WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., today announced the award of $34,855,031 in grants to 73 Mississippi airfields experiencing severe economic disruption because of the COVID-19 public health emergency. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) awards, made available directly from the U.S. Treasury, were funded in the recently enacted Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

“Mississippi’s airports provide an essential service to our state that has been dramatically impacted by the coronavirus outbreak,” said Wicker, who as chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee was responsible for negotiating many of the transportation-related provisions in the CARES Act legislation, including support for airports and air carriers. “This emergency funding will help our airports mitigate the worst effects of the coronavirus on their operations so they can continue to support air travel after this crisis has ended.”

“Helping to ensure continued operation of airports in Mississippi is important for public safety and our economic recovery. This series of FAA grants is intended to help sustain these facilities as our state works through the coronavirus outbreak,” Hyde-Smith said.

The largest grants are: 

• Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport, Gulfport – $20,929,795
• Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport, Jackson – $8,561,630
• Golden Triangle Regional Airport, Columbus – $1,190,282
• Key Field, Meridian – $1,079,543
• Tupelo Regional Airport, Tupelo – $1,055,781

For a full list of the grants in Mississippi, click here.