Same flightnumber at the same time?

[HHI OPS]

Hey guys,

I know it is impossible to use the same callsign within European airspace at the same time.
In the USA it is a daily procedure to have one flightnumber for two flights. For example:

US 740 Chicago - Philadelphia
US 740 Philadelphia - Madrid

the second flight is the continous flight of the first one. If everything goes well both aircrafts would be in the air at the same time. But what happens if the first one is delayed with 3 hours or more? It is possible in the USA to have two aircrafts enroute with the same callsign?

I couldn't find anything in any manuals :)

[SM82]

Would it not be the same aircraft continuing on the Madrid? Therefore there would be no callsign confliction. That would be my guess!

[Gulfstreamaviator]

but the same "flight"...if you get my drift....

glf

[HHI OPS]

First leg is a A319, second a B763

[jerboy]

I've neither the time nor inclination to further look into it but if you play around with flightaware it actually shows two flights: SJU-PHL (op B767) and the next PHL-MAD (op A333). I can't be sure but it they do look totally unconnected to each other; there is a two hour gap between the 767 arrive in PHL and the A333 leaving.

I'm not 100% au-fait with the American way of doing things, but this seems to me pretty ridiculous. Why why why are two separate flights operating on the same flight number? There are enough numbers out there to give each flight their own right? What if the SJU-PHL is delayed by more than 2 hours, is the MAD flight allowed to go? If it does will it melt the computers (and ops staffs' brains), by the simple fact there are two US740s airborne?

You wouldn't catch BA for example operating BA123 MAD-LHR and then a couple of hours later BA123 LHR-JFK on a totally different aircraft... there's no reason to do it...

I realise that these are relatively minor issues, but why bother with the fuss?!

[Booglebox]

I know in the US it's possible to have multiple flight plans in for the same aircraft on the same route at the same time.

Seems mad to me but I thought they had their reasons!

Would be interested to hear from anyone Stateside with experience of this.

[K_9]

Hey guys,

I know it is impossible to use the same callsign within European airspace at the same time.
In the USA it is a daily procedure to have one flightnumber for two flights. For example:

US 740 Chicago - Philadelphia
US 740 Philadelphia - Madrid

the second flight is the continous flight of the first one. If everything goes well both aircrafts would be in the air at the same time. But what happens if the first one is delayed with 3 hours or more? It is possible in the USA to have two aircrafts enroute with the same callsign?

I couldn't find anything in any manuals :)
I would think that since many or even most of the people on the first flight are intending to continue on the second flight, that the second flight would not leave before the first flight arrived.

[HHI OPS]

@Booglebox: thanks alot!

[Peter47]

Wouldn't you add a suffix to distinguish them, e.g. USA740A, or something more sophisticated. Certainly thats what happened with Pan Am's intra European sectors in the 80s.

If a fleet is delayed to the following day a Y is usually added e.g. USA740Y

However looking ar Flightradar24 what I presume are transponder codes are often different to reported airline codes e.g. BAW24R for a flight from ORD to LHR.

[K_9]

Wouldn't you add a suffix to distinguish them, e.g. USA740A, or something more sophisticated. Certainly thats what happened with Pan Am's intra European sectors in the 80s.

If a fleet is delayed to the following day a Z is usually added e.g. USA740Z.

However looking ar Flightradar24 what I presume are transponder codes are often different to reported airline codes e.g. BAW24R for a flight from ORD to LHR.
Transponder codes have nothing to do with flight numbers.

[Skipness One Echo]

You wouldn't catch BA for example operating BA123 MAD-LHR and then a couple of hours later BA123 LHR-JFK on a totally different aircraft... there's no reason to do it...

Good grief, learn a little more before you pontificate. In the US they schedule some of the more poular connections on a single flight.

Hence GLA-EWR EWR-LAX, both on CO017 calling as COA17 but with an aircraft change. Same flight numbers / callsigns with an aircraft change are common. The whole BA European regional operation was built like that.

BA1234 GLA-BHX/MAN
change aircraft
BA1234 BHX/MAN-Europe

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Back in the days of PanAm flying round the world, the same flight number was used with an aircraft change at Heathrow. One day, the inbound was delayed and the outbound departed on time. The "same" Clipper was on final approach and climbing out at the same time. That was before the days of callsign conversion and other gadgetry!