In the wake of legal actions filed by Spiegel & McDiarmid lawyers on behalf of the Spokane Airport Board and the Bloomington-Normal Airport Authority (as well as legal actions brought by other affected airports and associations), the Federal Aviation Administration announced on April 5 that it will delay its planned sequester-related closures of 149 air traffic control towers until June 15.  The FAA had previously announced that the tower closures would occur in three phases between April 7 and May 5.

The FAA announced that, among other things, the delay would give it time to address and attempt to resolve the pending litigation prompted by its planned tower closures.  We applaud FAA for taking this step, and believe it is a positive development for our airport clients, other affected airports, and aeronautical users around the country.

We look forward to continuing to work with the FAA and on Capitol Hill to keep the airways at Spokane’s Felts Field Airport, Bloomington-Normal’s Central Illinois Regional Airport, and elsewhere open, safe, and productive.

The Spiegel attorneys participating in this effort are Pablo Nüesch, Peter Hopkins, Katie Mapes, Tim Lay, and Scott Strauss.