FREDERICK, MD – The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) joined in a letter with other aviation industry groups asking Congress to preserve the funding for contracted air traffic control towers. AOPA President Mark Baker signed the letter along with the leaders of nine other industry groups.
The letter noted that over the past 30 years, the program, “has provided cost-effective and essential air traffic safety services,” and is responsible for “approximately 28 percent of all air traffic control tower (ATCT) aircraft operations in the U.S. but only account for about 14 percent of FAA’s overall budget allotted to ATCT tower operations.”
The program also provides numerous jobs for veterans of the U.S. military, and without the funding, “many local communities and smaller airports would not receive the significant safety benefits of ATC services.” (www.aopa.org)