The Top 20 Airport Terminal Construction Contractors in 2026

Twenty contractors and construction managers reported a combined $13.9 billion in airport revenue for 2025, according to Building Design+Construction's newest sector ranking. The top five account for $8.5 billion of that, or about 61 percent, and the top two alone for 36 percent.

Airport work is concentrated at the top, long in duration, and built inside operating facilities. If you sell into terminals as a subcontractor or supplier, these are the firms running the jobs. Below is who they are, where they are based, what they are building, and what each one says publicly about how it qualifies trade partners.

How We Ranked Them

The source is BD+C's Top 75 Airport Facility Construction Firms for 2026, published September 1, 2026, as part of the 2026 Giants 400 Report. BD+C describes it as a ranking of the nation's largest "airport terminal and airport facility sector contractors and construction management firms." The measure is 2025 airport revenue.

The rank order below follows that table exactly, positions 1 through 20, with no firms added, dropped or reordered.

A few honest caveats:

• The revenue figures are supplied by the firms. BD+C's 2026 Giants 400 methodology note says the charts are "based on information supplied by the respective firms," and we did not audit them.
• The same note says sector data labeled "Construction" includes all delivery methods combined: GC, design-build, CM at risk, IPD, CM agent and program management. That matters here. Some airport revenue comes from managing programs, not holding trade contracts.
• Much of the largest airport work is done by joint ventures, so the same terminal can show up in more than one firm's total.
• For context we also pulled last year's table, BD+C's Top 60 Airport Facility Construction Firms for 2025, which ranked firms by 2024 revenue.
• Headquarters, projects and prequalification details come from company websites, airport owners or trade and local press, linked inline. Where we couldn't verify a project, we left it out.

One more note. ENR's Top 400 Contractors also ranks firms in a transportation sector, but that category counts roads, bridges, rail and marine work alongside airports. It is not an airport ranking, and we did not use it for the order below.

The Ranking at a Glance

Rank	Contractor	HQ	2025 airport revenue
1	AECOM	Dallas, TX	$2.66B
2	Hensel Phelps	Greeley, CO	$2.37B
3	Turner Construction	New York, NY	$1.65B
4	Holder Construction	Atlanta, GA*	$1.23B
5	Suffolk	Boston, MA*	$638.9M
6	Clark Group	Bethesda, MD*	$621.1M
7	Manhattan Construction Group	Naples, FL and Tulsa, OK	$613.0M
8	The Walsh Group	Chicago, IL*	$566.5M
9	Swinerton	Concord, CA*	$481.0M
10	The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company	Baltimore, MD	$355.5M
11	PCL Construction	Colorado*	$339.3M
12	Austin Industries	Dallas, TX	$331.9M
13	Balfour Beatty US	Dallas, TX*	$324.5M
14	Holt Construction	Pearl River, NY	$315.8M
15	JE Dunn Construction	Kansas City, MO	$292.4M
16	Big-D Construction	Salt Lake City, UT*	$281.3M
17	McCarthy Holdings	St. Louis, MO	$252.0M
18	Skanska USA	New York, NY	$229.4M
19	The Weitz Company	Des Moines, IA	$198.9M
20	W.E. O'Neil Construction	Chicago, IL	$180.6M

Source: BD+C 2026 Giants 400, Top 75 Airport Facility Construction Firms (2025 revenue, supplied by the firms). *The firm's site does not label a headquarters; we list the office it names first or the location it gives. Details in each entry.

The Top Five: $600 Million and Up

1. AECOM (Dallas, TX)

2025 airport revenue: $2,663,800,000. AECOM moved to No. 1 this year. On last year's table it was second, at $2,100,900,000, behind Hensel Phelps. AECOM's contact page lists its global headquarters at 13355 Noel Road in Dallas.

Recent airport work: New Terminal One at JFK is being built by "a design-build team led by AECOM Tishman and Gensler," CommercialSearch reported on December 4, 2025. The $9.5 billion, 2.6-million-square-foot terminal opens its first 14 gates first and reaches 23 gates at full build, with completion expected in 2030. Our JFK New Terminal One breakdown covers that job in detail. In Chicago, AECOM Hunt Clayco Bowa is building O'Hare's 19-gate Concourse D, which broke ground in August 2025 (more in our O'Hare Concourse D report). AECOM also signed on in September 2024 to provide program management for San Diego International Airport's nearly $4 billion expansion.

