Who Does What at the Airport? Copy

At XNA, we’re proud to be part of your travel experience, but air travel often comes with its share of questions—especially when things don’t go as planned. A common misconception is about who handles what: the airport or the airline? Let’s break it down.

The Airport: Behind the Scenes of Your Journey

Think of XNA as a landlord. We provide the space, infrastructure, and amenities airlines need to operate efficiently. Here’s what we take care of:

• Runways and Gates: We ensure the safe operation and maintenance of our runways and gates. With 14 gates, XNA has more than enough to accommodate all flights coming in and out of the airport.
• Amenities and Partnerships: From maintaining terminal cleanliness to working with vendors for concessions and parking services, we focus on creating a welcoming environment.
• Facilities and Maintenance: Ensuring the airport remains safe, operational, and ready for every flight.

Some services, like security screenings through TSA, are managed by federal agencies. XNA hosts these operations, but we do not oversee them.

The Airlines: Your Travel Providers

Airlines are our tenants, and they use the facilities we provide to get you where you need to go. Their responsibilities include:

• Ticket Pricing and Scheduling: Airlines decide how much tickets cost, which destinations they serve, and when they fly.
• Ground Crew Operations: This includes managing the team that directs planes, handles baggage, and assists with deplaning.
• Luggage and Customer Service: Lost luggage? Ticket changes? These are airline services.

Why Do Planes Sit on the Tarmac?

A frequent frustration we hear about is planes sitting on the tarmac after landing. Passengers are often told, “The airport doesn’t have a gate ready.” Here’s the truth: XNA provides 14 gates, plenty to accommodate our traffic. It’s up to the airlines to ensure they have enough ground crew to guide planes in and assist passengers. We share your frustration and have repeatedly encouraged airline regional leadership to hire more ground crew to help with timely deplaning, but unfortunately, these efforts have not been successful. If there’s a delay, it’s typically a staffing or scheduling issue on the airline’s end—not a problem with gate availability.

Where to Direct Complaints

At XNA, we focus on providing a safe, well-maintained, and welcoming space for airlines to operate. While we don’t handle ticket prices, choose destinations, manage TSA screenings, or control baggage services, we’re here to help ensure your airport experience is smooth.

If you have concerns about flight delays, baggage issues, or customer service, we encourage you to reach out to your airline directly. For broader concerns about air travel policies or tarmac delays, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the best point of contact.

Thank you for flying through XNA. Together with our airline partners and service vendors, we’re here to make your travel experience as seamless as possible!