The fight over the Charlotte airport appears permanently stuck. The Federal Aviation Administration essentially confirms that by refusing to give the final word. That leaves the city in control until city leaders say otherwise.
The Charlotte City Council has controlled the airport for decades, but Republican state lawmakers tried to change that in 2013. They passed a law to give the state more power through an appointed airport commission.
That got tied up in a lawsuit, and a North Carolina judge ruled in 2014 that only the FAA can determine who runs the airport. In the meantime, it's business as usual, with the city in charge.
Nearly two years later, nothing has changed. Charlotte's city attorney asked the FAA for its final word, and he still hasn't received an answer. The FAA reiterated this month that changing airport ownership is quote: a local decision. Since Charlotte has the certificate to operate, it's up to city leaders or another court order to change that.
So the court and the city want the FAA to settle it, and the FAA says it's up to the court and the city. The result is a fight that's not quite dead - "dormant" is the word the state attorney general's office uses - but is permanently stuck. Meanwhile, the city continues running what's now the fifth busiest airport in the country.