Airports won’t coordinate flight following

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07-08-2020, 12:17 PM

#11

senecacaptain

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I am 99% sure if you pick it up via ground control (squawk code, etc) then the subsequent controllers cannot "deny" the flight following once airborne.

07-08-2020, 12:19 PM

#12

42Av8RE

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It’s not that the TRACON/ARTCC denies you when airborne, it’s that some of the tower facilities won’t or can’t coordinate FF from the ground.

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07-08-2020, 06:38 PM

#13

Excargodog

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Quote:

Originally Posted by senecacaptain

I am 99% sure if you pick it up via ground control (squawk code, etc) then the subsequent controllers cannot "deny" the flight following once airborne.

All flight following is “workload permitting” IAW ATC policy. That gives them damn near total discretion. Notwithstanding that, I’ve rarely been refused.

07-16-2020, 05:24 PM

#14

kaputt

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Excargodog

All flight following is “workload permitting” IAW ATC policy. That gives them damn near total discretion. Notwithstanding that, I’ve rarely been refused.

I still haven’t called them back via phone, but when I was out at SBD and asked while in the pattern before heading back to home base they told me “We don’t have the equipment.”

07-16-2020, 07:53 PM

#15

ncbull

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I’m assuming SBD doesn’t have stars radar or fdio to input your information. If they don’t have the equipment they can’t get you flight following. Pick it up in the air.

07-18-2020, 10:37 AM

#16

EMAW

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Quote:

Originally Posted by 42Av8RE

When arriving IFR, Mugu approach will certainly hand you off to tower. As for the flight following issue, it may have something to do with the lack of overlying/nearby Charlie or Bravo. At least, I’ve heard that opined by some locals.

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Ok but not really what I asked. There are class D airports where the controller will say “Radar service terminated, contact ______tower on ___._ In those cases, the tower is equipped with different equipment not capable of providing radar surveillance. There aren’t a lot of them throughout the country, but it happens. This lack of equipment is probably one reason they can’t coordinate flight following for you. It may also be as simple as not having a letter of agreement between the two facilities.

07-22-2020, 06:25 PM

#17

Xdashdriver

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Quote:

Originally Posted by ncbull

I’m assuming SBD doesn’t have stars radar or fdio to input your information. If they don’t have the equipment they can’t get you flight following. Pick it up in the air.

This. The tower has to have the ability to input your info into the FDIO. If they can't do that, then you have to get it airborne.
It's not really connected whether the tower has a radar feed or not, although if the tower does have a radar display, it will also have FDIO, but you can have towers with FDIO but no radar.

A controller can terminate flight following at any time due to workload saturation. It's a non-essential service.