For subs: AECOM's supplier portal page routes registration through the Coupa Supplier Portal, starting from an emailed invitation. We did not find a public subcontractor prequalification page for its construction units.

2. Hensel Phelps (Greeley, CO)

2025 airport revenue: $2,367,914,968, up from $2,293,632,605 on last year's table, where it ranked first. The contact page lists corporate headquarters at 420 Sixth Avenue, Greeley.

Recent airport work: The Columbus Regional Airport Authority selected Hensel Phelps as construction manager at risk for the new terminal at John Glenn Columbus International Airport, with Columbus-based Elford as integrated partner. The 1,000,000-square-foot terminal will have 36 gates, and the team broke ground on December 9, 2024. In September 2025, Boise Airport selected Hensel Phelps as CM/GC for its Concourse A and terminal work, with a not-to-exceed amount of $700 million, up to 10 new gates, and work scheduled through 2029.

For subs: The trade partners page has you pick a region and fill out that region's online prequalification application.

3. Turner Construction (New York, NY)

2025 airport revenue: $1,645,712,127. Turner's home page lists headquarters at 66 Hudson Boulevard East, New York.

Recent airport work: On July 28, 2025, Turner topped out the 14-gate Concourse E at Washington Dulles, a 449,930-square-foot concourse built directly over an active AeroTrain station. By June 2026, FFXnow reported that general contractor Turner had 600 workers going around the clock to get the $700 million concourse ready for a fall opening. In Seattle, Turner completed the steel topping out on the $260 million, 226,000-square-foot C Concourse expansion at Sea-Tac in December 2024, with substantial completion scheduled for 2026.

For subs: Turner's subcontractor page runs prequalification for U.S. and Canadian companies through a Vertikal portal. Uploads include your EMR, a three-year safety history, a financial statement, a line-of-credit letter and a surety letter showing project and aggregate limits.

4. Holder Construction (Atlanta, GA)

2025 airport revenue: $1,233,000,000, up from $987,000,000 on last year's table. Holder's contact page lists its Atlanta office at 3300 Riverwood Parkway first, and Construction Dive calls it "Atlanta-based Holder Construction."

Recent airport work: The Holder, Pankow, TEC Joint Venture is building Hollywood Burbank Airport's replacement terminal, a 355,000-square-foot facility with 14 gates. In Omaha, Eppley Airfield tapped Holder to lead its $950 million terminal plan, which grows the terminal to 646,000 square feet from 375,000, Construction Dive reported in January 2024, with completion estimated for 2028.

For subs: Holder's trade partners page has a form for each office and says the firm will reach out if you meet its minimum requirements to prequalify. The page does not publish those minimums.

5. Suffolk (Boston, MA)

2025 airport revenue: $638,900,000. Suffolk's site does not label a headquarters. Its Boston page says "Boston is where it all started for us" and lists 65 Allerton Street.

Recent airport work: Suffolk and the Lee County Port Authority celebrated the topping off of Phase 2 of the terminal expansion at Southwest Florida International Airport, WGCU reported on December 5, 2025. The work includes a new 14-gate Concourse E that can grow to 19 gates, on a more than 513,000-square-foot structural expansion.

For subs: Suffolk's contact page offers "Trade Partner Prequalification" as a contact reason but does not name a platform.

Ranks 6 to 10: $355 Million to $625 Million

6. Clark Group (Bethesda, MD)

2025 airport revenue: $621,113,565. Clark's offices page lists a Bethesda office at 7500 Old Georgetown Road without labeling a headquarters.

Recent airport work: Clark is overseeing construction of the Central Processor in the $1.9 billion Terminal B transformation at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental, which includes a new baggage claim hall, ticketing hall and security checkpoint. Clark said in December 2023 that the redevelopment was expected to be complete in 2026, and ENR described Clark crews setting a 180-ton roof truss there in early 2026.

For subs: Clark's subcontractors page uses TradeTapp and requires every trade contractor to complete its Subcontractor Qualification Application before bidding.

