WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – A South Florida airport officially changed its name on Thursday to the President Donald J. Trump International Airport.
Signs for the Palm Beach International Airport have been removed, while new signage goes up. “Because an entire airport transformation doesn’t happen overnight, you’ll notice a combination of both our classic look and our new brand elements coexisting while traveling through the terminal over the next several weeks,” airport officials stated on their Facebook page, emphasizing a smooth transition for travelers.
Marking the occasion, “Trump Force One,” a Boeing 757 owned by The Trump Organization, was the first plane to arrive at the airport under its new name, shortly after 5 a.m. Notably, Eric Trump, the president’s son, was among the passengers. The Trump family frequently utilizes the West Palm Beach airport for visits to President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate located in nearby Palm Beach. Earlier this year, a stretch of road connecting the airport to the estate was renamed Donald J. Trump Boulevard, further solidifying the Trump family’s presence in the area.
In a statement on social media, Eric Trump expressed pride in the name change, saying, “There is no person who has done more for Florida and our country, and no one more deserving of this incredible honor. As a son, and someone who flies out of this airport nearly every day, I will forever be proud to see the initials ‘DJT’ on my boarding pass.”
While the name change took effect on Thursday, the three-letter airport code will officially change from PBI to DJT on August 18. This transition has been made possible by legislation signed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis earlier this year. However, the cost of changing the airport’s name, including new signs and branding updates, is estimated to be as high as $5.5 million.
Travelers at the airport expressed a mix of reactions to the new name. Keegan Collett, who was departing for Cincinnati on Thursday morning, shared his surprise at the change, stating that while he doesn’t believe Trump deserves such an honor, he isn’t overly concerned about it. “At the end of the day, it’s just the name of an airport,” Collett remarked. “There’s bigger things. I feel like it’s just more of a distraction. Why even worry about it?”
Interestingly, on the same day, a ceremony took place in Dandridge, Tennessee, where Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty, along with Representative Tim Burchett, attended to rename the I-40 Bridge as the Donald J. Trump Bridge. Bessent remarked prior to the event that “no one is more deserving” of such an honor than Trump, reflecting the strong support he maintains in certain regions.
In the 2024 general election, Trump received an overwhelming 82% of the vote in Jefferson County, where Dandridge is located, demonstrating the continued loyalty of his supporters in the area.
