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Media Contact:
Kara Rodriguez, Public Information Officer
pio@leesburgva.gov
703-669-1425
Leesburg Council Approves Tower Operations Agreement with FAA
Leesburg, VA (July 26, 2023) – The Leesburg Town Council has authorized Town Manager Kaj Dentler to move forward with signing a Tower Operations Agreement with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that will allow for continued towered operations at Leesburg Executive Airport.
In February 2023, the FAA announced its decision to discontinue the Remote Tower program at Leesburg Airport. Since that time, overwhelming legislative support from both federal and state leaders, and constructive dialogue with the FAA, has focused on the desire to keep the Town’s airport a towered operation. Since the Remote Tower program ended in June, Leesburg Airport’s air traffic controllers have been housed in a mobile tower.
Both the FAA and Town leaders have agreed that maintaining towered operations at the airport is critical to the airport’s success, and the Town will begin the process of designing and constructing a permanent brick and mortar tower.
The action approved by the Town Council at its July 25, 2023, meeting authorizes the Town Manager to sign the agreement, and approves the appropriation of $90,000 from the Town’s Unassigned Fund Balance to pay for the rent of the mobile tower from October 1, 2023, through June 30, 2024. The FAA has provided funding for the lease of the mobile tower through September, and has committed to funding the salaries of those who staff the tower for the next five years. The Town Manager is expected to include $120,000 in continued funding for the mobile tower in the Fiscal Year 2025 budget, which will be presented in February.
“This agreement between the Town and the FAA establishes the shared priority of safe operations at the Leesburg Executive Airport. We look forward to continuing to work cooperatively with the FAA and our legislative leaders as we move towards the construction of a permanent tower, and the continued success of Leesburg Executive Airport,” Dentler stated.
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