here!

Several years later my family and I did a trip on Midway Airlines From Los Angeles to Philadelphia via Chicago Midway Airport in 1989. The thing that takes me for a loop is that I boarded the first leg of the trip from the same terminal and gate as that TWA flight I took a few years previous.

What leads me to believe that it was the same gate, is I remember looking at the Douglas DC-9-30 aircraft not being able to see much other than the stripe and the Midway livery on the fuselage parked at the same angle as the L-1011 Tristar from my previous trip.

So what makes this terminal special to me (the writer) you may ask? It really comes down to nostalgia and curiosity regarding the history of the subject matter. I did not understand photography or have my own equipment back then, but if I did, it would help this project tremendously.

Back in the beginning of the jet age, Los Angeles Airport had to be upgraded to support jet traffic. The typical mainline aircraft had 2 class layouts for first class and economy and sometimes connected 2 jet bridges to a single aircraft to facilitate boarding first and coach classes separately. A typical jet aircraft with a 2 class layout with a capacity for 131 passengers could be loaded in 5-10 minutes.

Little did I know, at that time, the terminal was a 1960s design that had not been updated much. Trans World Airlines held a good amount of gates for some time. With all that aside, I thought it was impressive. It had large windows that were great for watching airport activity. There were so many different people around coming and going, I was intrigued.

What could be said about airports limited on real estate growing in passenger traffic, is that airport planners are trying to get the most use of every inch of space in the airport. Over the years as air traffic through the airport grows, more gates need to be added to increase the amount of flights.

The terminal had to go because it took more space than it could make use of. The initial design was updated but limited capacity for the airport.

Over the years, seeing how the airport progressed, the amount of gates has increased by an astronomical amount since the 80s. This could be attributed to more passenger demand, the startup of new airlines, the disbandment of older less profitable airlines, mergers, newer more economical aircraft, and competition.

My complaint about LAX is that it seem a bit crowded and complex. There are a lot more gates than there used to be. Back in the day the airport seemed pretty simple. The updates done for the 1984 Olympics were nice for the time. In my humble opinion, Other than the theme building, and the old tower, LAX has changed so much that it is somewhat unrecognizable.

If you have any experience with LAX in the 80s, sign up, login and leave a comment below.

AirportHistory.org – PHOTO SPECIAL: LAX in the 1960s – Part 1: A fantastic read.

JonProctor.net – 1966 – BACK TO LAX – Detailed reading about Jon Proctor’s career at TWA & LAX.

• LAX THROUGH THE YEARS – Photos & Photos of all types of equipment throughout the early years of LAX.