FSS is a mess (x-post from red board)

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PaSkyhawk

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PaSkyhawk
Well they shut down the Buffalo FSS and now the 800 WX BRIEF doesn't work in the western New York area. I was driving to the airport with questionable weather in the area and only got a busy signal.

I ended up canceling the student, but kept trying for about an hour. When I got home I looked up the 866 number for Cleveland and he advised me the system is a mess right now

I hope they don't screw up the air to ground frequencies and have someone get hurt.

When they proposed this as a cost savings to prevent user fees I thought it might be a good Idea. Now it looks like we will still get the fees, a bad system and only Lockheed Martin will be a winner.

Is anyone else experiencing problems with an area that had a FSS shutdown?

Rich Milazzo
richmilazzo@adelphia.net
CFII IAG,9G5
 
If you use a cell phone, wont it just give you the next available station briefer?
 
They are moving the Leesburg one from JYO to elsewhere in Leesburg, which is really stupid.
 
Michael said:
If you use a cell phone, wont it just give you the next available station briefer?
Click to expand...

No, it was just a busy signal, when I tried two hours later at home I got number is not available.

Rich
 
The reason it works from the cellphone is because the call is answered and then routed to the next available FSS.

If the call isn't answered to begin with (as in this case, the local relay was down), then it can't get forwarded.

Good job, lockheed!!
 
when I use my cell phone, it seems I just get Raleigh, no matter WHERE I am! I called from Myrtle Beach SC and got ... Raleigh. Go figure. Dunno why.
 
etsisk said:
when I use my cell phone, it seems I just get Raleigh, no matter WHERE I am! I called from Myrtle Beach SC and got ... Raleigh. Go figure. Dunno why.
Click to expand...
It because they use caller ID from your phone to route your call to the correct service. I borrowed my father in-laws phone one day in NC (he is from Fla) and got FSS in Fla. it was funny but they still helped me out.
 
FSS down here, under LM, has been (for the most part) doing a sound job. Time'll tell, one supposes, but thus far, I have no complaints.
 
In most of Georgia, you theoretically will get Macon FSS. But, at times it sends me off to Nashville. I'd rather have a briefing from someone 80 miles south rather than 150+ miles northwest. So, I've programmed my cell phone with specific FSS numbers I can choose depending on where I'm located at the time. That way I can also insure I reach the same FSS in the event I need to modify a flight plan. Here are both the FSS and ATC directory listings off AOPA. I attached the PDF files in case you don't have access to their site.

WEATHER AND FLIGHT INFORMATION TELEPHONE NUMBERS

ATCT, TRACON & ARTTC TELEPHONE NUMBERS
 

Attachments

  • FSS_Number_List.pdf
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  • ATC_Number_List.pdf
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I got Klamath Falls once I think....that was weird.
 
etsisk said:
when I use my cell phone, it seems I just get Raleigh, no matter WHERE I am! I called from Myrtle Beach SC and got ... Raleigh. Go figure. Dunno why.
Click to expand...

'cuz just about the time the FAA finally got it so your call would be routed based on your current location rather than caller ID, Lockheed came in and went back to caller ID. :mad:

I called 800-WX-BRIEF to go to Ames and got Princeton FSS. I was very sad :( because I thought Green Bay had closed. Turns out Lansing closed, so Lansing's calls go to Green Bay and they get saturated, so the folks Green Bay is used to serving are then, in turn, getting routed to Princeton. :dunno:

Green Bay *is* closing later this month. :(
 
My last 2 entries into the ADIZ were screwed up. The one guy said he was the Altoona FSS but he was actually in Raleigh.:dunno: So I carefully walked him thru the flight plan. I didn't do the return flight plans with the FSS at JYO on these 2 trips as I didn't know what time I was coming home. Luckily, ATC worked with me.
 
SCCutler said:
FSS down here, under LM, has been (for the most part) doing a sound job. Time'll tell, one supposes, but thus far, I have no complaints.
Click to expand...

