Airports to get $566M more for improvements
Passengers walk to board an airplance at Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Kehole in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. Kevin Carter via Getty Images
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To date, nearly half of the nation’s 3,000 airports have received federal funding to upgrade aging infrastructure and expand facilities amid record-breaking air travel.
Nearly 300 grants were awarded to airports across the country Tuesday to revamp runways, terminals, security checkpoints, parking garages and other airport infrastructure, according to the Biden administration.
The Federal Aviation Administration handed out more than $566 million to facilities in 47 states as part of a grant program to modernize airports that was included under the 2021 infrastructure law. This is the ninth funding announcement by the FAA this year. In total, $2.89 billion will be allocated in 2024—the third year in a five-year, $15 billion grant program.
Most notably, about half the nation’s 3,000 airports have received funding to date through the Airport Infrastructure Grants program, according to the administration. Some of those projects have even been completed, including a taxiway at San Diego International Airport in California.
“We’re helping ensure traveler safety by upgrading every part of airfield operations, from better runway and taxiway configuration to vivid signage, better lighting and improved pavement markings," said Shannetta R. Griffin, associate administrator for airports at the FAA, in a statement.
Americans have been willing to travel at record levels following the pandemic. Last year, the U.S. aviation industry celebrated its busiest year ever for air travel with 16.3 million flights. To meet the growing demand, airports across the country have been prioritizing upgrades to aging infrastructure and planning necessary expansions.
Indeed, most of the grants this round were to address infrastructure updates.
The Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Kehole in Hawaii secured the most money in the latest announcement of funds, with a nearly $50 million grant to rehabilitate a deteriorating runway. Operations at the airport have been shut down twice this year to assess cracks on the runway.
The Seattle-Tacoma International Airport landed $45 million to fund structural, seismic and building system upgrades to a concourse. The airport had previously received $10 million earlier this year to widen the arrivals terminal by two lanes.
And the Charlotte/Douglas International in North Carolina won $43 million to pay for a deicing pad, taxiways, aircraft parking areas, grading and drainage, lighting and signage to meet current FAA standards.
One of the grants was designed to help the airport be more resilient to climate change—a theme in earlier rounds of funding. In Kentucky, the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport received $34 million to expand the existing terminal and add a TSA checkpoint, solar microgrid, and emergency generator. Earlier this year, the airport had won grants for security improvements and to build a microgrid that would allow the airport to function better during emergencies.
In Las Vegas, the Harry Reid International got $20 million to rehabilitate elevators to better comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The airport had received $27.8 million in April to install runway drains to protect the pavement from deterioration.
Under the grant program, the funds can be used for airport planning, development, sustainability, terminal expansions, baggage system upgrades, runway safety enhancements and noise compatibility projects at eligible airports.
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