ST Joseph County Airport Authority

ST Joseph County Airport Authority, doing business as South Bend International Airport, is a U.S. local government airport authority that receives federal grant funding from the Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration to perform airport infrastructure construction, rehabilitation, and modernization work at its South Bend, Indiana facility. The authority operates as a prime grant recipient (100% of recent awards) under the Airport Improvement Program (CFDA 20.106 and 20.116) and related FAA grant vehicles, with no federal contract prime or subcontract activity.

South Bend International Airport's federal footprint consists entirely of project grants from the FAA Great Lakes Region for airfield and terminal infrastructure work. Recent representative awards include a $20.8 million grant (September 2024) for the final construction phase of Taxiway B reconstruction; a $3.87 million grant (March 2026) under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to expand and extend the terminal access road with two additional traffic lanes; a $2.69 million grant (July 2026) to reconstruct the precision approach path indicator system for Runway 18/36 and rehabilitate runway lighting; and a $2.02 million grant (July 2026) for the final construction phase of taxiway lighting rehabilitation on Taxiways A and N. The authority also received a $750,000 grant (November 2023) under the Payments for Small Community Air Service Development Program (CFDA 20.930) to support minimum revenue guarantees and marketing to establish or improve air service. Additional work includes airport drainage and erosion control construction, terminal facility reconstruction (including public restrooms and passenger access ramps), aircraft rescue and firefighting equipment acquisition, and airport master plan updates.

The Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration dominates the authority's customer concentration, accounting for 41 of the 84 awards with identified agencies (48% of awards by count); the FAA Great Lakes Region specifically carries 27 awards with named potential value of approximately $113.8 million (based on disclosed grant awards spanning 2022–2026). A single grant sub-award from May 2026 funded expansion of the airport's security camera system across terminal frontage and public access areas, including high-resolution video, real-time monitoring, onboard analytics, and visible firearm detection capabilities.

Activity has been modest and steady over the past five years—two awards in 2022 and 2023, five in 2024, four in 2025, and five in 2026 through July—reflecting the episodic nature of FAA airport infrastructure funding cycles. Combined potential value across all 239 awards in the source data is $39.9 million, though combined obligated dollars total $180.3 million, indicating that many awards have been fully or partially executed. Only two awards face ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, creating minimal near-term recompete exposure.