Something missing on the missed?

Matt Barrow wrote:
"Newps" wrote in message
news



Sorry ... what's a VFR Tower?

Any tower that isn't at the main airport for class B or C.


What (if any) is the distinction?

Who provides the approach control service? There are a few painfully
slow approach control facilities such as Bismarck and Fargo that are the
exception to the rule but essentially it is the B's and C's.



(I'm thinking of the Phoenix area that has six or seven towers within the
Phoenix Class B)

They are all VFR as they are class D. Most if not all have a DBRITE in
the tower and they may have letters of agreement with PHX to accept and
release IFR aircraft automatically. That would be transparent to you.

Mark Hansen wrote:




The airport I'm speaking about is Sacramento Executive (KSAC) (it is not
a TRSA). I didn't say separation of VFR traffic; I said separation between
me (IFR) and other VFR traffic.

That's a class D also. There is no separation between you and VFR
traffic. You'll get traffic advisories but that's it.



can you provide some examples of
IFR services provided by a Class C tower (say, Sacramento Intl, for
example)
that are not provided by the Class D tower

The services will be essentially the same, by the tower. You may notice
delays in getting released IFR, that would be your clue that they do not
have automatic releases with SMF.




Again, I'm just trying to understand what make this Class D a VFR tower.

It's VFR because it's a class D and is within SMF's airspace, run by Norcal.

"Mark Hansen" wrote in message
...

The airport I'm speaking about is Sacramento Executive (KSAC) (it is not
a TRSA). I didn't say separation of VFR traffic; I said separation between
me (IFR) and other VFR traffic.


I didn't say separation of VFR traffic either, I said there is no separation
provided to VFR aircraft in Class D airspace. That means no separation is
provided between an IFR aircraft and a VFR aircraft.



So I can see what you're talking about, can you provide some examples of
IFR services provided by a Class C tower (say, Sacramento Intl, for
example) that are not provided by the Class D tower (KSAC, in this case)?


Sure, in Class C airspace VFR aircraft are separated from IFR aircraft. But
that's not the issue, we're talking about VFR towers, or nonapproach control
towers, versus towers with an approach control.



Again, I'm just trying to understand what make this Class D a VFR tower.


Basically, it's the lack of authority or responsibility for airborne
separation between IFR and SVFR aircraft. Think of the VFR tower as owning
the runways and the overlying approach control or center owning the
airspace.

In practice, many VFR towers are delegated some responsibility for
separation; such as authority to approve SVFR operations below a specified
altitude or the initial separation of successive IFR departures. This may
be done in letters of agreement between the facilities or on an individual
basis.