All,
Hope everyone is having a good week. Looks like summer might finally have arrived so that’s good. I am currently on the road to Montana where I will be for the next week visiting family. I am still pretty accessible but in case something urgent comes up, feel free to just go to Amy with it. Alright, here’s the update:
Fix Posting Bay Headers
We will be changing the fix posting bay headers for the lows to be mostly blank but have a memory aid to indicate whether sector 05 is open or closed. This decision is based on the feedback I received from you all.
Tracker for Sector 13
Brian Kayner mentioned the idea of using a tracker on sector 13 since it gets so busy these days. To officially install a tracker position we would have to take from 10 (which we might need during Sentry Eagle) or from sector 14, which I am not comfortable with either. I could maybe pursue trying to cannibalize another area’s equipment but I doubt I would be successful. In the interim, VSCS can be placed in split mode on the R-Side, one VDM will support the radios and the other VSCS will be ground-to-ground (there is radio monitoring functionality included). This would allow for the R-side to operate the radios only, the D-side will be unaffected, and the tracker will be able to listen to the radios and effect coordination if necessary. The tracker would be reaching over the R-side to interact with the VSCS so that would be a drawback. When I was at ZFW we would use a tracker every now and then and when we did the D and R side would both forward to the tracker and the tracker would make and take phone calls while the D side handled computer entries and the R side just did the talking. Not everyone did it this way; there are lots of different ways to handle it. Let me know if this is something you want me to pursue.
VFR not processing from EUG to MFR airspace
It was brought to my attention that some aircraft transitioning from MFR airspace to EUG airspace or vice versa end up having to be RFed to be handed off. I asked Kevin Miller about it and he sent me this: Cascade approach has been known to "Terminate Beacon" on flights that transit both facilities, which kills the coordination with the subsequent STARS facility. I had a discussion with them about that a few months ago. If it happens again, you might have the OSIC give them a call.
Sector 05 Processing
Sometimes if you PVD a data block to Sector 05 is shows not active or that it is rejected. If you get a reject message it should tell you where sector 05 is and you can do the point out to that sector. If you are unclear on it, you can always just call. If you get the not active message, a handoff will always process correctly to tell you where sector 05 is and thus will tell you whether or not a point out is required. So if you PVD an aircraft to 05 and it rejects it, flash it to 05 and if it goes to 35 then you know it is combined. All other situations should be pretty rare. Please continue to let me know about each instance as it happens so I can address it. I have attached a document regarding this. We can expect a fix in September.
In Solidarity,
Drew