Salt Lake City Airport receives $6.6 million federal grant for family-focused security improvements

The Salt Lake City International Airport. Photo: TownLift

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — Getting through airport security could soon become easier for Utah families after the Federal Aviation Administration announced that Salt Lake City International Airport will receive $6.6 million to expand screening checkpoints and create security lanes designed to prioritize families.

The grant is part of the FAA’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Airport Terminal Program, which invested $970 million in airport terminal projects across 45 states this year to improve the travel experience for families.

“The FAA is moving quickly to get these investments out the door and into airports nationwide,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said in a statement Monday. “These projects will help create a more welcoming and accessible travel experience for families while demonstrating our commitment to improving America’s airports at record speed.”

The Transportation Security Administration introduced its “Families on the Fly” initiative at Salt Lake City International Airport in fall 2025 to make security screening easier for parents juggling strollers, diaper bags and young children.

So far, the airport’s family-friendly lanes have only operated intermittently. According to reporting from Utah News Dispatch, the new grant will fund construction of a permanent designated family lane at the airport’s main second-level security checkpoint, with the lane expected to open in late 2027 or early 2028.

The funding will also support upgrades to the airport’s ground-floor screening checkpoint.