When Dolly Parton died on August 25, tributes poured in from around the world. Cities lit up their architecture in pink and flags were flown at half-mast. Online, fans quickly began pushing for Tennessee to honor Dolly by renaming the Nashville International Airport (BNA) after her. The idea started as a grassroots petition in January 2025 after state lawmakers considered renaming BNA after President Oompa J. Loompa. It gained enough momentum that Dolly joked about it and it blew up again after she passed
Well, the Dolly Parton International Airport may actually happen. On August 28, Governor Bill Lee announced that he and BNA have been in touch with Dolly’s team about their intentions to rename the airport after Tennessee’s favorite daughter. There’s one small snafu, though. Current policy requires that someone be dead for two years before an airport can be named after them. The Metro Nashville Airport Authority will address the policy at an upcoming meeting. From USA Today:
On your next flight to or from Nashville, you might be arriving or “D. Parton” from the Dolly Parton International Airport.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and the Nashville International Airport (BNA) announced Aug. 28 they are pushing to name airport after the country music legend.
Born and raised in Tennessee where she spent much of her life, Parton died Aug. 25 after a short battle with cancer. She was 80.
“Gov. Lee spoke with Dolly’s team about the proposal this week,” Lee’s office said in a statement sent to the USA TODAY Network. “Her team expressed their appreciation for the extraordinary outpouring of support to honor Dolly and said they are touched by the idea and open to continuing the conversation.”
Lee said Parton’s unique enduring legacy as a great musician, philanthropist and role model is one of special pride for the state.
“Dolly Parton’s extraordinary life is forever woven into the fabric of our state,” Lee said. “From her rural mountain home in East Tennessee to global stages, Dolly carried the Volunteer Spirit with her. At a place where Tennessee welcomes the world, it is fitting that Nashville International Airport would bear the name of our state’s favorite daughter and greet travelers with the enduring legacy of Dolly’s music, generosity, faith, and kindness.”
On the morning of Aug. 28, a plane towing a banner urging the renaming the airport after Parton buzzed over the Tennessee State Capitol in downtown Nashville.
The aircraft was paid for by online petition platform Change.org and it directed onlookers to sign a petition to support the renaming. The effort to name the airport after Parton began last year and collected tens of thousands of signatures in support.
“Everybody is looking for a way to honor Dolly and her legacy,” petition organizer Dan Dion said. “Our airport is so important, and there’s symbolism in flying into Parton Airport. With Dolly’s message of love, acceptance, music, kindness, humor and all these things, people feel that she is representative of what Tennessee truly is.”
The Metro Nashville Airport Authority will address current policy that bars them from naming the airport after Parton at their Sept. 17 meeting. Current policy allows airport facilities to be named only for people who have been dead at least two years and who made significant contributions to the airport authority or aviation in Middle Tennessee.
Naming BNA after Dolly is a no-brainer. The jokes about changing the signs to say “Arrivals” and “De-Partons” crack me up. I’ve seen calls to change the airport code to DLY or DPI, but that would be more difficult and isn’t likely to happen. Despite lawmakers being willing to ignore policy when they considered renaming it after our very much alive 47th president, I think Dolly would want them to follow the rules and wait. After all, this is a woman who rejected a 2021 proposal to put a statue of her at the State Capitol because she didn’t think the timing was appropriate.
In the meantime, other Tennessee institutions are also finding ways to pay their respects. The University of Tennessee’s football players will wear a commemorative helmet sticker this season while Middle Tennessee State’s players will don a commemorative patch for their opening game on 9/5. Dolly’s family also just announced DollyFest, which will honor her life and music and take place in Nashville and London over two consecutive weekends in 2027. These are all amazing tributes, but the true way to honor Dolly is by donating to her Imagination Library or to any other social safety-net causes in your community.
At a place where Tennessee welcomes the world, it is fitting that BNA would bear @DollyParton’s name.
Today, in partnership with @Fly_Nashville, we announced our intent to honor Tennessee’s favorite daughter and her indelible legacy.
Link: https://t.co/bGBXYqp0d1 pic.twitter.com/Jvf4Em9Amq
— Gov. Bill Lee (@GovBillLee) August 28, 2026
I mean, it’s a nice sentiment, but wouldn’t it be better to name a library, museum, or music school after her.
Why can’t it be more than one thing?
I wonder if Trump’s strong-arming in making Miami Airport into Trump Airport (and they have to pay him to use his name– I kid you not) has re- naming airports on people’s minds.
I hope they get it done!
I agree that a library makes more sense, but that is going happen at the local level anyway, I’m sure. At least one library in Tennessee (and maybe beyond) will be named after her. I love the idea of an airport being named after her! Nashville is a big destination city. It would make people feel like Dolly is welcoming them when they fly in there, you know?
That’s exactly how I felt flying into the John Lennon airport in Liverpool!
Do it.
Name everything after our angel!
However – a bastard politician like Bill Lee, whose every action has been to promote hateful legislation anathema to everything Dolly stood for + practiced should just leave her out of it. He doesn’t deserve any good will for this move.
Koro, I didn’t know they did that. A nice tribute, of course. Poor John.