7. Manhattan Construction Group (Naples, FL and Tulsa, OK)

2025 airport revenue: $613,028,464. Manhattan's contact page lists two co-headquarters, in Naples, Florida, and Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Recent airport work: Manhattan is construction manager at risk for the airside portion of the same Houston Terminal B program. The airside project topped out on July 17, 2025. Manhattan's post puts that work at $1.2 billion of United's $2.5 billion program, with a 765,000-square-foot North Concourse and 22 narrowbody-equivalent gates scheduled for completion in fall 2026.

For subs: The trade partners page has a form to request a prequalification package, plus an electronic plan room.

8. The Walsh Group (Chicago, IL)

2025 airport revenue: $566,487,693. Walsh's contact page lists 929 West Adams Street, Chicago, first.

Recent airport work: On September 19, 2026, the FAA awarded Walsh Federal a design-build contract for a new air traffic control tower at Sacramento International Airport. Construction is expected to begin in summer 2027, and the tower is expected to be operational around 2030.

For subs: Walsh's bidding opportunities page directs subs to the regional office's estimating department.

9. Swinerton (Concord, CA)

2025 airport revenue: $481,000,000. Swinerton's site does not label a headquarters. Its Concord office is at 2001 Clayton Road.

Airport work: We did not find a dated 2024 to 2026 airport milestone. Swinerton's project pages list the McKinney National Airport commercial terminal in Texas, as general contractor out of its Dallas office, and Terminal 1 parking plazas at San Diego International, delivered design-build.

For subs: Per Swinerton's prequalification page, subs must be prequalified to be awarded a contract, and applications start through a CMiC registration link. It asks for a financial statement, a letter of bondability, OSHA 300/300A logs and a three-year EMR history, and says an EMR of 1.25 or higher needs an explanation letter.

10. The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company (Baltimore, MD)

2025 airport revenue: $355,511,693. Whiting-Turner's contact page lists its headquarters at 300 East Joppa Road, Baltimore.

Airport work: We did not find a dated 2024 to 2026 airport milestone on a page we could open. Whiting-Turner's BWI Concourse E extension page describes a 70,000-square-foot addition and a 20,000-square-foot renovation to support six additional international gates.

For subs: The prequalification page runs through BuildingConnected and posts a sample questionnaire.

Ranks 11 to 15: $290 Million to $340 Million

11. PCL Construction (Colorado)

2025 airport revenue: $339,254,839. PCL's U.S. head office page says it has been in the U.S. since 1975 and runs U.S. operations "through a central location in Colorado." It does not give an address.

Recent airport work: In May 2025, the Port of Seattle awarded PCL a general contractor/construction manager contract for a 14,000-square-foot shared-use lounge on Sea-Tac's A Concourse. Construction was scheduled to begin in summer 2025, with completion expected in fall 2026.

For subs: We did not find a published subcontractor prequalification page on PCL's U.S. site, so contact the local district office directly.

12. Austin Industries (Dallas, TX)

2025 airport revenue: $331,941,060. Austin's Dallas page lists both Austin Corporate HQ and Austin Commercial HQ at 3535 Travis Street.

Recent airport work: At Austin-Bergstrom International, the city approved a new $820 million arrivals and departures hall "to be built by Austin Commercial LP," ENR reported in June 2025. ENR said the hall and a $1 billion, 20-gate concourse by Hensel Phelps are both to be completed by 2030.

For subs: Austin Commercial's partnerships page links to an online prequalification form.

13. Balfour Beatty US (Dallas, TX)

2025 airport revenue: $324,504,903. Balfour Beatty's contact page lists a Dallas office at 3100 McKinnon Street but does not label a headquarters.

Recent airport work: Balfour Beatty is general contractor on Jacksonville International's new Concourse B and a third parking garage. The 190,000-square-foot concourse adds six gates, and the firm said in May 2024 that it expected completion in December 2026. In Sacramento, it topped out a $140 million pedestrian walkway in August 2025, a quarter-mile skybridge linking Terminal B to Concourse B.

For subs: Per the trade partners page, Balfour Beatty has collected prequalification data through TradeTapp since March 13, 2023.

14. Holt Construction (Pearl River, NY)

2025 airport revenue: $315,800,000. Holt's connect page lists its Pearl River headquarters at 50 East Washington Avenue.

