PI-26-011 - Scottish Sectorisation Changes¶
| Instruction ID | PI-26-011 |
|---|---|
| Effective Date | 16/04/2026 (AIRAC 2604) |
| Status |  Active |
| Applicable To | Scottish |
| Incorporated into Docs | No |
Summary¶
Following the introduction of Free Route Airspace (FRA) above FL255 in the remainder of the real world Prestwick Centre’s area of responsibility last AIRAC, we have now had the opportunity to revise our sectors and standing agreements in line with the new AIP digital datasets.
Warning
All UK controllers must update their Sector File to ensure the new sectorisation and agreements are reflected correctly.
Upper Airspace (ScAC) Headline Changes
- Frequency reassignments mean ScAC Bandbox (SCO_CTR) is revised to
125.680 - Deancross sector is replaced by a new Borders sector (SCO_BDS_CTR) on
135.530 - Airspace previously belonging to ScAC South and London AC Lakes is reallocated to the new Borders sector
- The West & Deancross bandbox becomes West & Borders
Lower Airspace Headline Changes
- The STC callsign is replaced by SCL to signify ‘Scottish Lower’
- A new bandbox of the TMA (Galloway & Talla) and Antrim sector is introduced (SCL_GTA_CTR) on
124.930
Sectors¶
There are five permanent ScAC sectors: Borders, North, South, West and Rathlin.
Since Deancross was not directly responsible for any airfields top-down, the lowest/most split out ‘owner’ of each airfield is unchanged. However, the new positions and callsigns mean that the priority order may have been changed. Airfield top-down ownership is detailed in PI-26-012.
Work In Progress
The following EuroScope screenshots will be replaced by our formatted sector diagrams as soon as they are finalised.
Upper Sectors¶
The Borders sector has top-down responsibility for the Galloway & Talla TMA sectors and their airfields.
| Sector | Priority 1 | P2 | P3 | P4 | P5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Borders | SCO_BDS_CTR135.530 |
SCO_WB_CTR133.875 |
SCO_S_CTR134.775 |
SCO_E_CTR134.855 |
SCO_CTR125.680 |
| Sector | Priority 1 | P2 | P3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| ScAC South | SCO_S_CTR134.775 |
SCO_E_CTR134.855 |
SCO_CTR125.680 |
| Sector | Priority 1 | P2 | P3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| ScAC North | SCO_N_CTR129.225 |
SCO_E_CTR134.855 |
SCO_CTR125.680 |
| Sector | Priority 1 | P2 | P3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| ScAC West | SCO_W_CTR132.730 |
SCO_WB_CTR133.875 |
SCO_CTR125.680 |
| Sector | Priority 1 | P2 | P3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rathlin | SCO_RAT_CTR129.100 |
ScAC West | |
| ScAC West | SCO_W_CTR132.730 |
SCO_WB_CTR133.875 |
SCO_CTR125.680 |
Lower Sectors¶
The areas of responsibility (including top-down) for the lower sectors have not changed. However, the callsigns and ownership priority orders are amended to the following:
| Sector | Priority 1 | P2 | P3 | P4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Galloway | SCL_GAL_CTR124.825 |
SCL_TMA_CTR126.300 |
SCL_GTA_CTR124.930 |
Borders |
| Talla | SCL_TLA_CTR130.975 |
SCL_TMA_CTR126.300 |
SCL_GTA_CTR124.930 |
Borders |
| Antrim | SCL_ANT_CTR123.775 |
SCL_GTA_CTR124.930 |
Rathlin |
Standing Agreements¶
New boundary points between Scottish, London and MPC sectors have caused a number of changes to standing agreements. Additionally, due to the Borders sector extending further east than the old Deancross sector, some agreements in/out of ScAC South are now with Borders.
The tables below summarise the key agreements in and out of Borders. They are not exhaustive, and controllers should refer to the vMATS for full details.
Note
The agreements with Lakes at SUBUK/LAKEY for Scottish TMA Group outbounds have been removed.
Therefore, Lakes will expect this traffic to be at the RFL by the sector boundary (EGTOC or VAMEB) unless a different (lower) level is coordinated electronically, or a climbing coordination has been verbally agreed.
| Transferred To | Arriving At | Agreement |
|---|---|---|
| Galloway | Manchester Group | FL260 lvl ASCOM |
| Talla | EGPH | FL260 lvl INPIP |
| Talla | EGPF and EGPK | FL260 lvl ASLIB |
| Talla | Scottish TMA Group | FL260 lvl (abeam) AGPED |
| PC Northeast | Manchester Group and EGNJ | FL260 lvl TILNI |
| PC Northeast | EGNM | FL250 lvl TILNI |
| PC Northeast | Midlands Group | FL280 lvl RAPUM |
| PC Northeast | Midlands Group | FL270 lvl OMENU |
| PC West | Midlands Group | FL270 lvl VAMEB |
| Transferred From | Departure From | Agreement |
|---|---|---|
| Galloway | Scottish TMA Group | Climbing FL250 |
| Talla | EGNM | Climbing FL250 |
| Talla | EGPF and EGPK | FL250 lvl (abeam) HAVEN |
| Talla | EGPH | FL250 lvl (abeam) OTBUN |
| PC Northeast | EGNM | FL250 lvl TIPTA |
| PC Northeast | Manchester Group | FL250 lvl MEJAC |
| PC Northeast | Midlands Group | FL280 lvl KEFTE |
| PC West | Manchester Group | FL250 lvl ERGAB |
| PC West | Midlands Group | Climbing FL280 |
Documentation Status¶
The Scottish (EGPX) vMATS Part 2 and Agreed Levels Diagrams will be amended as soon as possible following the change. Revised versions will be available at docs.vatsim.uk/Enroute and notified to controllers in the enroute Discord channel.
Aerodrome documentation will be updated according to available Operations team resources.
Errors in this instruction should be reported to operations@vatsim.uk