The latest list released by the FAA:

http://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/ ... wsId=14414

I think we are going to hear more of this at some of these busier closed towered airports:

XYZ Traffic, King Air 200 on 10 mile final, other traffic please advise!! (And so on, and so on

For the majority of my flying destinations , closed towers won't bother me. Heck, the only towered airports within 200 miles of my home base is Boise and Twin Falls.

I was just thinking about how some of the FBO's at some of these airports will do once the towers close. If I remember right when one of my buddy's flew a Challenger 600. He said per company policy and for insurance reasons, they were only allowed to use airports that had runway lengths of at least 5000 ft and "towered" airports. I'm not sure if that's the case for many other heavy iron operators. But, I've seen a G4 at Caldwell before. And a very cool Lear 28 at Austin, NV!!

flightlogic wrote: AOPA the toothless tiger?
I see the list is out today. Many towers closing......

Like anyone else, esp other "toothless tigers", AOPA has to pick their fights. I don't know about anywhere else, but the three towers being closed in western WA (Tacoma, Olympia, & Renton) have been un-needed or at least under-needed for a long time. I would personally rather see AOPA spend their limited resources trying to push thrugh the drivers license medical thing than fighting closure of towers which are of dubious benefit.
As far as their "toothless" status goes, AOPA is doing what it can with what they've got. IMHO they are the only organization which tries to go to bat for all of general aviation-- not just biz jets, not just homebuilts, not just warbirds or antiquers. They are to aviation what the NRA is to gun ownership. If every single active pilot was an AOPA member, they'd have a lot more lobbying power and would be better able to protect and promote general aviation.
I know a couple people who've bitched that the NRA wasn't doing enough to protect our gun rights, yet when questioned it turned out that they weren't even NRA members. How many people on this board are not AOPA members, and why not?

flynengr wrote:
You really have no clue what you are talking about....

I might say the same about you. The discussion about closed towers are only those in the contract tower program, like Chico. You are mixing apples and oranges by introducing FAA towers into the mix like Stockton. Those will be dealt with separately.

Bonanza Man wrote:

flynengr wrote:
You really have no clue what you are talking about....

I might say the same about you. The discussion about closed towers are only those in the contract tower program, like Chico. You are mixing apples and oranges by introducing FAA towers into the mix like Stockton. Those will be dealt with separately.

I am very aware which towers are contract operated in Nor Cal and which ones aren't, having known where the KSAC guys come from and transfer to.. Guess what? It doesn't make a bit of difference when it is a safety issue who signs the paychecks for you guys in the tower. This is political, not based on common sense and safety.

Flynengr

I received an official email yesterday from the Ogden, Utah airport manager's office stating their class D tower will close in April, 2013.

I also guess Caldwell won't build a tower like they've been wanting to :/

I should clarify... Have been an AOPA member for twenty years or more. I just get a bit frustrated when the FAA (who does what? Keep us safe and represent their constituents... HAH) keeps on spending money on paperwork like the 3rd class medical. I agree that should take priority over this tower issue... but I am not holding my breath for much influence on the matter.
I won't actually miss the control towers generally speaking. I do just fine without being told when it is safe to roll and safe to land. Have for 40 years or more.
Probably should have stayed out of this thread... but my fingers moved faster than my brain this time.

The closure schedule is out:

http://www.aopa.org/advocacy/articles/2013/130325schedule-for-tower-closures-released.html?cmp=CMP=News:S2T

AVWebs survey results are also out:

http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archives/avflash/2471-full.html#208372

There isn't much support to keep towers open... I think those of us on this site know how most of us fell about towers closing ; it is also refreshing to see that sentiment is fairly widespread, too.

Airventure should be interesting this year.

The busiest airport on the planet for the week with no tower.


This is all oblamo gamesmanship, you know that, right?

Av8r3400 wrote:Airventure should be interesting this year.

The busiest airport on the planet for the week with no tower.


This is all oblamo gamesmanship, you know that, right?

They will just set up a temporary tower... they do the same thing at Arlington and other fly-in/airshows.

Alas, a dramatic rise in the annoying, "other traffic please advise" locution from the epaulet crowd...

Temp towers seem pretty common now...they set them up on a whim in fire country in the summer.

Stupid question maybe, but what are the new freqs going to be? 122.8 would be my guess, or will they retain their existing freqs? That would make more sense in a way, at least not burden 122.8 with more chatter.

And, using Pocatello as an example, what do you think the current airport manager is going to think of landing off the pavement? I sure as hell hope no ones ASKS PERMISSION, I plan to just do it. Heck the place is so big and strung out I don't think anyone will even notice.

The Poky manager was quoted as saying they have had over 300 "movements" during a day (BLM fire fighter base), the next day that number was referenced as "flights". No way. I'm thinking movements means something else, like taxiing etc. He was forecasting gloom and doom, and I see where the union head for the controllers is lamenting the increased workload for us poor pilots! I sure won't miss that BS about repeating everything back to them, I never did get used to that and just quit going there. The general public is confused and apprehensive about all this, we pilots actually look more competent and on top of things as it is assumed we can somehow muddle through, when asked I just shrug and say "sure it will be more workload in the cockpit but I can handle it." Ha ha, this will be very interesting to see how this changeover takes effect.!

robw56 wrote:
They will just set up a temporary tower... they do the same thing at Arlington and other fly-in/airshows.

Beautiful. I can picture it now. We're shuttting down the tower cause we can't afford to staff it. Now we need to build a "pop up" temporary tower for the week of Airventure at more than the cost to staff year round. Can somebody just unlock the door for the one that's already there for the week? Or is Barack "Tecumseh" Obama coming out to burn the tower down on his march to disarm Coure D'alene?

Don't know abut Oshkosh, but the temporary tower they set up at the Arlington fly-in every year is just sort of a big travel trailer. Back about 2001 when he had the big Nisqually earthquake, the tower at Boeing Field in Seattle was severly damaged & condemmed. Until the replacement was built, they broiught in a similar trailer-style temporary tower but had it monted atop a whole stack of connexes. It looked pretty cool to me, I'da left it as is but then again I'm a hillbilly.

At my home airport, which is on the closure list, there are some days where we really do need a tower. On the other hand, not having a tower in operation at an airport would make it harder to justify charging you a user fee to fly there, would it not?

One good near-miss, in marginal VFR, with several "new-age" numb-nuts private pilots flying around with their heads inside the cockpit looking at a computer screen, would sure make someone look at both sides of this question.

I personally know Ed the tower chief at my home base (KWHP), he's a first-rate guy, ex USAF, owns an airplane, and genuinely gives a shit about keeping us alive. I'm not so happy to see the doorknob hit him in the ass.

Point being there are two sides to every story.

The winners in this will be the people selling strobes, brighter LED's, wig-wag landing lights, etc. And windshield polish, for the numb-nuts in all of us.

Off topic, but also a result of ineffective representation, is that hour long waits to clear customs at ports of entry is being blamed on sequestration.

http://www.aopa.org/flightplanning/articles/2013/130325pilots-wait-hours-to-clear-customs.html?cmp=CMP=News:S2T

I can't imagine it possible to staying in a plane for hours say at Calexico.

Has any of us experienced delays?

Listen to this ATIS for a little jab by the controller recording it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jxg1NqQY ... r_embedded