ATS.TR.230 Transfer of responsibility for control

COORDINATION IN RESPECT OF THE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SERVICE PROVISION — GENERAL Agreements between air traffic control units or sectors and local instructions concerning coordination and transfer of control of flights should cover the following, as applicable:

(a)definition of areas of responsibility and common interest, airspace structure and airspace classification(s);

(b)any delegation of responsibility for the provision of air traffic services;

(c)procedures for the exchange of flight plan and control data, including use of automated and/or verbal coordination messages;

(d)means of communication;

(e)requirements and procedures for approval requests;

(f)significant points, levels or times for transfer of control;

(g)significant points, levels or times for transfer of communication;

(h)conditions applicable to the transfer and acceptance of control, such as specified altitudes/flight levels, specific separation minima or spacing to be established at the time of transfer, and the use of automation;

(i)ATS surveillance system coordination procedures;

(j)SSR code assignment procedures;

(k)procedures for departing traffic;

(l)designated holding fixes and procedures for arriving traffic;

(m)applicable contingency procedures; and

(n)any other provisions or information relevant to the coordination and transfer of control of flights.

COORDINATION IN RESPECT OF THE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SERVICE PROVISION — GENERAL

(a)The coordination and transfer of control of a flight between successive air traffic control units and control sectors should be effected by a dialogue comprising the following stages:

(1)notification of the flight in order to prepare for coordination, as necessary;

(2)coordination of conditions of transfer of control by the transferring air traffic control unit;

(3)coordination, if necessary, and acceptance of conditions of transfer of control by the accepting control unit; and

(4)transfer of control to the accepting control unit or control sector.

(b)Air traffic control units should, to the extent possible, establish and apply standardised procedures for the coordination and transfer of control of flights, in order, inter alia, to reduce the need for verbal coordination. Such coordination procedures should be specified in letters of agreement and local instructions, as applicable.

LETTERS OF AGREEMENT AND OPERATION MANUALS Relevant information contained in letters of agreement should be included in the operation manual of the air traffic services units concerned.

COORDINATION BETWEEN AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL UNITS PROVIDING AIR TRAFFIC SERVICE WITHIN CONTIGUOUS CONTROL AREAS — TRANSFER OF CONTROL

(a)The responsibility for the control of an aircraft should be transferred from the air traffic control unit to the next unit at the time of crossing the common control area boundary as determined by the unit having control of the aircraft or at such other point or time as has been agreed between the two units.

(b)Where specified in letters of agreement between the air traffic control units concerned, and when transferring an aircraft, the transferring unit should notify the accepting control unit that the aircraft is in position to be transferred, and specify that the responsibility for control should be assumed by the accepting control unit forthwith at the time of crossing the control boundary or other transfer control point specified in letters of agreement between the air traffic control units or at such other point or time coordinated between the two units.

(c)If the transfer of control time or point is other than forthwith, the accepting control unit should not alter the clearance of the aircraft prior to the agreed transfer of control time or point without the approval of the transferring unit.

(d)If transfer of communication is used to transfer an aircraft to an accepting control unit, responsibility for control should not be assumed until the time of crossing the control area boundary or other transfer of control point specified in letters of agreement between the air traffic control units.

DIVISION OF CONTROL BETWEEN A UNIT PROVIDING AREA CONTROL SERVICE AND A UNIT PROVIDING APPROACH CONTROL SERVICE

(a)Except when otherwise specified in letters of agreement or local instructions, or by the ACC concerned in individual cases, a unit providing approach control service may issue clearances to any aircraft released to it by an ACC without reference to the ACC. However, when an approach has been missed, the ACC should, if affected by the missed approach, be advised immediately and subsequent action should be coordinated between the ACC and the unit providing approach control service as necessary.

(b)An ACC may, after coordination with the unit providing approach control service, release aircraft directly to aerodrome control towers if the entire approach will be made under VMC.

DIVISION OF CONTROL BETWEEN A UNIT PROVIDING APPROACH CONTROL SERVICE AND A UNIT PROVIDING AERODROME CONTROL SERVICE

(a)A unit providing approach control service should retain control of arriving aircraft until such aircraft have been transferred to the aerodrome control tower and are in communication with the aerodrome control tower. Letters of agreement or local instructions, appropriate to the airspace structure, terrain, meteorological conditions and air traffic services facilities available, should establish rules for the transfer of arriving aircraft.

