A petition calling for Nashville International Airport (BNA) to be renamed for Dolly Parton has passed 146,000 verified signatures, turning a previously modest campaign into a national push following the Tennessee singer and philanthropist’s death.
The Change.org petition, started by Lydia Popovich and Dan Dion on January 21, 2025, proposes “Dolly Parton International Airport” as the new name. Its total was still increasing rapidly Friday, with more than 26,000 signatures recorded during the day.
The campaign argues that Parton’s international profile, philanthropy and connection to Tennessee make her an appropriate namesake for the primary commercial airport serving Nashville. Its organizers revived their appeal after Parton died in Nashville on August 25, 2026, at age 80. Dollywood, the Pigeon Forge destination she co-owned, confirmed her death in an August 25 statement.
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Airport Authority Acknowledges Renaming Inquiries
The Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority, which owns and operates BNA, has acknowledged the campaign without endorsing it.
In a statement published through the airport’s official media center, MNAA said it had received several inquiries about the process for renaming Nashville International. The authority said its naming policy, originally adopted in 2010 and most recently updated in 2024, establishes the criteria and formal process for naming its buildings, spaces, facilities and streets.
MNAA did not announce that it had opened a formal renaming proceeding or place the proposal before its board. It instead described Parton as a Tennessee legend whose work left an impact on the state and its communities. BNA’s parking garages were illuminated in pink through the weekend as a tribute.
The distinction matters. A petition can demonstrate public support, but it does not alter the airport’s legal or operating name. MNAA’s Board of Commissioners would have to take up the proposal through the authority’s established process.
Local and State Politicians Signal Support
The campaign has nevertheless moved beyond signatures. Nashville Metro Councilmember Russ Bradford told the petition organizers that he intends to sponsor a resolution asking MNAA to consider the change.
Bradford characterized the proposed Metro Council resolution as a statement of support rather than an instrument that could rename the airport directly. In his response, published on the petition page, he said the final decision rests with the Airport Authority.
Tennessee State Representative Todd Warner has also told the campaign that he will introduce legislation proposing the Dolly Parton name. Warner represents District 92 in the Tennessee House of Representatives. No enacted measure has changed BNA’s name, and his response represents a commitment to introduce legislation rather than a completed legislative action.
The two approaches could develop on separate tracks. Metro Council can formally encourage MNAA to act, while state lawmakers can attempt to address the airport’s name through legislation. The authority, meanwhile, controls the airport and maintains its own naming process.
A Name Change at a Rapidly Growing Airport
Any rebranding would affect one of the fastest-growing large commercial airports in the United States. BNA handled a record 26.7 million passengers during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, an increase of 7.7% from the previous year, according to MNAA’s fiscal-year report.
The airport reached 115 nonstop destinations in June and is undergoing another major expansion cycle. Concourse A has closed for demolition and reconstruction, with a 16-gate replacement scheduled to open in July 2028. Other work includes expanded aircraft parking and deicing space, a new rental-car facility and garage, and improvements to the terminal’s central core.
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That scale makes a name more than a ceremonial matter. It appears across roadway signs, terminal displays, airport publications, digital systems, contracts, marketing material and tenant operations. A change would require coordinated implementation even if the airport’s three-letter identifier remained untouched.
BNA’s history already includes an earlier commemorative name. The airport opened in 1937 as Berry Field, honoring Colonel Harry S. Berry, according to the airport’s official master-plan history. The site began with a terminal, two hangars and a 4,000-foot concrete runway before being developed into today’s four-runway commercial airport.
A Dolly Parton name would not necessarily require a new BNA identifier. Federal Aviation Administration guidance treats established three-letter location identifiers as permanent and says the original identifier normally remains in use when a facility’s name changes. Retaining BNA would reduce the operational disruption for flight planning, schedules, baggage systems and passenger recognition.
Bottom Line
The petition’s rapid growth gives the proposal political weight, but the next meaningful development will be institutional rather than numerical. A filed Metro Council resolution, introduced state legislation or placement on an MNAA board agenda would move the campaign beyond an online expression of support. Until one of those steps occurs, Nashville International Airport remains the airport’s official name.
BNA’s record traffic and expanding international network also raise the stakes. An airport handling nearly 27 million annual passengers has a valuable and deeply embedded identity, and changing it would require more than replacing terminal signage. Keeping the BNA code would preserve operational continuity, while a Parton name could tie Nashville’s principal gateway even more closely to the music industry that drives much of the city’s global recognition.
The authority’s response leaves the door open without indicating whether the proposal meets its naming criteria. What happens next will show whether the surge of public sentiment becomes a formal airport action or remains one of several memorial efforts honoring Parton across Tennessee.
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