PI-26-012 - Scottish Airfield Top-Down Changes¶
| Instruction ID | PI-26-012 |
|---|---|
| Effective Date | 16/04/2026 (AIRAC 2604) |
| Status |  Active |
| Applicable To | All EGP* and EGA* Aerodrome & Approach |
| Incorporated into Docs | No |
Introduction¶
We have amended the available Scottish Control area control positions following the introduction of Free Route Airspace (FRA) above FL255 in the remainder of the FIR. This affects the top-down order for airfields, as well as the handoff order for departures.
Warning
All UK controllers must update their Sector File to ensure the new sectorisation and agreements are reflected correctly.
Summary of 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 - The West & Deancross bandbox becomes West & Borders (SCO_WB_CTR)
- The STC callsign is replaced by SCL to signify ‘Scottish Lower’
- The new TMA bandbox callsign is SCL_TMA_CTR on
126.300 - The new Antrim callsign is SCL_ANT_CTR on
123.775 - A new bandbox of the TMA (Galloway & Talla) and Antrim sectors is introduced (SCL_GTA_CTR) on
124.930
Airfield Top-Down¶
The table below lists the most split sector that ‘owns’ each airfield for the purpose of providing top-down control.
| Airfield(s) | Top-Down Owner |
|---|---|
| Edinburgh (EGPH) | Talla |
| Glasgow (EGPF) Prestwick (EGPK) |
Galloway |
| Belfast Aldergrove (EGAA) Belfast/City (EGAC) |
Antrim |
| Benbecula (EGPL) Barra (EGPR) Tiree (EGPU) |
ScAC West |
| Londonderry/Eglinton (EGAE) Islay (EGPI) |
Rathlin |
| Inverness (EGPE) Stornoway (EGPO) Kirkwall (EGPA) Sumburgh (EGPB) Wick (EGPC) |
ScAC North |
| Aberdeen (EGPD) Dundee (EGPN) |
ScAC South |
Ownership Priority¶
The table below can then be used to determine the owner of each sector and therefore who has top-down responsibility for each airfield. The first online controller from left to right has the highest priority for ‘owning’ each sector.
| Sector | Priority 1 | P2 | P3 | P4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Talla | SCL_TLA_CTR130.975 |
SCL_TMA_CTR126.300 |
SCL_GTA_CTR124.930 |
Borders |
| Galloway | SCL_GAL_CTR124.825 |
SCL_TMA_CTR126.300 |
SCL_GTA_CTR124.930 |
Borders |
| Antrim | SCL_ANT_CTR123.775 |
SCL_GTA_CTR124.930 |
Rathlin | |
| ScAC West | SCO_W_CTR132.730 |
SCO_WB_CTR133.875 |
SCO_CTR125.680 |
|
| Rathlin | SCO_RAT_CTR129.100 |
ScAC West | ||
| ScAC North | SCO_N_CTR129.225 |
SCO_E_CTR134.855 |
SCO_CTR125.680 |
|
| ScAC South | SCO_S_CTR134.775 |
SCO_E_CTR134.855 |
SCO_CTR125.680 |
|
| Borders | SCO_BDS_CTR135.530 |
SCO_WB_CTR133.875 |
ScAC South |
Departure Handoff Priority¶
Note
The UK Controller Plugin API will reflect the new handoff priority orders when using the NFREQ column in departure lists.
The changes also affect who airborne departures should be transferred to. Where departures are transferred to a Scottish Control sector, local documentation typically details the controller ID as it would be seen in the EuroScope controller list - for example, the image below is from the Edinburgh vMATS Part 2 ADC 3.10.2:
As a result of the above changes, handoff priority orders on crib sheets and in vMATS shall be amended as follows:
| Old Controller ID | New Controller ID |
|---|---|
| STE | TLA |
| STW | GAL |
| ST | TMA |
| STA | ANT |
| - | GTA (insert after TMA and ANT) |
| SD | BDS |
| SWD | SWB |
Documentation Status¶
Aerodrome documentation will be updated as soon as possible, according to available Operations team resources.
Errors in this instruction should be reported to operations@vatsim.uk