Airport name to use?

scarcherpilot

scarcherpilot

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scarcherpilot
Ok, I hate to admit this because i am a 500+ hour pilot, but something has always confused me and I was hoping someone had some insight into this.

When planning Cross country flights to an airport i have never been before, I never know what to use as the airport name on the frequency when approaching. The names in the AFD are never very simple or indicate that I know of which name is used/preferred by most (or local) pilots.

As an example, my home airport in the AFD is "Tom B David Airport" (KCZL), but we all use "Calhoun" when calling positions. The airport I used to fly from is "Cobb County International-McCullom Field" (KRYY), but we always used "McCullom" Just up the road abit is "Gwinnett County-Briscoe Field" and they simply use "Gwinnett"

Did i miss something in ground school that tells you which name to use? I realize i can listen to the frequency prior to arrival and get some idea, but if no one is transmitting, i feel kind of stupid calling out "Tom B David Airport dedicated to the late Tom B David also known as Calhoun or Gordon County traffic, entering 45 for the left downwind" Some airport names are quite long in the AFDs.

Thoughts?
 
scarcherpilot said:
Ok, I hate to admit this because i am a 500+ hour pilot, but something has always confused me and I was hoping someone had some insight into this.

When planning Cross country flights to an airport i have never been before, I never know what to use as the airport name on the frequency when approaching. The names in the AFD are never very simple or indicate that I know of which name is used/preferred by most (or local) pilots.

As an example, my home airport in the AFD is "Tom B David Airport" (KCZL), but we all use "Calhoun" when calling positions. The airport I used to fly from is "Cobb County International-McCullom Field" (KRYY), but we always used "McCullom" Just up the road abit is "Gwinnett County-Briscoe Field" and they simply use "Gwinnett"

Did i miss something in ground school that tells you which name to use? I realize i can listen to the frequency prior to arrival and get some idea, but if no one is transmitting, i feel kind of stupid calling out "Tom B David Airport dedicated to the late Tom B David also known as Calhoun or Gordon County traffic, entering 45 for the left downwind" Some airport names are quite long in the AFDs.

Thoughts?
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When in doubt I use whatever name is listed on the approach chart. I know not everyone is Instrument rated but these days with EFBs (FF, GarminPIlot, etc) and websites (AIRNAV, Skyvector, etc) they are readily available to anyone.
 
For towered airports they put the preferred name above the frequency on the approach plates. For uncontrolled fields I’ve always listened or taken my best guess. You’ll hear a couple different names used for the same airport at least some of the time.
 
What they ^^^ said.

When flying into an unfamiliar, uncontrolled airport with a quiet CTAF, I usually go with the name of the town or county the airport serves. (This is usually - but not always - part of the airport's long name.)
 
For uncontrolled fields, there's not really a good answer. Usually the so-and-so memorial name is not the one used. More often than not it's simply the town name. An airport local to me is officially "Coles County memorial", but the identifier is mto, and everyone calls "Mattoon traffic".
Similarly "vermilion regional", dnv, is "Danville".
Logan County (aaa) = Lincoln

Using the name on the chart is never wrong, and probably better as other unfamiliar pilots will have the same question. I don't sweat it too much, as if I don't hear anyone else say it, then there's probably no one listening to hear me say something dumb.

Except in the fbo. You know they're always listening and judging.
 
Some of the official names are just silly. I've never heard the term "Eastern West Virginia Regional Airport" used anywhere. The tower uses Martinsburg, the identifier is MRB, everybody calls it the "Martinsburg" airport. About the only strange thing is that this airport and VOR somehow escaped the disassociation of VOR/Airport names of non-coincident facilities (they're over six miles apart). On the other hand Dulles has the AML VOR right in the middle of the runways.
 
First:

20c5de061b0c0be64e55e0112c71913b.jpg


Then:

Listen on freq.

In this case I was saying “hamilton owens” while everyone else was just saying “owens”. No big deal.

Sorry I repeated what everyone else said.
 
Think they get named by the town/county government for someone or something. Those doing the naming have never had to make a radio call.
 
flyingron said:
Some of the official names are just silly. I've never heard the term "Eastern West Virginia Regional Airport" used anywhere. The tower uses Martinsburg, the identifier is MRB, everybody calls it the "Martinsburg" airport. About the only strange thing is that this airport and VOR somehow escaped the disassociation of VOR/Airport names of non-coincident facilities (they're over six miles apart). On the other hand Dulles has the AML VOR right in the middle of the runways.
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VOR's are not immune. The VOR at Gainesville Florida is called GATOR. Makes sense if you happen to know that the University of Florida is in Gainesville and that the team name is the Gators. Doesn't make a ton of sense when you are given that as a direct-to in IMC and the actual VOR code is GNV.
 
