Alexandria Airport to Open 528-Bed Family Detention Center as 30% of US Deportation Flights Leave There
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Oct 1
Alexandria Airport to Open 528-Bed Family Detention Center as 30% of US Deportation Flights Leave There
2 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Oct 1
Summary
A 528-bed facility for immigrant children and families is set to open within two to three weeks at England Airpark in Alexandria, Louisiana, according to local officials and advocacy groups.
Renovated Air Force barracks and prefabricated structures will hold migrants awaiting removal, with intake, medical and other staff already on site after local officials toured the site last week.
The addition would more than double detention capacity at the airport, which already holds adult men in a 400-bed facility on the tarmac.
Alexandria has become the Trump administration’s busiest deportation hub: 579 removal flights left the airport from January through August, after 657 in 2025 and 357 in 2024.
The expansion also deepens Louisiana’s role in federal immigration detention, where at least nine centers already operate, largely under private prison contracts.