Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA) in Highfill is like a small city. More than 1.4 million travelers visit annually, not including those who meet and greet them daily, and the personnel responsible for their safety work among them and behind the scenes.
Gilbert Neil, public safety director for XNA, has led the airport’s police and fire departments for more than 10 years. The police department is focused on community policing as officers engage with travelers and give more warnings instead of citations for traffic violations and incidents. The ratio of warnings to citations is 10 to one, he said.
“Public service is very important to us,” Neil said. “We’re taking care of the people here. And that may just be helping them from their car to the check-in counter. We’ll do anything and everything that people need.”