Larger Complex Includes Expanded TRACON
On Monday, the Federal Aviation
Administration dedicated the new airport traffic control tower at
the Huntsville International Airport (HSV). The facility became
operational at 0600 Sunday, May 4.
"The new tower provides an ideal environment for air traffic
controllers to continue to provide the safest service to the flying
public," said Doug Murphy, FAA Southern Regional Administrator.
"With its increased height and advanced technology, this new
facility is poised to support the impressive growth of the
Huntsville airport today and well into the future."
The new tower complex is located one mile south of the previous
facility in a gated, fenced complex, which is between the parallel
runways. The project consists of the control tower and a
10,500-square foot base building. The complex includes a generator
building and parking.
The new 228-foot-tall tower is necessary to accommodate current
and future growth of the airport. The tower was relocated to
provide air traffic controllers with unobstructed views of the
entire airfield. It is 132 feet taller than the tower it replaced.
Total cost for construction of the new tower and equipment is $18.5
million.
The TRACON is more than 800 square feet, more than double the
size of the TRACON in the old building. The TRACON includes three
radar positions, two radar assistant positions and a supervisory
console. Huntsville Tower controls the airspace approximately 50
miles around Huntsville from the surface to 10,000 feet. An Airport
Surveillance Radar (ASR-9) located on the airfield provides radar
coverage of the airspace. The ASR-9 feeds aircraft flight
information to the facility’s ARTS IIE automation system,
which processes the radar data from the ASR-9 and displays the
information on radar screens.
The facility also has a Rapid Deployment Voice Switch, a system
that combines ground-to-air and ground-to-ground frequencies in a
single piece of equipment. The system enables controllers to access
communications at any other control position. Touch screen
equipment allows flexibility based on traffic conditions and
provides redundancy in the event of an outage.
The Weather Systems Processor (WSP) provides an accurate,
current, local severe weather picture, which allows controllers to
assess near-term severe weather impact on Huntsville airspace. A
Fiber Optics Transmission System and Remote Receivers/Transmitters
(RTR) enable state-of-the-art communications capabilities at the
new facility.
A total of 38 FAA employees work at the Huntsville Tower, 25 air
traffic control employees, and 13 Technical Operations employees
who maintain the building and air traffic control equipment. Seven
weather observers, who are contract employees, also will be
stationed in the new facility. The Huntsville Tower handled 95,800
airport operations and 112,500 instrument operations in 2007.
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