The Louisville Regional Airport Authority Board has approved renaming the city airport after former heavyweight champ and Louisville native Muhammed Ali.
The new airport name is Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport, though the board stressed that the International Air Transport Association (IATA) code, SDF, will remain the same.
“This is a historic day for the airport and our region,” says Jim Welch, chair of the Airport Authority Board. “By choosing to rename the airport for Muhammad Ali, a world-renowned humanitarian honored as a United Nations Messenger of Peace and an athlete honored as Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the 20th Century, we as a community are honoring his legacy and celebrating this global icon who is a fellow Louisvillian.”
Louisville Tourism has noted that it is poised to reap economic benefits by boosting Ali-related tourism, much as the city has done promoting the Kentucky bourbon industry as a tourist experience.
