BELGRADE — A change is coming to the control tower at Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport, as part of a pilot program by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
In the U.S., about 265 airports, including Bozeman Yellowstone Airport, are part of the FAA Contract Tower Program, which encompasses air traffic control towers staffed by private sector employees rather than FAA employees.
Under the pilot program, some of those FAA contract towers will become FAA-owned, with Bozeman Yellowstone Airport among the first.
According to a press release, the program is part of an initiative to strengthen the controller workforce pipeline and standardize training across the national airspace system.
“As a federal control tower, you have access to the federally controlled hiring programs and also the equipment and staffing…” said Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport CEO Brian Sprenger.
“It’s just designed for a much busier airport, and we’ve become that busier airport,” he added.
Sprenger says current control tower employees at Bozeman Airport will have priority for hiring at the new federally controlled towers. The FAA estimates it will take about 2 to 4 years to successfully complete the pilot program.
