The FAA will temporarily reduce the hours of operation at approximately 100 air traffic control towers starting the week of April 27, 2020, in light of the dramatic reduction in air traffic caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The temporary reduction in operational hours is part of the FAA’s “Staffing to Traffic” initiative, which has evaluated each of the country’s FAA towers to determine how the dramatic decrease in air traffic since the pandemic reached the U.S. is impacting demand on FAA resources.
On average, the total operational traffic count in the U.S. has declined 65% since the pandemic started.
The FAA says about 100 air traffic control towers have been identified for reduced hours.
“These facilities have seen a significant reduction in flights, especially during the evening and nighttime hours, since the pandemic began,” FAA officials said on the agency’s Regulatory Updates Due to Coronavirus web page. “Adjusting the operating hours will further protect our employees and reduce the possibility of temporary tower closures from COVID-19 exposures by ensuring enough controllers are available to staff the facilities during peak hours. It also will enable us to allocate difficult-to-source supplies where they are most needed.”
“Most of the towers are historically closed at night, during which time the radar facility with oversight assumes the airspace,” officials continued.
FAA officials have already reached out to the airports that might be affected by the reduction in hours and are updating local congressional offices.
It also has reached out to general aviation advocacy groups, including the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA).
“The FAA has been very methodical and analytical about ensuring any temporary reduction in operational hours at air traffic control towers will have minimal or no impact on flight operations, and NBAA is working with the FAA to continually evaluate air traffic demand during the pandemic to ensure that operational hours at these towers will increase as and when demand returns,” said NBAA Director, Air Traffic Services and Infrastructure Heidi Williams.
What is the point of making a public announcement like this without telling pilots which airports are affected? Where is the list? Maybe it’s a secret pilot proficiency program. They’ll only be published as pop-up TFRs and NOTAMS so grounded pilots can practice their flight planning skills by scrolling through ALL the tabs on the Foreflight briefing page.
ID, Name of Facility, City, State, Adjusted Tower Hours of Operation
ACK
Nantucket Memorial Airport
Nantucket
MA
0800-1600
ACT
Waco Regional Airport
Waco
TX
0900-1900
AGS
Augusta Regional Airport
Augusta
GA
0900-1700
ALO
Waterloo Regional
Waterloo
IA
0800-1800
APC
Napa County Airport
Napa
CA
0900-1700
ARB
Ann Arbor Municipal Airport
Ann Arbor
MI
0800-1600
ARR
Aurora Municipal Airport
Aurora
IL
0800-1800
AVL
Asheville Regional Airport
Asheville
NC
0700-2100
BFL
Meadows Field Airport
Bakersfield
CA
0600-1800
BGM
Greater Binghamton Airport
Binghamton
NY
0900-1700
BIS
Bismarck Airport
Bismark
ND
0600-1800
BTR
Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport
Baton Rouge
LA
0600-2100
CCR
Buchanan Field Airport
Concord
CA
0800-1600
CDW
Essex County Airport
Caldwell
NJ
0800-1600
CKB
North Central West Virginia Airport
Bridgeport
WV
0800-2200
CMA
Camarillo Airport
Camarillo
CA
0700-1700
CMI
Willard Airport
Savoy
IL
0800-1800
CNO
Chino Airport
Chino
CA
0800-1700
CPR
Casper/Natrona County Airport
Casper
WY
1200-2000
CPS
St Louis Downtown Airport
Cahokia
IL
0800-1600
CRQ
McClellan-Palomar Airport
Carlsbad
CA
0800-1800
DWH
David Wayne Hooks Memorial Airport
Spring
TX
0900-1900
ELM
Elmira Corning Regional Airport
Horseheads
NY
0800-1600
ERI
Erie International Airport
Erie
PA
0800-1600
FLO Florence Regional
Airport Florence SC 0900-1700
FPR Treasure Coast
International Airport Fort Pierce FL 0700-2000
FRG Republic Airport Farmingdale NY 0800-1600
FSD Sioux Falls Regional
Airport Sioux Falls SD 0500-2200
FTW Meacham
International Airport Fort Worth TX 0700-2200
GCN Grand Canyon
National Park Airport Tusayan AZ 0800-1600
GFK Grand Forks
International Airport Grand Forks ND 0800-1800
GGG East Texas Regional
Airport Longview TX 0800-1700
GPT Gulfport-Biloxi
Intlernational Airport Gulfport MS 0900-2300
GRB
Green Bay Austin
Straubel
International Airport
Green Bay WI 0600-2200
GRR Gerald R Ford
International Airport Grand Rapids MI 0700-1700
HEF Manassas Regional
Airport Manassas VA 0800-1600
HIO Portland-Hillsboro
Airport Portland OR 0600-2100
HLN Helena Regional
Airport Helena MT 0800-1600
HPN Westchester County
Airport West Chester NY 0800-1600
HUF Terre Haute Regional
Airport Terre Haute IN 1000-1800
HWD Hayward Executive
Airport Hayward CA 0900-2100
ILG New Castle Airport New Castle DE 0800-1600
ISP Long Island
MacArthur Airport Ronkonkoma NY 0800-1600
SUS Spirit of St Louis
Airport Chesterfield MO 0800-1700
SUX Sioux Gateway
Airport Sioux City IA 0800-1600
TLH Tallahassee
International Airport Tallahassee FL 0900-2300
TMB Miami Executive
Airport Miami FL 0700-2000
TOA Zamperini Field
Airport Torrance CA 0800-1600
TRI Tri-Cities Airport Blountville TN 0700-2200
TVC Cherry Capital
Airport Traverse City MI 0800-1600
VGT North Las Vegas
Airport North Las Vegas NV 0600-1900
VNY Van Nuys Airport Van Nuys CA 0700-2200
VRB Vero Beach Regional
Airport Vero Beach FL 0800-2000
The FAA link to the PDF listing the 100 airports is broken as of 04/27/2020 at 0830 Pacific