By Harriet Baskas

On the Web Airport Web site Airport maps Ground transportation The General Mitchell International Airport (airport code: MKE), named in honor of Milwaukee’s Brigadier General William “Billy” Mitchell, is Wisconsin’s busiest airport, serving more than 5 million passengers annually.

Get oriented Take care of yourself Take care of business Explore the airport Go into town

Get oriented Baggage note Luggage carts rent for $3, and you get 25¢ back when you return a cart to the rack. Lockers are currently closed. The airport has one central terminal area with three concourses—C, D, and E—each with its own security checkpoint. It should take you no longer than 5 minutes to walk the terminal end to end. Concourse C (Gates 20–27) serves American Eagle, America West, Comair, and Delta. Concourse D (Gates 30–56) serves Air Canada, United Express, Midwest Airlines, and Midwest Express/Connection. Concourse E (Gates 60–69) serves AirTran, Funjet, Continental, and Northwest. A renovation of the atrium area of the terminal, including an expansion of the food court area, is planned for late 2003. When it’s done, airport officials promise a wider array of choices in shops and eateries. Take care of yourself Eat: In the main terminal area you’ll find one table-service restaurant, General Mitchell’s Café. This restaurant has nice views of airfield activities and offers local dishes such as Wisconsin wild rice salad, Wisconsin cheese soup, perch, and items from Wisconsin beef and pork farms. Food note Best bet for a carry-on meal: Sandwiches from Usinger’s Deli in the food court in the main terminal. Best sinful snack: Candy, by the piece or the pound, from Quality Candy/Buddy Squirrel, the candy shop in the main terminal. There’s also a small food court in the main terminal with a Pizza Hut Express, Usinger’s Deli (bratwursts, hot dogs, and sandwiches), and a Burger King. Father down the atrium area you’ll find Starbucks, Gourmet Bean, Le Croissant, and an ice-cream shop. Each concourse also has at least one food outlet and bar. Relax and refresh: The main terminal area is a high-ceilinged atrium with a clock and several banks of comfortable chairs at the centerpoint. There are no on-site health clubs or hair salons, but the nearby Four Points by Sheraton at Milwaukee Airport hotel offers travelers a day rate (ask for their “Distress Rate”) that includes access to the exercise room and pool. Smokers can light up in the smoking room located next to the restaurant, by the entrance to Concourse E, in the main terminal area. Take care of business Business note A full-service branch of the M & I Bank, located in the main terminal, is open from 7 AM to 3 PM, Monday through Friday. Airline club members will find club rooms for Northwest on Concourse E, and for Midwest Express on the Concourse D. Non-club members who need to get some work done can plug their laptops into phones with data ports at one of eight work desks located in a quiet room just before the entrance to Concourse C. Nearby, you’ll find a postage machine and drop boxes for Fed Ex, UPS, and the USPO. Explore the airport Shop: Any gift shops/newsstand throughout the airport will sell you a cheese-head hat or a T-shirt emblazoned with “Say Cheese.” More interesting are the yummy items you’ll find at the Something Special from Wisconsin shop in the main terminal, which carries beer and wine, sausage, cheese, dried cranberries and blueberries, and an assortment of pretzels, mustards, and chocolates. All made in Wisconsin. Shopping note Best souvenir under $10: Wax-covered cheese in the shape of a cow, an airplane, a beer mug, a motorcycle, or the state of Wisconsin, from the Something Special from Wisconsin shop in the main terminal. Other shopping choices in the main terminal include the Country Store (candy, gifts, and toys), the Four Winds Gift Shop (Native American crafts and gifts), and the Harley Davidson Shop, which carries all manner of motorcycle memorabilia, including a special Biker Brew Coffee. The Renaissance Book Store is a special treat. This large and well-stocked used bookstore is open from 7:30 AM until 10 PM daily and is known for its stash of old Look magazines. Sightsee: Aviation buffs, kids, and just about anyone interested in history will enjoy browsing through the Mitchell Gallery of Flight, the aviation museum located just before the entrance to Concourse C. Inside, you’ll find memorabilia relating to General William Mitchell (the airport’s namesake), displays about the Graf Zeppelin and the Apollo space missions, and a wide assortment of airplane models, including the green and cranberry Lawson C-2 Airline, which featured 16 wicker passenger seats and no seatbelts. Just outside the museum, you’ll find a plaque and a model commemorating August 20, 1927, the day Charles Lindbergh flew into town in his Spirit of St. Louis airplane on his 48-state, 82-city tour. As you walk through the airport, don’t forget to look up: At one end of the terminal, you’ll see a model of a Curtiss 1911 Pusher, a copy of the one flown by John Kaminiski, Milwaukee’s first licencsed pilot. Keeping with the flying theme, hanging from the ceiling at the other end of the terminal is a dusty but impressive prehistoric bird-like creature. Lookout: The restaurant in the main terminal and many of the gate areas along the concourses offer nice views of the airfield. Play around: Older kids will enjoy the model airplanes and other aviation-related memorabilia in the Mitchell Gallery of Flight in the main terminal building, the model of the Curtiss 1911 Pusher hanging in the atrium, and the prehistoric bird-like creature hanging outside the candy shop. Families with very young children will be happy to know that MKE has a "Baby Care Room" on the south end of the main terminal, near the entrance to the skywalk that leads to the parking structure. Inside, you’ll find three changing stations, two bathrooms, and a playroom with a small slide and two rocking horses. Go into town More information For more information about Mitchell International Airport, call 1 (414) 747-5300. General Mitchell International Airport is about 10 miles and 15 minutes from downtown Milwaukee. A cab ride will cost about $18. Shuttle vans make the trip for about $10. If you don’t have much luggage, the public bus, Route 80, stops at the far end of the terminal and makes the trip downtown in about a half-hour. Fare: $1.50. For information and schedules, call 1 (414) 344-6711.  Guides to more than 65 airports are available online from Expedia's Airport Information page, or buy the whole book, Stuck at the Airport: A Traveler's Survival Guide, at Amazon.com.

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