Hello, I live around the Columbia, MO area. Columbia has an airport and i can hear the aircraft talking on the frequencies but i can not find the frequency of which the air traffic controller is talking to them on. I think Kansas City,MO International Airport controls this airspace but i am unable to hear them talking to the aircraft. Does anybody else know why that could be. I would really if possible find a frequency that has the air traffic controller on it and the air craft but i have not had any luck. If anyone has any information please reply or send me a private message.
Why can you Hear Airplane But Not Traffic Controller?
- Thread starter 17TLS02
- Start date
- Status
nd5y
Member
You can hear aircraft a long distance if they high enough and line of sight. It's not unusual to be able to hear them 200 miles away or more if they are above 30,000 feet.
Airports and ARTCC remote sites (called RCAGs) usually don't have antennas very high compared to most land mobile radio base stations and repeaters so you usually can't hear them very far. Sometimes not more than 10 or 20 miles depending on local terrain.
You are pobably hearing aircraft talking to Kansas City Center, not the airport.Check this page for the RCAG in your area Kansas City (ZKC) Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC) Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference. The frequencies should be current but maybe not.
The closest RCAG to Columbia MO is at
39.01365, -92.22835
Look that up on a map and see how far away it is from your location. If it's more than 5 or 10 miles and you don't live on top of a hill you may not be able to hear it.
Check this web site for your local airport frequencies https://nfdc.faa.gov/nfdcApps/services/airportLookup/airportDisplay.jsp?airportId=COU (click on Communications). They may or may not be the same as what is listed at Columbia Regional Airport (COU) Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference.
Airports and ARTCC remote sites (called RCAGs) usually don't have antennas very high compared to most land mobile radio base stations and repeaters so you usually can't hear them very far. Sometimes not more than 10 or 20 miles depending on local terrain.
You are pobably hearing aircraft talking to Kansas City Center, not the airport.Check this page for the RCAG in your area Kansas City (ZKC) Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC) Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference. The frequencies should be current but maybe not.
The closest RCAG to Columbia MO is at
39.01365, -92.22835
Look that up on a map and see how far away it is from your location. If it's more than 5 or 10 miles and you don't live on top of a hill you may not be able to hear it.
Check this web site for your local airport frequencies https://nfdc.faa.gov/nfdcApps/services/airportLookup/airportDisplay.jsp?airportId=COU (click on Communications). They may or may not be the same as what is listed at Columbia Regional Airport (COU) Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference.
Last edited:
Distance from the ATC transmitter site is probably the issue, though I don't know your antenna configuration. The ATC transmitter antennas are generally not very high up, since the aircraft are.
The RADAR approach and departure service is done by the RADAR facility at Springfield. "Mizzu Approach" 124.375. They would have remote radios at the Columbia airport, or colocated at the Kansas City Center remote site nearby. An ASR RADAR site is probably located at or near the Columbia airport, and remoted to Springfield.
The RADAR approach and departure service is done by the RADAR facility at Springfield. "Mizzu Approach" 124.375. They would have remote radios at the Columbia airport, or colocated at the Kansas City Center remote site nearby. An ASR RADAR site is probably located at or near the Columbia airport, and remoted to Springfield.
Distance is probably main reason along with any obstructions between you and the airport or remote
ATCC transmitter site. Maybe up to twenty miles you can hear ground stations; all depends on your
location and what's between you and the ground transmitter. Go to LiveATC.net and you can listen
to KMCI airport/approach/departure frequencies. Most of these should have the ground coverage.
That way you can listen to the aircraft and ground at the same time via scanner and computer. LiveATC
should also have some of the Kansas City ARTCC frequencies; don't know if they cover those around
the airport. Type in "ZKC" in the search box, this will bring up a good number of Kansas City ARTCC
frequencies. Some may cover the area around the airport.
ATCC transmitter site. Maybe up to twenty miles you can hear ground stations; all depends on your
location and what's between you and the ground transmitter. Go to LiveATC.net and you can listen
to KMCI airport/approach/departure frequencies. Most of these should have the ground coverage.
