O’Hare expansion cleared for takeoff

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg discusses the O’Hare International Airport expansion Monday in Terminal 2, which will be replaced with a new “global terminal” handling both international and domestic flights. (Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times)

O’Hare International Airport got the official federal go-ahead Monday for a $7.1 billion project to replace Terminal 2 with a “global terminal” intended to link domestic and international flights in one location.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Mayor Lori Lightfoot and other dignitaries announced that the Federal Aviation Administration had completed a four-year environmental study paving the way for the project.