How Does This Work?

[SSDD]

While enroute I normally monitor 121.5 and hear pilots who've missed a handoff, or flown out of coverage ask for a frequency. In fact, I've done it myself, but just wondering about it from a controller's viewpoint.

Case in point, we were on a western Denver center frequency, when an airline crew asked if they should still be on that freqency. We served as go between and found out they were east of IRK. That's two or three Denver sectors, and probably just as many Kansas City sectors.

So my question is: What are controllers doing as they watch this target move on their scopes, and they're not talking to it? Or do you actually see it, if it hasn't been handed off? I would think that 121.5 would be going crazy looking for that flight.

Not knocking the work that you do, just trying to understand.

 

[DV8N180]

This is what I know from my Chicago Center Controller friends. ATC will try to call on 121.5, have another aircraft try to contact the aircraft, and/or call the company to have dispatch send an ACARS message or call them on the company freq. Depending on the situation those could happen in any order.

One of my friends had a incident where there were two aircraft that had missed handoffs, both at the same altitude and on intersecting courses. It was at night, both aircraft were cargo with no TCAS. Everyone held their breath as the aircraft crossed paths. Both aircraft radar returns momentarily occupied the same space. Somehow they missed, but it was so close the controllers are not sure how. Neither of the aircraft changed course and so evidently did not see each other.

This same friend had this happen another time to a United pilot he knew. He was the first controller the pilot talked to after it happened. The pilot actually saw the aircraft on this one though and was pretty shook up.

 

[atl pilot]

You'd be surprised to find that many of your colleagues do not monitor 121.5. And that even more do not maintain their situational awareness enough to hear a handoff or multiple calls from a controller. Happens almost hourly where I work. It always amazes me.

 

[Mike man]

The United airplane surly had TCAS and they would have responded to a RA...the small night cargo operators, I have to assume, were both lucky.

 

[Stifler's Mom]

You'd be surprised to find that many of your colleagues do not monitor 121.5. And that even more do not maintain their situational awareness enough to hear a handoff or multiple calls from a controller. Happens almost hourly where I work. It always amazes me.

ASA doesn't monitor 121.5 because a large portion of our aircraft don't have ACARS, so we monitor company frequencies on #2.

 

[SSDD]

As to the original question: If you have not taken a handoff from the previous sector/center, do you get a complete data block? Partial? Since the airplane is squaking a code, you know who it is, right?

How does an airplane travel 1/3 across the country incommunicado?

 

[shaun3000]

I imagine it's treated just like the airplane was squawking 7600.

 

[atl pilot]

When you leave one controllers sectors for another's and you do not reply, the handoff is still made. The host compiuter does not know you're nordo. However, the first controller will call the second and tell him you're nordo. You then create a major headache for everyone along your route, b/c airspace must be protected.