American, United file lawsuit to halt O'Hare expansion

American Airlines and United Airlines this week filed a lawsuit in Illinois to stop the City of Chicago from moving forward with the second phase of Chicago O'Hare expansion, arguing that the city government failed to get clearance from the carriers before approving $3.4 billion in modernization projects at the busy airport.

The crux of the dispute is whether the airlines, by far ORD's two largest tenants, are entitled to have veto power over large capital expenditures at the airport. AA and UA state in the suit that they do, noting that much of the cost of expansion will be passed on to them via landing fees and other charges. "Although the city's position presupposes a 'blank check' from the airlines, the parties agreed in their contracts to a 'check and balance' that prohibits the city from saddling O'Hare with new capital projects and billions of dollars of debt without airline approval," the lawsuit asserted.
Chicago Dept. of Aviation Commissioner Rosemarie Andolino said in a statement that "timing is essential" and expansion needs to move forward: "The opportunity to realize the benefits … cannot be lost."

The airlines warned that "there will be no way to un-ring the bell" if expansion proceeds, burdening the carriers with heavy costs. "The projects will move forward at exorbitant expense financed by massive, unauthorized bond offerings," the suit claimed.