Raleigh-Durham International Airport leaders and state and local officials marked the official opening of the new West Remain Overnight (West RON) aircraft parking ramp that will accommodate more aircraft overnight. The parking area allows planes that arrive late at night and depart early the next day to park overnight closer to Terminal 2, where a large percentage of morning departures take off.
“Expanding RDU’s overnight aircraft parking capacity fulfills a milestone in Vision 2040, the master plan that guides us in growing responsibly to meet our community’s increasing demand for air travel,” said Michael Landguth, president and CEO of the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority. “The new West RON is more convenient to Terminal 2 and positions aircraft closer to the terminal when gates become available for morning departures.”
About one-third of RDU’s daily flights depart between 5:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m., making the early morning hours the busiest time of day at the airport. The 558,000-square-foot parking area near Terminal 2 holds large aircraft that will be staged near the terminals in the mornings when planes are typically lined up waiting for a gate.
Construction on this critical infrastructure project began in 2020 and it opened in spring 2023. The $37 million project was made possible by the North Carolina General Assembly, who provided the funding over a period of four years.
The FAA accepted the Vision 2040 master plan in 2017 after a two-year public process. The plan is a long-range roadmap for the Airport Authority to follow when making decisions about major campus construction projects.
