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Online Controllers Flights to/from ZLA

Departures (13)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
KAL018 KLAX RKSI Enroute 0650
AAL1595 KLAX KORD Arriving
NBT413 KLAX LIRF Enroute 0818
SWA642 KLAX KDEN Enroute 1351
UAL823 KLAX KSFO Enroute 1600
SKW5591 KLAX KFAT Enroute 1255
SKW3522 KLAX KSMF Enroute 1321
FFT4145 KLAX KSFO Enroute 1232
UAL74Y KLAX LSZH Enroute 1600
SWR41G KLAX LSZH Enroute 1600
PAL231 KLAX RPLL Enroute 1600
UAL1363 KLAX KSFO Enroute 1600
CAL005 KLAX RCTP Enroute 1600

Arrivals (15)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
EIN6PE EIDW KLAX Enroute 2010
SWR40 LSZH KLAX Enroute 1113
DAL64 NZAA KLAX Enroute 0813
FDX454 KMIA KLAX Enroute 1600
DAL2660 KRDU KLAX Enroute 1203
QFA12 YSSY KLAX Enroute 0909
BAW51 KATL KLAX Enroute 1145
AFL106 UUEE KLAX Enroute 1149
DAL781 KSLC KLAX Enroute 1419
QFA339 YBBN KLAX Departing
N1979 KIZA KHHR Enroute 1354
DAL2854 KSEA KLAX Enroute 1600
AAL46 KPHX KLAX Enroute 1600
ETD205 MMMX KLAX Enroute 0944
UAL120 KSFO KLAX Enroute 1600

Los Angeles (SoCal) 28

Arrivals (2)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
GTI3706 KPDX KRIV Enroute 1516
AAL7035 KDEN KSBD Enroute 2244

Empire (SoCal) 2

Departures (6)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
AAL1983 KSAN KSFO Enroute 1600
DAL585 KSAN KSLC Enroute 1910
AAL1755 KSAN KDFW Enroute 1600
SWA420 KSAN KLAS Enroute 1700
AAL2634 KSAN KPHX Enroute 1600
SWA1482 KSAN KLAS Enroute 1600

Arrivals (5)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
JBU2145 KSLC KSAN Enroute 1316
SPJ145 KLAS KSAN Enroute 1209
SWA1794 KSFO KSAN Enroute 1800
SWA712 KPHX KSAN Enroute 1600
AAL480 KPHX KSAN Enroute 1600

San Diego (SoCal) 11

Departures (2)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
SWA2249 KLGB KRNO Enroute 2035
FFT4958 KSNA KPHX Enroute 1209

Arrivals (3)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
N79840 PAFA KSNA Enroute 1129
ASA1104 KSEA KSNA Enroute 1150
AAL2471 KPHX KSNA Enroute 0405

Coast (SoCal) 5

Departures (2)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
SWA1486 KBUR KDEN Enroute 1716
N242VH KVNY PANC Enroute 2209

Burbank (SoCal) 2

Departures (5)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
UAL2047 KLAS KSFO Enroute 2149
SWA2819 KLAS KPDX Enroute 1408
SPJ145 KLAS KSAN Enroute 1209
UPS300 KLAS KDFW Enroute 1600
NKS2370 KLAS KBOI Enroute 1600

Arrivals (6)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
BAW2MP EGLL KLAS Enroute 1343
SWA169 KABQ KLAS Enroute 1600
SWA420 KSAN KLAS Enroute 1700
SWA1482 KSAN KLAS Enroute 1600
AAL7518 KSFO KLAS Enroute 1600
NKS2515 KSLC KLAS Enroute 1558

Las Vegas 11

Arrivals (1)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
SWA4075 KOAK KSBA Enroute 1600

Santa Barbara 1

Departures (1)

Callsign Dep Arr Status ETA
N1979 KIZA KHHR Enroute 1354

Other 1
  • Flights To/From ZLA: 61
  • Flights in ZLA Airspace: 27
  • Controller Schedule

    June 23rd, 2025

    Los Angeles Tower
    Dennis Glauner

    Session with RK

    1630 - 1800 PDT / 2330 - 0100 Zulu

    Socal Approach (Combined)
    Aaryan Khan

    Session with TY

    1800 - 1930 PDT / 0100 - 0230 Zulu

    Las Vegas Tower
    Jerome Sudhakar

    1900 - 2230 PDT / 0200 - 0530 Zulu

    The Art of the Timely Handoff

    As a controller, one of the easiest things you can do to improve your life and that of your fellow controllers is to work on timely handoffs. Nearly every controller will find him or herself guilty of holding onto an aircraft too long. The result can range from delays at the runway to airspace busts or go-arounds, but it is almost always bad for everyone involved.

    So, when should you hand an aircraft off to the next controller? As soon as you no longer need to talk to the aircraft. It really is as simple as that. If there is nothing more you anticipate needing to say to a pilot, hand them off to the next controller or approve a frequency change if there’s not a “next” controller.

