![]() ![]() We spent a few more minutes chatting with the controllers. If there had been they’d have had one heck of a hard time getting me back inside.Įventually I did (reluctantly) go back in. Would I? Oh hell YES! Coolest walk-around EVER! Thanks to low cloud cover and the fact that most cargo activity happens at night, there were no planes in the pattern while I was out there. Apparently the two 12,000 foot runways are great places to practice touch-and-goes.Īfter answering questions the controllers asked if we’d like to go out on the catwalk that surrounds the cab. Obviously there are lots of cargo planes flying in, but I found out that on nice days they see a lot of GA planes as well. ![]() I asked about what kind of traffic they typically handle. ![]() The cargo airport, however, is Class D (as are the other two airports in the area, including our GA airport). I asked about the airspace – the pax airport is Class C. I asked about approach control – I suspected that it is located at the pax airport and I was right. KC-135s for the Air National Guard parked behind a UPS cargo plane. When the doors opened, the view that awaited me was worth every claustrophobic moment. Getting into the tower involves either riding up in the world’s tiniest elevator, or walking up roughly a million stairs. As part of the deice pad control training I’m currently undergoing, I was given the opportunity to visit the tower to get a better view of the deicing area. Fortunately, the old tower still exists and is currently used in the winter for snow ops. Wisely, they don’t allow me anywhere near it. The passenger airport where I work has a lovely tower that was built just a few years ago. I park in the shadow of one every day and I often find myself gazing up at it and thinking about all the activity going on up there, not to mention the amazing view! So you can imagine my surprise and giddy delight when I got to visit not one but TWO ATC towers (at two different airports) in the last month. For as long as I can remember I have always dreamed of going up into an ATC tower. ![]()
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