PARKER MCCLELLAN JR.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, northwest florida beaches international airport, PANAMA CITY

McClellan is in charge of the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport, which opened in 2010 and has seen significant growth over the last 16 years. The area's old airport served about 325,000 passengers per year. In 2025, the new airport served nearly 2 million, including travelers from south Alabama and Georgia. McClellan has been executive director since 2013.

EDUCATION: Florida Institute of Technology (BS), Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (MBA)

giving back: I take great pride in our military, especially the Navy as I grew up the son of a naval officer. I really enjoy meeting service members and their families and thanking them for their service to our country, but I emphasize to the family what an important role they play with the service member.

PERSONAL RESET: Go home and talk to my wife about what happened, and she allows me to go on whatever tangent I want and somehow we end up in a better place than we started, she's the best! I cannot forget my golden retriever, Caymus, who senses how the day has been and makes sure I don't forget what is really important.

FOOD FIX: Sitting down with family and friends with a New York strip, grilled asparagus and a loaded baked potato with a glass of my favorite wine.

INDUSTRY TREND

“The constant change. Each day can be different. There are so many influences on our industry: government regulations, discretionary income, world politics, price of oil and weather, to name a few.”