Port Columbus airport to be renamed for John Glenn

COLUMBUS - Ohio's capital city airport will soon likely be renamed for one the state's most famous air travelers.

State lawmakers are expected to approve naming the airport the John Glenn Columbus International Airport, according to House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger, R-Clarksville.

Glenn would have never sought the honor for himself, but Rosenberger said he was happy to bestow it. He asked John and Annie Glenn about the name change during a function Monday.

“Of course, he is extremely humble and would never look to seek anything like that, but was extremely touched, and I think it’s very befitting for his honor,” Rosenberger said.

Those who know the pioneering astronaut and former U.S. senator said the honor is befitting the man.

"I think it's terrific," said Hal Burlingame, chairman of the Muskingum University Board of Trustees, where Glenn also serves with his wife. "It will get conversations started for generations about who this has been named for."

Burlingame said he remembered going to New Concord High School, which has since been renamed for Glenn, and being told that one of the students who used to attend the school was going to set a transcontinental speed record. He said Glenn and his wife are wonderful role models, and they are a source of pride for his home community in Muskingum County.

Joanna Duncan, education director at the the John & Annie Glenn Historic Site in New Concord, said the move was especially fitting because flight was an early interest for Glenn, who used to create balsa wood planes as a child.

"It's certainly quite an honor and well deserved," she said.

Lawmakers are expected to approve the change with votes Wednesday. No money is attached for sign changes. The airport will not change its code, which is CMH.