Shanwick Oceanic Control

Shanwick is the air traffic control (ATC) name given to the area of international airspace which lies above the northeast part of the Atlantic Ocean.

Shanwick also has eastern boundaries with the Scottish, Shannon, London, Brest and Madrid domestic ATC flight information regions.

Prior to 1966, both the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland were selected by ICAO to provide control and communications services to air traffic within adjacent areas of the north east Atlantic.

HF can provide global coverage due to its ability to reflect (see refraction) off the ionosphere and can span the globe in a series of skips.

[1] Shanwick Radio maintain HF communications with all flights within the Shanwick Oceanic Control Area and are responsible for issuing voice clearances to those flights unable to contact Air Traffic Control Officers at Prestwick Centre directly via CPDLC.

Using the callsign "Shanwick Control", Air Traffic Control Officers at Prestwick are able to communicate directly, on a dedicated VHF channel, with pilots in the south east corner of the Shanwick OCA, who are routing via the fixed Tango routes, (T9 and T290).

During 2005-2006, upgrades to the Shanwick Radio and Shannon Aeradio equipment at Ballygirreen took place and the IAA entered into an agreement with the Flugstoðir (Icelandic ATC, known as ISAVIA) subsidiary Gannet ATS Communications to provide additional HF communication services within the Shanwick OCA via the Gufunes Telecommunications Centre (in Reykjavík, Iceland).

Irish Minister for Defence, Simon Coveney, said the increased capability would provide greater surveillance of airspace over the Atlantic Ocean which the IAA managed.