Brown Field is getting a serious upgrade just in time for the World Cup. Fulton County is moving ahead with a major modernization of its executive airport, with runway and navigational improvements, a new fire‑rescue facility and a dedicated U.S. Customs building all in the pipeline. County officials say the changes will let some private jets land and clear customs on site instead of detouring to Hartsfield‑Jackson, right as metro Atlanta gears up for a flood of VIP flights tied to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Several pieces of the plan are already underway as Fulton pushes to make the Fulton Industrial corridor more appealing to business flyers.
According to 11Alive, the county is planning a U.S. Customs facility on roughly 1.5 acres, funded with a mix of federal and state grants plus local dollars. The outlet reports the customs building “is set to be completed next March.” Airport manager Gary Hudson told the station that upgraded runway, navigational aids and other infrastructure could allow Fulton County Executive Airport to handle certain international and corporate flights that currently have to use Hartsfield‑Jackson.
The Atlanta Journal‑Constitution reported that the field has handled roughly 82,000 takeoffs and landings in recent years and already has runway resurfacing and other airfield work on the books. Those projects are intended to help the airport ride out peak demand from the World Cup while still keeping up with routine corporate traffic.
What Is Being Built
Public bid documents describe a roughly 5,000‑square‑foot U.S. Customs facility with pre‑processing, processing and post‑processing spaces and the capacity to support multiple aircraft at once. Those procurement listings also outline a construction schedule measured in months from the official notice to proceed. On top of that, the county is paying for a new fire‑rescue station and runway and taxiway repairs, and it has signed off on engineering and design work to update the airport’s Capital Improvement Plan. That longer‑term roadmap includes potential runway extensions and additional hangar space, with design and inspection work already under contract with engineering consultants and detailed in county records…