How do you identify your airplane on the radio?

John Baker said:
Wouldn't it be better for the Travel Air to identify himself as a bi-plane? Shouldn't we know what we are looking for, especially in crowded airspace?
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Not if it's a Beech Travel Air.

Lots of helicopters identify themselves as "Helicopter." Also, keep in mind that lots of aircraft have callsigns. I know what AvantAir is (Piaggio Avanti). But I don't know what most of the other random callsigns of various companies indicate, and a lot of them aren't necessarily jets or even turboprops.

ATC typically will call out to you "Traffic, wherever, however far away, a whatever type."
 
SkyHog said:
One of the most annoying things to hear besides ATITAPA is an aircraft ifentified as a Cessna. At least Cherokee is more specific and only refers to 3 or 4 models.

My Cherokee 180 was Cherokee 8816J
Cessna 172 is Skyhawk 7242G
Cessna 152 is either Commuter or Sparrowhawk 1234X
Arrow is Arrow. Warrior is Warrior.

No need to ever user Cessna, Piper, Beech, etc. as types.
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Going back to the days when high-wing Cessnas only had model numbers and not names, it was customary for ATC to refer to anything from a 120 to a 210 as "Cessna" -- and many of the more seasoned controllers still do so.

172s were built for six years before the name "Skyhawk" was first used, and even then, until 1975, it only referred to an optional equipment package. So not all 172s are Skyhawks. Cessna 210s were built from 1960 to 1963 before the name "Centurion" was dreamed up for the '64 model. And "Commuter" was just one of the three option packages available on Cessna 150s until the last year or so of production, when the brochures finally referred to the 150 as "Cessna Commuter".

(I'd think that ATC would rather a C-150/152 pilot not use the name "Commuter" anyway, as it might suggest some sort of short-haul air carrier.)

Likewise any high-wing Piper has always traditionally simply been "Piper" to ATC. It mattered little to the controller whether it was a PA-12 or a PA-18, as the performance was similar.

For my CubCrafters CC11 Sport Cub I use the callsign "Cub XXX". Even though my airplane is not a Piper product, ATC will often answer with "Piper XXX."

Sometimes a busy controller might zone out on the specific type the pilot used in the initial callup, and will default to the more generic name -- like "Beech" for a Bonanza or "Piper" for a Saratoga. And pilots of any PA28 or PA32 variant soon get used to hearing ATC call them "Cherokee" -- even though Piper dropped the "Cherokee" name completely after the 1977 model year.

You just have to go with the flow. The historical context helps it make a little more sense.
 
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Pilawt said:
Sometimes a busy controller might zone out on the specific type the pilot used in the initial callup, and will default to the more generic name -- like "Beech" for a Bonanza or "Piper" for a Saratoga. And pilots of any PA28 or PA32 variant soon get used to hearing ATC call them "Cherokee" -- even though Piper dropped the "Cherokee" name completely after the 1977 model year.
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I get a lot of "November" regardless of what I'm flying. They seem to do that a lot, even for more common types.
 
Jeanie said:
Decathlon 102GD in the pattern and such at uncontrolled fields but for the type for traffic advisories is BL8- Sometimes they call me decathlon sometimes I get Bellanca - whatever they say back to me I use from that point forward.
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ya but...
Sometimes my Skyhawk is called a Piper or Cherokee or Arrow or Bonanza or Mooney or something else. I usually thank them for the upgrade and continue to call my plane a Skyhawk.
 
Henning said:
"Twin Cessna"
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...which I suppose could cover anything from a Bamboo Bomber to a 310 to a Citation X.

Given the latitude in the AIM guidance, I'd say use what you think has the best chance of conveying the necessary information to the party to whom you are speaking.
 
Depends.

Most places I'm "November seventy-three see cue".

