TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Tampa International to relocate radar

ADVERTISEMENT

By TED JACKOVICS

tjackovics@tampatrib.com

Published: June 5, 2009

TAMPA - The Federal Aviation Administration's radar at Tampa International Airport will be relocated from the west side of the airport to a 140-foot tower on the northeast side by mid-2011, the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority said on Thursday.
Air traffic controllers in an operations center at the base of the airport's control tower rely on the ASR-9 radar to control aircraft within about 60 nautical miles of Tampa International.

The radar must be relocated in advance of building the proposed North Terminal, which would block radar transmissions to the north.

The North Terminal was expected to be built by 2015, but with the recent decline in air traffic, it will not be needed until about 2020.

The aviation authority agreed Thursday to reimburse the FAA up to $2 million for various construction details in the $10.1 million relocation project.
Hubbard Construction of Lakeland is about to embark on another project at the airport that is expected to employ about 275 people to build a taxiway that also will support the North Terminal.

Reporter Ted Jackovics can be reached at (813) 259-7817.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT