By Roland Ohaeri
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced that the US government has taken steps to improve safety through enhancement of airport infrastructure on the country. The effort will also the improvement of small airports in remote areas to continue enhancing safely and support economic development in the localities served by those airports.
For a fourth year, the FAA announced $20 million being awarded to 20 airport-owned airport traffic control towers across the country, spanning 15 states, the FAA stated, adding that “this funding will be used to upgrade existing or build new control towers across the country, delivering on President Biden’s vision to rebuild our nation’s infrastructure through his Investing in America agenda.”
According to the FAA, the funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will go to smaller and regional airports to improve safety and support critical aviation operations such as commercial passenger flights, cargo flights, emergency services, agricultural aviation, and flight training.
“Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Biden-Harris Administration is supporting every part of our aviation system – including airports in small communities that drive local economies and help people get where they need to go,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg. “With today’s announcement, 20 more airports will have the resources they need to upgrade operations and make travel safer and more efficient.”
The FAA Associate Administrator for Airports, Shannetta R. Griffin, P.E., also stated: “Today’s announcement demonstrates the FAA’s ongoing commitment to airports of all sizes. These upgrades will help ensure traveler safety for decades by providing our controllers better work environments that are also more accessible, secure, and sustainable.”
The FAA remarked that “Today’s funding is from the FAA’s Airport Infrastructure Grants FAA Contract Tower Competitive Grant program, and comes after October’s announcement of another nearly $1 billion in funding for 125 airports across the country through the Airport Terminals Program.” It also revealed that “:these grants continue efforts to improve safety by upgrading and building control towers in small towns and at regional airports to sustain, construct, repair, improve, modernize, replace or relocate airport-owned towers and install communications equipment.”
President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law makes a historic investment in our nation’s infrastructure and competitiveness by rebuilding America’s roads and bridges, upgrading and expanding public transit and rail, and modernizing the nation’s ports and airports. The FAA highlighted the US government’s efforts to bolster the nation’s infrastructure and modernize US ports and airport.
“To date, the Administration has announced over $568 billion in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding for over 66,000 infrastructure projects across the nation and has mobilized nearly $1 trillion in private sector manufacturing and clean energy investments in the United States,” the FAA further revealed.
