Thanks to a Friday afternoon vote in Congress, planes landing at New Haven’s airport may still get help from air traffic controllers after June 15.
The Federal Aviation Adminstration had planned to pull its contract air traffic controllers from Tweed New Haven airport on June 15 due to the sequester, the automatic budget cuts triggered by political gridlock in Washington.
Local politicians and business leaders blasted the move, arguing it could force Tweed to close.
But on Friday, the House of Representatives joined the U.S. Senate in a vote that will allow the federal Transportation Department to move $253 million to bring the country’s air traffic control system back to full operation. The federal government had been under pressure to act because of flight delays.
The vote means that Tweed’s air traffic control tower could stay open at least until Oct. 1, when the next federal fiscal year begins.
But it’s not yet totally guaranteed, according to U.S. Sen. Dick Blumenthal. Tweed’s tower is not staffed directly by FAA employees, but by contractors. While Friday’s deal prevents the furlough of FAA employees, language about funding contract positions is not explicit, Blumenthal said.
“We believe there’s a strong presumption that they will be kept,” Blumenthal said.
As for the outlook beyond Oct. 1, Blumenthal said, “We’re hoping that between now and Sept. 30 we’ll have an agreement as to the next fiscal year.”