My Kansas City airport experience was contained to the Southwest Terminal B, but this terminal is…read morepretty nice! There's a play area for kids, a pet relief station, gender neutral restrooms, plenty of restaurants (including two restaurants to get Kansas City barbecue), a general store and lots of other things. The airport is clean and has lots of natural lighting. For a one-hour layover, this was a pretty good airport to land in.

While KCI has gotten a major makeover and has now joined us in the 21st century, they still have a…read moreways to go in terms of getting people through security. While the renovations were much needed and the airport now functions as an airport in this century, the TSA lines are ridiculously long for a relatively small international airport in the Midwest. Though there are 15 security lines for customers to get their ID and ticket checked, only 3 were open. While this is more of a TSA issue than KCI, it really could be resolved by following what some other airports have done to get people in and out quickly. Perhaps a reservation system that many other airports use for TSA?! An update to the security infrastructure should be the next task they take on. What is currently in place is very outdated and leads to longer wait times in security. Lots of new restaurants and snack places have been added across the B concourse. Updated chairs with cup holders- a plus-and charging stations are installed at every gate. Restrooms are clean and provide a red light/green light situation to let you know which stalls are vacant and which are occupied this is an excellent idea that many restrooms should adopt! Baggage claim and ground transportation run smoothly. Buses to the car rental places are easy to find and are minutes away from the terminal. The PA system on the B concourse works really well. It is clear but overly loud which makes the announcements seem like they are shouting at you. Good job so far. Let's hope the updates continue.

My first private plane ride! When my pilot friend asked if I wanted to go flying, I said 'Heck…read moreyes'! This place has storage units for people to store their planes when not in use. It's nice and clean here and way out south away from most folks so you can see a lot of country. The view up here is amazing, and I'm so glad I got to experience this!

We really like LWC, but then again, we're Jayhawkers. If you don't have any reason to be in…read moreLawrence, you probably won't learn much from its airport. It's a cute airport with runways in every direction and decently priced full-serve 100LL fuel. But it's a few miles from town with no courtesy car or regular on site rentals. The folks working the counter are happy to help however they can though. We have had maintenance done by the shop on site and they are very affordable and friendly, though a bit overbooked. If you're flying in during football or basketball season, expect a full ramp and distracted staff, as the KU alumni can take over the place pretty easily.

Excellent experience going on today for our N126M TurboCommander. Nice lobby for all pax and crew…read moreneeds. Good crew car and lovely lady attending. Great line guy, even spun my props.

My bestie is a dog breeder for high end dogs. She has sold puppies all over the world. Many of the…read morepeople who buy her dogs travel to KC by private plane so they use the Charles Wheeler Airport. I have been there on several occasions to deliver pups and I have enjoyed each visit to this quaint airport. It is very easy to navigate for starters and that is always a plus for me. There are two main buildings for private plane arrivals and departures at this airport - Signature and Atlantic. I have been to both locations and they are very nice buildings. The staff has done everything they can to make these areas comfortable and accommodating. There is a lounge area, vending machines, ice, water... everything you would need to recharge before your next flight. Granted... you are not going to get a steak dinner here but you can find plenty to tide you over. Every time I have been to these buildings, the staff has been incredible. They have been courteous, obliging and oh-so-helpful. There was one occasion where a white puppy I was delivering got carsick and it was quite the mess. Even the building maintenance staff helped me round up paper towels and create a space for me to clean up the pup. There is never a problem with parking or access. There are always plenty of parking spaces and both buildings have easy access. Atlantic is the fancier of the two buildings with big glass windows, a fountain in front of the building, revolving door and a beautiful plant filled lobby. This is not to say Signature is an inferior building by any means. Atlantic seems to be more sleek while Signature is more old school conservative. The TWA Museum is located in a separate building abs it is amazing. If you get the time, it is worth going. They have lovely artifacts from days long gone when flying was an event. Men and women dressed up and traveled in style. They also have the Coni airplane there that you can tour. This airport used to be the main airport for KC. It was dedicated by Charles Lindbergh himself back in 1927. Sometimes when I am there, I close my eyes and imagine all the hustle and bustle of those times. The Goodbyes and Hellos, the lovers giving one last embrace and loved ones welcoming back their military sons and daughters, families rushing around with small children trying to catch their plane. The cries and laughter and hope of all who traveled through. The smallness of this airport adds to the mystique and romance. Go there sometimes and close your eyes. You will see what I see, as well.

