Located about 5 miles (8 km; 4 nmi) southeast of downtown Austin, it covers 4,242 acres (1,717 ha) and has two runways and three helipads.

That idea was rejected, as few Austinites supported driving halfway to San Antonio on Interstate 35 to catch a flight.

In the 1980s, neighborhoods around Mueller applied enough political pressure to force the city council to choose a site for a new airport from locations under consideration.

The city began acquiring the land but faced lawsuits from the Sierra Club and others concerned about the Manor location and its potential environmental impact.

The new tower, completed a year before then-current president Bill Clinton arrived with his entourage, enabled Air Force One to be granted clearance to land.

The main Air Force runway, 17R/35L, was retained along with most of its taxiways, as its high weight rating and long length would facilitate service by large long-range airliners while reducing construction costs.

Bergstom's original secondary runway, 17L/35R, was closed and partially demolished to accommodate new taxiway sections directly connecting 17R/35L to the new terminal.

A replacement 9,000-foot (2,700 m) runway 17L/35R was built east of the terminal, along with a general aviation complex on the southern side of the airport.

Most former military buildings, including the original control tower, were demolished and cleared to make way for the new terminal and parking facilities, although some hangars and parking tarmac to the south was retained, along with a section of tarmac to the northeast of the primary runway that became the foundation for the airport's freight terminal.

Military housing in the northwest portion of the former base was leveled, but some of its roads now serve a Texas Department of Transportation service facility.

[16] At the time, there were 42 nonstop flights every weekday being operated with mainline jet aircraft from the two primary airports located in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex to Austin.

The gates are hardstands, without jet bridges, and are used exclusively by ultra-low-cost carriers Allegiant Air and Frontier Airlines.

The company says the airport is violating the 40-year lease agreement it signed in 2016 and said that it had invested about $50 million in building and operating the terminal.

[23][25] Austin-Bergstrom is currently undergoing a major expansion program, entitled "Journey With AUS", to accommodate the rapid growth in travel demand.

[26][27] Chief amongst the expansion plans are two projects; the first being the construction of a new arrivals and departures hall that will consolidate all ticketing, security screening and baggage claims under one roof.

[32] Through the Project Connect plan,[33] the airport is planned be the southern terminus of the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Blue Line light rail, which will run through the East Riverside Corridor to Downtown Austin and The University of Texas at Austin as far north as North Lamar/US183.