Oshkosh I'm "blue on blue one eighty two".



jw
 
AuntPeggy said:
ya but...
Sometimes my Skyhawk is called a Piper or Cherokee or Arrow or Bonanza or Mooney or something else. I usually thank them for the upgrade and continue to call my plane a Skyhawk.
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Those don't count. Your plane is a high-wing and those are all low wingers. One of them even has a proper tail.:wink2:
 
AuntPeggy said:
ya but...
Sometimes my Skyhawk is called a Piper or Cherokee or Arrow or Bonanza or Mooney or something else. I usually thank them for the upgrade and continue to call my plane a Skyhawk.
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And many times at towers not in my immediate area, my cherokee gets called Cessna xxx or Skyhawk xxx and I have to remind the controllers I'm a low-winger.
 
murphey said:
Uh....I don't get it. What insight should I glean from this FAA pub?
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The official codes for aircraft. This is where I found the J230 was a JAB4. What ATC wants when they ask your type.

Also interesting in Chapter 3 the airline nicknames, catus, waterskier, etc
 
John Baker said:
Is it not somewhat of a safety issue that other pilots should know what your plane looks like?

I don't know how many times I have been told while approaching an airport or landing pattern that I was number two or three behind something like, say, a Travel Air or some other contraption I've never heard of. I've found myself calling back to the tower to confirm that the airplane landing is what I am supposed to be behind.

Turning base when you shouldn't be can make for some bent airplanes. Maybe even some hurt feelings, who knows?

Wouldn't it be better for the Travel Air to identify himself as a bi-plane? Shouldn't we know what we are looking for, especially in crowded airspace?

John
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If knowing what you're looking for is a concern this might help

http://www.amazon.com/Janes-Worlds-Aircraft-2009-2010/dp/0710628803

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I keep an older paperback version on the shelf that I picked up during initial training.
 
Everskyward said:
Even within the Citations there's quite a difference in performance between a Citation II and a Citation X. I just call it a Citation, though. Sometimes controllers will call it a Sovereign or point it out to someone else as a Citation 680. I figure that very few other pilots know what it is and could identify it on sight, though.

I flew a lot of single-engine Cessnas and they were always just a "Cessna" to me with the exception of the 210 which I called a Centurion. I called the 320 a "Twin Cessna" but very occasionally the controller would call it a Skyknight.
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I flew into Cheyenne, Wyoming once in a Grumman Tiger. The FBO, tracking me on Flightware, only saw "Grumman". They told me they were expecting me to be a Gulfstream.....ha.
 
In the late '70s Piper published this aircraft identification guide for air traffic controllers.

Notice the performance parameters that are listed: cruise speed, gear extension speed, final approach speed, rate of climb in feet per minute and feet per NM, and takeoff and landing ground roll.

(Note that several of the identifiers have changed since then -- "PA-RO" is now "P28R", for example)
 

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Pilawt said:
In the late '70s Piper published this aircraft identification guide for air traffic controllers.

Notice the performance parameters that are listed: cruise speed, gear extension speed, final approach speed, rate of climb in feet per minute and feet per NM, and takeoff and landing ground roll.

(Note that several of the identifiers have changed since then -- "PA-RO" is now "P28R", for example)
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That's cool! Although an Aztec cruising at 179 kts? :rofl:
 
Fearless Tower said:
Yeah, that's real helpful thing to have in the cockpit of a light airplane:rolleyes2:

Not to mention it doesn't help address the problem that John is referring to.
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I don't take my Airplane Flying Handbook in the plane, either.

But I have an idea of what's in it.

And I have an idea what other planes should look like without having to see one next to me in the air. The reference material is even more available since Al Gore invented the internet.
 
Ted DuPuis said:
Lots of helicopters identify themselves as "Helicopter." Also, keep in mind that lots of aircraft have callsigns. I know what AvantAir is (Piaggio Avanti). But I don't know what most of the other random callsigns of various companies indicate, and a lot of them aren't necessarily jets or even turboprops.
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Our friends up in Canada use the callsign "Chinook". They have everything from Navajos to a Falcon 900, but no Chinook helicopters.
 
Everskyward said:
Our friends up in Canada use the callsign "Chinook". They have everything from Navajos to a Falcon 900, but no Chinook helicopters.
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What also comes to mind is "Commuter," the callsign for some regional. I can tell you they ain't flying 150s...
 
Depends on the facility that I'm talking to.

If I'm talking to someone that will be giving me vectors for final, etc., I'll call in as "RV 277DL" so they have a better idea of my handling characteristics and anyone else on the freq knows what to look for.

