WESTFIELD – The Federal Aviation Administration notified officials of Barnes Regional Airport that the air-traffic control tower will remain operational because of the “national interest” involving the Massachusetts Air National Guard 104th Fighter Wing.
Airport Manager Brian Barnes said this morning that the FAA notified officials on Friday that the municipal airport was removed from the tower closure list.
“They had to start from a position based on their criterion for tower closure,” Barnes said. “Initially, they didn’t consider military operations.”
Barnes Regional fell within that criterion for tower closure.
“We only argued the military standpoint, which fit perfectly into what they were considering for removal from the closure list,” Barnes said.
“Last Friday they took us off that closure list. They took most of the military towers off the list,” Barnes said, “so the tower here is open because of the significance and role (the 104th Fighter Wing) plays in national defense and military missions.”
Barnes said that the FAA had provided exemptions for air-traffic control towers “if (closure) has a negative impact on national interests. We had a strong case to make.”
The major concern at Barnes Regional Airport is that it is used by both military aircraft, currently supersonic air superiority F-15 fighters are based at the 104th fighter wing, as well as general aviation, ranging from small single-engine planes to multi-engine corporate jets with a price tag of $70 million or more.
“Military aircraft don’t communicate on the same radio frequencies as civilian aircraft, so if the jets have to scramble, how do you communicate that with general aviation?” Barnes said. “The tower has all frequencies and is the middle conduit that can talk to both the F-15s and general aviation.”
“The tower broadcasts, simultaneously, in both UHF and VHR,” Barnes said. “When the tower talks everybody on both bands can hear the information.”
Barnes said that another criterion used by the FAA is the safety record of the control towers.
“The Barnes tower has over a million operations without incident,” Barnes said. “I would have been surprised if the FAA didn’t take us off the list.”
The tower is operated from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. is “uncontrolled.”
“There is very little traffic between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., but there are procedures for uncontrolled airfields,” Barnes said.
The tower is also a marketing tool for Barnes Regional.
“If an aviation company is looking for a base in the area and has the option of locating at a controlled or an uncontrolled airport, they’ll pick the controlled facility because they want that higher margin of safety,” Barnes aid. “So it is a big marketing tool that helps draw businesses in here.”
