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 […]
Airport
Landing for Lunches takes off in May at Wausau Downtown Airport
Pilots will have an opportunity to compete in a landing contest during the month of May at the Wausau Downtown Airport (AUW) in Wisconsin. Proceeds from “Landings For Lunches” will benefit The Neighbors’ Place, a charity that provides emergency assistance, food, youth services and more to the Wausau community. Pilots will donate one dollar and […]
FAA delays decision on tower closures
The FAA will delay its decision on which of the contract towers up for potential closure may be exempted due to “compelling national interest.” David Grizzle, the FAA’s COO, said that in order to “review comprehensively the very large number of responses” from airports seeking an exemption, the final decision date will be March 22. […]
UES officials: FAA should expand contract tower program to save money
Officials at the Waukesha County Airport (UES) think the FAA has it backwards: Instead of closing towers at 173 airports to save money as part of sequestration, it should expand the contract tower program, which would save money. Officials at UES — which is on the potential closure list — note that the Office of […]
You can make a difference
By MARY ROSENBLUM Hangared at the Portland-Troutdale Airport (TTD) in Oregon, I got involved when I found out that a power generating plant, proposed for a site less than a half mile from runway centerline would seriously hamper operations at the airport by creating a fog plume from its cooling towers, as well as locating […]
Close to home: The impact of tower closures
If you are a pilot, nothing gets your attention faster than when the FAA proposes closing local control towers. As part of FAA budget cuts due to the sequester, agency officials notified 173 contract air traffic control towers across the country that they will be shut down on April 7. Airport officials have until March […]
Is the control tower at your airport up for closure?
Go to SaveContractTowersNow.com and click on Affected Towers and Communities to download a PDF that lists all the airports slated for closure. The website also has information on how to contact your elected representatives and tips on what to say to get the message across that closing the towers is a bad idea.
FAA to decide March 18 whether to close LAL tower
The air traffic control tower at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport, home to the SUN ’n FUN Fly-In, may close April 7 because of automatic federal budget cuts due to the sequestration. According to a report in the Lakeland Ledger, a decision on whether to close the air traffic control tower will be made March 18. Airport […]
AWOS now operational at Sporty’s
As of March 7, 2013, an Automated Weather Observing System (AWOS) is operational at Sporty’s/Clermont County Airport (I69) in Ohio. The AWOS represents a significant safety enhancement to pilots as it provides a comprehensive local weather picture, Sporty‘s officials note. It’s anticipated that even lower instrument approach minimums will be available at the airport given […]