Stillwater Regional Airport opened a new 31,000-square-foot terminal on Wednesday, replacing a 7,000-square-foot building that had served the city since 1952. The $27 million facility is four times larger than its predecessor and doubles the number of gates from one to two, giving the airport its biggest physical upgrade in more than seven decades.
The project was funded through a multi-agency partnership involving the Federal Aviation Administration, the Oklahoma Department of Aerospace and Aeronautics, and the City of Stillwater, according to the Oklahoma Airport Operators Association. Stillwater Mayor Will Joyce called the terminal an exciting step forward for the city and said it is necessary for Stillwater's continued growth, as reported by KOCO. Officials with the station said the new terminal is expected to benefit businesses across Stillwater as well as Oklahoma State University student-athletes and visiting researchers.
The old 1952 building had been retrofitted when commercial flight service first launched in Stillwater, and it had grown inadequate for modern TSA screening and rising passenger volume, per Oklahoma Living Magazine. The new facility's two gates feature climate-controlled jet bridges that eliminate outdoor tarmac boarding, along with expanded seating lounges, nursing rooms, a four-lane drop-off curb, and a new passenger parking lot, the outlet reports.
Federal Dollars and a Design Rooted in Oklahoma
The terminal secured a $4.5 million competitive federal grant in February 2024 under the FAA's Airport Terminal Program, covering roughly 20 percent of eligible construction expenses, according to the office of U.S. Senator James Lankford. Lankford said the commercial terminal's economic development impact is significant for Stillwater and the surrounding area, and separately called the project very significant for Oklahoma State University, per KOCO's report.
Tulsa-based McFarland Architects designed the building around a front porch layout with Native American design influences and Oklahoma red dirt color accents, according to Construction Equipment Guide's coverage of the project. The result is a terminal meant to look and feel distinctly Oklahoman rather than a generic regional airport box.
A Small Airport With an Outsized Regional Reach
Stillwater Regional Airport is one of only four airports in Oklahoma offering scheduled commercial passenger service, ranking as the state's fourth busiest with more than 80,000 annual aircraft operations, the airport notes on the City of Stillwater's website. Commercial service is supplied exclusively by American Airlines, which has flown daily round trips between Stillwater and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport since August 2016.
The airport draws travelers from a catchment area extending roughly 45 minutes in every direction, serving an estimated population between 174,000 and 280,000 across communities including Enid, Ponca City, Cushing, and Edmond, city officials say. Annual passenger volume topped 65,000 in the 12 months ending January 2025, up from about 58,000 in 2019, exceeding the long-range projections set when commercial service began.
What Comes Next for Flights and Traffic
Despite the expanded footprint, officials have no immediate plans to add more flights or destinations beyond the existing American Airlines route to Dallas/Fort Worth, KOCO reported. Officials are discussing additional flights or destinations, but nothing has been scheduled. The new terminal is designed to allow the airport to accommodate future expansions if and when that demand materializes.
The terminal is the anchor project of a 20-year Airport Master Plan the Stillwater City Council approved in June 2025, with a Phase 2 slated to add a traffic roundabout, a new access road, and utility relocations, according to reporting from the Stillwater News Press. For now, OSU stands to benefit directly: the university hosts researchers from across the country, and the terminal's added capacity is intended to smooth their travel along with that of student-athletes moving through Stillwater.
