The following table ranks the tallest air traffic control (ATC) towers at airports in the United States.
Air traffic control towers are elevated structures for the visual observation and control of the air and ground traffic at an airport.[1] The placement and height of an ATC tower are determined by addressing the many FAA requirements and site-specific considerations to ensure safety within the National Airspace System (NAS). The FAA has stated that new towers should be constructed with a goal of providing the shortest possible tower required to meet siting criteria for that specific airport.[2] These criteria result in a wide variation of tower height with some rivaling or surpassing the tallest office buildings in their respective cities. ATC towers however are generally not recognized by The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) as buildings because they do not meet the criteria of having at least 50 percent of their height as occupiable.[3] For this reason, they are not ranked among a city's tallest buildings but fall under the category of "telecommunications/observation tower."
The air traffic control tower of the Hillsboro Airport can be seen behind a row a small airplanes and buildings in the city of Hillsboro, Oregon.
Tallest ATC Towers in the U.S. edit
| Rank | Airport | Image | Height ft (m) |
Year built |
Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport | 
|
398 (121.3) | 2006 | [4] |
| 2 | Charlotte Douglas International Airport | .jpg)
|
370 (112.8) | 2022 | [5] |
| 3 | Harry Reid International Airport | 
|
352 (107.3) | 2016 | [6] |
| 4 | Indianapolis International Airport | 
|
348 (106.1) | 2006 | [7] |
| 5 | Orlando International Airport | .jpg)
|
345 (105.2) | 2002 | [8] |
| 6t. | Memphis International Airport | 
|
336 (102.4) | 2012 | [9] |
| 6t. | George Bush (Houston) Intercontinental Airport | 
|
336 (102.4) | 1997 | [10] |
| 8 | Miami International Airport | _(8204607432).jpg)
|
333 (101.5) | 2002 | [11] |
| 9 | Salt Lake City International Airport | .jpg)
|
328 (99.9) | 1995 | [12] |
| 10 | Denver International Airport | 
|
327 (99.7) | 1995 | [13] |
| 11 | Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport | .jpg)
|
326 (99.4) | 2007 | [14] |
| 12t. | Washington Dulles International Airport | 
|
325 (99.1) | 2007 | [15] |
| 12t. | Newark International Airport | 
|
325 (99.1) | 2003 | [16] |
| 14 | Cleveland Hopkins International Airport | 
|
324 (98.8) | 2015 | [17][18] |
| 15 | John F. Kennedy International Airport | 
|
320 (97.5) | 1992 | [19] |
References edit
- ^ "Definition of 'traffic control tower'". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "AIRPORT TRAFFIC CONTROL TOWER SITING PROCESS" (PDF). Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "Tall Building Criteria". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "Atlanta Airport Demolishes Old Air Traffic Control Tower". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "FAA Commissions New Air Traffic Control Tower at Charlotte Douglas International Airport". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "New McCarran air traffic control tower to debut Aug. 28". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "Indianapolis International Airport History". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "Orlando International Airport Tallest Air Traffic Control Tower". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "Memphis International Airport Air Traffic Control Tower". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "The Nations Tallest Control Tower Is Online". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "In Pictures: A Look At Miami Intl Tower, Inside And Out". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "Control tower at Salt Lake City International Airport". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "Literally just 113 facts about DIA". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "PHOENIX SKY HARBOR INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT – FAA TOWER". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "Tour of the Air Traffic Control Tower at IAD". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "Infrastructure New Jersey (NJ) Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR)". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "Cleveland Airport Control Tower & TRACON Building". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "New air traffic control tower at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport: Whatever happened to ...?". Retrieved December 22, 2022.
- ^ "In Pictures: A Look At New York JFK Tower, Inside And Out". Retrieved December 22, 2022.