Burlington, VT — Officials at Burlington International Airport unveiled a new airport terminal and security checkpoint Thursday, a project three years in the making.
The $19 million, 32,00-square-foot terminal is set to welcome travelers next week. It features a single TSA checkpoint, expanded seating and improved amenities. It was funded with the help of grants from the Federal Aviation Administration.
“Getting the money was easy,” said Sen. Patrick Leahy, who was on hand for the grand opening along with Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger. “You did the hard part, and I am so proud of everybody here.”
The new checkpoint will help manage the flow of travelers and make security checks more convenient. Director of Aviation Nic Longo thanked agents from the Transportation Safety Administration for keeping the airport and travelers safe day after day.
“The Transportation Security Administration is the heart of this terminal for all of our passengers and hundreds of employees every single day and provides an invaluable security element to our everyday traveling experience,” he said.
BTV serves over a million passengers a year. Weinberger said the airport is often the last place visitors see and where Vermonters say hello and goodbye. “Burlington has been proud to steward the airport for over 100 years now, creating and continuously improving the terminal has been a big part of the stewardship,” he said.
Leahy said he remembers flying out of the airport for the first time decades when he was a student at Saint Michaels College. “And now of course Marcelle and I fly back and forth between Washington and Vermont every other week,” he said, “and to see the evolution of this airport, it is amazing.”