The Stories Behind Airport Names: People Or Places?

While many airports are named after the city they are located in, it is common for airports to be named after significant figures in history. For example, New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport is named after the 35th president of the United States. This practice is seen worldwide and can attract tourism and highlight a country's talent. However, the majority of airports across the US are named after white men, with few named after women or people of colour.

Airports named after sportspeople

While it is common for airports to be named after politicians, historical figures, composers, or scientists, it is less common for them to be named after sportspeople. However, there are a few notable examples of airports that have been named after sportspeople, including:

Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport (FNC)

Located in Madeira, Portugal, this airport is named after the famous footballer who is considered one of the greatest of all time. The airport was established in 1964 and has undergone several name changes since then. In 2017, it was renamed after Ronaldo, who is a native of the archipelago. The name change was met with mixed reactions, with some Madeirans opposing it while the international media ridiculed it.

Muhammad Ali International Airport (SDF)

Located in Louisville, Kentucky, USA, this airport was previously known as Louisville International Airport. In 2019, the name was changed to honour the legendary boxer who was a native of the city. The new logo features Ali's silhouette with his arms up in victory, against the background of a butterfly. Interestingly, Ali was known to have a fear of flying.

George Best Belfast City Airport (BHD)

Based in Belfast, Northern Ireland, this airport was renamed in 2006 in memory of the Northern Irish footballer George Best, who spent most of his club career at Manchester United. The renaming caused some controversy due to Best's struggles with alcoholism, which ultimately led to his death in 2005.

Arnold Palmer Regional Airport (LBE)

This airport in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, USA, is named after the famous golfer Arnold Palmer, who grew up in the area and learned to fly at this airport. Established in 1924, the airport has had several name changes throughout its history.

Tenzing-Hillary Airport (LUA)

Previously known as Lukla Airport, this airport in Lukla, Nepal, is named after Sherpa Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary, the first people to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Established by Hillary in 1964, it is considered one of the world's most perilous airports due to its accessibility only by small aircraft and helicopters.

Airports named after politicians

While not all airports are named after people, many are indeed named after politicians.

United States

In the United States, 8 commercial airports are named after US presidents. These include:

• Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport (LIT) – Little Rock, Arkansas
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) – Houston, Texas
• Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) – Washington, D.C.
• Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR) – Grand Rapids, Michigan
• John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) – New York City, New York
• Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport (ICT) – Wichita, Kansas
• Dickinson Theodore Roosevelt Regional Airport (DIK) – Dickinson, North Dakota
• Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport (SPI) – Springfield, Illinois

In addition to the above, several other airports in the US are named after politicians, including:

• Harry Reid International Airport – Paradise, Nevada
• Baltimore–Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport – Maryland
• Arnold Palmer Regional Airport – Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania
• Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport – Louisville, Kentucky
• LaGuardia Airport – New York (named after a former NYC Mayor)
• Houston's Hobby Airport – named after a Texas Governor
• Washington's Dulles Airport – named after a Secretary of State and Senator

Canada

Canada is no different, with 2 of its 3 busiest airports named after Prime Ministers. These include:

• Montréal–Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport – Montreal, Quebec
• Toronto Pearson International Airport – Toronto, Ontario

Other Canadian airports named after politicians include:

• Saskatoon John G. Diefenbaker Airport – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
• Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport – Ottawa, Ontario
• Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport – Winnipeg, Manitoba
• Halifax Stanfield International Airport – Halifax, Nova Scotia (named after a Premier of Nova Scotia)
• Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport – Québec City, Quebec (named after a Premier of Québec)
• Hamilton John C. Munro Airport – Hamilton, Ontario (named after a federal minister)
• Moncton Roméo LeBlanc Airport – Moncton (named after a governor general and federal minister)

Other countries

Many other countries also have airports named after politicians, including:

• Indira Gandhi International Airport – New Delhi, India
• Atatürk International Airport – Istanbul, Turkey (named after Mustafa Kemal Atatürk)
• Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport – Rome, Italy
• Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport – Madrid, Spain (named after the first prime minister of Spain after the Franco dictatorship)
• John Lennon Airport – Liverpool, UK
• Charles de Gaulle Airport – Paris, France
• Rajiv Gandhi International Airport – Hyderabad, India
• Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport – Kolkata, India
• King Abdulaziz International Airport – Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (named after Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia)
• King Fahd International Airport – Dammam, Saudi Arabia (named after Fahd of Saudi Arabia)
• King Khalid International Airport – Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (named after Khalid of Saudi Arabia)
• Julius Nyerere International Airport – Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
• Tenzing-Hillary Airport – Lukla, Nepal (named after the first people to reach the summit of Mount Everest)
• Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport – Madeira, Portugal
• Arnold Palmer Regional Airport – Latrobe, Pennsylvania, US (named after the golfer)
• George Best Belfast City Airport – Belfast, Northern Ireland (named after the Northern Irish footballer)
• Jomo Kenyatta International Airport – Nairobi, Kenya
• Ben Gurion International Airport – Tel Aviv, Israel
• Imam Khomeini International Airport – Tehran, Iran

Airports named after artists

Naming airports after famous people is a common practice worldwide. Airports are often named after politicians, sportspeople, scientists, and artists. While the majority of airports are still named after white men, there has been a push in recent years to diversify honorees and recognise people of colour and women.

