MOSES LAKE — The Grant County International Airport will be retaining control over its control tower radar systems following a review by the Federal Aviation Administration into whether management of the systems should be consolidated elsewhere.

At an airport like Grant County’s, Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) systems are monitored by a team located inside the stem of the airport’s control tower, where they coordinate the movements of numerous planes trying to land and lift off from the same runway. In this way, airports with TRACON systems are able to manage a larger airspace and more traffic.

Though Grant County International Airport was not at risk of losing its radar facilities, the airport was just one in a nationwide review that might have had control of the radar system’s data consolidated to save on costs for airports that don’t have the quantity of traffic seen at Sea-Tac or Spokane.

Grant County International Airport successfully persuaded the FAA to leave radar management in the hands of the airport after a campaign to educate policymakers and stakeholders of the importance of TRACON facilities to continued operations, said Richard Mueller, director of facilities and operations for the Port of Moses Lake.

Though Grant County might not see the quantity of aircraft as other areas of the state, Mueller said, it sees a greater diversity of planes and flight activity, complicating management.

“We have multiple types of traffic here every day, and the types of traffic patterns that these aircraft fly are not like at Spokane or Sea-Tac, or even the Tri-Cities, where planes line up miles away like ducks in a row,” Mueller said.

Looking out the control tower window out onto the tarmac, Mueller lists what he says makes up a “three-ring circus.”

“There’s military refuelers. I’m looking at a C-17; earlier today there were several helicopters on the ramp, there’s a T-38 painted up like a bad guy sitting in front of the terminal and right down the ramp I’ve got a college with 27 little planes,” Mueller said, pausing before adding, “and I’ve got a Boeing jet in pattern as well, doing flight tests.”

With all of the complications the airport deals with, it was vital to keep control of the radar systems in the hands of people who knew the lay of the land, Mueller said, rather than a team that would see the airport as just another number. The level of precision and control that the TRACON system provides makes the airport an ideal partner for aeronautics corporations and the military, including Mitsubishi and Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Mueller said.

Leadership from the Port of Moses Lake recently thanked state Rep. Tom Dent, R-Moses Lake for his efforts to lobby to the FAA on behalf of Grant County International Airport. Dent drafted legislation in 2017 that would have notified Washington, D.C. of the importance of Grant County retaining its TRACON systems, which he reintroduced earlier this year.

“The port is fortunate that Rep. Dent, who is a pilot, understands the technical and operational aspects of the TRACON facility,” said Jeffrey Bishop, executive director for the Port of Moses Lake, in a press release. “He was able to combine that knowledge with an understanding of the important role that the port plays in supporting the aerospace sector in Washington State and in assisting our country’s military training needs.”

For his part, Dent credited the efforts of many parties.

“We received strong support from Sen. Cantwell, Sen. Murray, Congressman Newhouse and Congresswoman McMorris-Rodgers. My seatmates, Sen. Warnick and Rep. Manweller, have also communicated with the FAA to ensure they know the importance of this issue,” said Dent. “We can now move forward knowing TRACON will strengthen our aerospace and military presence in Grant County.”