Hi All,
I have just configured a feed from Alice Springs (YBAS), in the heart of Australia.
(The feed is DOWN as I write this, but should be back up again tomorrow)
What can you hear in the middle of nowhere? Lots, surprisingly.
In addition to the local Tower (manned only during daylight hours), we have Melbourne Center. The sector that covers YBAS is huge, and there are a large number of frequencies that cannot be directly heard here, but are linked 24x7 to the local frequency - the result is that traffic in about a quarter (maybe a bit less) of the Australian airspace can be heard here, with additional sectors being linked during local nights when traffic levels are low. The majority of flights between Sydney/Melbourne/Adelaide and Asian destinations transits this airspace for some time....
Below is a list of the frequencies covered by this linking:
119.50 - Melbourne Center (Moomba Area - Below FL200)
119.80 - Melbourne Center (Alice Springs Area - Below FL200)
120.70 - Melbourne Center (Oodnadatta Area - Below FL200)
121.85 - Melbourne Center (Ayres Rock Area - Below FL200)
122.00 - Melbourne Center (Woomera Area - Below FL200)
122.60 - Melbourne Center (Broken Hill Area - Below FL200)
124.90 - Melbourne Center (Cobar Area - Below FL200)
125.35 - Melbourne Center (Bourke Area - Below FL200)
126.50 - Melbourne Center (Tibooburra Area - Below FL200)
128.10 - Melbourne Center (Moomba Area)
128.20 - Melbourne Center (Cobar Area)
128.85 - Melbourne Center (Alice Springs Area)
131.80 - Melbourne Center (Ayres Rock Area)
132.80 - Melbourne Center (Broken Hill Area)
132.90 - Melbourne Center (Oodnadatta Area)
135.40 - Melbourne Center (Woomera Area)
During evening/night periods the "Nullabor" sector is usually linked in, and the following can also be heard:
123.95 - Melbourne Center (Esperance Area)
130.90 - Melbourne Center (Warburton Area)
132.70 - Melbourne Center (Nullabor Area)
133.20 - Melbourne Center (Esperance Area - Below FL200)
134.20 - Melbourne Center (Caiguna Area)
I am working on creating a Google map overlay of the frequency boundaries that I'll post sometime in the future.
Regards,
Geoff