New York News

NY Senators Petition FAA

WAMC Northeast Public Radio | By Dave Lucas

Published April 23, 2013 at 4:54 PM EDT

New York's U.S. Senators have stepped in hoping to stave off the June 15th closure of two airport control towers in Central New York.

Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand are asking Washington to keep Griffiss International Airport in Oneida County and Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport in Tompkins County open. The Senators wrote to FAA Administrator Michael Huerta encouraging him to keep the towers open --- they say the towers are essential to the Central New York economy and to security in the Northeast.

The FAA is shuttering 24 airport control towers including the two in New York due to federal budget cuts.

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Dave Lucas

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.

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