Frequencies-SMC vs SMC(V)
Little background first...
At a military airfield where 'this friend of mine' works there is a surface movements frequency (SMC) and a separate surface movements frequency for vehicles (SMC(V)). The policy of the Air Traffikers at this military airfield (or so my friend tells me) is to operate with SMC and SMC(V) in retransmit mode (ie. pilots hear vehicles and vice versa, which 'my friend' finds very distracting as a pilot).
At the risk of bringing down the wrath of ATCers, my question is: should the two frequencies be retransmitted (ie. a pilot taxiing hears all the vehicle movement requests around the field and vice versa) or should the two frequencies be operated independently. As a pilot I (er, I mean, my friend)(perhaps selfishly) feels that the danger of the SMC(V) radio chatter being retransmitted on the SMC frequency is potentially dangerous for aircrew, especially in a training environment. The Air Traffikers contend that this setup to helps everyone maintain better Situational Awareness and are only willing to deselect retrans in case of aircraft emergencies.
Anyone want to weigh in on this relatively minor issue?
Thanks.