What factors determine tower installation at a particular location? The post Why Don�t All Airports Have Control Towers? appeared first on FLYING Magazine.
Question: I went out to the local airport to sign up for flying lessons and noticed there isn�t a control tower there even though the airport has a terminal building and an airline that flies in. Aren�t airports served by the airlines required to have a tower because it makes them safer?
Answer: Having an airline service the airport isn�t the criteria used by the FAA� to determine if the facility needs a control tower. Rhinelander/Oneida County Airport (KRHI) in Wisconsin, for example, does not have a control tower, yet it is served daily by a regional airline connecting to Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport (KMSP).
The FAA uses the number of aircraft operations�that is how busy the airport is�to determine if a tower is warranted. This is very similar to how cities monitor traffic on streets and install traffic lights to replace four-way stop signs when traffic increases.
The majority of the airports in the United States are nontowered because they don�t have the traffic to necessitate a control tower. Pilots learn to fly in and out of both towered and nontowered (also known as pilot-controlled) airports as part of their training. Pilots are taught to see and avoid other traffic�no matter what kind of airport they are at. While tower controllers will provide traffic advisories if able, pilots don�t rely on them to report when someone else is out there.
READ MORE: Who Controls Offshore Airspace?Additionally, not all towers are open 24/7. Busier airports, such as airline hub locations like Seattle, Atlanta, New York City, etc., have full-time towers, while smaller, less busy airports may have part-time towers. Tacoma Narrows Airport (KTIW), located 15 nm south of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (KSEA), has several busy flight schools, so there is a control tower that operates from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. PDT.
Pilots are taught to check their sectionals (a map for pilots) and other airport information listed online or in an FAA text called the Chart Supplement to determine if a facility has a control tower and, if so, learn its hours of operation and radio frequency to contact it.
The post Why Don�t All Airports Have Control Towers? appeared first on FLYING Magazine.