So MKC was our home airport for a while. We loved having our airplane hangared here and miss it…read moredeeply. The airport management was amazing and completely professional. The grounds were spotless, billing for our space never had an issue, and they were happy to answer every question we threw at them. This is a perfect middle-of-the-country stop if you're flying a small airplane. It's very near downtown KC (although I can't tell you much about the FBOs' transportation options to get in to the city). It's really easy to fly in and out of-- especially considering that it's right down the road from the big commercial airport and its Bravo airspace. It is by far the cheapest (self-serve) fuel for hundreds of miles in any direction. We actually asked the staff about that, and they noted that they work pretty hard to keep it low to attract the traffic. The GA terminal is a great space for passing through and laying over. It's secured from both sides of the field, so you have to get buzzed in and out, but the 24-hour staff on the other end of the phone are helpful. It doesn't actually have a lot of services in it though- vending machines, water and ice, full restrooms, and a lounge. And staff for a few hours a week. If you take a cab in or out, describing how to find the GA terminal can be tricky; it's on the far side of the grounds. The airport grounds (outside the fence) are also a favorite runner/cyclist loop. It's a wide-open 3-mile 2-lane loop around the airport, so it is the perfect place for a lot of sunset workouts. However, that means that trying to drive that loop to get to the hangars can be an obstacle course. The saddest thing about MKC was the lack of "GA culture". That's not too uncommon among the executive airports, but it always seemed like a wasted opportunity. With just a little bit of love, they really could have the hangar flyers and brunch crowds breathing life in to the place. Nevertheless, it is a great space and perfect for a cross-country stop.

I realize just how out of date my original review is after someone contacted me on yelp to ask…read moreabout the airport. Clearly I fly out of here a lot given my check-ins. It is very convenient for a variety of reasons: -Close to everywhere in town. -Clean and small. -Nice, spacious, clean restrooms both inside of and outside the secure area (totally opposite of MCI). -Lots of seating areas both inside of and outside the secure area. -There is now a coffee shop that serves food, iced tea, sparkling water, pastries, which is inside of the secure area but people can order from the concourse. This is open before the first early flight around 4:30 AM and closes after the last flight boards (around 5:30 PM). If you land in the evening, there is nothing to eat or drink besides what is in vending machines. -The baggage claim area is big and has seating and a real carousel, not the garage door of the past, and has the rental car agencies on the side. -TSA only opens up about 30-40 minutes before a flight so there is no need to get here super early unless checking a bag. -Valet baggage is easy and comes out on the top of the jetbridge so you do not have to be so close to the outside when it is cold outside. -The demand for flights has increased plane sizes from 1-2 seaters to 2-2 seaters, and sometimes we even have planes with first class (which is not too exciting on a regional jet, but hey...)! -Free and reliable wifi, a significant upgrade from times of the past. -The airport is very engaged on social media and has had lots of contests and giveaways for travelers here. -The airport deals with weather conditions quickly and safely. When considering which airport to fly out of, it depends on a number of factors: 1) Cost - it can be more to fly out of MHK instead of ICT, SLN, or MCI. Yet consider the cost of driving 1-2 hours, paying tolls, gas, parking, braving weather...and sometimes this is a better situation for a few more bucks. 2) Convenience - it is really easy to get to the airport, and rarely are there any issues inside. 3) Weather - regional jets might get cancelled more easily due to weather, especially from DFW and ORD where flights go to/from here. I have been stuck in DFW overnight many times, and ORD just sucks. 4) Luggage - you will be forced to check a bag that is too big to valet. When you board, valet bags go on a cart in the jetbridge and you can then take your personal item with you on the plane only. The caveat is when you land at DFW or ORD, you will have to wait for your bag in the jet bridge, which can be stressful if you already land, taxi forever, wait for gate agents to activate jet bridge, then wait for the bag and you have to change planes. The processes in DFW and ORD are not uniform, as in bags get pulled at random in a free for fall despite people's waiting in line. When you land in MHK, the bags all come up on the nice cart so people can grab them orderly from the line. 5) Parking - right now parking is free, so take advantage. Very soon, MHK will be doing construction on parking lots and will charge for parking, which is a bummer. This change was already passed and will go into effect in 2020. 6) TSA - there is a modified pre-check option so you can keep your shoes and light jacket on, but electronic devices, toiletries, and FOOD must be separated out in the scanner. Yes, if you have snacks in your backpack like granola bars, they must come out. You will get a little laminated card to take to the metal detector so you can do the pre-check one instead of the body scanner. 7) Destination - to get to Denver, it is better to fly SLN-HYS-DEN which Eric R. just did this weekend. Getting west is mostly through Dallas, and getting east is mostly through Chicago. There are more non-stop options out of ICT and MCI. Safe travels and remember to get a Real ID before October 2020 or use your passport!

Time for an updated review of little MHK now that they are open again. First off, avoid leaving on…read morethe early flight unless you have independent ground transport or are parking your car there - area has no reliable cab/Uber service that early in the morning. The noon flight is about $40 more at the time of this review, but that is also the cost of a wasted Uber trip out from town if you miss the flight (see below). Second thing to be aware of is that Envoy/AA uses a strict interpretation of the boarding rules at this airport, and if you are not onboard or in the gate area (this does not include the ticketing area 120 steps away!) well in advance of the 15 min period they will give your seat away. It seems (per my discussion with the agent this morning) that they feel free to jump the gun on the 15 minutes if they think you aren't going to make it in time...I walked in at 5:40 for a 5:56 departure (Uber timestamp) and was denied boarding. I inquired and the agent confirmed my seat had already been reassigned...sigh...oh well live and learn!