b'OPERATIONSBVU 71The VR headset and 3-D model were extremely valuable duringand expected to be finished by the end of this year. Soon after December 2021 siting meetings attended by FAA personnel andthat, the airport plans to move forward with the design process, air traffic controllers from Harry Reid International Airport in Lasbeginning in late 2024. AJT Engineering from Florida, which Vegas and nearby Henderson Executive Airport.provided initial tower and cab design during the siting study, has The study, driven by alternative drone technology, identified abeen retained for the design. site for the tower 150 feet from another location that officials wereEventual construction costs are estimated at $14.5 million.considering. Moreover, it indicated an optimal height of 95 feet forBut the control tower is not BVUs only current improvement the cab, with antennas above the cab topping out at 125 feet.project. In February, crews were finishing up a $6.2 million The FAA does not recommend tower sites, explainstaxiway reconstruction project that began in late November Hildebrandt. The agency informs us if the site and heights 2023. Kimley-Horn also is working on that project.are viable. After the successful use of drone technology at BVU, the The siting study for BVUs contract tower was submitted toconsultant also used it for a similar tower siting study at the FAA in May 2022 and approved in August 2022. Pompano Beach Air Park in Florida. FAA approval for that study Hildebrandt estimates that the novel use and short duration ofis still pending.drone flights for the siting study cut costs in half compared to theThus, new technology may become a new trend for the siting traditional use of onsite cranes.of air traffic control. Yet, whatever high-tech tools are used, airports and their consultants continue to focus on safety. They Next Steps [BVU] really need a good air traffic control system to keep the With the siting study approved, BVUs tower project continues totraveling public safe, Hildebrandt concludes. progress. The environmental assessment is currently underway AirportImprovement.comMarch | April 2024'