TPA chief development officer talks expansion at Westshore forum

Tampa International Airport has a reputation for doing things right. 

Industry group Airports Council International and consumer insights and analytics firm J.D. Power consistently rank TPA among the top airports in North America for quality and passenger satisfaction. Airport leadership’s high standards and attention to detail also apply to its growth and expansion. Take Airside D, which will be the airport’s first new passenger terminal in nearly 20 years.TPA broke ground on the 16-gate, 615,000 square-foot, $1.5 billion terminal in December 2024, with plans to have it complete and open in 2028.

Speaking about the project during the Westshore Alliance’s annual development forum on May 15th, TPA Chief Development Officer Smitha Radhakrishnan says like other airports, TPA goes through a master planning process every 10 years to develop a road map for expansion projects needed to accommodate the region’s growth and the airport’s passenger growth.

“But what TPA does especially well is, not only do we plan rigorously, we execute. And we do it before the demand gets there,” Radhakrishnan says.

In the case of TPA, which saw passenger numbers surge from 18.5 million in 2015 to nearly 26 million this year, the master plan projected 35 million passengers and a need for 16 more gates by 2037. Airport leadership decided to expand sooner rather than later. Speaking to an audience of real estate and development professionals at the Westshore Alliance event, Radhakrishnan says spending billions to grow before the demand is there may seem counterintuitive, but it is not. It puts TPA in a position to accommodate any airlines interested in expanding to Tampa and supports the region’s continued growth instead of hampering it, she says. 

Westshore AllianceTampa International Airport Chief Development Officer Smitha Radhakrishnan Radhakrishnan joined TPA in 2024 from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, where she oversaw a multi-billion-dollar capital program and headed the planning group. During the Westshore Alliance’s forum, she says the “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to oversee a project like the development of Airside D drew her to Tampa. She also sheds light on the airport’s meticulous approach to planning the ambitious project. The approach is rooted in part in lessons from the book “How Big Things Get Done” by Bent Flyvbjerg and Dan Gardner. One concept TPA adopted from the book is “think slow, act fast.” 

“Take your time getting it right on paper…We’ve gone back to the drawing board a couple of times getting it right,” Radhakrishnan says. 

Another key concept from the book is “organizational ownership.” In the case of the planning and design of Airside D, TPA established a steering committee from across the airport organization. From that committee, airport leadership created focus teams “dedicated to making sure the design is well thought out,” Radhakrishnan says. For example, she says now that the 60 percent design drawings for Airside D are out, she knows representatives from the concessions and maintenance department will be reviewing them “because they are invested in the success of this project.”

“I feel that is the secret sauce and that is what it really takes to build big projects like this,” Radhakrishnan says. 

Airside D will have two levels, along with a mezzanine with two lounges. Delta Air Lines will be the anchor tenant, occupying six gates. It will also become the airport’s international terminal, with customs and baggage claim for arriving international passengers located in the terminal. 

While Airside D is the airport’s most significant expansion in decades, TPA is in the midst of a string of construction projects. The expansion of the Airside A and Airside E security screening checkpoints wrapped up in the spring. The "red side” express lanes and curbside expansion project at the main terminal is scheduled to open in the fall. New shuttle cars for Airsides A and E should be in operation in December.

For more information, go to Airside D update