FAA awards $8.2 million to Hollywood Burbank Airport

The federal government granted $8.2 million to Hollywood Burbank Airport for its terminal update project as part of an infrastructure program that has awarded billions to airports across the country to expand terminals, upgrade baggage area systems and improve runway safety.

The Federal Aviation Administration granted $289 million on Monday to 129 airports in 40 states, including $66.7 million to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and $26.6 million to Indianapolis International Airport. The agency has awarded nearly $9 billion to airports through the infrastructure program since 2022.

“Americans are flying in record numbers, and the Biden-Harris administration continues to invest in our airports to make travel safer and more convenient for the people who pass through these airports each day,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement.

Last month, the Transportation Security Administration screened a record-breaking 2.99 million passengers in a single day. The agency expects more than 32 million passengers to fly over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, 5.4% more than last year.

“This latest round of funding will support key improvements to terminals, runways and baggage systems and build on the work this administration is doing to modernize our aviation infrastructure,” Buttigieg said.

Hollywood Burbank Airport, formerly known as Bob Hope, broke ground in January to develop a 14-gate, 355,000-square-foot terminal with more than 6,600 parking spaces. The Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority’s estimated budget for the project is roughly $1.3 billion.

“Collaboration between the cities, staff, design-build team and our airline partners will result in a safer terminal that will enhance the quality of life and economic vitality of the region,” authority president Felicia Williams said in a statement this year about the project, which was approved by voters in 2016.

The new terminal is expected to open by October 2026.

In addition to the latest funding, the FAA awarded the Hollywood Burbank Airport roughly $8 million last year and again in 2022. The regional airport saw more than 508,000 passengers in April; the majority of flights were operated by Southwest Airlines.

More than $287 million has been allocated to California airports in 2024 through the Biden-Harris administration’s infrastructure program, including $72 million to Los Angeles International Airport, roughly $45 million to San Francisco International and nearly $15 million each to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport and San José Mineta International Airport.