The Chattanooga Airport was chosen as the U.S. Airport Finalist for being the “first aviation terminal in the world to be LEED Platinum certified and first airport in the U.S. to go fully solar,” according to the Newsweek award team.
In the Newsweek feature, Zach Honig, The Points Guy Editor at Large, explained the reasoning behind Chattanooga’s selection. He said, "It may not be the country's largest or most amenity-packed airport, but there's no question that Chattanooga Airport has made sustainability a top priority. An expansive solar field became fully operational one year before the pandemic, producing enough power to support the entire airport. Outside the terminal building, there's a Tesla supercharger and electric-vehicle charging stations."