Who Is Atlanta Airport Named After, and What Does ATL Stand For?
Wikipedia and atlanta.com say Hartsfield-Jackson is named for two former Atlanta mayors, William B. Hartsfield and Maynard H. Jackson Jr. ATL is the code.
Wikipedia and atlanta.com say the airport is named for two former Atlanta mayors, William B. Hartsfield and Maynard H. Jackson Jr. ATL is the airport’s code, the three letters on your ticket and bag tag.
Hartsfield came first, and Jackson was added later
| Name | Who | When the airport took the name |
|---|---|---|
| Hartsfield | William B. Hartsfield, credited by atlanta.com with helping establish Atlanta as a major aviation hub | 1971. Wikipedia says the renaming came after Hartsfield’s death |
| Jackson | Maynard H. Jackson Jr., who oversaw major expansions and pushed for the modern international terminal, per atlanta.com | 2003. Citizen Daily Post says “Jackson” was added to the existing name |
ATL’s history page is a timeline and doesn’t cover the naming, so neither date comes from an airport page. The official name, per ATL’s fact sheet, is Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The fact sheet lists the code under “Airport Code” and doesn’t explain the letters.
Where you’ll see the Jackson name
The International Terminal carries it in full: Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal. ATL’s history page dates the terminal’s opening to 2012. The International Park-Ride deck sits on Maynard H. Jackson Jr. Boulevard, according to ATL’s fact sheet.
Our Terminal page shows where the International Terminal sits. If you’re flying from it, our airlines pages say which airlines check in there. Our flights page links each airline’s page with its check-in counters.
Sources
- Our Terminal page, airlines pages and flights page
- ATL history page and fact sheet, published by Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
- Wikipedia, “Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport”
- Citizen Daily Post, “Did Atlanta airport change its name”
- atlanta.com, “Atlanta Airport Name Guide”