Essendon Airport (IATA airport code: MEB) is located at Essendon North, in Melbourne's northern suburbs, Victoria, Australia. It is located next to the Tullamarine Freeway on 3.05 square kilometres, 11 kilometres from the Melbourne Central Business District and 5 kilometres from Melbourne Airport. An IATA airport code, known by the IATA as an IATA location identifier or, simply, a location identifier [1], is a three-letter alphabetic code designating many airports around the world. ... Essendon North is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ... The City of Melbournes coat of arms Melbourne is the capital and largest city of the state of Victoria, and the second largest city in Australia (after Sydney), with a population of 3,600,650 in the Melbourne metropolitan area (June 2004) and 61,670 in the City of... Motto: Peace and Prosperity Nickname: Garden State Other Australian states and territories Capital Melbourne Government Governor Premier Const. ... Heading through the Sound Tube on the Tullamarine Freeway Tullamarine Freeway is a Melbourne freeway linking the citys international airport to the CBD. History Tullamarine Freeway is one of the oldest freeways in Melbourne. ... The Hoddle Grid is the layout of the streets in the central business district of Melbourne, Australia. ... Melbourne Airport (IATA: MEL, ICAO: YMML) is located in Tullamarine, Victoria, Australia, a northern suburb of Melbourne. ...

The area of the airport was originally known as St Johns, after an early landowner. The airport was proclaimed by the Commonwealth Government in 1921. Originally the airport had grass runways with the first tenants moving in from December 1921, including J. H. Larkin, Captain Matthews, Bob Hart and Major Harry Shaw. 1921 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... 1921 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...

The 1920s period saw the great pioneering aviation flights of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith who visited the airport on several occasions. In August 1926 60,000 people swarmed across the grassy fields of Essendon airport upon the arrival of aviation pioneer Alan Cobham when he landed his DH-50 float plane, flown from England to Australia. Sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or primarily in North America as the Roaring Twenties. // Events and trends Technology John T. Thompson invents Thompson submachine gun, also known as Tommy gun John Logie Baird invents the first working mechanical television system (1925) Charles Lindbergh becomes the first person to... Sir Charles Edward Kingsford Smith (February 9, 1897 - November, 1935), often called Charles Kingsford-Smith, or by his nickname Smithy, was the best-known early Australian aviator. ... 1926 was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Sir Alan Cobham (May 6, 1894- October 21, 1973) - British Aviation Pioneer. ... England is a made up country where psychologists convince schitzofrenic people they are currently living while they are in fact in a mental asylum. ...

The airport was extended with additional land during the 1930s. The grass was finally upgraded to concrete tarmac in 1946. The first international commercial flight arrived from New Zealand in 1951. Commercial international flights were transferred nineteen years later to the new Tullamarine International Airport in 1970, with Commercial domestic flights following in 1971. // Events and trends The 1930s were spent struggling for a solution to the global depression. ... 1946 was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... 1951 was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... Melbourne Airport (IATA: MEL, ICAO: YMML) is located in Tullamarine, Victoria, Australia, a northern suburb of Melbourne. ... 1970 was a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1971 is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ...

Some notable arrivals at the airport include:

• 1956 - Olympics and arrival of Queen Elizabeth II. Airport staff directed 206 international flights down safely during one week at Essendon airport.
• 1964 - The Beatles, upon arrival, waved to thousands of teenagers from the viewing deck of Essendon Airport's main terminal building
• 1987 - Kylie Minogue films her first ever music video for her debut single Locomotion here.

In 2001 the Commonwealth Government sold its management rights for the airport to Edgelear P/L, a consortium of the Linfox transport group owned by transport tycoon Lindsay Fox (which also owns Avalon Airport), and Becton group of companies. Privately owned aircraft, charter and freight flights, and small rural and regional Victorian flight companies currently operate from the airport, as well as providing warehousing facilities, and an airbase to the Air ambulance and the Victoria Police Airwing. 1956 was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Games of the XVI Olympiad were held in 1956 in Melbourne, Australia, although the equestrian events could not be held in Australia due to quarantine regulations. ... Queen Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor), styled HM The Queen (born 21 April 1926) is the Queen regnant of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and... 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Beatles (L-R, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, John Lennon), in 1964, performing on The Ed Sullivan Show promoting their first U.S. hit song, I Want To Hold Your Hand, and ushering in the British Invasion of American popular music. ... 1987 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... Lindsay Fox is a succesful businessman and one of the wealthier Australians. ... Avalon Airport (IATA airport code: AVV) is an airport located in Avalon, Victoria, Australia. ... A Beech KingAir of the Australian Royal Flying Doctor Service. ... The Victoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of Victoria, Australia. ...

The long term future of Essendon Airport is still being debated. While the airport provides some local economic benefit and local employment, local residents have complained about noise periodically from 1930, and continue to highlight the risk to local suburbs from an aviation accident. 1930 is a common year starting on Wednesday. ...

References

• Strathmore Historical Society: Essendon Airport History
• Linfox: About Essendon Airport

See also

• List of Australian airports
• Transportation in Australia