A Southwest Airlines flight departs McCarran International Airport on Tuesday, May 2, 2017.
By Michelle L. Price Associated Press
Tuesday, February 16, 2021
LAS VEGAS — The Clark County Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to rename busy McCarran International Airport after former U.S. Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada.
The all-Democratic commission approved a measure directing the county's airport staff to file a change with the Federal Aviation Administration renaming the facility Harry Reid International Airport.
The county commission oversees the airport and is the final authority on a name change.
There have been longstanding calls to rename the airport. Its current namesake, former Nevada Sen. Patrick McCarran, served as one of Nevada's two U.S. senators from 1933 until his death in 1954. He was known for his contributions to aviation along with his anti-immigrant and anti-Semitic views.
Reid, a Democrat and the former Senate majority leader, retired from the Senate in 2016 after serving 30 years. He said ahead of the name change that he was "deeply humbled and grateful" for the commission's proposal.
The Federal Aviation Administration says it must take steps to process a name change before officially recognizing it. That's expected to take a few months.
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