That way you can listen to the aircraft and ground at the same time via scanner and computer. LiveATC
should also have some of the Kansas City ARTCC frequencies; don't know if they cover those around
the airport. Type in "ZKC" in the search box, this will bring up a good number of Kansas City ARTCC
frequencies. Some may cover the area around the airport.
Last edited:
Simply put, as others have said, is 'Line of Sight'. I line about 8 miles from NQA airport and cannot hear them but I can hear aircraft flying indoor out of the airport once they get above 1000' or so. If I had a antenna about 50-60' AGL that would help.
Nope, that is not correct.
COU is an FCT and controls the airspace assigned it. Anything not assigned to COU is VFR from the surface up to FL 145.
https://www.faasafety.gov/files/events/ea/ea03/2012/ea0345029/airspace_made_easy.pdf
bill4long
Member
...
Last edited:
I think he was referring to the IFR services, vs Tower.
n5ims
Member
- Joined
- Jul 25, 2004
- Messages
- 3,993
The key here is altitude (specifically the altitude of the antennas in question) with obstructions adding to the problem. The planes are at very high altitude and are easy to hear while the airport is at ground level. One other issue is that often the airport's antenna is at a low altitude (sometimes just a few feet off the ground) and may be protected by things to help protect the station from noise from other signals to allow the weaker, high altitude ones to be easily received. This causes the ground station's signal to have a very limited range at ground level when they can communicate for many miles to aircraft flying at altitude.
Okay thanks.
"Sigh."
Springfield provides the IFR services for COU, though it could have just as easily been remoted to the MCI TRACON.
COU Tower is only a VFR facility. There must still be an overlying/surrounding IFR facility. Understand?
This brings back memories. I used to live near a ground control station, Jacksonville Center, and if I listened to it, the transmissions were non-stop! It would tie up any scanner I had it on. Brief transmissions seemingly overlapping each other.
Back in the late 70's, I visited the site on Bettis Academy road on the south side of Trenton, SC and it looked like a small electrical sub-station with 8 foot chain link fencing around it and inside was a transmitter house with four 25 to 30 foot antennas on Rohn type towers at each corner of the building with a very large looking back-up generator behind it. What surprised me was it was supplied by 3 phase current.
I recently traveled by there and did not see the site. Either the foliage had grown up around it, or it had been moved.
Back in the late 70's, I visited the site on Bettis Academy road on the south side of Trenton, SC and it looked like a small electrical sub-station with 8 foot chain link fencing around it and inside was a transmitter house with four 25 to 30 foot antennas on Rohn type towers at each corner of the building with a very large looking back-up generator behind it. What surprised me was it was supplied by 3 phase current.
I recently traveled by there and did not see the site. Either the foliage had grown up around it, or it had been moved.
Assuming the tower is open *and* assuming the flight is descending for a landing, your initial instructions for descent will come from ZKC. At some point in time ZKC will hand you off to Mizzu App. Mizzu then hands off to the tower.K5BBC said:
There may be some obscure contingency where MCIZ gets the airspace, but honestly I cannot see that happening. It makes more sense to let ZKC take it all the way to the ground.
MIZZU Approach has the space 24/7. The tower is not 24.
Your tagline makes me wonder if you might be a controller. If you are, you'll know where to verify what I just posted.
The initial point all along has been that anyone can squawk 1200 and/or fly directly over the top of COU's class D and not talk to anyone at anytime of the day. Which means, in this example, nobody has anything.
But since you have been busy moving the goal posts in the conversation, yes, I agree, depending on the time of the day and the type of ops in play you might have to talk to to someone.
This fixation over airspace ownership is just conversational CFIT.
Originally Posted by K5BBC View Post
.. words n stuff ..
The initial point all along has been that anyone can squawk 1200 and/or fly directly over the top of COU's class D and not talk to anyone at anytime of the day. Which means, in this example, nobody has anything.
But since you have been busy moving the goal posts in the conversation, yes, I agree, depending on the time of the day and the type of ops in play you might have to talk to to someone.
This fixation over airspace ownership is just conversational CFIT.
"The initial point..."
If you say so.
"Originally Posted by K5BBC View Post
.. words n stuff .." Still looking for that quoted post.
- Status
Similar threads
