Editor\u2019s note: On \u201cFlorida Matters Live & Local\u201d on WUSF, Tampa Inter- national Airport CEO Michael Stephens discusses his career beginnings, his sights on the airport\u2019s future and more. WUSF is an editorial partnership of the Florida Courier.<\/p>\n
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Tampa International Airport CEO Michael Stephens speaks with a passenger on his first week on the job in April 2025.<\/p>\n
TAMPA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT<\/p>\n
The pungent smell of jet fuel and the movie \u201cTop Gun\u201d marked Michael Stephens\u2019 journey into aviation \u2014 a catalyst for becoming Tampa International Airport\u2019s CEO.<\/p>\n
Tampa has the fourth busiest airport in the state, as more than 24 million passengers trek past its renowned 21-foot-tall flamingo mascot Phoebe every year.<\/p>\n
Stephens took command in April following the retirement of longtime CEO Joe Lopano. But he\u2019s no stranger to how the airport functions. He\u00a0spent the past decade\u00a0as the airport\u203as general counsel and executive vice president over various departments.<\/p>\n
On \u201cFlorida Matters Live & Local,\u201d Stephens reflected on his career beginnings, how the airport navigated a federal shutdown late last year, his sights on the future and more.<\/p>\n
Childhood spark turns into lifelong career<\/p>\n
Stephens\u2019 journey in aviation started when he saw the movie \u201cTop Gun\u201d with Tom Cruise as a kid. It ignited a desire to be a fighter pilot. So, he enlisted in the Air Force fresh out of high school.<\/p>\n
His first time on a commercial aircraft didn\u2019t come until basic training \u2014 and that\u2019s when he was hooked.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce you get out on a flight line somehow and smell the jet fuel and all that, aviation gets in your blood, and 25-30 years later, it\u2019s still been in my system,\u201d he told program host Matthew Peddie.<\/p>\n
Although being a fighter pilot \u201cwasn\u2019t in the cards for him,\u201d he became an air traffic controller in the military. He described how mentors and people along the way helped steer him to where he was supposed to be.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never would have imagined, though, that I would have gone from being a young enlisted guy in the Air Force as an air traffic controller to running America\u2019s favorite airport, and I\u2019m grateful for it every day,\u201d Stephens said.<\/p>\n
Navigating a shutdown and complex daily operations<\/p>\n
Stephens\u2019 tenure as CEO has not been without its challenges. On Oct. 1, six months into his position, the longest federal government shutdown ever kicked off.<\/p>\n
He said airport employees did their best to eliminate the 43 days of turbulence through \u201ccoordination, communication and support.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve done the same things that we\u2019ve done in any type of circumstance like that that we face that impacts our operations, and that is really coordinating amongst our fantastic team of not only Tampa International employees, but the multiple partners at the federal and partnership level that we have with our vendors \u2014 all of those folks \u2014 just making sure that we were doing whatever we can to coordinate to alleviate the impacts of that shutdown on our passengers,\u201d Stephens said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He added they came through with \u201cflying colors.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stephens admitted the shutdown was stressful at times \u2014 especially since they were coming up on Thanks- giving. Since there were federal employees coming to work without pay, Stephens said they coordinated with partners in the region for assistance.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor example, reaching out to our friends at TECO to get some abatement when it came to utilities payments, looking at how we can do things like being able to allow our federal partners \u2014 particularly our lower-perhaps-compensated TSA folks \u2014 to be able to get fuel to be able to make it to work,\u201d he said. \u201cDoing things with Feeding Tampa Bay. So it really was one of those all-hands-on-deck efforts where the airport was acting as coordinator to kind of help get as much support as we could.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stephens said running an international airport is an \u201cincredibly complex operation.\u201d He explained that almost 25 million people use the facility, comparing it to managing a crowd at Raymond James Stadium every day.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of us experience it just as the consumers,\u201d Stephens said. \u201cYou come in, you maybe grab a cup of coffee \u2014 something to eat \u2014 you go to your plane, you get on the plane and it\u2019s done. There\u2019s so much that happens behind it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018Tightly coordinated dance\u2019<\/p>\n
He said the airport makes it happen through hiring \u201csome of the best people around\u201d and coordination efforts with around 10,000 people who work there \u2014 everyone from bag handlers and ticket agents to baristas at coffee shops.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a tightly coordinated dance that we do every day to make this such a tremendous experience for people coming through,\u201d Stephens said.<\/p>\n
In addition, Stephens and the executive team are out on the front lines to see what\u2019s happening. He mentioned how when he started the gig, he did job-shadowing for various roles.<\/p>\n
\u201cLiterally, I had on the traffic officer uniform, and I was down on the curb with a whistle around my neck doing whatever needed to be done to help get our passengers where they were going,\u201d Stephens explained. \u201cAnd you learn a lot by doing that type of stuff. So it\u2019s not just for show. It\u2019s an actual, real strategic reason in being out there with your people and seeing what they\u2019re experiencing and what your passengers are experiencing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Growth-minded focus toward the future<\/p>\n
As time ticks on, Stephens is focused on accommodating more passengers \u2014 and with that comes expansion.\u00a0<\/p>\n
One of those projects is Airside D, which is anticipated to cost an estimated $1.5 billion and is scheduled to open in late 2028. Stephens said it\u2019s the airport\u2019s first new airside in 20 years. It will have 16 gates and its own customs facility. He said it will be critical in handling the increase in flyers and attracting additional nonstop international flights.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re anticipating there are going to be 10 million more passengers traveling through Tampa International Airport in the next 10 to 12 years. So being able to accommodate that volume,\u201d he said. \u201cAlso, the region is growing tremendously. We\u2019re expecting that same period of time about three-quarters of a million new inhabitants and residents living in the Tampa Bay region.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stephens said the airport has the potential capacity, based on studies, to go north of 40 million-plus passengers per year over the next 20-plus years.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd depending on what technologies are out there and what happens in the region, potentially even beyond that includes very, very, far, far far long-range opportunities for another runway, if that should become a requirement to enable growth,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Stephens is the fourth CEO in the airport\u2019s 98-year history and the first African American. He said he\u2019s very grateful to lead the organization.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think in the Tampa Bay region, at this point in time in its history, is worthy of big dreams and big ideas, and I\u2019m glad to be able to continue that,\u201d Stephens said.\u00a0<\/p>\n