Airport Identifiers vs GPS

[170C]

Is there a rule of thumb that should be used when putting an airport identifier into our GPS's regarding when to put the K in front of the identifier and when it isn't needed? I have had some instances when neither with or without the K would bring up the airport and I had to defer to putting in the city. That works OK, althought lots of letters if a long city name and assuming the city doesn't have multiple airports.

[jrenwick]

Is there a rule of thumb that should be used when putting an airport identifier into our GPS's regarding when to put the K in front of the identifier and when it isn't needed? I have had some instances when neither with or without the K would bring up the airport and I had to defer to putting in the city. That works OK, althought lots of letters if a long city name and assuming the city doesn't have multiple airports.

Frank,

In every GPS I've ever used, you have to use the "K" prefix on an airport identifier if the identifier is all letters. If the identifier has any numbers in it, then you don't use the "K." Where the GPS database contains an alphabetic 3-letter identifier without the "K," that's a VOR or some other kind of waypoint. If an airport has a VOR of the same name located on the field, it will work for navigation, but you're not technically navigating to the airport.

[GAHorn]

Adding onto John's reply.... The "K" indicates a United States airport. Memphis Tennessee airport would be KMEM, while Memphis VOR would be MEM while Memphis, Egypt would have an "H" in front of it...... HMEM. (If it wasn't a ruin after 4,000 years as capital of Egypt.)

I recall in the early days of FMS, a King 660 unit was being utilized and I entered the identifier for Frankfort, Ky... and discoverd I had 6800 miles to go! then I realized it was thinking I meant Franfort, Germany. A "K" took care of the problem.

[dacker]

It is funny that this subject came up. I was pondering a bit yesterday and was trying to remember why some airports use numbers for identifiers and others don't. It doesn't seem to be an airspace or size issue. What is it?
David

[GAHorn]

Major airports use ICAO "letter" identifiers, especially those with navigation facilities. Minor airports, such as state and municipa fields use either a combination of letters or numbers. Private airports have individually-assigned identifiers based upon FAA regions. Example: KDFW, KFJK, KHOU. The associated VORS on those airfields are DFW, JFK, HOU.

Some municipal, county, etc. fields have been undergoing a change of identifiers in recent years, in an effort to standardize to ICAO conventions. the old identifier T29 (Cameron County, TX) is now KPIL (Port Isabel), and now T29 has been reassigned to a private ranch strip. BEWARE when uisng nav units with OLD DATABASES. You can end up going places you never meant.

My privately=owned strip however, is 8TA3...a unique code assigned by the FAA in FTW.

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

George are you sure the FAA is assigning identifiers to private Texas strips. I'm thinking that is a state function as the state not the FAA licences airfields. At least the state licences airports in all the states I'm aware of. In fact sometime ago I tried to find the requirements for what it took to licence a strip in PA. Couldn't find anything at all at the federal level but all the information for the state of PA at PENNDOT.

In PA you won't find an airport with a tree within 500ft of any part of the runway environment because the state mandates that. Yet land at Mattituck ,NY or Herrion, WV and you may be pulling leaves from your wing tips. Different states, different regulations.

[GAHorn]

I believe we are talking two different matters.

Many states have no reulations pertaining to construction or " licensing" of airports.

Texas is one state that has an avition dept within the Dept. of Transportation...but they do not "regulate' or "license" airports. They "facilitate" public airports who wish to avail themselves of federal funds and assist in obtaining grant money, etc. They also provide "guidelines" etc. for airport construction. Many municipalities and counties, etc. follow those guidelines, or they follow federal regulation if required (for example expect to receive federal funding and/or meet a federal requirement for airline, military, etc. )

The FAA Airport Certification office issues and keeps the record of airport identifiers in all states. That office just happens to be located in FTW.

[cessna170bdriver]

Adding onto John's reply.... The "K" indicates a United States airport. Memphis Tennessee airport would be KMEM, while Memphis VOR would be MEM while Memphis, Egypt would have an "H" in front of it...... HMEM. (If it wasn't a ruin after 4,000 years as capital of Egypt.)...

