Scurvy, you state:
LT is one of the only D regionals with PRIM and SSR Radar to surface
Why then isn’t the radar used in an effective way?
In relation to the Secondary Surveillance Radar, the aircraft are forced by law to be on your tower frequency, and I understand that you and the other tower controllers are not rated to use radar.
If the airspace followed the North American system – and as far as I know the system in every other modern aviation country in the world – the radar covered airspace is controlled by air traffic controllers who are in the Centre or TRACON and are radar rated. It sounds sensible, doesn’t it? It has the advantage that when the tower closes down at night (or due to staffing problems) the Centre would keep providing a full radar separation service to the lowest level of radar coverage.
The fact that the tower “owns” the airspace to 8,500 feet (or is it 12,500 feet?) is a hangover from the old pre-radar days. It is a bit like the FSOs keeping their airspace for many years after radar was introduced – and therefore unintentionally lowering safety.
To anyone with an open mind who is reading this, in other modern aviation countries Class D airspace changes to Class E when the tower closes and a full separation service is still provided to IFR aircraft from the Centre. In Australia, airline pilots are forced to change off the radar frequency to a “calling in the blind” CTAF frequency – even when in good radar coverage.
It is all about resistance to change – i.e. “This is the way we used to operate it in the 1950s – no one must ever change it.”
Scurvy, by the way, there won’t be much data on non-transponder VCAs in non-radar Class C airspace as no one would know the aircraft was there! Surely you must understand this. In many cases the only way you would know the aircraft was there would be because of a collision.