MARANA, Ariz. (KGUN) — A planned air traffic control tower at Marana Regional Airport is moving closer to reality after the airport received an $800,000 federal grant aimed at improving safety and infrastructure at one of Southern Arizona’s busiest general aviation hubs.
The funding comes through the Federal Contract Tower Grant Program, according to the Town of Marana, and would help bring an air traffic control tower to the airport, which currently operates as a non-towered field where pilots communicate directly with one another over a shared radio frequency.
“Towers and air traffic control makes the aviation system much safer than not,” said helicopter pilot Francisco Orlaineta while visiting the airport’s Sky Rider Cafe.
Orlaineta said a tower would provide pilots with an added layer of situational awareness.
“They got you on radar, they are telling you, advising you of present traffic in your route of flight,” he said. “And so that is very beneficial to us.”
The airport, located northwest of Tucson, has seen growing traffic in recent years as flight schools and private aviation activity expand across the region. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, most U.S. airports are non-towered, relying on pilots to self-announce positions and maintain separation from other aircraft.
Safety concerns intensified after two fatal crashes at the airport within the last two years. In February 2025, two people were killed after a midair collision involving a Cessna 172 and a Lancair aircraft near the airport. Federal investigators said the airport did not have an operating control tower at the time.
More recently, two people died in April after a single-engine aircraft crashed while landing at the airport.
Flight instructor Erwin Castillo, who teaches at the airport, said pilots operating at non-towered airports can do so safely if procedures are followed carefully.
“I believe that Marana Regional is a safe airport… if everybody follows the rules,” Castillo said.
Still, Castillo said a control tower could help reduce confusion and improve coordination among pilots flying in and out of the increasingly busy airport.
“The job of the tower is to separate the traffic,” Castillo said. “To make sure everybody knows where they’re supposed to be and what they’re supposed to do. Because a lot of people need to be told what to do.”
In a statement, the Town of Marana called the grant “an important milestone” for the airport and thanked federal partners who helped move the project forward. Officials have not yet announced a construction timeline for the tower.
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Eddie Celaya is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9. Born in Tucson and raised in the Phoenix area, Eddie is a life-long Arizonan and graduate of the University of Arizona who loves the desert and mountains and hates the cold. Previously, Eddie worked in print media at the Arizona Daily Star. Share your story ideas with Eddie at edward.celaya@kgun9.com, or by connecting on Facebook or Instagram.
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