On August 11, 2026, the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority marked a defining moment for Memphis with the official renaming and dedication of Memphis International Airport as Frederick W. Smith International Airport.
The ceremony included the reveal of the airport’s new logo and architectural renderings of The Thread, a future monumental gateway that will honor Frederick W. Smith’s transformative legacy while celebrating the forces that connect and define Memphis.
A Gateway Shaped by Memphis
Inspired by the Mississippi River and the movement of commerce, people and ideas through the city, The Thread is envisioned as a defining arrival-and-departure experience for travelers at MEM. Its fluid form will reflect Memphis’ connections to aviation, music, civil rights, culture and innovative industry.
The proposed structure spans approximately 280 feet in diameter and rises as high as 60 feet. Curved steel tubes and lightweight mesh will form a sequence of arches that appears to change as travelers move through the site. At night, illumination can transform the mesh through changing colors, graphics and imagery.
Local Leadership and a Collaborative Design Team
A2H is especially grateful to Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority leadership and the Board of Commissioners for their intentional decision to invest in local expertise by entrusting a Memphis-based firm with a project of such lasting civic importance.
A2H is proud to serve as the lead local architecture firm for this landmark project, working alongside Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), the design architect, and DT design studio, the local landscape architect. Together, the team is helping create a new symbol of civic pride at the gateway to Memphis.
