Skift Take

These smaller, privately-run airports will have to continue to run without towers while the nation’s largest, government-run airports are yet to be significantly impacted by the budget cuts.

The U.S. will close 149 air-traffic control towers run by contractors at small- and mid-sized airports on April 7 as a result of automatic budget cuts at government agencies, a trade group said.

The Federal Aviation Administration spared 24 towers on its original list of 173 subject to closing, the Contract Tower Association, which represents companies running the facilities, said today in an e-mail. All towers being shut down are run by private companies, not the government as at larger facilities.

Advocates for pilots and airports said shutting the towers will harm safety and impose economic hardship on businesses such as flight schools that rely on controllers to guide planes.

“The White House does not understand the consequences of these actions, or they do and they simply do not care,” Craig Fuller, president and chief executive officer of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, a Frederick, Maryland-based advocacy group, said at a town-hall meeting yesterday at DuPage Airport in West Chicago, Illinois. “Either way, this approach is dangerous and should not stand.”

Map and data formatted by Skift.com. See full text list below.

Spencer Dickerson, executive director of the Alexandria, Virginia-based Contract Tower Association, said it was unfair for the government to shut down more than half the 251 private towers while sparing government-run facilities.

“Controllers at contract towers perform a host of important functions, including separating aircraft, issuing safety and weather alerts, and assisting with military, emergency response, and medical flights,” Dickerson said.

Airports Open

Planes, including airliners, can continue to fly to airports without towers. Most of the roughly 5,000 U.S. public airports don’t have towers. Instead of being guided by controllers, pilots radio each other to coordinate landings and takeoffs, according to FAA procedures.

No FAA air-traffic facilities will be shut down for at least a year, Doug Church, spokesman for the National Air Traffic Controllers Association union, said in an e-mailed statement.

The FAA’s union contract requires that controllers get at least a year’s notice before a facility is closed, Church said. The agency Feb. 22 issued a list of 49 FAA towers that were subject to closing in addition to the private towers.

The FAA’s 15,000 controllers will be forced to take one unpaid day off every two weeks starting April 21, which will aggravate delays at some of the busiest U.S. airports, including Chicago O’Hare and Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson, Administrator Michael Huerta told Congress Feb. 27.

–Editors: Bernard Kohn, Elizabeth Wasserman

To contact the reporter on this story: Alan Levin in Washington at [email protected]

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Bernard Kohn at [email protected]

————-

The list of 149 closed airport towers:

