---
title: "LGA is which airport? New York"
description: "LGA is LaGuardia Airport in New York, United States. Why the code is LGA and not something you could guess, what KLGA means, and the codes it gets mixed up with."
url: https://atoneplace.net/airport/lga/
site: "At One Place"
---

# What airport is LGA?

**LGA is: LaGuardia Airport**

New York, United States

## Why the code is LGA

Fiorello La Guardia, the mayor who forced it into existence.

The airport authority or a contemporaneous record states this directly.

## The airport

- **IATA code:** LGA
- **ICAO code:** KLGA
- **Airport:** LaGuardia Airport
- **City:** New York, United States
- **Opened:** 1939
- **Code origin:** Documented

La Guardia refused to leave a plane at Newark in 1934 on the grounds that his ticket said New York, and used the resulting publicity to get a New York City airport built. It has a perimeter rule barring most flights over 1,500 miles, which is why you cannot fly LaGuardia to the west coast without a connection — Denver is the exception, and only because of a specific carve-out.

## Codes people book by mistake

| Code | What it actually is |
| --- | --- |
| JFK | Also New York, 10 miles away, and the one with the long-haul flights. LGA is domestic and short-haul by rule. |

## The other code, KLGA

Every airport has two codes. The three-letter IATA code, LGA, is the one on your boarding pass and your luggage tag, and it is assigned for commercial use. The four-letter ICAO code, KLGA, is the one pilots and controllers use, and it is assigned geographically: the first letter or two identify the region, so every airport in the same part of the world shares a prefix. That is why KLGA looks nothing like LGA.

## Common questions

### What airport is LGA?

LaGuardia Airport, in New York, United States.

### Why is New York's airport called LGA?

Fiorello La Guardia, the mayor who forced it into existence.

### What is the difference between LGA and KLGA?

LGA is the IATA code, used commercially — tickets, timetables, luggage tags. KLGA is the ICAO code, used operationally by pilots and air traffic control, and assigned geographically by region.

### Is LGA the same as JFK?

No. JFK is also New York, 10 miles away, and the one with the long-haul flights. LGA is domestic and short-haul by rule.

## Related pages

- [United States](https://atoneplace.net/country/united-states/)
- [The flag of United States](https://atoneplace.net/flag/united-states/)
- [Airport codes in United States](https://atoneplace.net/airport/in/united-states/)
- [What airport is JFK?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/jfk/)
- [What airport is JFK?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/jfk/)
- [What airport is LAX?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/lax/)
- [What airport is ORD?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/ord/)
- [What airport is ATL?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/atl/)
- [What airport is MCO?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/mco/)
- [What airport is DFW?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/dfw/)
- [What airport is EWR?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/ewr/)
- [What airport is SFO?](https://atoneplace.net/airport/sfo/)

## Sources

- Official vendor product documentation — At One Place (/about/)