Collins Aerospace’s Tower MicroELITE Wins FAA Design Approval

RTX Collins Aerospace announced Tower MicroELITE, a controller display and surveillance system designed for federal contract and privately operated air traffic control towers. The system brings radar and Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast (ADS-B) data together on a configurable display.

San Bernardino International Airport is reported as the first airport to install Tower MicroELITE.

What has been confirmed

The available source reports that the FAA approved Tower MicroELITE’s system design as an Airborne Position Reference Tool, making it available to eligible FAA Contract Tower airports and private air traffic control facilities. The source also reports that San Bernardino International Airport in California became the first installation. These details are reported with likely confidence in the fact set and are not marked as officially confirmed. The system is described as derived from Collins Aerospace’s Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System (STARS), with displays that can show aircraft identification, speed, altitude, track history and projected track lines.

Why it matters

Contract towers and private air traffic control facilities could use the system to view radar and ADS-B information in one display. ADS-B uses aircraft position broadcasts, while radar provides another source of surveillance data; combining them can give controllers a consolidated traffic picture.

FlyMarshall context

For pilots and passengers, tower surveillance displays support the shared traffic picture controllers use when managing airport operations. Tower MicroELITE is aimed at facilities outside the system’s stated federal-contract and private-facility market, rather than serving as a general passenger-facing product.

What happens next

The source reports that RTX Collins was considering additions, including conflict-detection functions, and seeking approval for some proposed features in the second half of 2027. The fact set does not confirm that those features have received approval or entered service.