Pilot Attempts to Stop Airport from Being Renamed After President Trump, Explains Reasons in Lawsuit

Palm Beach-based pilot George W. Poncy Jr. is fighting against Palm Beach International Airport having its name changed to Donald J. Trump International Airport.

On Thursday, April 16, Poncy, who is representing himself in court, filed a civil complaint against the state of Florida, its Department of Transportation, and Governor Ron DeSantis, according to People.

In his lawsuit, obtained by People, Poncy is attempting to prove that House Bill 919 — which “Preempts naming of major commercial service airports to state,” according to the Florida House of Representatives website — is unlawful. The bill allows the name change and takes effect on July 1.

As for his reasons, Poncy argued that since Palm Beach County owns and manages the airport, its “designation and identity” are typically handled at the local level, according to People.

“Florida statutes governing public facilities reflect a consistent legislative framework in which local entities manage and control airport operations,” Poncy wrote. “HB 919 departs from the framework by mandating a specific naming outcome without standards, findings or procedural safeguards.”

Additionally, Poncy says renaming the facility after President Donald Trump would impact safety due to “asynchronous updates” in the systems.

“These inconsistencies will introduce ambiguity in communications between pilots and air traffic control,” he argued. “In aviation, even minor inconsistencies in airport identification can create safety risks during routing, sequencing and emergency operations.”

When it comes to the financial aspect, Poncy claimed he will have “unrecoverable costs” as they will need to update “aviation software, navigational databases and flight planning systems affected by the name change,” per People.