Just a nit, but I'm going to pick it anyway. There may be exceptions, but I believe the "K" prefix is used only in "continental" U.S. airports' ICAO codes. Alaska and Hawaii, as well as other U.S. possessions and territories in the Pacific use codes prefixed with a "P". For example, Anchorage is PANC, Honolulu is PHNL, and Guam is PGUM.

Different GPS and Loran models use varying conventions when entering codes to access the database. My old Apollo 602 loran uses XXX to refer to a particular airport with a three-letter identifier, XXXv (the identifier followed by a lower-case "v") to refer to a VOR, and XXXn to refer to an NDB. My new AnywhereMap GPS uses (incorrectly, I believe) a K in front of ALL U.S. airport identifers, even those which contain numbers.

Miles

[jrenwick]

....My new AnywhereMap GPS uses (incorrectly, I believe) a K in front of ALL U.S. airport identifers, even those which contain numbers.

Get used to it. My home base, Lake Elmo Airport (east of St. Paul, MN), is 21D. It got an AWOS last year, and now there are METARs for it -- listed under "K21D" on the NOAA web site (http://www.aviationweather.gov).

John

[4-Shipp]

George are you sure the FAA is assigning identifiers to private Texas strips. I'm thinking that is a state function as the state not the FAA licences airfields. At least the state licences airports in all the states I'm aware of. In fact sometime ago I tried to find the requirements for what it took to licence a strip in PA. Couldn't find anything at all at the federal level but all the information for the state of PA at PENNDOT.

In PA you won't find an airport with a tree within 500ft of any part of the runway environment because the state mandates that. Yet land at Mattituck ,NY or Herrion, WV and you may be pulling leaves from your wing tips. Different states, different regulations.

Our home strip in north Texas is "4XA5", courtesy of the FAA, not the state of Texas. Texas DOT was a great help providing info to get our runway established via their on-line pamphlet, FARM AND RANCH AIRSTRIPS-HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN AIRSTRIP.

If you are curious here is the link: ftp://ftp.dot.state.tx.us/pub/txdot-inf ... strips.pdf.

The only way the state of Texas would know about our strip would be via the FAA as the Feds are the only approval we obtained. I did check with the county zoning people before we built and confirmed that there were not restricitons or state requirements involved.

Bruce

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

Hmmm that is very interesting. Like I said in PA the Feds don't license airports PennDot does. And PennDot makes their own rules. Of course they at least follow the minimum guidelines of the FAA. I wonder if Texas just doesn't care to license airports and by default falls to the Feds to issue a number or perhaps the state of PA (and many others) license airports for the Feds in the respective states.

[hilltop170]

Just a nit, but I'm going to pick it anyway. There may be exceptions, but I believe the "K" prefix is used only in "continental" U.S. airports' ICAO codes. Alaska and Hawaii, as well as other U.S. possessions and territories in the Pacific use codes prefixed with a "P". For example, Anchorage is PANC, Honolulu is PHNL, and Guam is PGUM.
Miles

Miles-
As long as we're picking nits, Alaska IS on the continent, it just isn't contiguous.

[cessna170bdriver]

Just a nit, but I'm going to pick it anyway. There may be exceptions, but I believe the "K" prefix is used only in "continental" U.S. airports' ICAO codes. Alaska and Hawaii, as well as other U.S. possessions and territories in the Pacific use codes prefixed with a "P". For example, Anchorage is PANC, Honolulu is PHNL, and Guam is PGUM.
Miles

Miles-
As long as we're picking nits, Alaska IS on the continent, it just isn't contiguous.

Richard, I'm happy to know I'm not the only nitpicker in this bunch! You're right; I've always heard "continental" used (probably incorrectly) synonymously with "contiguous" to refer to the Lower 48.

Miles

[hilltop170]

It's easy, just remember..........K for kontiguous and P for Pacific.

[GAHorn]

Hmmm that is very interesting. Like I said in PA the Feds don't license airports PennDot does. And PennDot makes their own rules. Of course they at least follow the minimum guidelines of the FAA. I wonder if Texas just doesn't care to license airports and by default falls to the Feds to issue a number or perhaps the state of PA (and many others) license airports for the Feds in the respective states.

FAR 139 applies to Federally Certified Airports. (I don't believe the FAA "approves" airports, they only certify them.) State "approval" might exist in some states, but not in Texas.