TV News choppers ORD

[CAPMAN1233]

Good evening, is it true that TV news choppers get permission to enter Ohare's airspace,if so how do they typicality get permission to enter the airspace calling the tower on the radio or calling them in advance on the phone? Thank you and this is my first post.

 

[Greg Bockelman]

I believe they have an agreement with the tower on procedures to get in and out. Typically they approach from the east, between runway 28 and 27L. They stay pretty low, and sort of stay out of everyone's way. And they usually just call tower. Not approach.

 

[murphey]

In Denver, the news aircraft just call the tower, altho they rarely get near DIA. However they do need to talk to APA, BJC and Buckley AFB because those are the airspaces with the auto traffic down below.

 

[denverpilot]

They also have a letter from the TRACON that gives them the uber-cool "Skywatch" callsign(s) and assigned discreet transponder codes.

I hesitate to say "callsigns" because there's only two helicopters left in Denver News. They all share a bird now. The heydays of every station having a helicopter are long gone. Everyone rides the short bus now.

They did get all the way up to "Skywatch 6" I believe during the years of mixed helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft doing traffic and news patrols.

 

[flyingron]

In Denver, the news aircraft just call the tower, altho they rarely get near DIA. However they do need to talk to APA, BJC and Buckley AFB because those are the airspaces with the auto traffic down below.

Even back in the Stapleton days they just talked to approach. They were typically given freedom to roam at will at a fixed altitude in the class B (well it was a TCA back then...I'm dating myself) as long as they stayed away from the airport itself without specific clearance.

 

[Fearless Tower]

I hesitate to say "callsigns" because there's only two helicopters left in Denver News. They all share a bird now. The heydays of every station having a helicopter are long gone. Everyone rides the short bus now.

That is probably not a bad thing....I seem to recall a midair not too long ago in Phoenix where competing news helos collided because they were trying to get coverage of a high speed chase.