ACAA’s EVP & CIO Deepak Nayyar Receives Industry and Regional Recognition

Opening a new terminal is no small feat, something the Allegheny County Airport Authority’s Executive Vice President & Chief Information Officer, Deepak Nayyar, knows all too well.

Nayyar has been working behind the scenes in spearheading a digital transformation that has prepared Pittsburgh to open and operate the airport of the future. Pittsburgh International Airport’s transformed terminal officially opened to the public on Tuesday, Nov. 18.

Nayyar and his team helped make it technologically advanced – a mission that he has been working toward since his first day at the ACAA. The hard work of Nayyar and his team is present in the transformed terminal, but recognition for that hard work is showing up in other ways too.

In October, Nayyar was honored with a C-Suite award from the Pittsburgh Business Times, a recognition for outstanding leaders across industries in the region. Nayyar was one of 23 leaders named to the list.

Nayyar recently celebrated two years with the ACAA. Since coming on board to head up PIT’s IT department, he has built a team with the goal to revamp aging airport infrastructure and create more modern, robust technology that rivals even some of the best airports in the world.

With over 25 years of experience in the Information Technology industry, Nayyar has experience balancing tech expertise and business savvy, though opening a new airport terminal is a career first.

Nayyar leaned on his colleagues and partners to help him through the new airport process.

“They said, ‘Get the basics right. Get the network stood up as soon as possible,’” Nayyar said. “And that’s what we did. Once we stood the network up, 80 percent of the battle was done and then the focus was to connect the different applications to our network.”

New terminal brings new challenges

Nayyar’s goal when coming on board the airport is the same mission at the heart of all airport operations: improving the passenger experience.

When Nayyar joined the airport, the Terminal Modernization Program (TMP) was well underway. He became a part of the dedicated group that would make it possible – using a strategy to leverage innovation, data and technology to optimize airport operations. This starts with maintaining operational excellence by integrating numerous airport technologies into a single platform that can plan, track, manage and optimize asset quality and reliability and help build predictive and preventative maintenance for digital and physical assets.

Technology takes center stage

Alongside resiliency, innovation remains at the forefront of PIT’s mission, especially in regard to its transformed terminal.

Shortly before receiving recognition from the Pittsburgh Business Times, Future Travel Experience named Nayyar to its Digital Transformation Power List Americas for the second year in a row. This list highlights aviation leaders who are pioneering solutions to improve air travel and make it safer and more secure.

In May 2025, Nayyar was one of several PIT leaders, including CEO Christina Cassotis, as well as others from around the aviation industry, to discuss the airport transformation at the World Innovation Summit, hosted by Future Travel Experience in Pittsburgh. The event drew over 400 global aviation leaders to PIT, including British Airways CEO Sean Doyle, to explore innovative solutions in the industry through conference sessions, workshops, tours, pitch sessions and networking opportunities centered at PIT and Carnegie Mellon University.

“I’m honored to accept these awards, and I think they’re a true testament to the transformative work our team is doing at PIT,” Nayyar said. “Now that the new terminal is open to passengers, the true reward is knowing we’ve created a resilient system that can make their experiences at our airport more efficient.”