The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Aviation Administration recently dedicated a new air traffic control tower at Charlotte Douglas International Airport.
According to an April 5 news release, the new environmentally sustainable tower will be the second tallest in the country standing at 370 feet tall and has a 850-square-foot cab at the top which provides an aerial view of the airfield. The growth of the airfield rendered the old tower obsolete and necessitated the construction of new tower.
“Aviation is an invaluable part of our American life and our national economy,” FAA Deputy Administrator A. Bradley Mims said, according to the release. “The new, taller control tower will enable the airport to continue to expand its flight operations to grow alongside the vibrant Charlotte economy.”
The base of the tower contains a 42,000-square-foot building which will be used as an expanded terminal radar approach control that handles flights departing and arriving to Charlotte.
“The commissioning of the new air traffic control tower by the Federal Aviation Administration is a testament to the importance of Charlotte in the National Airspace System,” CLT CEO Haley Gentry said in the release. “The tower is equipped with the latest state-of-the art NextGen technology to keep up with the current and future demand of our growing airfield. This modern infrastructure is another display of the strong partnership we have at CLT and we are grateful to the FAA for this investment to make air traffic more efficient.”
The cost of the new Charlotte tower is approximately $94 million, and a total of 179 FAA employees run operations at the tower and the terminal radar approach control.
