Nashville International Airport is moving forward with a plan to change its name in honor of Dolly Parton, but the airport has not yet adopted a final new name. On September 11, 2026, the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority (MNAA) voted unanimously, 6–0, to begin the process of modifying the airport’s name. The authority said the vote was only the first step and that it was still working with the appropriate parties to determine how Parton’s name and legacy would be incorporated.
The development follows Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee’s August announcement that the state and Nashville International Airport intended to honor Parton, who died on August 25, 2026, at age 80. Nashville’s Metropolitan Council separately passed a resolution requesting that the airport be renamed “Dolly Parton International Airport,” but that resolution was a request to the airport authority rather than the final naming decision.
What has actually been decided?
The most important distinction is between support for renaming the airport and the completion of the renaming.
The MNAA board has voted to begin the process. It has not announced the final official name. In its September 11 statement, the authority specifically said that a final name had not yet been determined.
That means reports describing the airport as already renamed can be misleading if they imply that travelers should immediately start using a new official airport name.
The current airport remains Nashville International Airport, commonly identified by the three-letter code BNA. The airport authority has not announced that BNA will disappear, and a name change does not automatically mean an airport receives a new location identifier.
| Development | Status as of September 19, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Governor announces intention to honor Dolly Parton | Announced August 28 |
| Nashville Metropolitan Council requests “Dolly Parton International Airport” | Resolution passed September 1 |
| Airport authority votes to begin renaming process | Approved unanimously September 11 |
| Final airport name | Not yet determined |
| Implementation details and timing | Still being developed |
| BNA airport identifier | Remains in use |
The distinction matters because airport names, passenger-facing branding, aviation databases and location identifiers are separate pieces of the system. FAA guidance says airport name changes are submitted as official aeronautical-data changes, while established three-letter identifiers generally remain in effect even when an airport’s name changes.
Why Dolly Parton became the focus
Parton’s connection to Tennessee goes well beyond her status as a country music star.
She was born in East Tennessee and built much of her professional career in Nashville. Her songwriting, recordings and performances helped make her one of the most recognizable figures associated with Tennessee’s musical identity. She also developed a substantial presence in tourism and philanthropy, giving the proposed airport tribute a broader connection to the state than music alone.
Gov. Lee’s August announcement emphasized Parton’s music, generosity, faith and public service as reasons for the proposed honor. The governor’s office also highlighted the reach of the Dollywood Foundation and its Imagination Library literacy program.
The Nashville Metropolitan Council’s resolution made a similar case, arguing that Parton’s career contributed to Nashville’s cultural identity, tourism and creative economy. Those statements are the government’s rationale for the proposal rather than an independent measurement of the economic effects attributed to Parton.
Her appeal has also been unusually broad. For readers interested in the cultural reasons behind that reach, examines the qualities that helped Parton connect with audiences well beyond country music.
The timing is unusual
The proposal initially faced a significant procedural issue.
MNAA’s naming policy had required a person to have been deceased for at least two years before airport property could be named in their honor. The Metropolitan Council’s September resolution explicitly asked the airport authority to make an exception to that waiting period for Parton. It also acknowledged that the airport authority, rather than the council, holds the authority to name MNAA property.
The airport authority’s September 11 vote moved the process forward despite that unusual timing. The authority has not, however, said that every implementation detail has been settled.
This is why the story is better understood as an airport renaming process underway, rather than a completed renaming.
What happens to BNA?
For travelers, the airport code may matter more than the name printed on the terminal.
BNA has a history that predates the current name. The code comes from Berry Field Nashville, honoring Col. Harry S. Berry, who served as the airport’s first administrator. Nashville International Airport explains that the BNA designation has become a recognizable part of the airport’s identity.
The airport’s official name was changed to Nashville International Airport in 1988 as Nashville pursued expanded international air service.
A future name honoring Parton therefore would not necessarily erase BNA from travel systems. FAA guidance notes that established three-letter identifiers generally remain even after a facility’s name changes.
That distinction should make the transition less confusing for passengers: an airport can have a different public name while retaining the same familiar code.
Why changing the name will take time
Renaming a major international airport is more complicated than replacing a sign.
The official name appears across airport communications, aviation databases, maps, websites, signage, operational documents and commercial systems. The FAA’s current data guidance specifically includes facility-name changes among the aeronautical information that must be submitted through its airport data system.
The FAA also clarified in 2026 that it does not itself approve airport name changes in the ordinary sense; instead, it updates federal aeronautical charts and databases when the responsible authority makes a change. The agency has described the process for another recent airport renaming as involving updates to aviation information and potentially operators’ certificates and authorizing documents.
For BNA, the practical transition could therefore involve much more than the airport’s roadside identity. Airline systems, navigation databases, official documentation and passenger-facing materials all need to remain consistent.
The airport authority has said that more definitive plans will be announced as the process develops.
The proposal also reflects Parton’s wider legacy
The airport campaign comes at a moment when public attention is focused on what Parton left behind beyond her recordings.
Her philanthropy is particularly important to that story. Through the Dollywood Foundation’s Imagination Library, free books have been distributed to children, making literacy one of the most visible parts of her charitable legacy. The Tennessee governor’s office cited the program as evidence of her impact extending beyond entertainment.
That broader legacy is also why an airport naming would carry a different meaning from a conventional celebrity endorsement or commercial branding exercise.
Readers interested in the less-publicized side of that work can explore , while her relationship with Tennessee’s tourism economy is examined in .
What the airport’s future name could mean
The phrase “Dolly Parton International Airport” is the name specifically requested in the Nashville Metropolitan Council’s resolution. It is not yet the confirmed final name of the airport.
That difference leaves several questions open, including how Parton’s name will be incorporated into the airport’s existing BNA identity and whether the final branding will use the full proposed name or another formulation.
The airport authority has deliberately left that question open. Its September statement said it was working with the relevant parties to determine how Parton’s name and legacy would be incorporated, rather than announcing a completed naming formula.
For travelers, the most useful approach is therefore to watch for official announcements rather than assume that a proposed name has already replaced Nashville International Airport in every system.
The bigger significance is still unfolding
The proposed renaming connects three parts of Nashville’s identity that have developed together: aviation, tourism and music.
BNA is already a major gateway for the region. In fiscal 2026, the airport reported a record 26.7 million passengers, up 7.7% from the previous year. That makes its name unusually visible to visitors arriving in Middle Tennessee.
Whether the eventual name becomes an enduring part of that identity will depend not simply on the September vote, but on the final naming decision, implementation and the way Nashville chooses to present Parton’s legacy over time.
For now, the clearest fact is also the most important one: Nashville’s airport authority has voted to begin renaming the airport in Dolly Parton’s honor, but the airport has not yet announced its final new name. The next stage is determining exactly what that tribute will look like—and how it will coexist with the BNA identity that travelers already know.