Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Aviation Managing Director Lance Lyttle has been announced as the next CEO of Greater Orlando Aviation Authority.
“Lance’s commitment to excellence and his ambitious vision changed the airport experience at SEA,” said Port of Seattle Executive Director Stephen Metruck. “SEA has now reached the prestigious 4-Star Airport level from the Skytrax World Airport Awards in consecutive years (2022 and 2023), as well as the designation of best airport in the United States for three years running.”
Lyttle helped lead a grand transformation of SEA Airport that continues with the current Upgrade SEA capital improvement program.
Under Lyttle’s leadership SEA has focused on a suite of improvements to create a reliable, efficient, and world-class airport customer experience. Achievements during his time as Managing Director have included recent openings of major facilities from the N Concourse Modernization and the International Arrivals Facility, the fully renovated and expanded Central Terminal, and projects underway such as the SEA Gateway in partnership with Alaska Airlines, and the C Concourse Expansion project. His creation and leadership of our StART community forum; his regular testimony in Washington, DC on core airport policy issues; and his steady hand at the helm during the COVID-19 pandemic are all part of his enduring legacy.
Lyttle started at the beginning of the SEA Airport Dining and Retail redevelopment process. Small and local business participation within the Airport Dining and Retail program has grown by 22% and revenue has doubled most recently grossing over $125M in 2024. Airport Dining and Retail sales have increased by 54% grossing over $440M in 2024. Between 2019 and 2023, the Aviation division spent $239 million with Women and Minority-Owned Business Enterprise (WMBE) firms.
Lance has been a popular figure throughout the airport, famously walking the terminal wearing a glove to pick up trash as an example to the rest of the staff.
Aviation Division Chief Operating Officer Arif Ghouse will serve as Interim Managing Director during the search for a permanent leader.
Contact:
Perry Cooper | SEA Airport
Cooper.p@portseattle.org