Recently, the owners of Glasgow Prestwick Airport have ruled out suggestions to rename the facility Robert Burns International in honour of the 250th birthday anniversary of the poet. On the other hand, those who advocate the present name change strongly believe that the re-branding process will certainly help boosting up the image of the airport among international travelers. However, the chief executive of the airport Mark Rodwell feels that the move shall only result in confusing the tourists at large.

At the outset, Robert Burns is popularly acclaimed as the national poet of Scotland, who has been credited with being one of the champions of the Romantic movement of the 18th century.

Though Robert Burns is heralded for his principal and leading role in the development of western culture, Glasgow Prestwick officials have however stated that the popularly known bard can do little to attract the visitors from foreign countries.

Rodwell stated, "We appreciate Robert Burns has a hugely important Ayrshire and Scottish identity and has followers around the world. However, like most airports, we rely on the location name to attract the vast majority of our customers. Glasgow Prestwick is the right name for this airport given that it is in Prestwick and its closest major city is Glasgow. Visitors may not instantly connect with or geographically place a Robert Burns brand."

Notably, the proposal follows a move by Cardiff International Airport to decide re-naming itself in memory of one of the Welsh capital's highly popular residents.