14 TERMINALS July | August 2026 AirportImprovement.com SAT “We wanted to take [people] on a design journey that would consider movement from bedside to planeside,” O’Krongley explains. Topics discussed ranged from the accessibility of SAT’s website to physical issues inside restrooms or along curbsides. The USO was also consulted during the design process to ensure that SAT’s terminals best meet the needs of military personnel in town for training or assignment to nearby bases. When Terminal C is complete, the airport will have USO lounges on both sides of its security checkpoints. Another signature element being tested at scale in the ground loading facility is the “Resource Center”—essentially a private recomposure space after the TSA checkpoint for passengers with special needs. Airport leaders added the new feature after learning more about the complexities of packing for children with disabilities, only to unpack for TSA officers at the airport. For such guests, “It’s not as simple as closing the luggage back up and moving on…The people who have to go through this feel an enormous amount of pressure from the people who are behind them in line,” O’Krongley relates. “Now they can go in (to the Resource Center) and take as long as they want” to repack and resettle before proceeding to their gates.” Other amenities planned or already installed at SAT include adult changing rooms, sensory rooms and charging stations for battery- powered wheelchairs. “Some of the things we’re incorporating, as simple as they may seem to us, provide life-changing abilities” for certain travelers and their families, says Trupiano. In fact, he hopes focus group participants will become advocates for air travel within the community. “We want them to say, ‘I helped eliminate that, and now the skies are wide open.’” On a larger scale, he hopes the accessibility improvement at SAT will be noticed, appreciated and adopted by other airports around the world. “The airport at the other end of the journey has to be able to accommodate their needs, as well,” Trupiano points out. “Every time one airport takes a step forward, others see and recognize this and they step forward, too.” From Parking Guidance to Incident Resolution With the Park Assist Solution, operators can quickly verify events and resolve claims using our parking guidance system with HD video surveillance. Space-by-space visibility reduces conflicting accounts and provides evidence when it matters most. Visit tkhsecurity.com/US Adding a ground loading facility allowed the airport to increase capacity quickly.
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