Effects of tower closures

CT4ME

CT4ME

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CT4ME
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'Started thinking about the practical effects of the upcoming tower closures... I'm told 4 will be closing here in AZ (on April 7?).
First thing that came to mind was all the work that will have to be done on the charts. And the A/FD. Then I thought about my Garmin 296... Hmmm haven't updated that in a while, guess that will change soon.
I'm sure you can add to the list...

And then the thought of the budget somehow getting back together, and all of it having to be re-done again... That's sure saving money....:mad2:
 
charts are changed on a fixed schedule regardless. In the interim the marginal cost of issuing notams has got to be near zero.
 
CT4ME said:
'Started thinking about the practical effects of the upcoming tower closures... I'm told 4 will be closing here in AZ (on April 7?).
First thing that came to mind was all the work that will have to be done on the charts. And the A/FD. Then I thought about my Garmin 296... Hmmm haven't updated that in a while, guess that will change soon.
I'm sure you can add to the list...

And then the thought of the budget somehow getting back together, and all of it having to be re-done again... That's sure saving money....:mad2:
Click to expand...

Closing all the towers (Contract, not the FAA/Union towers) will cost well above the cost of keeping them operating.
Not the point.
The point was (and is) that our pilot nitwits will battle over if the closings will affect safety. Of course it will. (If not lets close all towers everywhere and be REALLY safe).
But the point missed is that this Government has chosen to inflict the most draconion measures to prevoke public response. Close or limit public access to parks. To the White House. To the rest areas. After all there is nowhere else to cut in a 3.8T budget"
Tell me with a straight face that the first,best answer to a budget cut to the FAA is to cut the front line people first. Not pens, Not paper, not pet projects. Not the waste. Cut the Public interface first. But avoid any FAA/Union Jobs.

In the end it's not about weather we "deserve" a tower or not; it's about having the same amount of available funding (+15 Billion) as last year but now somehow my tower can't be paid for. Just where did my towers $450,000.00 funding for this year go? Obama Phones?

Chris
 
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I am a Luddite.
GA does not need tower controllers.
GA does not need ATC.
GA does not need runways that are four feet thick, reinforced concrete slabs.
Other than maintaining aids to navigation, GA does not need the FAA.
Time for the FAA to go.
30 years ago I would not have said that. But technology, especially the GPS system and the internet, has rendered the FAA obsolete.
The internet has linked pilot to pilot and pilot to aircraft manufacturer. The FAA needs to get out of the way and stop interfering.
Time for the FAA to go.
Manufacturers who make an unsafe product will be drummed out of the marketplace in a heartbeat. There is no need for a costly and inefficient FAA certification process.
Time for the FAA to go.
Manufacturers who make an unsafe product will be hauled into court and bled dry before you can say shazaam the instant they do not have the legal shield of "FAA Certified" to hide behind.
Time for the FAA to go.

Who needs the FAA?
Only the airlines.
Let the airlines operate under the FAA and let the airlines pay for it 100%.
Time to exempt GA from the dead hand of government.

dr. o
 
Hiperbiper said:
Closing all the towers (Contract, not the FAA/Union towers) will cost well above the cost of keeping them operating.
Not the point.
The point was (and is) that our pilot nitwits will battle over if the closings will affect safety. Of course it will. (If not lets close all towers everywhere and be REALLY safe).
But the point missed is that this Government has chosen to inflict the most draconion measures to prevoke public response. Close or limit public access to parks. To the White House. To the rest areas. After all there is nowhere else to cut in a 3.8T budget"
Tell me with a straight face that the first,best answer to a budget cut to the FAA is to cut the front line people first. Not pens, Not paper, not pet projects. Not the waste. Cut the Public interface first. But avoid any FAA/Union Jobs.

In the end it's not about weather we "deserve" a tower or not; it's about having the same amount of available funding (+15 Billion) as last year but now somehow my tower can't be paid for. Just where did my towers $450,000.00 funding for this year go? Obama Phones?

Chris
Click to expand...

There are FAA towers on the closure list and controllers at facilities not being closed or having operating hours reduced will be furloughed.
 
Dr. O said:
I am a Luddite.
GA does not need tower controllers.
GA does not need ATC.
GA does not need runways that are four feet thick, reinforced concrete slabs.
Other than maintaining aids to navigation, GA does not need the FAA.
Time for the FAA to go.
30 years ago I would not have said that. But technology, especially the GPS system and the internet, has rendered the FAA obsolete.
The internet has linked pilot to pilot and pilot to aircraft manufacturer. The FAA needs to get out of the way and stop interfering.
Time for the FAA to go.
Manufacturers who make an unsafe product will be drummed out of the marketplace in a heartbeat. There is no need for a costly and inefficient FAA certification process.
Time for the FAA to go.
Manufacturers who make an unsafe product will be hauled into court and bled dry before you can say shazaam the instant they do not have the legal shield of "FAA Certified" to hide behind.
Time for the FAA to go.