Recent airport work: In June 2025, Holt said its Dallas business unit had won a 2024 Project Achievement Award from the Construction Management Association of America for American Airlines' aircraft up-gauge facility modifications at DFW Terminal B. A September 2024 post covered Holt's ground-up construction of a new terminal at Sullivan County Airport in Swan Lake, New York.

For subs: Holt's subcontracting page says every firm must complete its prequalification process, with next steps sent by BuildingConnected.

15. JE Dunn Construction (Kansas City, MO)

2025 airport revenue: $292,358,388. JE Dunn's Kansas City page identifies it as headquarters, at 1001 Locust Street.

Recent airport work: The Metropolitan Airports Commission selected JE Dunn as construction manager at risk for a $480 million expansion at Minneapolis-Saint Paul International, Construction Dive reported on October 27, 2026. The project covers about 309,990 square feet of new concourse space, with enabling work in 2027, major construction in 2028 and completion targeted for 2032. In South Carolina, JE Dunn and Southside Constructors completed a 50,000-square-foot concourse expansion at Myrtle Beach International that added six gates, with a ribbon cutting on December 1, 2025.

For subs: The trade partners page says prequalification is required and runs through TradeTapp.

Ranks 16 to 20: $180 Million to $285 Million

16. Big-D Construction (Salt Lake City, UT)

2025 airport revenue: $281,261,716. Big-D's Salt Lake City office page lists 404 West 400 South but does not label it as headquarters.

Airport work: Big-D and its partner Holder Construction, as HDJV, celebrated the grand opening of Phase 3 at Salt Lake City International Airport. Its centerpiece is the Central Tunnel connecting Concourses A and B. The post does not give a date or dollar value.

For subs: Big-D's subcontractors page says the firm prequalifies subcontractors and links to a BuildingConnected invitation.

17. McCarthy Holdings (St. Louis, MO)

2025 airport revenue: $251,967,923. McCarthy's St. Louis page is labeled as headquarters, at 12851 Manchester Road.

Recent airport work: As general contractor, McCarthy completed Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport's terminal addition in February 2024, an approximately $28 million, five-gate, 30,000-square-foot project.

For subs: McCarthy's trade partners page links to its own subcontractor prequalification system.

18. Skanska USA (New York, NY)

2025 airport revenue: $229,429,344. Skanska's U.S. about page says it runs 28 U.S. offices with headquarters in New York City, at the Empire State Building, 350 Fifth Avenue.

Airport work: Skanska lists construction management on the PDX Terminal Core Redevelopment in Portland, which includes a 400,000-square-foot timber roof and the replacement of 16 passenger boarding bridges. The page gives no dates or contract value, and we could not open a dated Skanska release on it.

For subs: Skanska's USA Building partner page lays out three steps: join BuildingConnected and follow Skanska, prequalify with USA Building, then watch for project opportunities.

19. The Weitz Company (Des Moines, IA)

2025 airport revenue: $198,934,200. Weitz's offices page lists its corporate headquarters at 611 5th Avenue, Des Moines.

Recent airport work: On May 31, 2024, Weitz and the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority topped out a 450-foot elevated pedestrian bridge connecting Orlando International's Terminal C to its train station and other facilities. Weitz was also part of the design-build joint venture that delivered the new single terminal at Kansas City International, with 39 gates across two concourses.

For subs: We did not find a subcontractor prequalification page on Weitz's site.

20. W.E. O'Neil Construction (Chicago, IL)

2025 airport revenue: $180,561,152. O'Neil's Chicago page calls 1245 W. Washington Blvd. its headquarters office.

Recent airport work: O'Neil is CMAR on LAX's Midfield Satellite Concourse South, an eight-gate, 150,000-square-foot concourse. Its January 2024 post said the structure topped out less than seven months after groundbreaking. At O'Hare, O'Neil is part of COT3, a Clark-O'Neil joint venture serving as CMAR on ElevateT3, which has $90 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law grant funding.

For subs: The trade partners page sends subs to get qualified through Vertikal.

