Originally published in 2002
By Kathy Griffin
Aviation Division
You can provide a significant service to the pilots at your airport with the installation of a GCO. A GCO is a combination of Radio Transceiver and an automated telephone dialer. GCO’s provide pilots on the ground at a small airport access to flight service stations (FSS) or air traffic control (ATC) directly from the cockpit prior to departure to receive instrument flight rules (IFR) clearance. Eligible airports can utilize their Routine Airport Maintenance Program grants for acquisition of a GCO. Information is provided below:
Advantages of a GCO
- Open and close instrument clearances without Remote Transmitter/Receiver (RTR) and Remote Communications Outlet (RCO)
- Use commercial phone line to connect with the appropriate FAA Air Traffic facility {ATCT, TRACON, AFSS, etc.)
- Three parts: VHF transceiver, interconnect, and phone line
- Primary frequency is 121. 725 but if there is interference, 135.075 may be used
How to acquire GCO
- GCO shall be purchased through the city or county using their procurement processes. Estimated cost ranges from $6,000 to $7,500 initial cost; $600 to $700 operating cost per year.
- Federal Communications Commission (FCC) license must be obtained prior to GCO operation, this process may take 6 to 8 months to complete. FCC forms and FAA forms may be obtained from the Aviation Division. Contact Kathy Griffin through e-mail at [email protected] or call 1-800-68-PILOT.
- Once the city or county has decided to purchase the GCO, a RAMP grant must be executed prior to installation of the GCO.