McKinney National Airport eyes more international travel
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An increasing number of private international flights are bypassing DFW Airport and Dallas Love Field and landing in McKinney instead.
- McKinney National Airport has opened its own U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility to process the planes and their private travelers.
Why it matters: The 46-year-old airport is trying to become another option for North Texans who hate driving to DFW and Love Field.
- Commercial flights will start taking off from TKI in late 2026.
Fun fact: The airport's three-letter identifier references the T in "Texas" and the KI in "McKinney."
State of planes: TKI saw 127 international private arrivals in 2023 and expects a 42% increase, to 180 flights, this year.
- The airport's Customs and Border Protection facility will speed up processing for the private flights, per a news release.
- The facility will also give the airport the "capacity and credibility" to attract more international travelers and corporate aviation, McKinney Mayor Bill Cox said in a statement.
Zoom out: TKI is constructing a new terminal building with four commercial gates and the capacity to serve around 200,000 commercial passengers annually, the airport says.
- TKI officials have not announced which airlines will operate out of the airport. One of them could be low-cost carrier Avelo Airlines, per WFAA.
What we're watching: How much the commercial flights out of the McKinney airport will cost, in comparison to our region's much larger airports.