ICAO airport codes

[Trojan1981]

Hi all,

Does anyone know where I can find a breakdown and explination of ICAO airport codes? For example YBTL, obviously Y for OZ, but how and why are the other letters allocated. I can't seem to find it anywhere.

Cheers
The Horse:ok:

[Biggles78]

There doesn't appear to be any logical reason for choosing the designations so it must have been done by a bureaucrat. Wikipedia, not the best source, has some info. International Civil Aviation Organization airport code - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Civil_Aviation_Organization_airport_code)

Or you could search through this google list. ICAO airport codes explanation - Google Search (http://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en&source=hp&q=ICAO+airport+codes+explanation&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai)=

[Mstr Caution]

Y = Country

B = Brisbane FIR

TL = Airport

[Awol57]

Whilst I don't know definatively I think Master Caution is correct. Would also make sense for places like YPKA, YPPD, YPKG, YPAD, YBAS etc etc. My guess is they are derived from the FIR they were in back in the "old" days. I am too young but I am guessing that at some point Adelaide was in the Perth FIR?

[Showa Cho]

AWOL's on the money - YPAD & YPDN were in the Perth FIR at one stage, when we had Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth FIRs. Alice is YBAS so they didn't conform to state borders. As for the rest of them, they are just made from the most logical ones that are available. IIRC, Australia used to have the designator 'A' at one stage, so Sydney was ASSY, I think.

Showa-Cho.

[Plazbot]

Correct. There are however others that are not FIR specific

Some examples are

YPMQ - port mac
YWLM - willytown
YCOE - Coen


I recall something that these were different due to civil navaids available? Something like NDB only?

[Tinstaafl]

Historically in Oz aerodromes with ATS eg Tower, used the FIR letter as the 2nd letter of the 4 figure code. Those without ATS didn't.

Brisbane, for example was ABBN (then YBBN) but Redcliffe was ARED (now YRED). It was quite common in practice to only use the last two letters for ATS airstrips and the last three for non-ATS.

[Mstr Caution]

AWOL is correct.
You can map the old FIR boundaries by airport decode. For example Norfolk YSNF was in the old Sydney FIR.

The first letter A changed to Y in the late 80's if my memory serves me correctly.

The FIS centers were consolidated about the same time they abolished Full SAR FULL reporting for VFR flights on an ATS plan.

[willadvise]

Wrong! DN and AD have never been in the Perth FIR. The second letter is which AFTN that location was connected to.

[topdrop]

Locations that had an ATC or Flight Service unit were all connected to the AFTN and had 4 letter location indicators
1st letter is for area of the world A became Y for Oz area
2nd letter is for the com centre they were connected to (S for Sydney;
D for Darwin and A for Adelaide later became P as the com centres there closed and they connected to Perth)
3rd and 4th same as their navaid ident.
Most military and old FS locations have reverted to 3 letter format
Aerodrome locations without ATC or FS were originally just 3 letters and now have a Y stuck on the front to make all aerodromes 4 letters
VFR reporting points are all changing to 4 letters - but never have a Y as first letter
IFR reporting points are all 5 letters.

[Trojan1981]

Cheers guys, that is what I thought but couldn't find an explination anywhere. Much appreciated.