Communication - Lesson Four
- Using the Unicom Freq When ATC is Offline -
What to Do When ATC is Offline? If
you fly Online regularly, it often happens that you fly into
uncontrolled airspace, where there is no ATC service (no controller
Online). In the last lesson we have discussed how to communicate with
the different ATC stations. In this lesson we are going to discuss what
to do if one or more ATC stations on your route are Offline. In this
case you should follow the next steps:
- Check whether there is higher level ATC in your vicinity. If you
want to taxi to holding point RWY 28 at EIDW, for example, and there is
no Dublin Ground, check Dublin Tower then Dublin Approach then Shannon
Control and ask clearance from the lowest level controller that is
Online. In case he is not too busy with his own job, the controller will provide
you (limited) ATC service. But don't forget that this is a favor
from his part and not his normal duty.
- If there is no
ATC station Online at all in your vicinity, it is still a good idea to
advise nearby pilots about your position and intentions. For this very purpose a special Unicom frequency (112.80 Mhz) has been allocated. Every time you fly Online with no ATC you should tune in the Unicom frequency on your COM radio
to recieve other pilots position and intention reports. It is also a
good idea to turn on the TCAS gauge included in our Online panels.
- Check if there is any other traffic in your vicinity
(within 20NM). If there is no traffic around, you should do
nothing else. But if there is nearby traffic, you should always
announce where you are and what you intend to do on the Unicom
frequency in order to avoid incidents with other aircraft. In addition,
you should always listen to other pilots' announcements in order to
detect conflicting actions or intentions. If there is any conflict
(e.g. someone wants to line up the runway you are about to land on) you
should announce it immediately on Unicom. Then you must come to an
agreement with the other pilot how to solve it. In such a situation,
there is no ATC to take care of your separation, so you yourselves must
take care of it.
Using the Unicom Frequency:
On the ground, when there is ground traffic or arriving air traffic, you should announce:
- taxiing to the holding point
- crossing an active runway
- lining up an active runway
- departing from the runway
- backtracking on the active runway
- having vacated the active runway
While airborne, when there is air traffic within a 20NM radius, you should announce:
- getting airborne after departure
- flying a standard departure (SID)
- changing altitude (climbing or descending)
- overtaking other plane or crossing its route
- flying a standard arrival (STAR)
- direction & altitude changes on approach
- having established for the final approach
- having a TCAS alert
E.G. Solving a conflict between departing EMD001 and arriving BAW 045:
- EMD001: "Dublin traffic, Emerald 001 at holding point E1 to line up Runway 28"
- BAW045: "Hold, Emerald 001, Speed Bird 045 is on 5 miles final to Runway 28"
- EMD001: "Roger, holding short at E1, waiting for landing traffic, Emerald 001"
later on, when BAW 045 has landed and vacated Runway 28:
- BAW045: "Dublin traffic, Speed Bird 045 is clear of the active"
- EMD001: "Roger, Emerald 001 at holding point E1 is lining up Runway 28."
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