    Let us look at a couple of practical examples, starting with LA Ground.

    LA Ground

    As a ground controller, your primary mission is the safe and efficient movement of aircraft around the airport. For our purposes, that means not crashing airplanes into one another, and getting them to the correct location on the airport. The biggest opportunity you will have to elevate your handoffs while working LA Ground is when aircraft are taxiing from Terminals 4 through 8 to Runway 25R.

    First and foremost, make sure the pilot is on the correct taxiway and headed in the correct direction (the green arrow in the diagram below). Pilots may be unfamiliar with the field or get disoriented, so it is important to make sure they’re going where you want them to go and that they won’t get lost.

    Secondly, you want to make sure that there are no conflicts with other aircraft, which would most likely take the form of an aircraft coming out of the “Box” or one of the cargo/GA pads north of the 25R departure end (the orange boxes). Absent any potential conflicts from those areas, there is no reason you shouldn’t advise the pilot to contact Tower (or the controller staffing that position) as the aircraft approaches C5 (the yellow circle) or, at the latest, C3 (the red circle).

    146568dc7d5353afb3c4a6f9eb85811307432817.png

    There are numerous operational advantages for all parties involved. As the Ground controller, you relieve yourself of the burden of remembering to hand off the aircraft later. Anyone who has received an annoyed transmission from a pilot or message from a Tower controller can relate to this. Additionally, pilots may switch to Tower on their own. This is quite common in the real world but can result in confusion when on VATSIM.

    From the pilot’s perspective, an early handoff makes better use of their time. It is also important to remember that a handoff isn’t instantaneous. The pilot’s workload may not allow for them to switch over immediately, so build in time for that to happen.

    Additionally, by giving the Tower controller (or the radar controller providing Tower services) more time with the aircraft, you open up a wealth of options: intersection departures, takeoff clearances without the aircraft coming to a stop, and more.

    Now let us look at a radar example but stay in the area of KLAX.

    SoCal Departure

    Working a departure position (be it sectorized or as part of a larger area of responsibility) is an excellent example of both needing a timely handoff from Tower (remember Tower controllers: as soon as you see the altitude block increment, ship ‘em to Departure!) and wanting to ensure a timely handoff to Center. Let’s look at everyone’s favorite example, the ORCKA 5 departure out of KLAX.

    2017900fcc4927233cd785e0ddf698d2c0960559.png

    As the Departure controller, you’re going to still be focused on the same two tasks as earlier: the safe and efficient movement of the aircraft. In this instance, we of course want to prevent loss of separation – that’s our top priority. Secondly, we want to make sure the traffic departs the terminal area efficiently and gets headed toward its ultimate destination. No one on the ORKCA5 is looking to fly heading 251 or 236 a minute longer than they must.

    After establishing radar contact with the departing aircraft, your first instruction will likely involve canceling the restriction that they stop their climb at 5,000 feet. This is accomplished either through “climb and maintain one-three thousand” or “climb via the ORCKA Five departure” if you still need compliance with the published crossing restrictions.

    The next instruction (provided you didn’t have to correct an erroneous pilot) will likely be the left turn back toward KLIPR. This instruction is usually provided as the aircraft is climbing through 5,000 feet, which serves two purposes. One, by observing the climb through 5,000 feet, you’ve verified the aircraft has correctly canceled the restriction they received on the ground to level off at 5,000. Secondly, at that point they are over halfway to their vertical goal of crossing KLIPR at or above 10,000 feet and can start the turn.

    Looking ahead on the SID, you’ll notice things progress quickly and if left unmonitored, an aircraft climbing via the SID can climb out of your airspace in little time. So, let us review our checklist:

    • Is the aircraft clear of conflict? Is there going to be a loss of separation?
    • Is the aircraft complying with your vertical instruction to climb above 5,000 feet?
    • Is the aircraft complying with your lateral instruction to make the LEFT TURN direct KLIPR?

    If these criteria are met, it’s time to initiate the handoff to the next controller. Even though your airspace goes all the way up to 13,000 feet, you gain nothing by holding onto the aircraft. And you run the very real risk of forgetting about the aircraft and a) having it level off at 13,000, or b) having it bust through your airspace if it’s climbing via the SID (note: the ORCKA5 has a top altitude of FL230).

    Adding to the delay in the handoff from a pilot’s perspective of changing frequencies, you also now need to consider the delay in the next controller seeing your handoff. By building in this extra time, you give everyone more breathing room while also freeing up your resources for the next pilot who just took off. And you never know, that next one could be someone trying a right-turn off the deck toward KLIPR – you’ll be glad you made things easier on yourself.

    Conclusion

    Ultimately, there is no reason to hold onto an aircraft until they are right at the end of your airspace or jurisdiction. You do not increase your level of interaction with the traffic, and you do not increase safety or efficiency. All you risk doing is causing undue delays or worse, a loss of separation. Keep in mind, this is a lesson that applies at every controller position, from Ground to Center, and most controllers would benefit from being more proactive with their handoffs.