Federal Contract Towers at 41 airports are also set to be upgraded.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) announced on May 15 that it is investing more than $750 million in installing new, state-of-the-art air traffic control facilities across eight airport locations in the United States.
The funds will be used to replace air traffic control towers and Terminal Radar Approach Controls in Charleston and Greer sites in South Carolina, Sacramento and San Jose in California, Grand Forks in North Dakota, Lawton in Oklahoma, Pocatello in Idaho, and Tamiami in Florida, the DOT said in a statement.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) “chose the replacement locations based on the safety and efficiency needs of the nation’s airspace system. Many air traffic facilities are decades old. Failing infrastructure such as HVAC systems, pest issues, and leaking roofs have led to interruptions in providing air traffic services.”
Moreover, the FAA will invest $85.8 million to upgrade Federal Contract Towers (FCT) at 41 airports in 24 states. The FCT grant program provides $20 million per year over a five-year period to improve infrastructure, modernize towers, and install crucial air traffic control and communications equipment at federal contract towers.
Some of the airports set for these upgrades include Wiley Post Airport in Oklahoma, Acadiana Regional Airport in Louisiana, Marana Regional Airport in Arizona, and Missoula County Airport in Montana.
“This administration is laser focused on ushering in the Golden Age of Transportation and investing in our aging air traffic control towers is critical to that mission,” Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy said.
“We need a system and supporting infrastructure that is built for the future to attract top talent for our air traffic control workforce.”
The upgrades follow President Donald Trump’s signing of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act in July last year that set aside roughly $12.5 billion to modernize the country’s air traffic control systems.
Specifically, the bill allocated $4.75 billion for modernizing telecom infrastructure and upgrading relevant systems, $3 billion for replacing radar systems, and $1 billion for terminal radar approach control facilities.
At the time, Nicholas E. Calio, the president of Airlines for America, praised Trump for following through on his promise to address America’s aging air traffic control systems.