Not that important when talking to ATC IMHO. I was VFR inbound to KMSY. Once named for Richard Moisant after he donated his stock yards so they could build the New Orleans airport. (KMSY = Moisant Stock Yards, get it?) It had just been renamed for Louis Armstrong , the jazz trumpet player. I was in task overload when I called up approach and said I was landing at DON KING International. He never batted an eye and treated it as routine. Did not correct me either.
 
bluesky74656 said:
For towered airports they put the preferred name above the frequency on the approach plates.
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Many years ago the NOAA approach plates were published in a paper-bound edition, with the binding at the top. The plates for each region were arranged by alphabetical order, not by city, but by airport name.

I was looking for WJF, Fox Field in Lancaster CA. It was not under 'L' for "Lancaster"; it was not under 'F' for "Fox". It wasn't even under 'W' for "William J. Fox Field".

It was under 'G' -- for "General William J. Fox Field". o_O
 
The FAA has addressed this and I believe there are a few accidents attributed to using the wrong name. You're supposed to use the name that is listed. The guy flying in from somewhere else may be calling "Gillespie County" and the locals are calling "Fredericksburg" and I've heard this get interesting before. Two guys calling left downwind and I wasn't sure they knew they were at the same airport!

To be clear, I'll say that I adjust to what the locals are saying if I'm not the only one flying into the airport. Seems like it's easier and safer to get on the same page. Last week I flew into Rockport, TX. I was calling "Aransas County" and then heard 3 other planes calling "Rockport". Not the time to be different!
 
10.1.1 To achieve the greatest degree of safety, it is essential that:
1. All radio-equipped aircraft transmit/receive on a common frequency identified for the purpose of airport advisories, as identified in appropriate aeronautical publications.
2. Pilots use the correct airport name, as identified in appropriate aeronautical publications, when exchanging traffic information to reduce the risk of confusion. For example, using “Midwest National Traffic” instead of the town name “Mosby Traffic” or “Clay County Traffic” at KGPH when the airport name is printed “Midwest National” on aeronautical charts.
 
Maxnr said:
Not that important when talking to ATC IMHO. I was VFR inbound to KMSY. Once named for Richard Moisant after he donated his stock yards so they could build the New Orleans airport. (KMSY = Moisant Stock Yards, get it?) It had just been renamed for Louis Armstrong , the jazz trumpet player. I was in task overload when I called up approach and said I was landing at DON KING International. He never batted an eye and treated it as routine. Did not correct me either.
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?? how does don king figure into this
 
And of course, then there are name changes that cause some confusion until people get the picture.
Sanford-Lee County became Raliegh Executive.
Rowan County became MidCarolina.
Kupper will always be Kupper to me rather than Central New Jersey International Jetport or whatever it claims to be.

At least W32 lists both Washington Executive and Hyde field, though I don't know *ANYBODY* who uses the former. We got quite a chuckle out of one of the Stuart Woods book (the guy is a pilot who flies a Citation but I'm fairly sure he's uninterested in getting details right because he gets a lot of Aviation wrong and all his stuff about DC is way off base), when he talks about taking a plane into Washington Executive like it was some high-end reliever airport for DC, when in fact it's a relic of the surrounding gravel pit and the runway is in such poor condition that they have to mow the weeds in the asphalt to keep it navigatable.
 
I was inbound to KATL and needed an obscure detail. It was back in my military days and I was using the DOD version of the AFD. Attempts to find "ATL" were unsuccessful. I tried A for Atlanta, got the VORTAC, H for Hartsfield, W for William B. Hartsfield. Nada. Found it under T for THE William B. Hartsfield airport.
 
Interesting read on how airports got the three letter identifiers that don't always make sense:

https://www.gonomad.com/2346-what-airport-codes-mean

For example O'Hare is ORD. Interesting story (not on that site but googleable) on who Butch O'Hare was, who his father was and who his father worked for. I first heard it on Paul Harvey's "The Rest of the Story"
 
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For years it was "Tulip City" in Holland Michigan. Then someone with the IQ of 12 decided to change the name to "West Michigan Regional Airport" No. F that.

Can only imagine when sponsorship deals start to happen....

"General Whogivesa**** Memorial Airport at Crapsburg Presented by Goliath Bank traffic..."
 
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I pick the most distinctive two syllables worth and run with that confidently until someone else chimes up on the radio or I'm politely introduced to the local and unpublished tribal knowledge

If the denizens of General Nathan Bedford Forrest Memorial Airport prefer to call it Maynard's Loin because reasons, they'll need to get that published somewhere before I call up "Forrest Traffic, Baron inbound"
 
Jim K said:
For uncontrolled fields, there's not really a good answer. Usually the so-and-so memorial name is not the one used. More often than not it's simply the town name. An airport local to me is officially "Coles County memorial", but the identifier is mto, and everyone calls "Mattoon traffic".
Similarly "vermilion regional", dnv, is "Danville".
Logan County (aaa) = Lincoln
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Agree on Danville but who flies there? :)
Based at KAAA for 16 years I rarely heard anyone call it Lincoln on the radio. Us locals seem to predominantly use Logan County. I've heard "Lincoln/Logan County" from time to time.
I admit to using Coles County traffic though. Funny how even within 60 miles there's variety!
 
