University of Illinois Willard Airport
airport in Champaign County, Illinois, USA
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.
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.
The public source identifies “University of Illinois Willard Airport” as airport in Champaign County, Illinois, USA. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around University, Illinois and Willard.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “University of Illinois Willard Airport”, the useful work is to connect “airport in Champaign County, Illinois, USA” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 24, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1430662. Authority coordinates are 40.039, -88.278. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1945, 1954, 1960 and 1987.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “University of Illinois Willard Airport”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow University of Illinois Willard Airport primary sources, University of Illinois Willard Airport archive and University research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “University of Illinois Willard Airport”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “University of Illinois Willard Airport” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.