Tulsa International Airport Plans To Replace Control Tower

Despite concerns about rising costs and uncertain funding, the plan to replace the control tower at Tulsa International Airport is on track, according to the CEO of the Airport Trust, Alexix Higgins.

“Our goal is to finish this project, to make it happen, within the lowest possible budget, but that's difficult with the environment we're operating in today,” she said.

The tower is more than 60 years old, which is twice as old as the average for a commercial airport, and continuing problems with maintenance keep pushing the conversation on replacement.

“The maintenance issues that come with it being old are a challenge,” said Higgins.

The locally owned tower is staffed by FAA employees, while most towers are owned and operated by the federal government.

Multiple studies have demonstrated the need for more space and updated equipment in Tulsa, but the available and committed funding, about $41 million, according to Higgins, isn’t half the currently estimated $94 million cost.

The new tower will be just west of the existing one, and will be twice as tall, to give controllers a better view of the airfield.

The timeline now would have the design finished late next year, with the project going to bid in 2024, depending on available funding.