

In June 1951, four runways were at 45-degree angles, between 5,000 and 6,100 feet (1,500 and 1,900 m) long the northeast–southwest and northwest–southeast runways intersected just west of the north–south runway that eventually became today's runway 34R. The official opening ceremony took place on July 9, 1947, in front of a crowd of 30,000. The original terminal was designed by architect Herman A. The first scheduled airline flights were Northwest and Trans-Canada in 1947 Western and United moved from Boeing Field in the next couple of years, and Pan Am moved in 1952–53, but West Coast and successors Air West and Hughes Airwest stayed at Boeing Field until 1971. The Port received $1 million from the Civil Aeronautics Administration to build the airport and $100,000 from the City of Tacoma. military took control of Boeing Field in World War II.


The airport was built by the Port of Seattle in 1944 after the U.S. As of 2022, 31 airlines operate at SEA, serving 91 domestic and 28 international destinations. It is also a hub and international gateway for Delta Air Lines, which has expanded at the airport since 2011. It is the primary hub for Alaska Airlines, whose headquarters are near the airport. The airport has flights to cities throughout North America, Oceania, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. airports with similar annual passenger numbers. The entire airport covers an area of 2,500 acres (3.9 sq mi 10 km 2), much smaller than other U.S. The airport, which is the busiest in the Pacific Northwest region of North America, is situated between Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, British Columbia, and is owned by Port of Seattle. It is in the city of SeaTac, which was named after the airport's nickname “Sea-Tac”, approximately 14 miles (23 km) south of Downtown Seattle and 18 miles (29 km) north-northeast of Downtown Tacoma. Seattle–Tacoma International Airport ( IATA: SEA, ICAO: KSEA, FAA LID: SEA), branded as SEA Airport and also referred to as Sea–Tac ( / ˈ s iː t æ k/), is the primary commercial airport serving the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S.
