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TRI

Tri-Cities Tower

FAA Air Traffic Control Tower at Tri-Cities Airport Blountville, Tennessee

Facility Information

Facility Overview
Identifier TRI
Facility Name Tri-Cities Tower
Airport Tri-Cities Airport
Type Tower and Approach Control
Level Level 6
• Prior to Apr 2022: Level 5
• Prior to Aug 2019: Level 6
Core 30 Airport No
Airspace & Operations
Hours of Operation 0600-2359
Airspace Class Class D
Overlying ARTCC ZTL
Airport Diagram Airport Diagram (PDF)
Location & Contact
View on full map →
Address 2701 Hwy 75
Blountville, TN 37617
Phone Number 423-325-6271

Salary Information

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

Career Level Hourly Min. Hourly Max. Total Pay Min. Total Pay Max.
CPC $43.02 $58.08 $89,784 $121,205
D3 $38.86 $43.02 $81,100 $89,784
D2 $34.70 $38.86 $72,414 $81,100
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 6
Locality Area Rest of U.S.
Locality Pay 17.06%
Local Affordability
Cost of Living Index 86.5 (13.5% below avg)
Cost-Adjusted CPC Min $103,857
How this pay is calculated
Basic Pay (Level 6 CPC band minimum) $76,699
+ Locality Pay (17.06% of Basic Pay for Rest of U.S.) + $13,085
= Adjusted Basic Pay (counts toward your High-3) $89,784
= Total Pay $89,784

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, September 2026
CPCs on Board 21 CPCs
CPC Target (CWP) 17 CPCs
Current Staffing 117.65%
↳ Est. Trainee Certifications+ 2.1
↳ Temporary Inbounds+ 1
↳ Committed Outbounds- 2
↳ Placement List Outbounds- 1
↳ Projected Retirements/Losses- 1.6
↳ Academy Graduates3
↳ CPC-IT 2 (Transfer)1
Training Information, September 2026
Training Time (Avg) 1.45 years
↳ New Hires 1.76 years
↳ Transfers (CPC-IT) 0.71 years
Training Success Rate (Avg) 52%
↳ New Hires 45%
↳ Transfers (CPC-IT) 80%
Travel Days from Academy 3 days

Historical Trends

TRI Staffing Percentages

TRI Personnel Counts

TRI Training Metrics

NCEPT

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

Eligibility & Staffing, September 2026
Staffing Source Academy Sourced
TSL (One Training Time) 90.75%
Gaining Target 102.51%
Possible Gains 0
Primary Releases Avail. 2
Secondary Releases Avail. 1
Transfer Activity
Releases, Past 3 Yrs 9
↳ Standard 9
↳ Priority/Other 0
Gains, Past 3 Yrs 3
Last Standard Release 0.1 years ago

Selections, 2016–2026

Gained 4
Released 9
Net -5
Top Origins AVP (1), LOU (1), RDG (1), STT (1)
Top Destinations LIT (2), AZO (1), D10 (1), LEX (1), PCT (1)

Selections by Year, 2016–2026

Demand Trends

NCEPT Priority

Traffic

August 2025 - July 2026 (12 Months)
Tower Operations 48,129 operations/yr
TRACON Operations 67,828 operations/yr
Total Operations 115,957 operations/yr
Average Daily Operations 318 operations/day
Peer Group Median
(Lvl 6 Up/Down)
148,044 operations/yr
Relative Workload -21.7% vs peer median

Traffic History

Administration

Organizational Structure
Service Area Eastern
District Atlanta
HR Region Southern

Nearest Facilities

AVL Asheville Tower FAA 72 mi
HKY Hickory Tower FCT 76 mi
TYS Knoxville Tower FAA 100 mi
GSP Greer Tower FAA 110 mi
GMU Greenville Tower FCT 112 mi
GYH Donaldson Tower FCT 119 mi
CLT Charlotte Tower FAA 119 mi
JQF Concord Tower FCT 121 mi
INT Winston-Salem Tower FCT 124 mi
HTS Huntington Tower FAA 131 mi