Joey Garrison

USA Today Network - Tennessee

Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority President and CEO Rob Wigington was among a group of airport and airline executives who met with President Donald Trump Thursday morning to talk infrastructure and other matters.

At the White House gathering, Trump made pitches to privatize air traffic control centers and upgrade airports, declaring multiple times, "We need to rebuild America's airports." The group outlined plans for $100 billion in projects over the next five years, but funding would need to be found.

Wigington, who has led the Nashville International Airport since 2012, serves on the Airports Council International-North America's executive committee as U.S. policy council chair.

Last summer, Wigington announced plans for an ambitious $1.2 billion renovation of the airport over five years that will include new parking, more security lines, larger baggage claim and ticketing areas, expanded concourse space and a new on-site hotel.

“That’s exactly the kind of program where we need more passenger-facility charges at the local level to help us do that,” Wigington said Thursday.

Nashville airport plans $1.2B overhaul, including new hotel

Trump has discussed an infrastructure plan totaling $1 trillion during the next decade for construction of roads, bridges and airports, but it's unclear whether it would have congressional support.

Earlier this week, Davidson County Sheriff Daron Hall was invited to meet with Trump as a part of a group of local sheriffs, but Hall declined, citing his concerns with the president's recent executives orders on immigration.

According to Politico, Wigington was among around 15 airport executives who was to meet with Trump on Thursday. They included top executives from Delta Air Lines, Alaska Airlines, Atlas Air, FedEx, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines and Airports Council International, as well as CEOs from the airports in Buffalo, N.Y., Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, New York, New Jersey and Tampa, Fla.

USA Today contributed to this report. Reach Joey Garrison at 615-259-8236 and on Twitter @joeygarrison.