Who needs the FAA?
Only the airlines.
Let the airlines operate under the FAA and let the airlines pay for it 100%.
Time to exempt GA from the dead hand of government.

dr. o
Click to expand...

Why does GA need NAVIADs maintained? Why do airlines need the FAA?
 
We could close all of the Class D towers(and many of the C's) and safety will not be affected, efficiency would go up. Unfortunately pilots would have to think for themselves and they are clearly afraid of doing that.
 
Tower Closings doesn't have any affect on me as a pilot who flew out of two uncontrolled field, however I do feel sorry for the men and women who are either being furloughed or fired because the politicians in DC can't stop acting like children for five minutes and learn how to work together to figure out the 2013 budget.
 
A budget would be good.

A budget that cuts the size of government would be better.

A budget that cuts the size of government in the right places would be best.
 
Dr. O said:
I am a Luddite.
GA does not need tower controllers.
GA does not need ATC.
GA does not need runways that are four feet thick, reinforced concrete slabs.
Other than maintaining aids to navigation, GA does not need the FAA.
Time for the FAA to go.
Click to expand...

Those are far from the only functions of the FAA...

30 years ago I would not have said that. But technology, especially the GPS system and the internet, has rendered the FAA obsolete.
The internet has linked pilot to pilot and pilot to aircraft manufacturer. The FAA needs to get out of the way and stop interfering.
Time for the FAA to go.
Click to expand...

Yup, those guys who play MSFS can then just hop in an airplane and go, because we don't need the FAA to certify pilots. Who cares if they crash, it's just natural selection at work. (Never mind their unwitting passenger and the folks they take out on the ground.)

Manufacturers who make an unsafe product will be drummed out of the marketplace in a heartbeat. There is no need for a costly and inefficient FAA certification process.
Time for the FAA to go.
Click to expand...

You missed a piece of that first sentence. It should read "Manufacturers who make an unsafe product will be drummed out of the marketplace in a heartbeat, once a few fatal crashes occur due to their products."

Manufacturers who make an unsafe product will be hauled into court and bled dry before you can say shazaam the instant they do not have the legal shield of "FAA Certified" to hide behind.
Time for the FAA to go.
Click to expand...

Yeah, because having more lawsuits will clearly help aviation. :mad2:

Who needs the FAA?
Only the airlines.
Click to expand...

We do need the FAA - Mainly to protect us from the public. Take the FAA away, and those unsafe, uncertified products that lead to crashes will lead to GA being banned in the name of public safety long before it'll lead to the manufacturers being "drummed out of the marketplace" or "hauled into court and bled dry."
 
This . . . .

Dr. O said:
GA does not need tower controllers.
GA does not need ATC.
GA does not need runways that are four feet thick, reinforced concrete slabs.
Other than maintaining aids to navigation, GA does not need the FAA.
Time for the FAA to go.
30 years ago I would not have said that. But technology, especially the GPS system and the internet, has rendered the FAA obsolete.
The internet has linked pilot to pilot and pilot to aircraft manufacturer. The FAA needs to get out of the way and stop interfering.
Time for the FAA to go.
Click to expand...

. . . . does not jive with this . . . .
Dr. O said:
I am a Luddite.
Click to expand...

I don't think that term means what you think it does.
 
Hiperbiper said:
Closing all the towers (Contract, not the FAA/Union towers) will cost well above the cost of keeping them operating.
Not the point.
(snip snip)
Just where did my towers $450,000.00 funding for this year go? Obama Phones?

Chris
Click to expand...

WHO will it cost more? and why? Im sure its more complicated than turning off the light and posting a notam.. but enlighten me on where the other costs are...Please.

As for "obamaphones".. those are not funded by taxes but by surcharges on paying customer's bills.. managed by the telecom companies. The program originated during the Reagan administration.
 
Pilots who had their towers closed will have to pay close attention, make sure they know their stuff and be more responsible at class D airports, big deal...
 
I don't know for sure which of the 6 towers on the list here in OK will actually be closed. I am familiar with all 6 of them, and in my opinion, there's no real good reason at all to keep 4 of them. That's just in OK. I can't imagine how many towers there are in the country that just aren't serving much of a purpose. I'm just a newbie pilot, but I would imagine if you've flown for very long at all, you've probably encountered some towered airports where you thought, this place actually has a tower??? I know I have in my short time as a pilot. Why not get rid of those?
 
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