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by Friday Morning Flight Plan at [date]
If you fly in California, you’re probably aware of the term “tower en route control” (TEC). TEC doesn’t exist in many other places in the country, and it doesn't operate the same as in California in the few other places it does exist.
So, what is it? Think of TEC as preferred IFR routes for specific airports across Northern and Southern California and parts of the Northeast, Texas, and Louisiana.
Specifically, according to chapter two of the Instrument Procedures Handbook, “TEC is referred to as tower en route, or tower-to-tower, and allows flight beneath the en route structure. TEC reallocates airspace both vertically and geographically to allow flight planning between city pairs while remaining within approach control airspace.”
An instrument-rated pilot does not need to file an instrument flight plan as long as s/he is flying within the TEC system of arriving and departing airports. A TEC route is, in fact, an instrument route.
So, why would pilots use the TEC system rather than simply filing an IFR flight plan? One answer may be convenience.
Let’s say an instrument-rated pilot is taxiing out for takeoff for a VFR flight, and the cloud cover or visibility along the intended route is marginal VFR. The conditions may be worse than expected. The pilot could ask Clearance Delivery or Ground Control for tower en route to their destination.
One caveat is the departure and arrival airports must be tied together with a tower-en-route routing. You can find this in the chart supplement for the respective area. In ForeFlight, you’ll find the tower-en-route document by clicking on the Documents tab, followed by the FAA drive.
As a specific example, say a pilot wants to use a TEC route from Riverside, California, to Santa Barbara, California. First, the pilot must find the route in the chart supplement based on the departing airport (the red box in the next figure below).
RAL is located in the “FROM” list. The arrival airports are listed under “TO,” and SBA is listed at the bottom (the blue box in the next figure below). SBA has two different route titles, the ONTP16 and ONTP17 (Ontario Papa 16 and 17, respectively). The routings are to the right, and they are based on altitudes of 6000 or 8000 feet, respectively.
According to the TEC Routes legend in the chart supplement, aircraft are classified as the following:
- (J) = Jet-powered
- (M) = Turboprops/special (cruise speed 190 knots or greater)
- (P) = Non-jet (cruise speed 190 knots or greater)
- (Q) = Non-jet (cruise speed 189 knots or less).
Suppose the pilot is flying a C-172, which is classified as Q (non-jet, 189 kts or less). That means the pilot will get the ONTP16 routing consisting of PDZ, V186, DEANO, V27, KWANG at 6000’ cruise altitude.
If the pilot were flying in a jet or turboprop, s/he would expect to get the ONTP17 consisting of PDZ, V197, POM, V264, ITSME, V186, DEANO, V27, KWANG at 8000’.
Outside of California, the interpretations are different. As a quick example, notice from the Northeast Chart Supplement (pictured below) the numbers 1-5 as categories for the type and speed of aircraft to be flown. While similar, the letter designations are not quite the same as in California. Pilots should use the chart supplement to find the appropriate TEC routes and specific rules for the Northeast, Texas, and Louisiana.
A pilot may wish to ask for a TEC route for several other reasons. Since TEC routes avoid “Center” airspace, pilots remain with Approach controllers rather than Center controllers. This can mean less frequency switching depending upon flight across centers.
Additionally, routing and readback are typically quicker with less chances for readback errors due to the abbreviated form (e.g., ONTP16). Sometimes, the controller still gives a full route clearance. If that occurs, the routing is most likely the same as the TEC route routing, saving time and confusion when copying or reading back the clearances.
Depending on the weather, if there is worse weather above, a TEC routing still may allow a pilot to operate under IFR in better weather at lower altitudes. TEC is very convenient for training, as it can allow for IFR procedures without extensive route coordination. It also can be convenient for charter or corporate pilots, who may benefit greatly from TEC if they continually operate in an environment from city pairs that have high demand for short-haul flights, allowing for a quicker turnaround time.
Pilots using ForeFlight in Northern or Southern California can input the abbreviated TEC route directly into their flight plan or select it from the Routes tab.
California seems to have tower en route control worked out very well. ForeFlight shows the routes for Northern and Southern California by searching tower en route control in the Documents tab.
Ultimately, it’s up to the pilot in command to decide how to get from airport to airport safely. Tower en route control is one option for completing an IFR flight plan between included pairs of airports in specific parts of the country. Next time you’re in one of those areas, you may want to try it. You might be surprised at how easy it is.