When no arrival time is received for an aircraft, investigate the arrival time to determine status and keep safety intact.

No arrival time? Here’s the clear, steady plan you’ll want to keep at the ready. In radar operations, missing an arrival time isn’t a signal to panic. It’s a cue to gather facts, verify status, and move with precision. The right move is to investigate the arrival time first. Everything else—informing, contacting, scheduling—comes after you’ve grounded your understanding with solid data.

Let me explain why this matters. In air traffic control, timing is the heartbeat of safe sequencing. Aircraft rely on a web of updates: radar tracks, flight plans, automatic messages, and voice reports. If one piece goes quiet, you don’t want to guess. A well-documented halt or gap helps you decide who to notify, what questions to ask, and when to expect a response. Without a clear handle on when the airplane is actually due, you risk cascading confusion—unnecessary hold, mis-timed sequencing, or missed handoffs. So the first instinct should be to hunt for the truth behind the missing arrival time.

What “investigate the arrival time” actually looks like

• Start with the basics: what do you know, and what is missing? You’ll log the exact time you noticed the gap, the flight identifier, and the radar track status. This gives your team a reference point and narrows the scope for the check.

• Check radar and flight data systems. Dive into the radar data history for that aircraft and compare it against the flight data processing system (FDPS) or your relevant equivalent. Look for discrepancies between the radar symbol, the flight plan, and any automated time stamps. If the aircraft isn’t showing a time, is the track solid, or is it flagged?

• Review flight logs and communication records. ACARS messages, controller-pilot data link communications, and voice recordings can reveal whether a time was transmitted, acknowledged, or suppressed. Even a missed CPDLC message or a garbled voice transmission can explain a gap.

• Inspect tracking sources. Modern operations blend several feeds: radar, ADS-B, multilateration where available, and ground-based surveillance data. Cross-check these sources to see if one feed is another place where the time might live or have dropped out.

• Consider environmental and operational factors. Weather shifts, temporary radar outages, or busy airspace can influence how arrival information is propagated. A thunderstorm ring, a busy corridor, or a temporary restriction might cause a delay in time updates without meaning the aircraft disappeared.

• Document findings with timestamps. The moment you identify a plausible cause or confirm the aircraft’s status, record it. The data trail is as important as the decision itself, because it supports safe handoffs and any future follow-up.

Think of this like detective work, but with beeping machines and flight plans instead of magnifying glasses. You’re not chasing a culprit; you’re chasing the latest, most reliable status so you can keep the flow of traffic safe and predictable. The clarity you gain from an investigation guides every next move.

What happens after you’ve collected the facts

Once you’ve built a coherent picture of the arrival time (or its absence), you’re in a much stronger position to act. The sequence typically looks like this:

• Inform the tower only after you have solid data. If the investigation reveals that the aircraft is on approach but the time wasn’t displayed due to a data feed glitch, you can notify the tower with a precise status update and a best estimate based on the most reliable sources. If the aircraft is out of range or data is not showing, you explain the reasons transparently and with the blocking data you’ve verified.

• Contact the pilot or operator when appropriate. If the data shows a needed clarification—such as a mismatch between the flight plan and the observed track or a delayed time release—you reach out through the established data-link or voice channels. Bring concrete questions, not guesses.

• Schedule a follow-up if the situation warrants it. If the arrival time remains unclear after the investigation, arrange a check-in with the relevant team, keep the lines open for new messages, and set a time to re-evaluate. A scheduled follow-up isn’t about ticking a box; it’s about sustaining situational awareness as you monitor continuing developments.

A practical mindset: don’t shortcut the data

You’ll hear chatter in busy rooms: “We’ve got enough to move forward.” In radar SOPs, that shortcut can become risk. The strength of the investigation lies in its data-driven foundation, not in hunches. Here’s where the balance comes in: be thorough enough to resolve the ambiguity, but be efficient enough not to throttle traffic. When you pause to verify, you protect every other flight in the system.

A few handy reminders that keep you grounded

• Never assume a missing arrival time means trouble automatically. It simply signals a need to verify. Your job is to confirm, not to infer.

• Build a clean, auditable trail. Each step—what you checked, what you found, what you decided—should be traceable. This helps when questions arise later and when you compare days to identify patterns.

• Use all available data sources. The more windows you open, the better your understanding. Different feeds often tell a more complete story than any single source.

• Communicate with clarity. When you relay the status to the tower or to the pilot, use precise language and avoid ambiguity. A well-phrased update reduces back-and-forth and keeps everyone aligned.

• Learn from the process. If the investigation uncovers a recurring data gap (for instance, a particular feed tends to miss a timestamp during peak loads), note it and discuss mitigations with your team. It’s not just about one aircraft; it’s about improving the rhythm of the whole sector.

A few real-world analogies to keep the idea fresh

• Think of it like a weather forecast. You don’t send a forecast down the line without checking several sources, some of which may conflict. You weigh the data, note the confidence, and then update the crew with the most reliable outlook.

• Or imagine a newsroom chasing a developing story. The reporter doesn’t publish until they’ve confirmed quotes and records from multiple sources. The same discipline applies when a missing arrival time shows up in radar SOPs.

• Even in your daily routines, you verify before you act. If your GPS shows a gap in the route, you don’t assume; you cross-check with the map, the logs, and a quick check-in with the vehicle’s operator.

The role of tools and terminology in the investigation

In radar operations, several familiar terms anchor your process:

• Radar data history and tracking: your primary view of the aircraft’s position over time.

• ADS-B and multilateration: supplemental sources that can fill gaps when primary radar data is sparse.

• ACARS messages and CPDLC: digital communications that carry time stamps or flight updates.

• FDPS or equivalent flight data system: the backbone where flight plans and timing information live.

• Tower coordination and handoff: the moment you step from investigation into operational communication.

Knowing how these pieces fit together is part of the craft. You don’t need every bell and whistle to succeed, but a practiced sense of where to look and how to confirm makes a huge difference. Radar SOPs aren’t about clever tricks; they’re about disciplined habits that keep the airspace orderly and safe.

A closing thought: stay curious, stay calm

Missing arrival times aren’t a verdict; they’re a data gap. Your instinct, guided by a methodical investigation, keeps the system steady. When you’ve gathered the evidence, you’re in a position to decide what comes next with confidence. Inform the right people, ask the right questions, and set up the right follow-up. That’s how you protect every flight while you keep the swell of traffic moving smoothly.

In the end, the key takeaway is simple: investigate the arrival time first. Then you’ll know whether to inform the tower, contact the pilot, or schedule a follow-up. It might feel like a small step, but in radar operations, it’s often the step that prevents a cascading ripple and preserves safety for everyone sharing the sky.

If you’re revisiting Radar SOPs, you’ll notice a pattern: solid data, clear communication, and a measured pace. Those aren’t just habits for one scenario; they’re the backbone of reliable airspace management. And yes, in the moments when the clock stops ticking the way you expect, that backbone is what keeps everything else upright.