If I'm just getting flight-following on a XC and/or I'm talking to a 'busy' controller, I'll call in as "Experimental 277DL" - they don't give a rip about my handling characteristics and 'experimental' puts me in an appropriate category for what they need without having to put much thought into it.

If I'm on CTAF, I'll usually use "RV 277DL" so people know what to look for and so they can get ready for the awe-inspiring event of seeing an RV up-close and personal - the Bonanza owners especially appreciate the heads-up so they can prepare themselves. :D :D :D

Oh... and when going in to 6Y9, I make sure to use my official callsign of "Red 5". :D
 
Steve said:
I don't take my Airplane Flying Handbook in the plane, either.

But I have an idea of what's in it.

And I have an idea what other planes should look like without having to see one next to me in the air. The reference material is even more available since Al Gore invented the internet.
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The point is, dude, you could have the whole book memorized and it won't help you know the difference in a situation where multiple airplanes can have the same name.

There is a big diff between a Travel Air biplane and a BE-95. A 'skymaster' could be a DC-4 or a Cessna 337. That book and all the knowledge on the net isn't going to help that situation.
 
At non controlled fields I almost always call out, "Apache 57 pop . . . . is downwind 27 " (or whatever)...
The other planes don't need my full tail number, probably wouldn't remember it anyway, and most likely don't give a rip... I know I don't about their's...

If there are other twins in the pattern then my call out is "Blue and White Apache 57 pop . . . is downwind " , etc.

denny-o
 
Ted DuPuis said:
What about in the case of Greg's 195? Or a Beech 18? A J-3 is obviously "Cub..." but not every plane had a name. The 310 didn't, and it's just "Twin Cessna." "Twin Beech" is about as descriptive.
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Didn't folks in the Air Force call the 310 the "Blue Canoe"?
 
"Rostraver traffic, Challenger 34 Bravo entering left downwind, Rostraver..."

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Or,

"Rostraver traffic, Challenger 34 Bravo entering left downwind, Rostraver..."

challenger-ultralight-aircraft.jpg


Or,

"Rostraver traffic, Challenger 34 Bravo entering left downwind, Rostraver..."

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Well, maybe not the last one. :sad:
 
I'm "Dakota" on my calls - about half the time I get called "Cherokee" in response.
 
I fly a Lance but use "Saratoga" to avoid confusion with Lancairs, etc. Many times I get upgraded to "Seneca"
 
While flying around the mountains north of Redding CA in my Grumman Cheetah a few years ago, Center took an interest in what type "Grumman" I was flying. Seems there were forest fires afoot, and some Grumman warbird types were in the area participating in the firefighting effort.
 
Ted DuPuis said:
I get a lot of "November" regardless of what I'm flying. They seem to do that a lot, even for more common types.
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I was going to point that out, too. I always got "November" while on IFR plans, even if I called up with "Commander." The local tower controllers would use Commander + my shortened callsign.
 
gkainz said:
I'm "Dakota" on my calls - about half the time I get called "Cherokee" in response.
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When I was partner in a 108-3 I used "Stinson" on my calls, and about half the time the tower called me "Cessna."

Ron "Are you talkin' to ME?" Wanttaja
 
Today in Memphis Class Bravo I was told to look for a C5, Heck, I was flying a C182 and identifying it as a Skylane. You expect be to be able to see a C5? It must be tiny! :) I did note that the Centurion who was referred to as a SKylane was pretty quick to emphasize "Centurion" in his readback! :)
 
gprellwitz said:
Today in Memphis Class Bravo I was told to look for a C5, Heck, I was flying a C182 and identifying it as a Skylane. You expect be to be able to see a C5? It must be tiny! :) I did note that the Centurion who was referred to as a SKylane was pretty quick to emphasize "Centurion" in his readback! :)
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Usually the only time I correct my call sign is when they think I am a helo instead of a fix wing. Although it can be fun to be thought of as a helo. I was passing Milwaukee on the lakeshore and ATC asked if I could transition the airspace at 1000 feet. The lake itself is like 700 feet MSL. Hmmm sounds like fun, I was tempted.
 
Sundowner 6708Romeo......08Romeo after initial contact.....and just Sundowner making pattern calls
 
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