WASHINGTON, D.C. – The FAA will delay the closures of all 149 federal contract air traffic control towers until June 15. Last month, the FAA announced it would eliminate funding for these towers as part of the agency’s required $637 million budget cuts under sequestration. This additional time will allow the agency to attempt to […]
Airport
Airports sue over tower closures
The Associated Press is reporting that several airports have asked a federal court to stop the FAA’s plan to close 149 contract air traffic control towers, accusing the agency of violating federal law meant to ensure major changes at airports do not erode safety. Central Illinois Regional Airport in Bloomington, Ill., has joined other airports, […]
Gone but not forgotten
We lost some key “downtown” airports as the 20th Century faded into history. Famous campaigns fought to save them; local politicians with big plans “got” them — Chicago Meigs (10 years ago this month) and Bader Field in Atlantic City, N.J. They represented the height of GA utility. Now, in their absence, have politicians’ airport-killing […]
Meigs Field…10 years later
It’s hard to believe that it’s been 10 years since then Chicago Mayor Richard Daley sent bulldozers under the cover of darkness to carve large Xs into Meigs Field’s only runway. In a retrospective piece from the Chicago Sun-Times, reporters note that the mastermind behind the scheme has moved to rural North Carolina to raise […]
FAA releases guide for pilots affected by tower closures
The FAA has released a guide for pilots affected by the upcoming tower closures. It begins: Airports operate safely throughout the United States with and without towers. On April 7, the FAA will stop funding for 149 contract control towers in three phases that did not meet the national interest screening criteria.. Funding will stop […]
FAA plan to close towers a ‘flawed policy assault on pilots’
DUPAGE, Ill. — A federal plan to impose across-the-board spending cuts by closing 149 active control towers nationwide will compromise air safety and “should not stand,” according to Craig Fuller, president and CEO of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA). “The White House does not understand the consequences of these actions, or they do […]
FAA to close 149 towers
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The FAA will close 149 federal contract towers beginning April 7 as part of the agency’s sequestration implementation plan. FAA officials made the decision to keep 24 federal contract towers open that had been previously proposed for closure “because doing so would have a negative impact on the national interest.” An additional […]
Lawmakers question choice to close towers
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Lawmakers are not happy with the FAA’s decision to close 149 contract air traffic control towers. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Ranking Member John Thune (R-SD) and House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) wrote Friday to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, expressing concerns about the potential impact […]
Senate rejects tower amendment
A legislative effort to spare 189 contract control towers from closing next month as part of automatic federal budget cuts failed when the Senate refused to take up the issue. According to a story at Bloomberg.com, Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) proposed the amendment, saying he was seeking to protect “the safety of Americans.” He briefly […]