Comparison

Planes Control! vs Hello Tower

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Planes Control!

Guide aircraft to safe landings while avoiding hazards like storms and enemy attacks. Control over 60 different planes and helicopters across 13 challenging levels. Engage in aerial combat, fight wildfires, and manage air traffic in this addictive simulation game.

Highlights
  • Draw flight paths for aircraft
  • Avoid collisions and environmental hazards
  • Pilot over 60 types of planes and helicopters
  • Engage in aerial combat
  • Fight wildfires with air tankers
  • Navigate diverse and challenging levels
Features
Read full description

Take control of the sky and land your planes avoiding collisions and enemies. Guide your planes to ensure safe landing in this incredibly easy to learn yet surprisingly addictive game! Get an adrenalin rush while avoiding dangerous collisions, blazing storms and tornadoes, put out forest fire, get ready to repel an attack of enemy fighters and fight off an alien invasion! GAMEPLAY Planes Control is an game with simple controls. Draw lines with your fingers to determine the path each plane will follow as they find their way to land or to engage the enemy. This sounds easy? You will need fast fingers and strategy to manage all your planes and keep the sky under control. AIRCRAFTS You can navigate more than 60 different planes and helicopters including airliners, WWII fighters, jet planes and tilt rotors while playing Planes Control. Beside this, you will enjoy flying the SR-71 Black Bird (the world's fastest plane), the Antonov 225 (the largest aircraft in the world to fly multiple times) and famous combat planes like the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, the F-14 Tomcat or the Apache AH-64 combat helicopter. LEVELS Planes Control has 13 awesome levels for mobile devices plus 6 new levels full of challenges created for tablets. More levels are on the way. • Earn your wings on a holiday resort, guiding your planes and helicopters. • Aerial combat! Shoot down hostile planes and helicopters over the scorching desert. • Air Tankers: Fight wildfires by dropping water with your planes and helicopters. • Storm Carrier landings: Command your military fighters and helicopters between the clouds and rain. • Navigate canyons in the Arizona’s Desert. • Successfully land your Aircraft during a tornado outbreak. • Night landings: Switch your landing lights on and find your way around the airfield. • Keep an eye on emergency calls and give priority landing to the planes that are running out of fuel. • Avoid cargo planes flying around your air space. • Land your planes in the middle of an alien invasion ! READY FOR A CHALLENGE? Earn new and different achievements in every level and challenge yourself to the limit. Please sit back, fasten your seatbelt and enjoy taking control of the sky – download Planes Control now! ⓘ For the latest inside information from Rarepixels: ► Like us at https://www.facebook.com/planesApp ► Visit us at http://rarepixels.com/games/planes-control/ ► Follow us at https://www.twitter.com/planes_control

About

Hello Tower

Experience realistic airport ground control with this simulation app. Manage aircraft movements, issue clearances, and handle emergencies across over 40 diverse airports. Progress from simple single-runway operations to complex hub airports.

Highlights
  • Airport ground maneuvering simulation
  • Over 40 different airports
  • Simplified and real-size airport versions
  • Pushback, taxi, and take-off clearances
  • Emergency handling
  • Level-based progression
Features
Read full description

Airport ground maneuvering simulation of more than 40 different airports including  London Heathrow LHR, Philadelphia PHL, Miami Intl. MIA, Singapore, New York JFK, Las Vegas LAS, São Paulo GRU, Montreal YUL, Boston BOS, and many more.  Different versions of airports included: - Play the simplified version, where the airport is scaled down to an easy playable experience. - Play the real thing. Here the whole airport is in real size displayed, where all your skills are required. Features - Give pushback, taxi, holding and take-off clearances.  - Handle emergencies and try to release all flights on time in order to release the next level. From an easy single-runway operation at the beginning to demanding hub airports with multiple active runways where all your skills are required.

Screenshots

Planes Control!4 screens
Hello Tower4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Planes Control! at Free against Hello Tower's $2.99. Planes Control! also leads on ratings volume (6.8K vs 65) and rating (4.7 vs 4.4). Hello Tower's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 9 days vs monthly). On in-app purchases, monetization model and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Planes Control! is free to download; Hello Tower costs $2.99 up front. Planes Control! sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Hello Tower sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Planes Control! holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Planes Control! has 6.8K ratings behind it against 65, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 79% of Planes Control!'s written reviews are positive against 71% of Hello Tower's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Planes Control! ships an update monthly, Hello Tower every 9 days. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Planes Control! versus Hello Tower: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPlanes Control!Hello Tower
PriceFree — better$2.99
Rating4.7 (6.8K ratings) — better4.4 (65 ratings)
Positive reviews79.1% of reviews — better70.7% of reviews
Number of ratings6.8K — better65
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 9 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS12.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size40 MB412 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAntonio Calvino EsquerSascha Trachsel

Customer experience

Planes Control!

All ratings6,833 ratings
Positive94.0%
Neutral2.9%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews421 reviews
Positive79.1%
Neutral8.1%
Negative12.8%

Hello Tower

All ratings65 ratings
Positive86.2%
Neutral3.1%
Negative10.8%
Written reviews123 reviews
Positive70.7%
Neutral14.6%
Negative14.6%

User reviews

Planes Control!