Musicians

• Astor Piazzolla International Airport, Mar del Plata, Argentina – named after Ástor Piazzolla, a composer and musician born in Mar del Plata.
• W. A. Mozart Airport, Salzburg, Austria.
• John Lennon Airport, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
• Louis Armstrong International Airport, New Orleans, United States.
• Giuseppe Verdi Airport, Parma, Italy.
• Antonio Carlos Jobim International Airport, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – named after the Brazilian composer.
• Frédéric Chopin Airport, Warsaw, Poland – Chopin grew up in Warsaw and gave concerts in the city.
• Rafael Hernández Airport, Aguadilla, Puerto Rico – named after Rafael Hernández Marín.
• Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport, Rome, Italy.
• Sydney Nancy-Bird Walton International Airport, Sydney, Australia.

Visual Artists

• César Manrique Lanzarote Airport, Lanzarote, Spain – named after César Manrique, a local artist, sculptor, architect, and activist.
• Raffaello Sanzio Airport, Falconara-Ancona, Italy – named after Raffaello Sanzio, or Raphael, the Italian painter and architect.

Airports named after scientists

Naming airports after famous people is a common practice worldwide. Airports are often the first place travellers arrive in a city or country, and naming them after famous individuals allows places to showcase their talent and distinguish themselves. While airports are often named after politicians and sportspeople, some airports around the world are named after scientists. Here are some examples:

Nikola Tesla International Airport, Belgrade, Serbia

Named after the Serbian-American inventor, electrical engineer, and visionary, Nikola Tesla, this airport is located in Belgrade, Serbia's capital and largest city. Tesla is renowned for his pioneering contributions to the fields of electricity and electromagnetism, and his work has had a significant impact on modern life.

Guglielmo Marconi Airport, Bologna, Italy

Bologna's airport is named after Italian inventor and engineer, Guglielmo Marconi. Marconi is known for his groundbreaking work in long-distance radio transmission, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1909. His innovations laid the foundation for wireless communication technology, including radio broadcasting and wireless telegraphy.

Galileo Galilei Airport, Pisa, Italy

The airport serving the city of Pisa in Tuscany, Italy, was formerly named after the renowned Italian scientist Galileo Galilei. Galilei made significant contributions to the fields of physics, astronomy, and mathematics during the Scientific Revolution. His work included improvements to the telescope, as well as discoveries in kinetics and astronomy. The airport has since been renamed Pisa International Airport.

Leonardo da Vinci/Fiumicino International Airport, Rome, Italy

Rome's primary airport is named after the Italian polymath Leonardo da Vinci. Known primarily as an artist, da Vinci was also a highly influential inventor, scientist, engineer, and mathematician. His ideas and creations, such as the "Vitruvian Man" and flying machines, have left an enduring legacy in the worlds of art and science.

Copernicus International Airport, Wroclaw, Poland

This airport in Wroclaw, Poland, is named after the Renaissance mathematician and astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus. Copernicus formulated a model of the universe that placed the Sun, rather than the Earth, at the centre. This heliocentric model revolutionised the understanding of the solar system and is considered a pivotal moment in the history of science.

While these airports are all named after scientists, it is worth noting that the practice of naming airports after individuals can be controversial and may be subject to change over time.

Airports named after explorers

Naming airports after famous personalities is a relatively common practice worldwide. Explorers, sportspeople, artists, scientists, musicians, composers, politicians, and writers are among those who have been honoured in this way.

Explorers

• Chicago O'Hare International Airport, USA: Named after Edward Henry "Butch" O'Hare, a US Navy pilot who was awarded the Medal of Honour in 1942 for his service during World War II.
• Dayton-Wright Brothers Airport, Ohio, USA: Named after Orville and Wilbur Wright, the inventors of the first successful powered aircraft.
• Tenzing-Hillary Airport, Lukla, Nepal: Named after Sherpa Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary, the first people to reach the summit of Mount Everest.

While the above airports are explicitly named after explorers, there are many other airports named after individuals who were also explorers in some capacity, including politicians and artists. These include:

• Mustafa Kemal Atatürk International Airport, Istanbul, Turkey: Named after Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the first president of Turkey, who was also an amateur archaeologist and ethnographer.
• Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport, Rome, Italy: Named after Leonardo da Vinci, a polymath who made significant contributions to art, science, engineering, and anatomy, among other fields.
• John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, USA: Named after John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, who was also a naval veteran.
• Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, India: Named after Indira Gandhi, the first female prime minister of India, who was also a writer and poet.

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