United Airlines (UA) is giving reservation agents unusual freedom to move passengers away from the newly renamed President Donald J. Trump International Airport (DJT) in West Palm Beach, Florida. Agents can rebook travelers to Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport (FLL) or Miami International Airport (MIA) at no extra cost, according to an internal memo obtained by Live and Let’s Fly. The change applies to customers who no longer want to fly through an airport named for a sitting president.
The airport was formerly known as Palm Beach International Airport (PBI). Florida law renamed it on July 9, 2026, and the shift followed months of legislative debate and a formal signing by Governor Ron DeSantis. United’s memo shows the airline anticipated backlash and built a customer service response before the name change was even finalized in its booking systems.
Why Palm Beach International Airport Became DJT
Florida’s Legislature passed the renaming bill along party lines in February 2026. The Senate approved it 25-11, and the House passed it 81-30. Governor DeSantis signed the bill into law on March 30, 2026, and it took effect July 1.
The rebrand carries a price tag of up to $5.5 million for new signage and branding. The Trump Organization had already filed trademark applications for the airport’s new name before the law passed. Under the licensing deal, Trump cannot collect royalties or fees from the airport’s use of his name.
The airport’s three-letter code will not change immediately. It stays PBI until August 18, 2026, when it officially switches to DJT. Major carriers, including United, American Airlines (AA), and Delta Air Lines (DL) – three carriers with the largest fleet in the world – have already begun loading the DJT code into their booking systems.
What United’s Internal Memo Tells Reservation Agents
The memo instructs staff to use your empowerment to offer acceptable alternatives when a customer objects to flying into DJT. Agents can process the destination switch as an even exchange, meaning they waive any fare difference between the original ticket and the new one. There is no published travel waiver attached to this policy.
United also gave agents a suggested script for the conversation. According to Fox Business, the memo tells them to say I understand that you’d rather not fly to this airport anymore. Agents then offer Fort Lauderdale or Miami as a replacement and ask if that works for the traveler.
This kind of flexibility is not standard airline practice. Airlines typically do not allow free destination changes just because a customer dislikes an airport’s name, according to Fox Business. United’s decision to permit it signals the airline sees the renaming as a real source of customer friction, not just a minor branding update.
How Fort Lauderdale and Miami Compare as Alternatives
Neither substitute airport sits especially close to West Palm Beach, so the switch changes a traveler’s ground transportation plans. Key details include:
- Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) sits roughly 45 miles south of West Palm Beach.
- Miami International Airport (MIA) sits about 72 miles south.
- Both airports offer broader South Florida access without requiring a stop at DJT.
- The rebooking policy reportedly applies without needing supervisor approval.
- VisaVerge reports the option may remain available through August 2026, though United has not published a formal end date.
Agents are still told to offer an “acceptable alternative,” which leaves room for discretion. That wording suggests the switch depends on seat availability rather than a guaranteed rebooking for every request.
Passenger Reactions to the Renamed Airport
Public pushback started before the ink was dry on the new signage. Messages submitted through the airport’s public contact form during the first five days after the rename included dozens of complaints, and at least a dozen travelers specifically said they would use Miami or Fort Lauderdale instead. One traveler wrote a blunt refusal to ever use the renamed airport again.
Political opposition surfaced earlier, during the legislative process itself. U.S. Representative Lois Frankel, who represents West Palm Beach, criticized lawmakers for pushing the rename without local input, according to Reuters. Florida State University law professor Jake Linford also noted that past presidents avoided this kind of personal branding, saying it has been the custom, the norm, per NPR.
President Trump celebrated the change publicly. According to CBS News, he called the location “HOT” and predicted the airport would become one of the most spectacular in the world. The first aircraft to land under the new name was Trump Force One, a plane owned by the Trump Organization, with Eric Trump aboard, according to Yahoo News.
How United’s Approach Differs from Other Carriers and News
United is not alone in flying to DJT. More than a dozen airlines serve the airport, including Delta, American, and Southwest Airlines (WN), according to Fox Business. None of the available reporting shows Delta or American offering the same no-fee rebooking option that United rolled out for objecting passengers.
That gap fits a pattern in United’s recent customer-facing decisions. During the 2025 government shutdown, United was among the carriers offering free meals to air traffic controllers working without pay, based on separate coverage from Avio Space. The DJT rebooking memo follows that same instinct to get ahead of a politically charged situation with a concrete customer accommodation rather than silence.
United’s willingness to absorb a fare difference over an airport’s name is still unusual by industry standards. Airlines generally treat destination changes as a paid product, not a courtesy tied to political sentiment. The memo suggests United weighed the reputational cost of forcing objecting passengers through DJT against the modest revenue loss from a same-market rebooking.
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What This Means for Travelers Booked to DJT
Travelers who already hold tickets to West Palm Beach can call United and ask about switching to Fort Lauderdale or Miami. The switch depends on seat availability and agent discretion, so it is not guaranteed on every route or date. Airport operations, ownership, and services remain unchanged regardless of the name.
Passengers should also expect to see both PBI and DJT branding in the terminal for several more weeks. Signage and public-facing materials are being updated in phases rather than all at once, according to Time. The airport code itself will not fully switch to DJT until August 18, 2026.