Skip to main content
CHS

Charleston Tower

FAA Control Tower and Approach Control Charleston, South Carolina

Facility Information

Facility Overview
Identifier CHS
Facility Name Charleston Tower
Airport Name Charleston AFB/Intl
Type Tower and Approach Control
Level Level 8
Core 30 Airport No
Airspace & Operations
Hours of Operation 0000-2359 (always open)
Airspace Class Class C
Overlying ARTCC ZJX
Airport Diagram Airport Diagram (PDF)
Location & Contact
View on full map →
Address 5775 S Aviation Ave
Charleston, SC 29406
Phone Number 843-414-2800

Salary Information

2026 pay for Charleston Tower, built from the FAA Air Traffic Specialized Pay Plan bands:

Career Level Hourly Min. Hourly Max. Total Pay Min. Total Pay Max.
CPC $52.53 $70.91 $109,627 $147,997
D3 $45.99 $52.53 $95,983 $109,627
D2 $39.45 $45.99 $82,337 $95,983
AG $26.38 $26.38 $55,049 $55,049
Total Pay combines Basic Pay, Locality Pay. It excludes premium pay for overtime, nights, Sundays, and holidays.
Pay Factors
Facility Level Level 8
Locality Area Rest of U.S.
Locality Pay 17.06%
Local Affordability
Cost of Living Index 101.0 (1.0% above avg)
Cost-Adjusted CPC Min $108,585
How this pay is calculated
Basic Pay (Level 8 CPC band minimum) $93,650
+ Locality Pay (17.06% of Basic Pay for Rest of U.S.) + $15,977
= Adjusted Basic Pay (counts toward your High-3) $109,627
= Total Pay $109,627

Amounts are rounded to the nearest dollar, so lines can differ from the total by a dollar or two.

ATC pay has stalled over the past decade. Marangos & Brown are on a mission to increase pay.

Staffing and Training

Staffing Information, August 2026
CPCs on Board 17 CPCs
CPC Target (CWP) 23 CPCs
Current Staffing 73.91%
↳ Est. Trainee Certifications+ 11
↳ Committed Inbounds+ 2
↳ Projected Retirements/Losses- 1.4
↳ Academy Graduates7
↳ Developmental 24
↳ Developmental 33
↳ CPC-IT 0 (Transfer)1
Training Information, August 2026
Training Time (Avg) 1.88 years
↳ New Hires 2.14 years
↳ Transfers (CPC-IT) 1.42 years
Training Success Rate (Avg) 74%
↳ New Hires 73%
↳ Transfers (CPC-IT) 75%
Travel Days from Academy 3 days

Historical Trends

CHS Staffing Percentages

CHS Personnel Counts

CHS Training Metrics

NCEPT

NCEPT manages controller-requested transfers between FAA facilities. See CHS transfer selections on the Transfer Flow Map.

Eligibility & Staffing, August 2026
Staffing Source Academy Sourced
TSL (One Training Time) 91.86%
Gaining Target 100.56%
Possible Gains 0
Primary Releases Avail. 0
Secondary Releases Avail. 0
Transfer Activity
Releases, Past 3 Yrs 2
↳ Standard 1
↳ Priority/Other 1
Gains, Past 3 Yrs 4
Last Standard Release 2.7 years ago

Selections, 2016–2026

Gained 16
Released 11
Net +5
Top Origins BTV (1), CHA (1), CKB (1), CMI (1), DTW (1)
Top Destinations ZTL (3), MIA (2), A80 (1), LGA (1), SAV (1)

Selections by Year, 2016–2026

Demand Trends

NCEPT Priority

Traffic

July 2025 - June 2026 (12 Months)
Tower Operations 135,427 operations/yr
TRACON Operations 202,145 operations/yr
Total Operations 337,572 operations/yr
Average Daily Operations 925 operations/day
Peer Group Median
(Lvl 8 Up/Down)
335,337 operations/yr
Relative Workload +0.7% vs peer median

Traffic History

Administration

Organizational Structure
Service Area Eastern
District Jacksonville
HR Region Southern

Nearest Facilities

NBC Beaufort MCAS (Merritt Fld) DoD 49 mi
HXD Hilton Head Tower FCT 60 mi
SSC Shaw AFB DoD 78 mi
MMT Mc Entire Tower DoD 83 mi
MYR Myrtle Beach Tower FAA 84 mi
SAV Savannah Tower FAA 86 mi
SVN Hunter AAF DoD 89 mi
FLO Florence Tower FAA 91 mi
CAE Columbia Tower FAA 95 mi
CRE Strand Tower FCT 99 mi