Upcoming Airspace Changes
Fred Gibbs
Well, here it is the end of September already – where did the summer go? Monsoon season up here in Flagstaff practically washed July and August away; the rainfall amounts were at record levels. Sure did slow down flying. But as a result of that, and the Monsoon season in the valley, the accident rate was very, very low, with NO fatalities during either of those months. I’ve always said the FAA Believes the best way to reduce the accident rate is to ground all the pilots!! Mother Nature did a good job of that! And the accident rate appears to be remaining the same through September. Hopefully the rest of the year will stay just as safe – wouldn’t that be great!!! Compared to last year, and taking in to account unique circumstances, 2013 so far is a very good year, showing a significantly lower fatal accident rate than a lot of the previous years – quick, knock on wood!!! But please don’t stop being safe now – it takes everlasting vigilance to remain safe, and autumn and early winter poses other challenges to our flying safety. At this rate, there won’t be too many fatal accidents to talk about at GAARMS 2014.
NEWS FLASH – There is an upcoming airspace change in the works for the airspace between PHX and Prescott/Sedona and Flagstaff. PHX TRACON will be assuming responsibility for the airspace below 15,000 over Flagstaff, 13,000 and below over Prescott and Sedona, and everything below 11,000 south of the Verde Valley up to the boundary of the class B. Here is a 3-D pictorial display of what the airspace will look like:
Descent profile of aircraft navigating to Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport via the MAIER RNAV STAR. Each red line is one aircraft.
The blue polygons depict the new Phoenix TRACON Sectors: KACHINA, JEROME, and CROWN
Pictures are pretty, but here is one of the charts you really need:
Notice the new sectors and the associated altitudes. In essence, PHX TRACON will now be the controlling agency for IFR traffic, and VFR traffic getting flight following, in this airspace within the published altitudes come December 2013. This should make life a lot easier and safer for those of us living and flying in this airspace. Here is the listing of new radio frequencies associated with their respective sectors –
KACHINA 126.375 (FLG Area)
JEROME 133.575 (PRC & SEZ Area)
CROWN 119.525 (Crown King/ Camp Verde area)
The hours of operation are planned to be 1300Z to 0500Z daily (0600 to 2200 local time). The Facility Call Sign will simply be “Phoenix Approach.” These times coincide with the hours of operation of the Prescott tower, but NOT the hours of operation of the Flagstaff tower. Flagstaff tower will modify their closing ATIS announcement to reflect the times and appropriate frequencies. The airspace will revert back to Albuquerque ARTCC from 2200 to 0600 local time.
For you VFR guys, below are the sectors depicted on a PHX sectional. When this goes into effect, you might want to literally draw these lines and frequencies onto you sectional chart until you assimilate the knowledge, altitudes, boundaries and frequencies.
Sector Frequencies
Operationally speaking, very little changes – if you are operating out of Flagstaff IFR, the tower will now have new equipment that handles progress strips, and will have your clearance ready for you when you first call, instead of having to call Albuquerque Center for it via phone - significantly more efficient and effective. At night when the tower is closed, and before 10:00PM, you will be able to just call PHX Approach on the new radio frequency, right from the ground. Unfortunately, after 2200 local time (that’s 10:00PM for you guys with digital watches), you’ll have to call Prescott FSS for your clearance – again, a relatively easy process – just call Prescott Radio on 123.65 and listen on the FLG VOR 113.85 (remember to turn the volume up!!).
In Prescott, at night when the tower is closed, after 10:00PM, there is no change to the current procedure.
In Sedona (and probably Cottonwood), you will be able to just call PHX Approach on the new radio frequency, right from the ground. The RCO is just up on Mingus Mountain. After 2200 local time, you should be able to call directly to ABQ Center on the 124.5 frequency – I believe their RCO is also up on Mingus mountain.
VFR operations – i.e., requests for Flight Following is identical except for who you are talking to – After December 12th, you just call Phoenix approach on the appropriate frequency instead of Albuquerque center – after 10:00PM at night until 6:00AM in the morning, you call Albuquerque center on their frequency. This is targeted to go into effect December 12, 2013. Stay tuned…
Remaining safety programs for 2013
OCT 21st - TUCSON - PIMA COMMUNITY COLLEGE @ 10:00am
Oct. 24-26 Back Country Forums at the Copperstate Fly-in @ Casa Grande
NOV 16th – LAKE HAVASU @ D2 Aero 10:00am
Should you desire a safety program at your local airport, simply contact APA via our website. You can connect with me through the Safety Program Director or you can contact me, Fred Gibbs, at 410-206¬3753 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The Arizona Pilots Association provides the safety programs at no charge. We will most certainly help you organize a program of your choice, and we can recommend programs that your pilot community might really like.
