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Section 5. SPECIAL AND LOCAL
TELEPHONY DESIGNATORS

1-5-1. SPECIAL TELEPHONY DESIGNATORS

 a. Special telephony designators are temporarily authorized only when their assignment will necessitate "special handling" by air traffic control.

 b. Special telephony designators are approved by FAA in accordance with Federal Communication Commission (FCC) Regulation 87.115.

 c. Special telephony designators may be authorized a timeframe of not more than 2-years when an event is categorized for a continuous systemized operation.

 d. Special telephony designators may be authorized for the following categories:

 1.commemorative flights;

 2.large number of aircraft participating in an organized race;

 3.aircraft engaged in a systemized operational event and/or exercise;

 4.aircraft operating during an emergency or disaster condition; or,

 5.aircraft needing special handling for test purposes.

 e. Requests will be made to FAA Headquarters, System Operations Services/System Operations Airspace and AIM, submitting the following:

 1. type of flight;

 2. handling required;

 3. type and number of participating aircraft;

 4. type of operational event; and

 5. routes and duration of operation.

 f. FAA Headquarters, System Operations Sevices/System Operations Airspace and AIM, will notify FCC of the pending assignment.

1-5-2. LOCAL TELEPHONY DESIGNATORS

 a. Local telephony designators will be used only for communications with local airport traffic control towers/facilities for VFR/SVFR operations. A Letter of Agreement (LOA) is required between the local tower/facility and the requesting company/applicant. The LOA will contain verbiage which ensures the local telephony is used only with facilities which are signatories to the agreement.

 b. When a LOA expires, the local tower/facility will notify the company/applicant for renewal and submit new LOA to FAA Headquarters, System Operations Services/System Operations Airspace and AIM, for update.

 c. Local telephony designators will not be used for filing flight plans nor for IFR operations.

 d. Local telephony designators are approved in accordance with the FAA JO Order 7210.3, Facility Operation and Administration.

 e. Request for local telephony designators will be reviewed by the service area office for adherence to criteria, and forwarded with recommendations to FAA Headquarters, System Operations Services/System Operations Airspace and AIM. FAA Headquarters reviews and forwards the approved assignment back to the service area office for dispersion.