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Palm Beach International Airport became President Donald J. Trump International Airport on Thursday, but while the signage may change, the official airport code will not for another month.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a law in March to officially change the airport name in honor of President Trump, and the Federal Aviation Administration issued guidance that the name will change on July 9.
However, the three letter airport code that passengers most often see — which is currently PBI — will not change to DJT until Aug. 18.
That means that for 40 days, the FAA locational identifier and the International Civil Aviation Organization will be using a different airport code for pilots, air traffic controllers and aviation operations, DJT, than passengers will be using for ticketing and flight information, PBI.
Henry Harteveldt, airline industry analyst at Atmosphere Research Group, says airlines have implemented “hard coding” into their reservations, passenger service, and other systems to ensure passengers and bags will be delivered to the correct airport.
“Airlines have told me that, at least initially, people who use the PBI code on their websites to search for flights will be directed to flights from what will now be called DJT,” Harteveldt said. “I’ve also been told that flight attendants will be given leeway to say ‘welcome to West Palm Beach,’ rather than ‘welcome to Donald J. Trump International Airport.'”
It’s very rare for the International Air Transport Association to approve changes to airport location codes. These codes are typically considered permanent and “are almost never changed –and then only with strong justification, primarily concerning air safety,” according to the IATA site.
The official request to change the three letter location code came from the major U.S. airlines serving the Palm Beach International Airport, including Delta, United, American Airlines, JetBlue and Southwest.
“IATA has acted on a request from airlines serving Palm Beach International Airport to change the airport’s IATA 3-letter code from PBI to DJT, along with the change of the location name to President Donald J. Trump International Airport,” an IATA spokesperson said.
IATA notified industry stakeholders that the change will take effect on Aug. 18 to ensure that all systems can be updated within that timeframe, according to a spokesperson.
The airport’s website is encouraging passengers to continue using the code PBI until the official change happens in August.
“While we recognize that the required name change may be received in different ways by our passengers, we’re grateful for your continued support through this transition period,” according to the airport’s frequently asked questions page. “We remain committed to serving all passengers and ensuring a positive travel experience.”
Nearly eight million passengers fly through PBI annually, according to the airport. The president flies into PBI on a frequent basis in order to travel to his Florida resort Mar-a-Lago.
In May, the Palm Beach County commissioners approved a licensing deal to add “Donald J. Trump” to its airport name after the Trump Organization filed for a trademark for the use of the president’s name at any airport.
Under the agreement, Mr. Trump is prohibited from receiving royalties, fees, or revenue from purchases of merchandise at the airport, but the airport can use Mr. Trump’s name, image, and likeness to advertise for the airport.
There are 12 airports across the country named after presidents.
