U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and Congressman James Comer announced Friday the full, second installment of $10 million for construction of a new airport terminal at Barkley Regional Airport in Paducah.
Distributed by the Federal Aviation Administration and its Airport Improvement Program, the total investiture for the improvement comes to $20 million over the last two years.
A project long in its planning stages, construction will reportedly be complete and open by 2023. The airport currently has twice-daily jet service from Paducah to Chicago, O’Hare through United Express — in what has opened up west Kentucky travelers to the world for the last 75 years.
McConnell said he’s “fully aware” of the importance of local hubs like Barkley Regional Airport, which “brings visitors and businesses from all over the globe, to Paducah.”
Comer added the timeliness of this funding only “further solidifies” the fact that the economic and infrastructure needs of west Kentucky are “at the forefront of conversations in Washington,” and that Barkley Regional Airport remains critical for transportation and job creation in west Kentucky and middle America.
In a 2018 airport master record from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration, Barkley Regional Airport had 40 based aircraft (30 single-engine, four multi-engine and six jets) and more than 23,500 flights serviced annually.
