Back In Time: CLT’s Oldest Runway

(Photos Courtesy of: Sullenberger Aviation Museum & CLT Archives)

The Airport celebrated Aviation Week (August 19-25) by highlighting CLT's exciting offerings for passengers, aviation enthusiasts and the region, as well as recent expansion milestones and ongoing projects.

One of the most significant changes underway at our airfield is CLT's preparation for the new Fourth Parallel Runway, scheduled to open in fall 2027.

We thought it would be a good time to look back at the oldest operational runway (18L-36R), which marked the beginning of CLT’s airfield. It’s a full-circle moment, nearly 90 years later.

A CLT Original Comes Full Circle

• 1935-36: Runway construction underway.
• 1938: Runways 18-36 & 04-22 (later 05-23) commissioned.
• 1980: Left and Right were added to the 18L-36R designation after a second North-South parallel runway was built.
• 2026: Runway 18L-36R will be redesignated, reverting to the original 18-36.

On Sept. 3, crews will work overnight (midnight to 5 a.m.) to remove and repaint 63 surface-painted signs. They will also remove 108 sign panels, install 35 vertical taxiway sign structures and update signage at six vehicle service road sign locations.

Historical Timeline

The historical significance of Runway 18L-36R at Charlotte Douglas International Airport can’t be overstated.

It’s where Air Force One lands when it flies into CLT, because it can taxi to the nearby Air National Guard ramp. It also serves as the primary runway for general aviation and private aircraft.

Our easternmost runway is the oldest and busiest on the airfield. In 2025, Runway 18L-36R recorded 221,059 aircraft operations, accounting for 40% of CLT’s takeoffs and landings.

According to the Sullenberger Aviation Museum archives:

Built between 1935 and 1936, Runway 18-36 was one of three original runways (including former Runways 05-23 and 11-29) constructed by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) at what was then Charlotte Municipal Airport. It measured 3,000 feet long by 150 feet wide.

“The story I was told was that the WPA started bringing the materials in on the railroad and literally pulled the stuff off, measured off what at the time was an acceptable distance and started grading and paving the runway,” said Jack Christine, CLT Chief Infrastructure Officer. “18-36 was the first one they started with because it was closest to the railroad, working from north to south.”

• In 1937, Eastern Air Lines began serving Charlotte Municipal Airport with two daily flights.

• By 1940, Runway 18-36 had been lengthened to 5,000 feet to accommodate Eastern Air Lines' fleet of ever-improving aircraft.

• From 1941 to 46 (during World War II), the U.S. Department of War invested $6 million in the Airport to create Morris Field, which served as a U.S. Army Air Corps base. A portion of that funding was used to convert the runways from clay landing strips to paved runways. They also lengthened and widened the runways for use by military aircraft.

• In 1964, Runway 18-36 was lengthened again from 5,117 feet to 7,787 feet to accommodate commercial jet aircraft and was narrowed back to 150 feet wide. (By then, iconic airlines, such as Eastern Air Lines, Piedmont Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines were serving Douglas Municipal Airport.)

• In 1978, the western taxiways were added.

• In 1994, the predominantly asphalt runway (by then renamed 18L-36R) got a 1,000-foot concrete extension at its southern end.

Its current length is 8,676 feet (150 feet wide).

When the new Fourth Parallel opens, CLT’s original 18-36 runway will close for up to a year to undergo heavy maintenance because weather, operations and heavy aircraft have taken a toll on the asphalt, which is more challenging to maintain.

“We’re also going to have to move the runway about 2,000 feet to the south and rebuild the taxiway system and change the grades of the runway,” added Christine.

Check out Aviation City

To learn more about the full history of CLT from the mid-1930s to the present, visit the Sullenberger Aviation Museum’s historic hangar, which sits at the north end of Runway 18L-36R and is now home to the “Aviation City” exhibit.

Sullenberger Aviation Museum' 'Aviation City' exhibit explores the joint development of CLT airport, its surrounding industries, and Charlotte itself,” said XX. “It features a Piedmont Airlines DC-3, the star of our newest 'Inside the DC-3' tour, and an NCANG T-33 Shooting Star equipped with wheelchair-accessible interactive jet simulators.”

‘Aviation City' is a permanent installation at the museum and is open Tuesday-Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4:30 p.m.