April 22, 2004

Interactive Quiz #80:
Radar Contact

Don't you love that cozy feeling you get when an air traffic controller whispers, "Radar contact," in your headset? But what service attaches to these words? Whether IFR or VFR it helps to know your radar vs. non-radar terms and expectations.

INSTRUCTIONS: Answer the questions as best you can, then click on the "Score my quiz answers" button to see your score and read the explanations. If you don't like your score the first time around, you can change some of your answers and resubmit. To get the most out of this quiz, we suggest you keep trying until you get a perfect score.

NOTE: When more than one answer is true, only the most complete, correct answer will be scored as correct. The answers are assumed to apply within the United States unless otherwise noted.

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1. Imagine that you're on the ground at the core airport inside Class C airspace. The weather is clear with unlimited visibility and you tell Clearance Delivery that you'd like to depart VFR, southwest-bound, at 4500 feet. The controller says, "After departure, fly runway heading, maintain 4000 (feet), expect 4500 (feet) 10 minutes after departure, departure frequency will be 134.5, squawk 0334." After taxi and run-up, tower clears you for takeoff and later says, "Contact departure." You do and that controller says, "Radar contact," which means:
a. The aircraft is identified on the radar display and radar flight following will be provided.
b. The aircraft is identified on the radar display and will be separated from all traffic, terrain, and obstacles such as TV towers and tall Norwegians.
c. The aircraft is identified on the radar display and will be vectored around all special-use airspace (SUAs) including TFRs (temporary flight restrictions).
d. The aircraft is identified on the radar display and, since you're VFR, you may turn on course.

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2. While flying IFR on Victor V216 (see graphic below) in total radar-contact bliss, miles away a backhoe operator accidentally rips out the power cables to ATC's radar antenna. Your controller -- his voice now three octaves higher -- says, "Cirrus Five One Golf, radar contact lost ... " Yikes! You're suddenly in a non-radar IFR environment and must report all compulsory reporting points. Along V216 from the Pawnee City VORTAC (PWE) northeast-bound, which fixes and/or navaids are compulsory reporting points? (Hint or red herring: COVUT and TRAIG are marked by empty triangles, and Pawnee City VORTAC has a solid triangle.)
a. Pawnee City Vortac, COVUT, and TRAIG
b. Pawnee City Vortac
c. Pawnee City Vortac and TRAIG
d. COVUT and TRAIG

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3. The phrase, "Radar service terminated," ...
a. Only applies to IFR traffic.
b. Means that ATC has terminated your IFR or VFR flight plan.
c. Means that ATC has lost radar contact with you.
d. Informs you that you will no longer be provided any of the services that could be received while in radar contact.
e. All of the above.

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4. Which item is not usually included in a non-radar IFR position report?
a. Aircraft identification (callsign)
b. Actual altitude if operating VFR-on-Top (OTP)
c. Position
d. ETA and name of next reporting point
e. Heading (or track if using GPS/RNAV)

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5. You're approaching an airport served by a radar approach control and the ATIS broadcast includes the message, "Low-level wind shear advisories are in effect." It's late at night and the approach controller is also working the tower position, meaning she has two jobs. You hear her tell the aircraft ahead, "Wind shear alert ..." This tells you that the approach control radar (ASR -- Airport Surveillance Radar) also has Doppler radar capabilities that can see turbulence.
a. True
b. False

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6. You're inbound IFR to a towered airport and receiving radar service from approach control. The controller says, "Fly heading 250 (degrees), vector NDB Runway 31 final approach course." (See graphic below.) You accept the vector and add, "... by-the-by, Approach, this will be a practice approach to a missed approach." The approach controller acknowledges, "Roger," and adds: "Five (miles) from FOREM, turn right heading 280, maintain 2500 until established on the final approach course, cleared NDB Runway 31 approach." You acknowledge, glance at the approach plate, and notice a barbed arrow indicating a procedure turn (PT) outside of FOREM (LOM). ATC expects you to make the procedure turn at the LOM because you said, "... this will be a practice approach." (Note: FOREM is both IAF and FAF.)
a. True
b. False

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7. On your next flight review, ask your instructor if you can call ATC for a "radar approach." The two types of radar approaches are PAR and ASR. Which one offers vertical guidance and what does its name mean?
a. PAR -- Precision Approach Radar
b. PAR -- Practice Approach Radar
c. ASR -- Airport Surveillance Radar
d. ASR -- Approach Surface Radar

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8. You're airborne and on initial call-up (your first call to an ATC facility), the controller issues you a transponder squawk: "Cessna Eight Eight Tango, squawk 0345 and ident." The "ident" means:
a. Verbally verify your aircraft ID (identity).
b. Read back the squawk code.
c. Push and release the Ident button on your transponder.
d. Say your position and altitude.

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9. While receiving VFR radar flight following from what seemed to be a friendly Center controller, she suddenly says, "Cherokee Eight Seven One, say altitude." Perplexed, since you've been at 5500 feet for the last hour, you reply, "Five thousand five hundred." You don't say "feet," because that's understood. The controller says, "I show you at 6200 (she doesn't say "feet" either), altitude differs by more than 200 feet, stop altitude squawk." You must:
a. Turn off your transponder and expect a letter from FSDO.
b. Turn off your Mode C altitude encoding and expect a letter from FSDO.
c. Turn your transponder to Standby and expect a letter from FSDO.
d. Turn off your altimeter and expect a letter from FSDO.
e. Say that you really are at 6200 feet to avoid getting a letter from FSDO.

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10. All radar equipment needs periodic maintenance; the approach gates occasionally need to be greased, and the radar sweep cleaned. So, you may encounter an approach facility where the entire radar system (ASR) is shut down for maintenance and the approach controller is working with what's called CENRAP or Center Radar Automated Radar Terminal Systems (ARTS) Processing. CENRAP only sends secondary radar information from Center's radar system to the approach controller's scope, so the approach controller will only be able to see aircraft that have:
a. Large aluminum surfaces to reflect the radar beam.
b. Mode C.
c. Mode S.
d. Transponders.

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