Joseph Grant
May 10, 2022 at 11:39 PM
8.2 Air Traffic Control Entities
Two air traffic control entities that work side by side are the Air Traffic Control Tower (ATCT), Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) for civilian airports, or RAPCON (Radar Approach Control) for military airfields that have them. Pilots will initially start coordination with the ATCT where they will get their ground movement instructions for departure from the airport, or when aircraft arrive to their destination. Not only does the ATCT give instruction to pilots on the ground, they also give aircraft instruction and clearance to land or take off from the airport and cover the airports air space from 3 to 30 miles out (NATCA, 2019). After an aircraft has departed from an airport, pilots are then instructed to contact their next controller known as a TRACON or RAPCON controller. This next controller controls departing traffic out of the airfield while airborne, or controls arriving aircraft to the airfield before handing them off to the ATCT, or ARTCC. TRACON/RAPCON controllers control aircraft 20 to 50 miles from an airfield at an altitude of 17,000ft before sending them off to the ARTC or center when an aircraft has departed (NATCA, 2019). Both of these entities work side by side when controlling aircraft and are crucial when instructing pilots instructions.
References
NATCA. (2019, December 17). What is an Air Traffic Controller? Retrieved May 10, 2022, from https://www.natca.org/education/what-is-an-air-traffic-controller/
