FAA says first digital towers are operating in Florida and Alaska

The Federal Aviation Administration has said its first digital air traffic control towers are operating at Bartow Executive Airport in Florida and Kenai Municipal Airport in Alaska. The agency said that on Friday.

Controllers still manage the airspace. The towers use cameras and digital displays. They give a continuous 360-degree view of the runways, the taxiways, and the airspace around the field. The agency said the added information supports work controllers already do.

The administrator said the job has not changed. "Our air traffic controllers continue to do the critical job of keeping aircraft safely separated, and we're giving them better technology to do that," Administrator Bryan Bedford said. "Digital towers provide controllers with greater visibility of airport activity and more information to make critical decisions."

Five more airports are next. Funding from the Working Families Tax Cut Act will put the systems at five more non-towered airports: Winter Haven Regional and Venice Municipal in Florida, Montgomery County Airpark in Maryland, Johnston Regional Airport in North Carolina, and Durango-La Plata County Airport in Colorado. The agency selected the Frequentis system. It tested the technology for years at the William J. Hughes Technical Center in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and at other sites.