The Town of Leesburg, Virginia, has taken first steps toward building a permanent air traffic control tower at Leesburg Executive Airport, after the unexpected termination of an experimental remote tower program.
On Tuesday, the Leesburg Town Council voted unanimously to approve funding for the initial stage of planning to build a permanent brick and mortar tower, with hopes that it would be assisting pilots in taking off and landing by 2030.
The council approved spending $270,000 for a siting study. According to a staff report, the total cost of the project is projected to be $16 million, with the Federal Aviation Administration and Virginia Department of Aviation paying 98% of the projects.
Since 2015, the company that works with Leesburg Executive Airport, Saab, has been operating an experimental remote tower system for air traffic control. However, in February, the FAA announced it would end the remote program on June 14.
The decision raised fear that the ever-growing number of corporate jets and small planes at the Leesburg airport would have to take off and land without guidance from air traffic controllers.
After months of discussion, the FAA agreed to establish a mobile tower at the airport. The tower arrived at the airport last week and will be in operation until the permanent tower is built.
The federal agency will pay for both the lease of the mobile tower and the cost of remote air traffic controllers through the end of September. At that point, the FAA will pay for the controllers through the end of federal fiscal year 2028 — Leesburg will be responsible for the lease of the mobile tower from Oct. 1 until the permanent tower is completed.
Leesburg Executive Airport is the second-busiest general aviation airport in the Virginia, contributing more than $121 million in local economic activity.
