Eleven aviation advocacy groups Wednesday cosigned a letter to the House Appropriations Committee seeking financial support for the FAA contract tower program through 2014. Signatories included AOPA's Craig Fuller, NBAA's Ed Bolen, and leading members of the National Air Transport Association, Air Carrier Association of America, Regional Airline Association and others. Currently 251 airports participate in the contract tower program, accounting for an estimated 28 percent of all air traffic control tower aircraft operations in the U.S., according to the letter. But, the letter argues, costs associated with the program account for a significantly lower percentage of relevant budgets.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.avweb.com/news/aviation-groups-seek-contract-tower-funding