Handoffs and Coordination with Center:
Just
like in real life, if a pilot is following his flight plan route, you do NOT
need to do anything to coordinate a handoff with Center other than flash the
plane on Center’s scope, and make sure that communications are switched
prior to the plane entering Center’s airspace.
On
the flip side, if the plane has been assigned a route in Center’s airspace
which is NOT shown on the flight plan, you MUST tell Center about the new
route prior to handoff, to give Center the opportunity to modify the
route
if necessary. This works both ways – Center MUST tell you about any arrivals
which are on a routing NOT shown on the flight plan before handing the plane
off to you.
Additionally, you are not allowed to clear a plane through your airspace
ceiling, so any plane that is going to go higher than 13,000 cannot be
issued anything higher by SOCAL than 13,000. Center will continue the climb
when he takes the handoff and has communications with the aircraft.
Similarly, Center will tell all arrivals which would enter your airspace
through the ceiling to stop their descent at 14,000, and it will be up to
you to continue the descent when it is safe. These procedures ensure that if
a controller becomes too busy, aircraft will not continue to enter the busy
sector when the controller is too busy to handle them. A sample graphic is
below. See current ZLA Policies for updated sector vertical and horizontal
climbs and descents.
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Aircraft which will enter your airspace laterally (coming in from outside
your boundaries at an altitude lower than 14,000) will be flashed on your
scope by Center well in advance of reaching the boundary. Accepting the
handoff implies that the plane can continue on the published routing and
enter your airspace. Center MUST ensure the airplane is on SOCAL’s frequency
prior to the plane reaching the airspace boundary.
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