Airport Code Airport Name Location
DHN DOTHAN RGNL DOTHAN, AL
TCL TUSCALOOSA RGNL TUSCALOOSA, AL
FYV DRAKE FIELD FAYETTEVILLE, AR
TXK TEXARKANA RGNL-WEBB FIELD TEXARKANA, AR
GEU GLENDALE MUNI GLENDALE, AZ
GYR PHOENIX GOODYEAR GOODYEAR, AZ
IFP LAUGHLIN/BULLHEAD INTL BULLHEAD CITY, AZ
RYN RYAN FIELD TUCSON, AZ
FUL FULLERTON MUNI FULLERTON, CA
MER CASTLE ATWATER, CA
OXR OXNARD OXNARD, CA
RAL RIVERSIDE MUNI RIVERSIDE, CA
RNM RAMONA RAMONA, CA
SAC SACRAMENTO EXECUTIVE SACRAMENTO, CA
SDM BROWN FIELD MUNI SAN DIEGO, CA
SNS SALINAS MUNI SALINAS, CA
VCV SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA LOGISTICS VICTORVILLE, CA
WHP WHITEMAN LOS ANGELES, CA
WJF GENERAL WM J FOX AIRFIELD LANCASTER, CA
BDR IGOR I SIKORSKY MEMORIAL BRIDGEPORT, CT
DXR DANBURY MUNI DANBURY, CT
GON GROTON-NEW LONDON GROTON (NEW LONDON), CT
HFD HARTFORD-BRAINARD HARTFORD, CT
HVN TWEED-NEW HAVEN NEW HAVEN, CT
OXC WATERBURY-OXFORD OXFORD, CT
APF NAPLES MUNI NAPLES, FL
BCT BOCA RATON BOCA RATON, FL
EVB NEW SMYRNA BEACH MUNI NEW SMYRNA BEACH, FL
FMY PAGE FIELD FORT MYERS, FL
HWO NORTH PERRY HOLLYWOOD, FL
LAL LAKELAND LINDER RGNL LAKELAND, FL
LEE LEESBURG INTL LEESBURG, FL
OCF OCALA INTL-JIM TAYLOR FIELD OCALA, FL
OMN ORMOND BEACH MUNI ORMOND BEACH, FL
PGD PUNTA GORDA PUNTA GORDA, FL
SGJ NORTHEAST FLORIDA RGNL ST AUGUSTINE, FL
SPG ALBERT WHITTED ST PETERSBURG, FL
SUA WITHAM FIELD STUART, FL
TIX SPACE COAST RGNL TITUSVILLE, FL
ABY SOUTHWEST GEORGIA RGNL ALBANY, GA
AHN ATHENS/BEN EPPS ATHENS, GA
LZU GWINNETT COUNTY – BRISCOE FIELD LAWRENCEVILLE, GA
MCN MIDDLE GEORGIA RGNL MACON, GA
RYY COBB COUNTY- MCCOLLUM FIELD ATLANTA, GA
DBQ DUBUQUE RGNL DUBUQUE, IA
IDA IDAHO FALLS RGNL IDAHO FALLS, ID
LWS LEWISTON-NEZ PERCE COUNTY LEWISTON, ID
PIH POCATELLO RGNL POCATELLO, ID
SUN FRIEDMAN MEMORIAL HAILEY, ID
ALN ST LOUIS RGNL ALTON/ST LOUIS, IL
BMI CENTRAL IL RGNL ARPT AT BLOOMINGTON- NORMAL NORMAL, IL
DEC DECATUR DECATUR, IL
MDH SOUTHERN ILLINOIS MURPHYSBORO, IL
UGN WAUKEGAN RGNL CHICAGO/ WAUKEGAN, IL
BAK COLUMBUS MUNI COLUMBUS, IN
GYY GARY/CHICAGO INTL GARY, IN
HUT HUTCHINSON MUNI HUTCHINSON, KS
IXD NEW CENTURY AIRCENTER OLATHE, KS
MHK MANHATTAN RGNL MANHATTAN, KS
OJC JOHNSON COUNTY EXECUTIVE OLATHE, KS
TOP PHILIP BILLARD MUNI TOPEKA, KS
OWB OWENSBORO-DAVIESS COUNTY OWENSBORO, KY
PAH BARKLEY RGNL PADUCAH, KY
DTN SHREVEPORT DOWNTOWN SHREVEPORT, LA
BVY BEVERLY MUNI BEVERLY, MA
EWB NEW BEDFORD RGNL NEW BEDFORD, MA
LWM LAWRENCE MUNI LAWRENCE, MA
ORH WORCESTER RGNL WORCESTER, MA
OWD NORWOOD MEMORIAL NORWOOD, MA
ESN EASTON/NEWNAM FIELD EASTON, MD
FDK FREDERICK MUNI FREDERICK, MD
HGR HAGERSTOWN RGNL- RICHARD A HENSON FLD HAGERSTOWN, MD
MTN MARTIN STATE BALTIMORE, MD
SBY SALISBURY-OCEAN CITY WICOMICO RGNL SALISBURY, MD
BTL W K KELLOGG BATTLE CREEK, MI
DET COLEMAN A. YOUNG MUNI DETROIT, MI
SAW SAWYER INTL MARQUETTE, MI
ANE ANOKA COUNTY-BLAINE ARPT(JANES FIELD) MINNEAPOLIS, MN
STC ST CLOUD RGNL ST CLOUD, MN
BBG BRANSON BRANSON, MO
COU COLUMBIA RGNL COLUMBIA, MO
GLH MID DELTA RGNL GREENVILLE, MS
