FAA Reportedly Denies Austin Airspace Upgrade

Austin-Bergstrom International Airport falls short of some Class B standards but exceeds others.

Zach Vasile

Friday, August 22, 2025 at 03:00 PM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

A Southwest aircraft taxis in Austin. [Shutterstock]

Key Takeaways:

The FAA has reportedly denied a request to upgrade Austin's airspace from Class C to Class B, a decision confirmed by a congressman, despite the FAA officially stating it's still under review.
Local FAA personnel advocated for the Class B upgrade to manage growing air traffic, improve safety, and address a severe air traffic controller (ATC) shortage by providing a mandatory 15% pay raise.
While Austin's airport (KAUS) falls short of some Class B operational requirements (e.g., takeoffs/landings), it exceeds others (e.g., passenger traffic), and several existing Class B airports have lower activity levels.
The denial means Austin's ATC shortage persists, leading to mandatory overtime; local teams are now considering a less impactful, time-consuming "Super Charlie" (expanded Class C) designation as an alternative.

See a mistake? Contact us.

The FAA has reportedly turned down a request to upgrade the airspace over Austin, Texas, to the same category as many of the nation’s busiest airports.

According to documents secured by public radio station KUT in Austin through the Freedom of Information Act, the FAA’s air traffic manager in Austin and some regional agency staff support elevating Austin from Class C airspace to Class B, which would trigger tighter regulation and automatically raise pay for air traffic controllers (ATCs) there by 15 percent.