Every year, the Marana Regional Airport in southern Arizona sees tens of thousands of aircraft take off, land, and engage in practice touch-and-go maneuvers. Despite the absence of an air traffic control tower, these activities proceed smoothly through coordinated communication among pilots.
Recently, a midair collision occurred at this airport, involving two small aircraft near Tucson. One aircraft crashed to the ground and ignited, producing a significant plume of smoke. Tragically, two individuals perished in the charred remains. The second aircraft, however, managed a safe landing, with no injuries reported among its occupants.
This incident joins a series of recent aviation accidents that have garnered public attention. Critics argue that a control tower might have prevented this collision. However, aviation experts clarify that the absence of a control tower does not inherently compromise an airport’s safety. Instead, airports like Marana adopt alternative communication strategies among pilots to maintain safety.
In the United States, out of 5,100 public airports, only approximately 10% are equipped with staffed control towers dedicated to managing air traffic flow. These towers are typically found in the busiest airports handling complex operations and substantial volumes of commercial flights. On the contrary, pilots at airports without control towers rely on radio communications and “see and avoid” principles, ingrained during their initial training.
The mid-20th century bore witness to transformative regulation in aviation safety due to a tragic accident. In 1956, two commercial flights departing Los Angeles collided in midair over the Grand Canyon, resulting in the death of all 128 onboard. This catastrophe prompted significant changes in air traffic regulations, leading to the creation of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as an independent body overseeing the safe and efficient management of national airspace.
As part of ongoing efforts to improve air traffic management, the FAA provides federal grants enabling airports to modernize or construct new air traffic control towers. Nearly 180 airports qualify for funding aimed at upgrading existing towers or erecting new ones, many of which were originally temporary. Recent allocations have supported site studies and tower construction in diverse locations, including Bend, Oregon, and Mankato, Minnesota.
The Marana Regional Airport was enlisted in this federal program in 2019, though progress toward constructing a control tower was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Airport authorities now anticipate project completion by 2029.
At the federal level, Presidential directives have heightened focus on aviation safety, particularly following a midair collision involving an Army helicopter and a commercial jet over Washington, D.C., which resulted in 67 fatalities. Amid hiring practice assessments within the FAA, concerns have arisen regarding staffing. While the administration asserts that no critical safety personnel have been affected by recent federal job cuts, stakeholders warn that air traffic control towers suffer from understaffing even without cuts.
President Trump’s administration has expressed support for legislative measures designed to modernize the air traffic control system. Airlines for America, an influential industry group, has advocated for emergency funding to enhance air traffic control technology, infrastructure, and staffing in communications to Congress.