Same here with Columbia FS (L/M). I miss talking to the folks in Jonesboro, but I've got no complaints about the job the briefiers in Columbia are doing.
 
I use Raleigh FSS alot and have always had pretty good service from them on the ground and in the air. However, I have this sneaky bad feeling I'll be paying extra for the service in the not to distant future.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
'cuz just about the time the FAA finally got it so your call would be routed based on your current location rather than caller ID, Lockheed came in and went back to caller ID. :mad:

I called 800-WX-BRIEF to go to Ames and got Princeton FSS. I was very sad :( because I thought Green Bay had closed. Turns out Lansing closed, so Lansing's calls go to Green Bay and they get saturated, so the folks Green Bay is used to serving are then, in turn, getting routed to Princeton. :dunno:

Green Bay *is* closing later this month. :(
Click to expand...

quite often when I try to call Fort Dodge i get rerouted to Princeton. I used to try to redial and get ahold of fort dodge but recently i just give up and talk to the minnesohtans.
 
I've had a very positive experience so far with Lockheed Martin.
 
Anthony said:
I've had a very positive experience so far with Lockheed Martin.
Click to expand...

I have too, but to be fair, I mostly had good experiences with FSS when the FAA staffed them too.
I guess time will tell where all this goes but I'm just a little incredulous that LM really has my best interest in mind any more than Walmart. Ha...wouldn't that be something? Walmart weather briefing and flight planning.
 
I've only used Flight Service twice in the past 4 months, once on the phone and once in the air, both times things worked fine.

With DUATS and the Aviation Weather Center online and XM weather in the cockpit, I just don't need to talk to briefers that much any more.

Jay
 
i dont really trust myself to be able to read TFRs off a DUATs report, so I keep calling. i like aviationweather.gov and a few others for personal briefing.
 
While we are on the subject of FSS, I am a little rusty on the concept of talking to them remotely where transmit and receive are on different frequencies (having not had to do this since my private training).

From the A/F D:

Central Nebraska RCO 122.45
Hastings VOR/DME 108.8T 122.1R

So using Central Nebraska, you can transmit and recieve communications from the FSS on the same freq (122.45).

But Hastings, 108.8 (the VOR freq) is for transmit and 122.1 is for recieve. So who transmits on the VOR? The pilot? or the FSS? If I remember right (and that is hazy), the pilot talks on the R freq (in this case 122.1) and listens over the VOR.

Thus, the frequencys listed are from the FSS's point of view (they receive on R, transmit on T).

And when you first call FSS up, you have to tell them which VOR you are listening on so they know which one to talk on, correct?
 
I have had one real bad experience with them. It was just a couple of weeks ago. The briefer was completely clueless. He started by saying there was a convective SIGMET, then he said no there wasn't, then talked about a line of storms moving my way and then said they weren't, then he said there was an ARIMET for IFR and then no there wasn't. I stopped him asked is there a SIGMET, thunderstorms, or AIRMET for IFR or isn't there? his answer was "I think so, no wait no". I said I needed another briefer as I could not understand what he was trying to tell me. That blew his mind and he could not figure out how to hand me off, I hung up and called back, the 2nd time I got someone who knew what they were doing.
 
PhantomCougar said:
While we are on the subject of FSS, I am a little rusty on the concept of talking to them remotely where transmit and receive are on different frequencies (having not had to do this since my private training).

From the A/F D:

Central Nebraska RCO 122.45
Hastings VOR/DME 108.8T 122.1R

So using Central Nebraska, you can transmit and recieve communications from the FSS on the same freq (122.45).

But Hastings, 108.8 (the VOR freq) is for transmit and 122.1 is for recieve. So who transmits on the VOR? The pilot? or the FSS? If I remember right (and that is hazy), the pilot talks on the R freq (in this case 122.1) and listens over the VOR.

