The welcome sign posted outside of the Donald J. Trump International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, on July 9, 2026. (Chandan Khanna – AFP / Getty Images)
By Michael Austin August 8, 2026 at 5:00am
After the Palm Beach airport was renamed the Donald J. Trump International Airport, United Airlines is offering their customers who now refuse to step foot in the thoroughfare a chance to switch their flights.
Fox Business reported that passengers who want to avoid the President Donald J. Trump International Airport — previously called the Palm Beach International Airport — can move their flights to Fort Lauderdale or Miami.
They will not even have to pay a fee for transferring their flight plans.
“If a customer does not want to fly to the airport, use your empowerment to offer acceptable alternatives such as Fort Lauderdale Airport (FLL) or Miami International Airport (MIA),” a memo to reservation agents said, per Fox Business.
The agents were even provided with a script for disgruntled passengers: “I understand that you’d rather not fly to this airport anymore. We can look at nearby airports like Fort Lauderdale or Miami instead. Is that an acceptable alternative?”
United Airlines is reportedly allowing some passengers to change their flights for free if they don’t want to land at Florida’s newly renamed President Donald J. Trump International Airport.
An internal memo obtained by Live And Let’s Fly instructed reservation agents to offer… pic.twitter.com/Grzdjq6lXz
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 17, 2026
United Airlines said in a statement to Fox Business that “the message was poorly worded and not accurate.”
“United customers are able to make changes to a ticket without a fee for many reasons,” a representative for the company said.
“However, our policy doesn’t allow for changes because of an airport’s name or three letter code.”
Fort Lauderdale is 42 miles away from Palm Beach, while Miami is 72 miles away.
The website for the Palm Beach airport noted that the name change is required by state law under a bill signed in March by Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The legislation specifically says the airport must now be called the “President Donald J. Trump International Airport.”
The county government must now “diligently pursue” all required approvals and agreements for the change, including coordination with the Federal Aviation Administration.
The new three-letter IATA code for the Palm Beach airport will switch from “PBI” to “DJT” on Aug. 18.
The name change was made official on July 9.
“The name change does not alter ownership, governance, legal status or operational control of the airport,” the website continued.
“Palm Beach County will continue to oversee all airport policies, finances and strategic decisions. This is a branding change only.”
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Michael wrote for several entertainment news outlets before joining The Western Journal in 2020. He now serves as Managing Editor, which involves managing the editorial team and operations, guiding the publication’s editorial direction, and writing, editing, curating and assigning stories as needed.
Birthplace
Ames, Iowa
Nationality
American
Education
Iowa State University
Topics of Expertise
Cultural Politics, Pop Culture, Christian-Conservatism