Then there are the ones that will never change. Redbird will always be Redbird to some, although it's now "Dallas Executive" on paper.

Ask @AggieMike88 how often he hears Enterprise. It's still just Denton to most.
 
If the Chart Supplement lists a phone number for the AWOS or ATIS, call that and listen to what they call themselves.
 
baboss said:
Agree on Danville but who flies there? :)
Based at KAAA for 16 years I rarely heard anyone call it Lincoln on the radio. Us locals seem to predominantly use Logan County. I've heard "Lincoln/Logan County" from time to time.
I admit to using Coles County traffic though. Funny how even within 60 miles there's variety!
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I've been flying to dnv a lot lately... they have the cheapest avgas in the state, probably even the country right now. $2-3 cheaper than cmi, it's a free flight if I can take 50 gallons or so. (Congressional math)

Funny you do the opposite of me. Must have to do with the group of pilots we hang around with. Further proof that it doesn't matter that much. I should probably make more of an effort to use the name on the chart.
 
To the guys saying “listen for a bit, then transmit”; this usually works, until you get a bunch of fast talking mushmouths where you can’t understand what they’re saying... I hear this All. The. Time. It drives me nuts. When transmitting the airport name, slow down and enunciate so we know where the heck you are.

Lowflynjack said:
The guy flying in from somewhere else may be calling "Gillespie County" and the locals are calling "Fredericksburg" and I've heard this get interesting before. Two guys calling left downwind and I wasn't sure they knew they were at the same airport! Last week I flew into Rockport, TX. I was calling "Aransas County" and then heard 3 other planes calling "Rockport". Not the time to be different!
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When I hear this type thing, I just combine the two airport names, as in “Fredericksburg/Gillespie traffic...” or “Rockport/Aransas traffic...”

Ravioli said:
Then there are the ones that will never change. Redbird will always be Redbird to some, although it's now "Dallas Executive" on paper.

Ask @AggieMike88 how often he hears Enterprise. It's still just Denton to most.
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Redbird, Denton, Aero Valley. See there? It’s official, I’m old!
 
A couple of years ago I flew into 1L8 in Hurricane, Utah. If I followed the rule of parroting the name on the chart, I would have been the only one in the pattern saying, "General Dick Stout Field traffic ..." Instead I was saying "Hurricane Traffic," while all the locals were saying something that sounded more like, "Herkin traffic ... " :confused:

Screen Shot 2021-04-01 at 1.02.08 PM.jpg
 
acicer got it. I thought I'd seen it in the A/FD, but couldn't remember exactly where.

One that catches foreigners in the Atlanta area is Fulton County Airport. It's referred to as "County", even by TRACON and Center.
 
Rockingham NC [where the former NASCAR race track is located] is in Richmond County NC and the airport is called "Richmond County" on CTAF. However, there is a Rockingham County airport about 100 miles north. Many times a pilot has announced he is inbound to Rockingham only to be asked to explain exactly which airport is arriving to.
 
flyingron said:
At least W32 lists both Washington Executive and Hyde field, though I don't know *ANYBODY* who uses the former. We got quite a chuckle out of one of the Stuart Woods book (the guy is a pilot who flies a Citation but I'm fairly sure he's uninterested in getting details right because he gets a lot of Aviation wrong and all his stuff about DC is way off base), when he talks about taking a plane into Washington Executive like it was some high-end reliever airport for DC, when in fact it's a relic of the surrounding gravel pit and the runway is in such poor condition that they have to mow the weeds in the asphalt to keep it navigatable.
Click to expand...

Either you’ve mentioned this story before, or I’m getting a really bad case of deja vu. Since I was based for a while at W32, I know exactly what you mean about the runway condition!
 
The Rock got an infusion of cash from the State. The "CARS" (NASCAR alternative) has their last race for next year scheduled there. Some of the other ex-NASCAR-CUP series tracks like South Boston are also on the schedule.
 
Maxnr said:
Not that important when talking to ATC IMHO. I was VFR inbound to KMSY. Once named for Richard Moisant after he donated his stock yards so they could build the New Orleans airport. (KMSY = Moisant Stock Yards, get it?) It had just been renamed for Louis Armstrong , the jazz trumpet player. I was in task overload when I called up approach and said I was landing at DON KING International. He never batted an eye and treated it as routine. Did not correct me either.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I always wondered where that came from.
 
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