¶ Procedures
| Sector | Radio Callsign | Aurora Login | Hoppie Login | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KZAK | San Francisco Radio | KZAK_CTR | KZAK | Combined Position |
¶ 1.1 General Information
- ATC is responsible for air traffic control services within the Oakland OCA/FIR from FL055 and above, and for flight information and alerting services from surface and above
This excludes airspace delegated to other facilities (outlined in section 1.4 of this SOP), whether they are staffed or not
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Transition altitude within the Oakland OCA/FIR is FL055
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Aurora only supports up to 1000nm of range currently
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Reduced Vertical Separation Minima (RVSM):
- The entire Oakland OCA is RVSM exclusive airspace between FL290 and FL410
- Certain groups of non-RVSM qualified aircraft are to be accommodated in RVSM airspace if workload permits; these aircraft require 2,000 ft of vertical separation
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VFR Flight
- VFR flights may be conducted in the Oakland OCA/FIR within the airspace surrounding Pacific Islands:
- Between sunrise and sunset; and
- When operating less than 100 nm of shoreline of and landmass; and
- Below FL200 ii.VFR flights are otherwise prohibited in the Oakland OCA/FIR
- VFR flights may be conducted in the Oakland OCA/FIR within the airspace surrounding Pacific Islands:
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Altimeter setting
- Within the OCA, unless directed and/or charted otherwise, altitude assignment must be based on flight levels and a standard altimeter setting of 29.92 inHg
¶ Airspace Narrative
The Oakland OCA spans a vast portion of airspace over the Pacific Ocean. To the east, it shares boundaries with the Vancouver, Seattle, Oakland, Los Angeles, and Mazatlán FIRs. The Tahiti, Auckland Oceanic, Nadi, Nauru, Port Moresby, and Ujung Pandang FIRs lie to the south. In the east, it neighbors the Manila and Fukuoka FIRs. The Anchorage and Anchorage Oceanic FIRs are to the north. The Oakland OCA fully encircles the Honolulu Control Facility and the Guam CERAP. The major traffic flows within the OCA include flights between North America and Asia, California and the
Hawaiian Islands, Alaska and the Hawaiian Islands, and between Japan and Australia/New Zealand. Most flights between North America and Asia utilize Pacific Organized Track System (PACOTS) routings. Eastbound PACOTS tracks are in effect 0700 – 2300 UTC daily, and westbound PACOTS tracks are in effect 1900 – 0800 UTC daily. Traffic between California and the Hawaiian Islands utilizes the California East Pacific (CEP) route system, which consists of seven primary airways. While most of the traffic in the OCA is eastbound or westbound, caution must be exercised for any crossing northbound or southbound traffic. In addition to overflights, the Oakland OCA services many small island airports not covered by other facilities.
¶ Airspace Diagram
- Aircraft are not required to obtain their own oceanic clearance to operate within the OCA
- Clearances issued to aircraft at their departure airport also serve as the oceanic clearances for the Oakland OCA. These inlcude route, FL, and mach number.
- Oceanic clerance may include a block of altitude (one of the very few airspace to do so in the world)
- Call shall include: callsign, CPDLC and/or ADS-C, origin, destination, a/c registration, SATVOICE capability, SELCAL check.
- Squawk 2000 must be set when entering ZAK airspace
- All fixes in the Oakland OCA are mandatory reporting points
- Controllers shall require aircraft whose reporting points are more than 80 minutes apart to make hourly position report in addition to their filed reporting waypoints
- In addition to the rule of 80 minutes, position reports are compulsatory every 10° of latitude OR longitude. If more than 80 minutes apart, it becomes every 5° of latitude OR longitude. Exceptions are PACOTS + published ATS routes.
- Position report elements solicited shall include:
a. Aircraft identification (callsign)
b. Position and time (crossed waypoint and time crossed)
c. Altitude or flight level
d. Next reporting waypoint and ETA
e. Subsequent reporting waypoint - If a pilot finds that an estimate has subsequently varied by more than 2 minutes since making a position report, the new estimate shall be passed to ATC
- If an aircraft fails to report its position within 10 minutes of its estimated time, controllers must attempt to establish contact with the aircraft and obtain a position report
- The Oakland OCA controller shall initiate coordination with the receiving facility in accordance with the time parameters specified below
a. FAA facilities: 15 minutes prior to the TCP
b. Non-FAA facilities: 30 minutes prior to the TCP
c. Coordination for aircraft departing airports less than the required coordination lead time away from the boundary shall be accomplished prior to the departure - Coordination shall consist of the elements specified below:
a. FAA facilities: callsign, TCP fix, and assigned altitude
b. Non-FAA facilities: callsign, TCP fix, TCP ETA, and assigned altitude
- Adjacent facilities shall initiate coordination with the Oakland OCA controller in accordance with the time parameters prescribed below, or as soon as practicable once the aircraft becomes airborne.
a. FAA facilities: 15 minutes prior to the TCP - Coordination shall consist of the elements specified below:
a. Callsign, TCP fix, TCP ETA, and requested altitude - The Oakland OCA controller will issue clearance adjustments as necessary
- The adjacent facility’s controller shall notify the Oakland OCA controller if the TCP ETA changes by more than 3 minutes
- Aircraft shall be instructed to squawk 2000 and switch to the appropriate San Francisco Radio frequency not later than 5 minutes prior to the TCP
¶ Longitudinal Separation
- Time-based: 15 minutes, 10 minutes if turbojets
- ADS-C: 30 nm
- Non-ADS-C GNSS: 50 nm, requires position report at least every 24 minutes
- Opposite tracks
- Vertical separation must exist prior to longitudinal separation falling below minima
- Vertical separation maintained until proper longitudinal separation exists OR when definite passing is achieved
- Crossing tracks – spacing at the crossing point must be not less than minima
¶ Lateral Separation
- GNSS: 30 nm
- Other: 100 nm
- Nonintersecting flight paths: protected airspace does not overlap
- Intersecting flight paths: both aircraft outside the protected airspace of the other’s flight path
- VOR track separation: minima based on degrees divergence and altitude
- NDB track separation: minima based on degrees divergence and altitude
- Dead reckoning: tracks diverge by 45°, one aircraft is 15 miles from point of intersection
¶ SLOP
- transit traffic: 0 to 2 NM right (except Honolulu (PHZH) airspace when flying inward 70 NM from airspace border)
- departing from PHZH: SLOP to be started at cruise level and at maximum 70 NM from PHZH border
- arriving PHZH: SLOP to be ended whenever ATC clears a/c for descent or the aircraft is cruising further in than 70NM from airspace border.
¶ Offshore/Oceanic Transition
- Courses diverge by 15° until oceanic separation established
- Traffic from domestic to oceanic may climb through opposite direction oceanic inbound traffic if separated by 15 minutes
- Traffic from domestic to oceanic may climb through same direction oceanic traffic if separated by 5 minutes
- Radar separation may be applied between one aircraft already radar identified and inbound to domestic airspace and another aircraft still in oceanic airspace