(b)A unit providing approach control service may authorise an aerodrome control tower to release an aircraft for take-off subject to the discretion of the aerodrome control tower with respect to arriving aircraft.

(c)Aerodrome control towers should, when so prescribed in letters of agreement or local instructions, obtain approval from the unit providing approach control service prior to authorising operation of special VFR flights.

TRANSFER OF FLIGHTS BETWEEN ACC AND AERODROME CONTROL TOWER Even though there is an approach control unit, control of certain flights may be transferred directly from an ACC to an aerodrome control tower and vice versa, subject to prior arrangement between the units concerned for the relevant part of approach control service to be provided by the ACC or the aerodrome control tower, as applicable.

COORDINATION OF STANDARD CLEARANCES FOR ARRIVING AIRCRAFT

(a)Wherever possible, the air traffic services providers concerned should establish standardised procedures for transfer of control between the air traffic control units concerned and standard clearances for arriving aircraft.

(b)Where standard clearances for arriving aircraft are in use and, provided no terminal delay is expected, clearance to follow the appropriate standard instrumental arrival (STAR) will normally be issued by the ACC without prior coordination with or approval from the approach control unit or the aerodrome control tower, as applicable.

(c)Prior coordination of clearances should be required only in the event that a variation to the standard clearance or the standardised transfer of control procedures is necessary or desirable for operational reasons.

(d)Provision should be made to:

(1)ensure that the approach control unit is at all times kept informed of the sequence of aircraft following the same STAR; and

(2)display the designators of assigned STARs to the ACC, the approach control unit and/or the aerodrome control tower, as applicable.

COORDINATION OF STANDARD CLEARANCES FOR DEPARTING AIRCRAFT

(a)Wherever possible, the air traffic services providers concerned should establish standardised procedures for transfer of control between the air traffic control units concerned and standard clearances for departing aircraft.

(b)Where standard clearances for departing aircraft have been agreed to between the units concerned, the aerodrome control tower will normally issue the appropriate standard clearance without prior coordination with or approval from the approach control unit or ACC.

(c)Prior coordination of clearances should be required only in the event that a variation to the standard clearance or the standardised transfer of control procedures is necessary or desirable for operational reasons; for example, in the case of a change on the cleared initial flight level.

(d)Provision should be made to:

(1)ensure that the approach control unit at all times is kept informed of the sequence in which aircraft will depart as well as the runway to be used; and

(2)display the designators of assigned standard instrumental departures (SIDs) to the aerodrome control tower, the approach control unit and/or the ACC as applicable.

COORDINATION BETWEEN CONTROL POSITIONS WITHIN THE SAME UNIT Appropriate flight plan and control information should be exchanged between control positions within the same air traffic control unit, in respect of:

(a)all aircraft for which responsibility for control will be transferred from one control position to another;

(b)aircraft operating in such close proximity to the boundary between control sectors that control of traffic within an adjacent sector may be affected;

(c)all aircraft for which responsibility for control has been delegated by an air traffic controller using procedural methods to an air traffic controller using an ATS surveillance system, as well as other aircraft affected.

COORDINATION BETWEEN AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL UNITS PROVIDING AIR TRAFFIC SERVICES WITHIN CONTIGUOUS CONTROL AREAS — GENERAL

(a)Air traffic control units should forward from unit to unit, as the flight progresses, necessary flight plans and control information. When so required by agreement between air traffic services providers concerned, flight plans and flight progress information for flights along specified routes or portions of routes in close proximity to flight information region (FIR) boundaries should also be provided to the air traffic control units in charge of the FIRs adjacent to such routes or portions of routes.

(b)The flight plan and control information in point (b) of ATS.TR.230 should be transmitted in sufficient time to permit reception and analysis of the data by the receiving unit(s) and necessary coordination between the units concerned.