Thus, the frequencys listed are from the FSS's point of view (they receive on R, transmit on T).

And when you first call FSS up, you have to tell them which VOR you are listening on so they know which one to talk on, correct?
Click to expand...

That's right, "this is 12345 on 122.1 listening on the Hastings VOR" turn up the volume on the VOR
 
We're losing Green Bay FSS at midnight CDT on Sunday April 22, 2007. I've yet to see what the transition will be like.

For the past couple of weeks, it's been a matter of luck whether 1-800-WX-BRIEF takes me to Green Bay or Princeton, MN. At first when I got Princeton I assumed Green Bay closed early. Then Monday night I reached Green Bay again. Hmm, not closed. I asked them for the scoop. Green Bay was receiving calls from Lansing, and therefore we'd get routed to Princeton sometimes. Green Bay said they were still doing all the radio tasks like normal though.

The only minor inconvenience has been a lack of recorded weather information (TIBS) for this area when I get stuck with Princeton. The other day I called just trying to get a general overview of things, when I realized Princeton doesn't have recordings for northeast Wisconsin on its menu. Oops.

I am really going to miss the folks at Green Bay. I've met most of them in person, and although I don't remember all their names, I know their friendly and helpful voices. :cheerswine:
 
KennyFlys said:
In most of Georgia, you theoretically will get Macon FSS. But, at times it sends me off to Nashville. I'd rather have a briefing from someone 80 miles south rather than 150+ miles northwest. So, I've programmed my cell phone with specific FSS numbers I can choose depending on where I'm located at the time. That way I can also insure I reach the same FSS in the event I need to modify a flight plan. Here are both the FSS and ATC directory listings off AOPA. I attached the PDF files in case you don't have access to their site.

WEATHER AND FLIGHT INFORMATION TELEPHONE NUMBERS

ATCT, TRACON & ARTTC TELEPHONE NUMBERS
Click to expand...


They're also in the AF/D.
 
Remember Phil of AOPA said how great ot was going to be once L/M also got all of the online part. We'd be able to see what the breifer sees and amazingly someday, reals soon now, the briefers will have PCs!!!!

I would be happy if they would just fix the phone system so I can HEAR the briefer. :mad:
 
PhantomCougar said:
But Hastings, 108.8 (the VOR freq) is for transmit and 122.1 is for recieve. So who transmits on the VOR? The pilot? or the FSS? If I remember right (and that is hazy), the pilot talks on the R freq (in this case 122.1) and listens over the VOR.
Click to expand...

Bingo.

This isn't that hard to remember once you're sitting in the airplane... I've never seen an aviation radio that will let you transmit on a VOR frequency. :no:
 
skyflyer8 said:
For the past couple of weeks, it's been a matter of luck whether 1-800-WX-BRIEF takes me to Green Bay or Princeton, MN. At first when I got Princeton I assumed Green Bay closed early. Then Monday night I reached Green Bay again. Hmm, not closed. I asked them for the scoop. Green Bay was receiving calls from Lansing, and therefore we'd get routed to Princeton sometimes. Green Bay said they were still doing all the radio tasks like normal though.
Click to expand...

Yet, Lansing is supposed to stay open? WTF? I don't get why they're routing calls away from one of the ones that's supposed to stay open, and depriving us of our last few weeks with GRB's excellent service.

I am really going to miss the folks at Green Bay. I've met most of them in person, and although I don't remember all their names, I know their friendly and helpful voices. :cheerswine:
Click to expand...

Amen to that. :( Y'know, I think maybe I'll just have to get in the airplane Sunday night the 22nd and go for a flight, just so I can be the last guy to talk to Green Bay Radio and thank 'em for a job well done.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Yet, Lansing is supposed to stay open? WTF? I don't get why they're routing calls away from one of the ones that's supposed to stay open, and depriving us of our last few weeks with GRB's excellent service.
Click to expand...

Lansing had to close temporarily to do their upgrades.

Barb
 
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