What the List Tells Subcontractors

Airport work is more concentrated than most building sectors. AECOM and Hensel Phelps together reported $5.0 billion, more than the 14 firms ranked 7th through 20th combined. That concentration, plus the size of individual programs, means a few large jobs drive most of the trade buying.

Joint ventures are the norm on the biggest terminals. Burbank's replacement terminal is a Holder, Pankow and TEC JV. O'Hare's Concourse D is AECOM Hunt Clayco Bowa. Salt Lake City's Phase 3 is Holder and Big-D. O'Hare's ElevateT3 is Clark and O'Neil. Columbus pairs Hensel Phelps with a local firm, Elford. For a trade contractor, that means the prequal you need may be with the JV entity or the managing partner, so ask early which firm's system governs a given job.

Houston shows how one program can split. Clark has the Terminal B Central Processor and Manhattan has the airside concourse. Two separate GCs, two separate bid lists, one airport.

On paperwork, BuildingConnected and TradeTapp again cover the most firms here: Clark, Balfour Beatty, JE Dunn, Whiting-Turner, Holt, Big-D and Skanska. Turner and W.E. O'Neil use Vertikal, and Swinerton uses a CMiC portal. McCarthy runs its own system. Turner and Swinerton publish the most detailed document lists: EMR history, safety records, financial statements, line-of-credit letters and bonding letters.

Airport jobs also carry constraints that general building work doesn't: badging and security escorts airside, night and phased work in operating terminals, and delivery scheduling around active roadways. Turner's Dulles concourse was built over an active AeroTrain station, and ENR described Clark's Houston crews working "in tight windows between active roadways and rail systems." Price that friction in with our bid calculator.

Where Airport Construction Is Heading

The projects on this list point to long programs, not one-off jobs. JFK's New Terminal One runs to 2030. Columbus is replacing its 1958 terminal with a 36-gate building. Boise's program runs through 2029. Austin plans a new hall and a 20-gate concourse by 2030. JE Dunn's Minneapolis work isn't targeted for completion until 2032. Trades that can staff one airport for several years are what these firms need.

Our coverage of airport terminal construction spending and capital needs tracks the funding side of that pipeline. For the airfield side, see what a mile of airport runway really costs.

There is also overlap with healthcare. AECOM, Hensel Phelps, Turner, Clark, Walsh, Swinerton, Whiting-Turner, PCL, JE Dunn, McCarthy and Skanska are all on our top 20 hospital and healthcare construction contractors list. Both markets reward the same things: phased work in occupied buildings, heavy MEP coordination and long schedules.

Bottom Line

The airport market is top-heavy. AECOM and Hensel Phelps traded the top two spots this year, and the top five firms took 61 percent of the top 20's revenue. Most of the big terminals are built by joint ventures, and many run five years or more.

Pick the airports in your region with funded programs. Find out which firm or JV holds construction management, get your prequal current on that firm's platform, and ask whether there are smaller packages you can win first. A clean first airport scope, done under badging and phasing rules, is the reference that gets you the next one.

FAQ

What source is this airport contractor ranking based on?

Building Design+Construction's Top 75 Airport Facility Construction Firms for 2026, part of its 2026 Giants 400 Report, published September 1, 2026. Firms are ranked by 2025 airport revenue supplied by the firms themselves.

Who is the largest airport construction contractor in the U.S.?

AECOM, with $2.66 billion in 2025 airport revenue on BD+C's list. Hensel Phelps was second at $2.37 billion. The two swapped places from last year's table, when Hensel Phelps ranked first.

Is this the same as ENR's transportation ranking?

No. ENR's transportation category includes roads, bridges, rail, marine work and airports, so it mixes heavy civil contractors with building contractors. BD+C's airport table isolates airport revenue, which is why we used it.

How do subcontractors get prequalified with airport contractors?

It depends on the firm. BuildingConnected or TradeTapp is the most common platform on this list, while Turner and W.E. O'Neil use Vertikal and Swinerton uses CMiC. On joint-venture jobs, ask which partner's prequalification system applies. Expect to submit financial statements, EMR history, OSHA logs and a bonding letter.

Why do the same airports appear under more than one firm?

Large terminal programs are often split into packages or built by joint ventures. Houston's Terminal B, for example, has Clark on the central processor and Manhattan on the airside concourse.