Imagine taking flight 925 to Dolly Parton International Airport.
Since her sudden and shocking death last week, there’s been a renewed push to rename the Nashville International Airport after country music legend Dolly Parton. It was an effort that started with a change.org petition back in 2025, but gained new life after members of the Tennessee legislature and Metro Nashville City Council threw their support behind the name change last week.
In a press release last week, Governor Bill Lee formally announced the state’s intent to name BNA in honor of Dolly Parton. Citing conversations between Lee and Dolly’s team, he noted how excited they are to honor her legacy with the name change.
“Dolly Parton’s extraordinary life is forever woven into the fabric of our state. 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.”
Doug Kreulen, president and CEO of the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority, also expressed his support for renaming the airport:
“BNA is the front door to Music City, and with that comes a responsibility to reflect the very best of who we are as a community. Dolly’s remarkable legacy reminds us that what makes Nashville special is our ability to welcome people from every walk of life. She understood that dignity, kindness and opportunity should never be defined by where you come from or your socioeconomic status. At BNA, we share that commitment. Whether you are boarding a private aircraft or taking your first flight, you deserve to be welcomed, respected and served with the same level of care. That spirit is what defines BNA and it is a fitting reflection of the values Dolly shared with Tennessee and the world.”
The airport authority is set to meet on September 17 to discuss the proposal. But in the meantime, one airline has already made their own change to honor the late country music icon.
American Airlines has renumbered their daily flight from Dallas to Nashville from flight 1396 to flight 925, which is obviously a reference to Dolly’s 1980 hit “9 to 5” and the movie in which she starred alongside Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin.
The song was the first and only time Dolly reached #1 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 chart, and is obviously one of her most iconic hits. It’s for that reason that several states have already declared 9/25 as “Dolly Parton Day,” and even Garth Brooks has announced that his Friends in Low Places bar in Nashville will donate all profits from that day to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
When asked about the flight number change, American Airlines acknowledged that it was made in honor of the the country icon:
“American’s scheduling team puts their creative hats on to find flight numbers that are meaningful to travelers.”
The change is set to take effect on March 28, 2027, and hopefully by then the process of changing the airport’s name will be underway. Nothing more meaningful than taking flight 925 straight to Dolly International. Classy move, American Airlines.
