If you've ever flown into Tennessee's capital, you've likely wondered why the three-letter code on your baggage tag doesn't match the city name. The letters BNA stand for Berry Field Nashville. While millions of travelers pass through the Nashville International Airport every year, few know the historical roots behind its unusual identifier.
Airport codes often puzzle flyers. Cities like Los Angeles (LAX) or Chicago (ORD) use abbreviations derived from their names or historical designations, but Nashville stands out because it features a prominent "B" that doesn't appear in the city title. Unraveling this aviation mystery requires looking back to the 1930s when commercial aviation was in its infancy and the local landscape looked entirely different.
The Origins of Berry Field
In the mid-1930s, municipal leaders recognized that Nashville needed a dedicated commercial airfield to keep pace with growing national air travel. The city established the facility in 1937, naming it Berry Field in honor of Colonel Harry S. Berry.
Colonel Berry was a prominent local military figure and a key administrator for the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in Tennessee. Under his leadership, federal relief funds helped construct the original airfield, hangars, and administration buildings. When the International Air Transport Association (IATA) later standardized three-letter identifiers for global navigation and ticketing, the airport claimed the prefix B for Berry, N for Nashville, and A for Airport (or simply Berry Field Nashville). To see the full picture, we recommend the recent report by Lonely Planet.
Even though the civilian facility eventually dropped "Berry Field" from its primary marketing name in favor of Nashville International Airport, the legacy code stuck. Today, IATA codes are permanent fixtures of global aviation logistics, meaning historical anomalies rarely get retired even after a facility is rebranded.
Colonel Harry S. Berry and the WPA Era
Understanding the "B" in the code means examining the economic climate of the Great Depression. Colonel Berry managed massive federal infrastructure projects across Tennessee, putting thousands of jobless residents back to work.
When the city sought land for a municipal airport in southeastern Davidson County, federal backing through the WPA made the massive earth-moving and paving project possible. Naming the facility after Berry acknowledged his administrative efforts in bringing federal dollars to local civil works.
While the original passenger terminal from 1937 has long since been replaced by modern multi-concourse structures, the military side of the property still maintains deep historical ties. Portions of the installation continue to house the Tennessee Air National Guard's 118th Wing, preserving the Berry Field name within military operations.
How Airport Codes Work Globally
Travelers often assume every airport code is a neat abbreviation of the city name, but aviation history tells a different story. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) system evolved from pre-WWII weather station and two-letter station codes used by early airmail pilots.
When traffic surged, the system expanded to three-letter codes capable of handling thousands of unique combinations. Several common patterns explain why codes often mismatch city names:
- The Original Name Retained: Like Nashville (BNA), airports often keep legacy codes assigned during their original opening, even if the facility undergoes a complete name change decades later.
- Letter Availability Conflicts: When multiple cities share the same initials, secondary locations must adopt creative consonants. For example, Orlando uses MCO (standing for the former McCoy Air Force Base).
- Regional Identifiers: Some airports use regional or county names instead of the specific metropolitan area they serve to avoid duplication with global hubs.
Modern Growth at Nashville International
While the code honors the past, the physical footprint looks forward. Over the last decade, BNA has undergone massive multibillion-dollar expansions to handle exploding tourism and a booming local population.
The airport features expanded parking garages, a central terminal plaza, international arrivals facilities, and an on-site hotel designed to accommodate soaring passenger volumes. Despite these modern updates—including large architectural monuments displaying the famous three-letter code at the main entrance—the connection to Colonel Harry S. Berry remains written into every flight itinerary.
For further details on current flight operations and terminal maps, you can review the official Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority portal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why doesn't Nashville airport use NAS?
The code NAS was already claimed by Lynden Pindling International Airport in Nassau, Bahamas. IATA rules mandate that every active commercial airport code must be entirely unique globally.
Does anyone still call it Berry Field?
Civilians rarely use the name today, but it remains active in military contexts. The Tennessee Air National Guard base located on the grounds still carries the Berry Field designation.
When was the airport officially opened?
The facility opened its gates on June 12, 1937, welcoming early aircraft operated by foundational carriers like American Airlines and Eastern Air Lines.
Can airport codes ever be changed?
Code changes are exceptionally rare because they disrupt global ticketing systems, reservation databases, baggage routing labels, and pilot navigation charts. Cities almost always keep their historical codes permanently.
