The two major North Texas airports are in line to receive tens of millions of dollars in government aid.
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport will receive $299.2 million and Dallas Love Field will receive $53.8 million as part of the CARES Act stimulus package, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The money going to DFW Airport represents the third-largest chunk of funding going toward a U.S. airport. Only Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport are in line to receive more.
A DFW Airport spokesperson said the airport will use the nearly $300 million to pay debt service and operating expenses. The airport employs 2,100 people directly, and DFW Airport CEO Sean Donohue said the airport is committed to not furloughing employees.
Donohue said last week during the airport's monthly board meeting in the second half of the airport's fiscal year — April through September — airport revenue is expected to drop between $175 million and $225 million, a roughly 40-percent decline.
"I've been in the aviation industry for 35 years, and I never thought I would see a greater impact to aviation than 9/11," Donohue said April 9. "I would tell the board this crisis is significantly more impactful and worse than 9/11."
The much smaller Love Field has about 300 full-time employees. A Love Field spokesperson said the airport has a call scheduled Wednesday afternoon with the FAA to determine how exactly the nearly $54 million can be spent.
The FAA encouraged airport sponsors, an airport's owner or operator, to spend the grant funds immediately to help minimize any adverse impact currently being caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The FAA added airports should work with their local FAA offices as they work through the grant applications.
While DFW Airport and Love Field are the major aviation hubs in North Texas, the area is home to several other airports. Here's a breakdown of how much funding some of the smaller airports in the region are in line to receive:
- Denton Enterprise Airport: $157,000
- Fort Worth Alliance Airport: $157,000
- Meacham International Airport: $157,000
- McKinney National Airport: $157,000
- Addison Airport: $157,000
- Spinks Airport: $69,000
- Mesquite Metro Airport: $69,000
- Arlington Municipal Airport: $69,000
- Dallas Executive Airport: $69,000
- Grand Prairie Municipal Airport: $69,000
The main tenants of DFW Airport and Love Field are American Airlines and Southwest Airlines, respectively. Each received billions of dollars in government aid, with much of the funding allocated in the form of payroll grants.
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