EXCHANGE OF MOVEMENT AND CONTROL DATA BETWEEN A UNIT PROVIDING AREA CONTROL SERVICE AND A UNIT PROVIDING APPROACH CONTROL SERVICE

(a)The unit providing approach control service should keep the ACC promptly advised of pertinent data on controlled traffic.

(b)The ACC should keep the unit providing approach control service promptly advised of pertinent data on controlled traffic.

(c)The ACC should normally forward to the unit providing approach control service information on arriving aircraft not less than 15 minutes before the estimated time of arrival and should revise such information as necessary

EXCHANGE OF MOVEMENT AND CONTROL DATA BETWEEN A UNIT PROVIDING APPROACH CONTROL SERVICE AND A UNIT PROVIDING AERODROME CONTROL SERVICE

(a)An aerodrome control tower should keep the unit providing approach control service promptly advised of pertinent data on relevant controlled traffic.

(b)The unit providing approach control service should keep the aerodrome control tower promptly advised of pertinent data on controlled traffic.

COORDINATION BETWEEN AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL UNITS FOR APPROVAL REQUESTS

(a)If the flying time from the departure aerodrome of an aircraft to the boundary of an adjacent control area is less than the specified minimum required to permit transmission of the necessary flight plan and control information to the accepting control unit after take-off and to allow adequate time for reception, analysis and coordination, the transferring control unit should, prior to departure, forward that information to the accepting control unit together with a request for approval. The required time period should be specified in letters of agreement or local instructions, as appropriate. In the case of revisions to a previously transmitted current flight plan, and control data being transmitted earlier than this specified time period, no approval from the accepting control unit should be required.

(b)In the case of an aircraft in flight requiring an initial clearance when the flying time to the boundary of an adjacent control area is less than a specified minimum, the aircraft should be held within the transferring air traffic control unit’s control area until the flight plan and control information have been forwarded together with a request for approval, and coordination effected with the adjacent air traffic control unit.

(c)In the case of an aircraft requesting a change in its current flight plan, or of a transferring air traffic control unit proposing to change the current flight plan of an aircraft, and the flying time of the aircraft to the control area boundary is less than a specified minimum, the revised clearance should be withheld pending approval of the proposal by the adjacent air traffic control unit.

(d)When boundary estimate data is to be transmitted for approval by the accepting control unit, the time in respect of an aircraft not yet departed should be based on the estimated time of departure as determined by the air traffic control unit in whose area of responsibility the departure aerodrome is located. In respect of an aircraft in flight requiring an initial clearance, the time should be based on the estimated elapsed time from the holding fix to the boundary plus the time expected to be needed for coordination.

COORDINATION BETWEEN AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL UNITS FOR TAKE-OFF AND CLEARANCE EXPIRY TIMES

(a)The take-off time should be specified by the ACC when it is necessary to:

(1)coordinate the departure with traffic not released to the unit providing approach control service; and

(2)provide en-route separation between departing aircraft following the same track.

(b)If the take-off time is not specified, the unit providing approach control service should determine it when necessary to coordinate the departure with traffic released to it.

(c)A clearance expiry time should be specified by the ACC if a delayed departure would conflict with traffic not released to the unit providing approach control service. If, for traffic reasons of its own, a unit providing approach control service has to specify in addition its own clearance expiry time, this should not be later than that specified by the ACC.

COORDINATION BETWEEN AIR TRAFFIC SERVICES UNITS FOR CHANGE FROM IFR TO VFR An air traffic control unit receiving notification of an aircraft’s intention to change from IFR to VFR flight should, as soon as practicable thereafter, so inform all other air traffic services units to whom the IFR flight plan was addressed, except those units through whose regions or areas the flight has already passed.

PHRASEOLOGIES TO BE USED IN THE COORDINATION BETWEEN AIR TRAFFIC SERVICES UNITS

(a)When, in accordance with ATS.TR.120, communications between air traffic services units or sectors are effected in English language, the following phraseology should be used for the coordination: [Figure or form omitted from this preview — available in the Avioverse workspace library.]

(b)When, in accordance with ATS.TR.120, communications between air traffic services units or sectors are effected in a mutually agreed language other than English, the air traffic services provider(s) should coordinate to develop and use a phraseology for coordination between such units or sectors.