Victoria International Airport is getting a new air-traffic-control tower.
Nav Canada, which provides air-traffic control for the airport, said Wednesday that construction of a six-storey tower is expected to start in the spring and be complete by 2026.
The new tower is expected to be several metres higher that the existing tower, which was built in 1958 and will continue to be used to direct plane movements at the airport until the new facility is complete.
Nav Canada said the new energy-efficient LEED-certified tower will include a control cab with a 360-degree view of the airport and have the most up-to-date air-traffic management, communications and aviation-surveillance systems to ensure safety.
Raymond Bohn, president and CEO of Nav Canada, said in a statement the added height of the tower will provide air-traffic controllers improved sightlines over the airfield to manage growing air-traffic demand.
Geoff Dickson, CEO of Victoria International Airport, said aviation is a critical industry for economic prosperity and the tower project will help facilitate continued growth in the region.
Nav Canada is a private, not-for-profit company established in 1996 that provides air-traffic control, airport advisory services, weather briefings and aeronautical information services for more than 18 million square kilometres of Canadian domestic and international airspace.
