Self-Announce Procedures at Unattended Aerodromes

Many small aerodromes have no ground station at all. There is a frequency listed in the aerodrome chart, but when you transmit, no one answers. There is no tower, no radio operator, no AFIS service. What do you do?

You use self-announce procedures. You broadcast your position and intentions at key moments. The purpose is to alert other aircraft in the vicinity of your presence and intentions. You do not receive clearance. You do not expect a response. You are simply making noise on the frequency to avoid collision.

The format for self-announce is standardized across ICAO aerodromes:

This is simple and memorable. Let us break it down.