From 6.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fun game
  • 👍 Simple yet challenging
  • 🚀 Addictive gameplay
  • 👍 Good variety of levels
  • 🚀 Responsive controls

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and bugs
  • 🔋 Drains battery quickly
  • 🐛 Progress not saved
  • 🐛 Collision detection issues
  • 🐛 Planes spawning off-screen

Hello Tower

From 65 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Realistic simulation
  • 👍 Challenging gameplay
  • 👍 Good graphics
  • 👍 No ads
  • 👍 Addictive and fun

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches
  • 🐛 Unintuitive UI
  • 🐛 Steep learning curve
  • 🐛 Frequent game over on small mistakes
  • 🐛 Lack of tutorial

Bugs and requests

Planes Control!

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Game freezes on iOS 14
  • High score not recorded correctly
  • Planes colliding off-screen
  • Notification bar interfering with gameplay

Requested features

5 requests
  • More level options and customization
  • Ability to pause and resume games
  • Improved tutorial and instructions
  • Difficulty settings for each level
  • Leaderboards and achievements

Hello Tower

Reported bugs

37 issues
  • Flight freezing on runway holding and turns
  • Aircraft getting stuck and blocking routes
  • 30-second departure timer disappearing
  • Aircraft crashing with held aircraft on taxiway
  • Levels not unlocking
Show 32 more
  • Game freezes/crashes, especially at Heathrow
  • Separation logic errors
  • Aircraft not selectable
  • Game hangs/freezes after updates
  • New UI is confusing and unreadable
  • Sounds missing after update
  • Focus on aircraft and readability worsened
  • Aircraft symbols obscured by labels
  • Tapping messages only selects aircraft once
  • Parking spots shown as available when occupied
  • Planes crossing paths and getting stuck
  • Aircraft becoming 'ghosts' blocking routes
  • Runway timer resets to zero before 30 seconds
  • Departure separation timer sometimes fails to appear
  • Recent updates have made the game fiddly and difficult
  • UI is worse after recent updates
  • Levels changed after recent updates
  • Game becomes unplayable after updates
  • Aircraft roll with extreme speed
  • UI for iPhones is terrible
  • Previous version was better
  • Custom game mode is buggy
  • Some airport orientations are off
  • Ground radars not oriented to true north
  • Cannot make aircraft move
  • Cannot park landed aircraft
  • Game ends with blocked runway when it's not
  • Impossible timings leading to penalties
  • Aircraft launching in both directions on the same runway simultaneously
  • Departure slot timer bug
  • Aircraft on final approach not being able to be directed away
  • Aircraft on runway preventing others from crossing

Requested features

23 requests
  • Add more airports (US, European, Asian, Indian cities)
  • Add an endless/sandbox mode
  • Add AI voice recognition and ATC dialogues
  • Implement a tutorial or walk-through
  • Add a 'continue game' or save progress option
Show 18 more
  • Add more realistic separation rules and traffic patterns
  • Improve UI and controls (smaller buttons, better organization)
  • Add option to designate departure/arrival runways
  • Add rejected takeoffs, emergency vehicles, emergency inbounds
  • Add ability to call a go-around
  • Allow custom stop points
  • Add more sounds for aircraft
  • Add a smaller tutorial airport
  • Add day/night environment switching
  • Add towing/pushback option for stuck aircraft
  • Add Chinese language support
  • Add more content/levels, possibly a sequel
  • Improve graphics and aircraft dynamics
  • Add music and better menu
  • Add indication when flights actually depart
  • Add beacon lights to taxiway hotspots
  • Add more realistic taxi speeds and turnaround times
  • Add runway vacation instructions

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Planes Control!

One-time10
  • Pack of 5× Rescue Teams.$0.99
  • Unlock all HD Levels$0.99
  • Classic levels$0.99
Show 7 more
  • Unlock "Time Machine" levels!$0.99
  • Unlock "10th Anniversary" levels!$0.99
  • Three crashes per game.$1.99
  • Classic levels and no ads$2.99
  • Pack of 20× Rescue Teams.$2.99
  • No Ads.$2.99
  • Pack of 50× Rescue Teams.$4.99
4 purchases

Hello Tower

One-time4
  • Hello Tower Test$0.99
  • Airport Pack$0.99
  • Sandbox test2 variants$0.99
Show 1 more
  • Airport Pack$1.99

Questions

Is Planes Control! free?
Planes Control! is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Hello Tower free?
Hello Tower costs $2.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Planes Control! or Hello Tower?
Planes Control! is rated higher. Planes Control! averages 4.7 out of 5 from 6.8K ratings, while Hello Tower averages 4.4 from 65 ratings.
Do Planes Control! or Hello Tower have ads?
Planes Control! shows ads; Hello Tower does not.
Which is updated more often, Planes Control! or Hello Tower?
Planes Control! ships an update monthly, and Hello Tower every 9 days. Most recently, Planes Control! was updated on September 24, 2026 and Hello Tower on September 24, 2026.

Other comparisons