What's the story behind Phoenix Sky Harbor's fly-in chapel?




Valley 101 show

Summary: Before Las Vegas became known as the quickie wedding hotspot, people flew to Phoenix. Or at least that's what Phoenix's Junior Chamber of Commerce hoped for.  The story dates back to 1937. The city had purchased Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport two years prior in 1935. Most states across the U.S. at this point had laws mandating a 3-day waiting period for couples wishing to wed. But Arizona didn't.  Capitalizing on that lack of regulation, the airport built a chapel and advertised fly-in weddings. The hope was to draw in Hollywood celebrities who wanted to marry quickly and under-the-radar, hopefully without paparazzi.    It wasn't a total success, but it wasn't a failure either. Listen to this week's episode of Valley 101, an Arizona Republic and azcentral.com podcast answering questions about metro Phoenix, to uncover the history of Phoenix's fly-in chapel.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices