and the airport tried to lure airlines back to the airport. Between 2002 and 2006 the airport received $2.2 million in federal, state, and local money to improve its facilities, including $400,000 from the FAA as part of a program to help restore airline service to smaller cities. The city matched the grant with $100,000 of local funding. In 2006 the city authorized paying $8500 to a consulting firm to court airlines in an effort to revive service to the airport. City and airport officials stated their belief that the area was in a different economic picture with the Mercedes-Benz plant in the city (the only one in North America) and new developments around the campus of the University of Alabama, including an expansion to Bryant–Denny Stadium. Hopes of commercial service returning to West Alabama were revived again in 2019 as part of Tuscaloosa Mayor's Walt Maddox Elevate Tuscaloosa proposal included $15 million in funding that would receive matching funds to renovate the terminal at Tuscaloosa National to make the growing city more appealing to commercial airlines. DayJet announced per seat VLJ service on two pilot planes nonstop to 14 hubs in 3 states in July 2008 from Tuscaloosa. DayJet discontinued all passenger service operations on September 19, 2008, citing the inability to raise financing needed for continued operations. While visiting Tuscaloosa on April 29, 2011, to assess devastation reliefs efforts in the wake of the April 27th tornado disaster, President Barack Obama landed at then-Tuscaloosa Regional Airport in the Boeing C-32 presidential transport plane. The C-32 is the U.S. Air Force designation for the Boeing 757-200 jetliner. Jet charters appear at Tuscaloosa, but scheduled air service has eluded Tuscaloosa National to date. Current operations Many charters fly college football, basketball, baseball, softball, gymnastics, and volleyball teams visiting the Alabama Crimson Tide, or take the University of Alabama teams to their away games. Most Alabama football charters are operated by Delta Air Lines using the Boeing 757. Visiting football charters are operated by many carriers typically using either Boeing 737s or Boeing 757s. Many visiting football teams fly into Birmingham and lodge there, commuting to Tuscaloosa on game day, since there is often not enough available hotel rooms to accommodate a football team's traveling party under one roof. In this case, although the team arrives at Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport, they will usually depart from Tuscaloosa National Airport after the game.