The proposal for selling the airport to private interest goes all the way back to 2009.
See https://swflorida.blogspot.com/2009/07/inland-port-possible-in-hendry.html and https://swflorida.blogspot.com/2010/09/hendry-airglades-airport-future-sale.html
Hendry county signed an agreement February 27, 2018 to turn over ownership of the airport to a private group, Airglades International Airport LLC, subject to gaining approval from the FAA for a larger airport and international cargo facility.
Hendry county signed an agreement February 27, 2018 to turn over ownership of the airport to a private group, Airglades International Airport LLC, subject to gaining approval from the FAA for a larger airport and international cargo facility.
AIA is based out of U.S. Sugar's headquarters in Clewiston and officers and board members of AIA include Charles Harrison, Jr., Stephen Irick, Jr. and David Sandri, all of Miami; and in Clewiston - Thomas Gunderson, Mary Hilliard-Carroll, Lucas Kurtz, Elaine Wood, Thomas Hill, and Kevin Williams.
U.S. Sugar has been an active participant and presumed investor in the proposed airport project since the beginning. A year ago United States Sugar Corporation in Clewiston filed a new corporation called Airglades Leaseholding LLC presumable in anticipation of controlling land holdings at Airglades Airport.
On September 30, 2019, the FAA signed a Record of Decision approving the final application by Hendry County for Airglades Airport to participate in the Airport Investment Partnership Program (AIPP).
That authorized certain regulatory exemptions under federal law, a requirement for the privatization/privately-operated cargo-hub plan.
The plan included a sale/lease to a private entity, expansion plans (a new 10,000-foot runway, cargo-handling infrastructure, perishable-goods logistics complex), and conversion of the current general-aviation airport (FAA ID 2IS) at Clewiston into a large-scale international cargo facility.
The 2019 ROD gave formal, regulatory approval from the FAA to proceed subject to certain conditions for the Airglades privatization and expansion project.
As of December 2025, the FAA 2019 ROD is on administrative hold.
The hold was imposed to give Airglades International Airport (AIA) and Hendry County “additional time to meet the ROD conditions,” proving that necessary funding and investor commitments are secured.
The implication: if the required conditions (financing, investor backing, progress toward development) are not met within a reasonable time, the approval could lapse or be revoked.
The ROD remains valid, but the project is “on hold” until the developers meet the financial and regulatory prerequisites specified in the decision.
In August 2019, before the ROD, the FAA deemed the Airglades application “substantially complete.” That triggered the 30-day public comment period required under the program before final action.
In October 2019, the FAA's ROD formally approved the project.
By 2020, under conditions of the ROD, the developers requested and the FAA granted a six-month extension to reach “financial close.”
Later, the FAA granted an additional extension (nine-month) until April 2022 to satisfy all remaining conditions. Regulations.gov+1
As of December 2025, since the conditions were not met, the FAA placed the 2019 ROD on administrative hold.
The proponents continue to state on the Airglades website that the 2019 ROD remains a “milestone,” but also note that regulatory/environmental clearances do not guarantee construction or financial close.
The ROD is not revoked — but the project cannot proceed until conditions are met. The “hold” means the FAA retains oversight; Airglades must secure investors and financing, then request reactivation.
For locals or interested stakeholders: this means the planned “perishable-cargo complex + 10,000-ft runway + full-service logistics center” remains proposed, not active.
The status could change if AIA or Hendry County obtains financing or new investors, they could ask the FAA to lift the hold and resume development.
On September 30, 2019, the FAA signed a Record of Decision approving the final application by Hendry County for Airglades Airport to participate in the Airport Investment Partnership Program (AIPP).
That authorized certain regulatory exemptions under federal law, a requirement for the privatization/privately-operated cargo-hub plan.
The plan included a sale/lease to a private entity, expansion plans (a new 10,000-foot runway, cargo-handling infrastructure, perishable-goods logistics complex), and conversion of the current general-aviation airport (FAA ID 2IS) at Clewiston into a large-scale international cargo facility.
The 2019 ROD gave formal, regulatory approval from the FAA to proceed subject to certain conditions for the Airglades privatization and expansion project.
As of December 2025, the FAA 2019 ROD is on administrative hold.
The hold was imposed to give Airglades International Airport (AIA) and Hendry County “additional time to meet the ROD conditions,” proving that necessary funding and investor commitments are secured.
The implication: if the required conditions (financing, investor backing, progress toward development) are not met within a reasonable time, the approval could lapse or be revoked.
The ROD remains valid, but the project is “on hold” until the developers meet the financial and regulatory prerequisites specified in the decision.
In August 2019, before the ROD, the FAA deemed the Airglades application “substantially complete.” That triggered the 30-day public comment period required under the program before final action.
In October 2019, the FAA's ROD formally approved the project.
By 2020, under conditions of the ROD, the developers requested and the FAA granted a six-month extension to reach “financial close.”
Later, the FAA granted an additional extension (nine-month) until April 2022 to satisfy all remaining conditions. Regulations.gov+1
As of December 2025, since the conditions were not met, the FAA placed the 2019 ROD on administrative hold.
The proponents continue to state on the Airglades website that the 2019 ROD remains a “milestone,” but also note that regulatory/environmental clearances do not guarantee construction or financial close.
The ROD is not revoked — but the project cannot proceed until conditions are met. The “hold” means the FAA retains oversight; Airglades must secure investors and financing, then request reactivation.
For locals or interested stakeholders: this means the planned “perishable-cargo complex + 10,000-ft runway + full-service logistics center” remains proposed, not active.
The status could change if AIA or Hendry County obtains financing or new investors, they could ask the FAA to lift the hold and resume development.
More past Airglades International Airport Cargo Project stories from Southwest Florida Online:
