Ok you guys tell me how we can give an EAT that is anywhere near accurate when the following is going on:
1. The runway is being changed so the Dubai boys and girls have an airshow going on trying to clear up the last of the ones landing on the old runway, while juggling the ones that have already got in their airspace before we at the ACC could hold everyone.
2. We have at least a dozen aircraft in the hold on the West and probably 5 or 6 in the hold to the East with a few stragglers coming in from the North and the odd domestic one from AUH/FUJ/RAK.
3. We may have to give 15 or 20 or 25 NM's depending on dpeartures (ie. Dubai can't keep landing guys without departing some or there will be nowhere to park the planes.
4. We are up to our eyeballs with R/T and we have no automated flow tools, so we have to first find the time to work out which number to land you are when we aren't even talking to half the aircraft (ie. they are holding on the other side).
5. A couple of go arounds which is common with the one runway and Dubai trying to squeeze out the departures very tightly due to the above mentioned reason, means all the spacing is forgotten and we go back to holding until advised while the mess is again cleaned up.
Bottom line we will tell you if we possibly can, but to be honest when we have that many aircraft all having to be stepped down in the hold, along with all the extra aircraft coming to us from Tehran that are already below what aircraft are holding at, due to the requirement for Tehran to descend aircraft to FL230 or FL250 or FL270 20NM NW ORSAR (not great when the top of the stack is at FL300!!), we are completely snowed under, so unless you are anywhere near fuel critical, please try not to ask us for an EAT. If I get asked I will always give a time, as I am required to, but it probably will have dark tinge of brown to it, cos you know where I plucked it from just to shut you up, so I can get that next aircraft out of the hold and not blow out the next space.
Also as Fox said, the US Military P3's decide that since DESDI is close to the Iranian islands it is a good place to stooge around and FL155 is a good level to do that, and since they fly due regard, they will talk to us if they feel like it and will tell us that they are changing level or turning if they feel like it.
I hope that paints a bit of a picture for all of you.
Things that everyone could do to help.
1. Give us your level passing and cleared level on first contact.
2. Always use a callsign...ALWAYS.
3. Listen out, and know your callsign, so as not to answer another aircrafts descent clearance. Pretty important in the above mentioned towering holding stack.
4. Not ask the reason for the hold when it is between 10.30pm and 2.30am local. It must be pretty obvious by now the reason for the hold, that is, too many bloody aircraft and not enough runways/sectors/controllers/decent procedures/coffee.
