Small control towers win FAA reprieve

Airport officials in Lewisburg, Parkersburg and Wheeling were relieved Saturday to learn the FAA wouldn’t cut funding for their control towers — at least not until the fall.

The FAA announced Friday small airports will continue to have their towers at least through Sept. 30. The money will coming from a bill Congress passed last month to keep towers open, thought it was originally presumed there wouldn’t be enough funds to keep the smaller towers operating.

The towers are staffed by FAA-hired contractors because of low-traffic volumes.