University of Illinois Willard Airport
University of Illinois Willard Airport
University of Illinois Willard Airport (IATA: CMI, ICAO: KCMI, FAA LID: CMI), also known as Willard Airport and Champaign–Urbana Airport, is an airport south of Savoy in Tolono Township, Champaign County, Illinois, United States. It is owned and operated by the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign and is named for former University of Illinois president Arthur Cutts Willard.
Location
40.040°N, 88.276°O · 230 m s. n. m. (755 ft)
General data
Runways · 3
Lengths and surfaces from the public OurAirports register; open runways only.
Radio frequencies · 9 Official publication
Tower
Ground
Clearance delivery
ATIS (automatic information)
Approach
UNICOM
Frequencies from the official publication: FAA NASR, AIRAC 01 OCT 2026, checked on Oct 16, 2026. They change with each amendment: not for navigation without checking the current AIP. See the official publication In MHz.
History
The airport was dedicated on 26 October 1945. Airline flights began in 1954. The terminal building built in 1960 was used until the present terminal was completed in 1987. By 1969, Willard was the second-busiest airport in the state of Illinois. After the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, many airlines found service to small airports to be inefficient. As the price differential to airfares from major hub airports such as Chicago O'Hare grew, demand for tickets from Willard fell and caused airlines to leave.
Until 2014, the airport was home to the University of Illinois Institute of Aviation, a research and pilot training facility. The university trustees voted to shutter the institute in 2011 while allowing enrolled students to complete their studies. In 2013, the university agreed to transfer the pilot training function of the institute to Parkland College, a local community college. The university continues to operate the airport and provides an annual subsidy of $433,000 for its operations.
Traffic at Willard airport declined significantly from 2005 to 2013. According to FAA published data, in CY2013 there were 84,853 passenger enplanements compared to 132,077 in 2005. Overall traffic also declined to 54,653 total Combined TRACON / Tower operations in CY 2013 compared to 123,341 in CY2005.
The airport gained some notoriety for a January 21, 1998, incident in which Air Force One became stuck in mud, requiring a backup aircraft to transport President Bill Clinton from a speaking engagement at the University of Illinois' Assembly Hall. The pilot opted to enter the main taxiway from the ramp using a feeder taxiway with an unusually large angle. Due to the wide turn, the right main gear left the taxiway and slipped into the soft turf, causing the aircraft to be lodged in the mud. The Air Force dispatched backup aircraft SAM26000, which first entered service during the Kennedy Administration and would be retired later in 1998.
In January 2023, the airport announced that larger planes will service Dallas–Fort Worth and that expanded service will be offered to Chicago O'Hare. Also, the Institute of Aviation announced an expanded pilot training program.
The airport also announced plans to expand the passenger terminal and TSA facilities as well as to upgrade the taxiway design to remain aligned with FAA standards. In addition, plans for new firefighting facilities are in the works, especially featuring the airport's first new fire truck in 19 years.
What flies here
From our own logbook: 185 aircraft documented between 2006 and 2025.
Types seen here
Airlines with documented aircraft
Busiest routes from here
A count of our own aircraft profiles, year by year, from the public United States flight records: it reflects what we have documented, not the airport’s total traffic.
Airlines operating here · 1
Other airlines with direct routes
Airlines with current passenger routes from here, according to Wikipedia route tables cross-checked from both ends (October 2026).
Photo: FAA · Public domain · view original
Data from OurAirports (public domain) · destinations and airlines from Wikipedia route tables (CC BY-SA, 2026), unless another source is given · profile and photo from Wikidata/Wikimedia Commons (CC0 / CC) · summary and history from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
Cite
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This page was last updated on October 16, 2026
APA
Vuelopedia. (2026, October 16). University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI). Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/CMI
MLA
“University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI).” Vuelopedia, Fundación Poderia, 16 Oct. 2026, vuelopedia.org/en/airport/CMI. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.
Chicago
Vuelopedia. “University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI).” Fundación Poderia. Last modified October 16, 2026. https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/CMI.
Harvard
Vuelopedia (2026) University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI). Available at: https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/CMI (Accessed: 17 October 2026).
BibTeX
@misc{vuelopedia_en_airport_cmi,
author = {{Vuelopedia}},
title = {{University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI)}},
publisher = {Fundación Poderia},
year = {2026},
date = {2026-10-16},
url = {https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/CMI},
howpublished = {\url{https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/CMI}},
urldate = {2026-10-17},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-17}
}Wikipedia
{{cite web |url=https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/CMI |title=University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI) |website=Vuelopedia |publisher=Fundación Poderia |date=2026-10-16 |access-date=2026-10-17 |language=en}}