Nov. 26, 2019

To better serve businesses and the community, Alabama’s Thomasville Airport will transition to a regional airport known as the Southwest Alabama Regional Airport.

“The recent growth and economic investment in Thomasville and the surrounding areas have created an ideal environment to host the new Southwest Alabama Regional Airport,” said Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL). “I am confident this project will contribute to the economic vitality of the region for generations to come.”

The 2005 Alabama Statewide Airport System Plan revealed that Southwest Alabama was underserved in terms of access to aviation infrastructure. As a result, the Alabama Department of Transportation’s Aeronautic Bureau worked with FAA and the Southwest Alabama Regional Airport Authority to conduct studies outlining an approach to meet the region’s aviation needs.

These studies recommended the construction of a new general aviation airport in Clarke County.
Additionally, over the past decade, various companies have been or are in the process of investing over $550 million in facilities and infrastructure to support business operations in the Thomasville area. These investments have and will continue to support hundreds of jobs, and these business, as well as their vendors, suppliers, and customers, rely on general aviation aircraft to support their commercial needs.

The new regional airport will allow local companies to enhance operations, while also attracting new business to the area.

“The development of the new Thomasville airport is part of a broader state system planning initiative that has the goal of providing the rural regions of Alabama with improved air access by developing regional airport facilities that serve today’s business aviation fleet,” said Dr. John Eagerton of the Alabama Department of Transportation. “As part of this goal, the strategy is to locate and invest in regional airports in those communities that serve as business and economic hubs in the rural regions of the state.”
Greg Voos, NBAA’s Southeast regional representative agreed this is a positive development for the region.

“It’s long been understood that companies looking to invest in an area want to be close to an airport to transport employees, potential customers and move goods in and out of the region,” he said. “I congratulate the hard work of the Alabama Department of Transportation and their partners to enhance the economic viability of the region.”