HKS HAWKINS FIELD JACKSON, MS
HSA STENNIS INTL (HSA) BAY ST LOUIS, MS
OLV OLIVE BRANCH OLIVE BRANCH, MS
TUP TUPELO RGNL TUPELO, MS
GPI GLACIER PARK INTL KALISPELL, MT
EWN COASTAL CAROLINA REGIONAL NEW BERN, NC
HKY HICKORY RGNL HICKORY, NC
INT SMITH REYNOLDS WINSTON SALEM, NC
ISO KINSTON RGNL JETPORT AT STALLINGS FLD KINSTON, NC
JQF CONCORD RGNL CONCORD, NC
ASH BOIRE FIELD NASHUA, NH
TTN TRENTON MERCER TRENTON, NJ
AEG DOUBLE EAGLE II ALBUQUERQUE, NM
SAF SANTA FE MUNI SANTA FE, NM
ITH ITHACA TOMPKINS RGNL ITHACA, NY
RME GRIFFISS INTL ROME, NY
CGF CUYAHOGA COUNTY CLEVELAND, OH
OSU OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY COLUMBUS, OH
TZR BOLTON FIELD COLUMBUS, OH
LAW LAWTON-FORT SILL RGNL LAWTON, OK
OUN UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA WESTHEIMER NORMAN, OK
PWA WILEY POST OKLAHOMA CITY, OK
SWO STILLWATER RGNL STILLWATER, OK
OTH SOUTHWEST OREGON RGNL NORTH BEND, OR
PDT EASTERN OREGON RGNL AT PENDLETON PENDLETON, OR
SLE MCNARY FLD SALEM, OR
TTD PORTLAND-TROUTDALE PORTLAND, OR
CXY CAPITAL CITY HARRISBURG, PA
LBE ARNOLD PALMER RGNL LATROBE, PA
LNS LANCASTER LANCASTER, PA
CRE GRAND STRAND NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, SC
GYH DONALDSON CENTER GREENVILLE, SC
HXD HILTON HEAD HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SC
MKL MC KELLAR-SIPES RGNL JACKSON, TN
NQA MILLINGTON RGNL JETPORT MILLINGTON, TN
BAZ NEW BRAUNFELS MUNI NEW BRAUNFELS, TX
BRO BROWNSVILLE/ SOUTH PADRE ISLAND INTL BROWNSVILLE, TX
CLL EASTERWOOD FIELD COLLEGE STATION, TX
CNW TSTC WACO WACO, TX
CXO LONE STAR EXECUTIVE HOUSTON, TX
GTU GEORGETOWN MUNI GEORGETOWN, TX
HYI SAN MARCOS MUNI SAN MARCOS, TX
RBD DALLAS EXECUTIVE DALLAS, TX
SGR SUGAR LAND RGNL HOUSTON, TX
SSF STINSON MUNI SAN ANTONIO, TX
TKI COLLIN COUNTY RGNL AT MC KINNEY DALLAS, TX
TYR TYLER POUNDS RGNL TYLER, TX
VCT VICTORIA RGNL VICTORIA, TX
OGD OGDEN-HINCKLEY OGDEN, UT
PVU PROVO MUNI PROVO, UT
LYH LYNCHBURG RGNL/ PRESTON GLENN FLD LYNCHBURG, VA
OLM OLYMPIA RGNL OLYMPIA, WA
RNT RENTON MUNI RENTON, WA
SFF FELTS FIELD SPOKANE, WA
TIW TACOMA NARROWS TACOMA, WA
YKM YAKIMA AIR TERMINAL/ MCALLISTER FIELD YAKIMA, WA
CWA CENTRAL WISCONSIN MOSINEE, WI
EAU CHIPPEWA VALLEY RGNL EAU CLAIRE, WI
ENW KENOSHA RGNL KENOSHA, WI
JVL SOUTHERN WISCONSIN RGNL JANESVILLE, WI
LSE LA CROSSE MUNI LA CROSSE, WI
MWC LAWRENCE J TIMMERMAN MILWAUKEE, WI
OSH WITTMAN RGNL OSHKOSH, WI
UES WAUKESHA COUNTY WAUKESHA, WI
HLG WHEELING OHIO CO WHEELING, WV
LWB GREENBRIER VALLEY LEWISBURG, WV
PKB MID-OHIO VALLEY RGNL PARKERSBURG, WV

List of 24 towers previously listed for closure will remain open because of national security concerns:

Download (PDF, 40KB)

List of 16 contract towers in the cost-share program will remain open until September 30

Download (PDF, 40KB)

smartphone

The Daily Newsletter

Our daily coverage of the global travel industry. Written by editors and analysts from across Skift’s brands.

Have a confidential tip for Skift? Get in touch

Tags: faa, sequester, usa

Up Next

Loading next stories