Non-towered · Class G at the surface
Lower Loon Creek (C53) radio calls
Challis, IDFAA identifier C53; no ICAO code assigned
Lower Loon Creek is a non-towered airport in Challis, ID. Nobody clears you to do anything: you self-announce on the CTAF, 122.9, as Lower Loon Creek Traffic, with the airport name at the start and end of each call.
No Class B, C, D or E surface area is designated for this airport in the FAA data, so the airspace at the surface is Class G.
Frequencies
| CTAFLower Loon Creek Traffic | 122.9 |
|---|
Airport
- Runways
- 16 · 34
- Elevation
- 4,200 ft
- Position
- 44.809, -114.809
Non-towered airport: self-announce on the CTAF
Sample calls at C53
Lower Loon Creek has no operating control tower. Every call below goes out on the CTAF, 122.9, to the other aircraft, not to a controller. The runway shown is 16; use whichever runway the wind and the traffic dictate on the day.
The aircraft is the AIM’s own example, Cessna Three One Six Zero Foxtrot; the squawk codes, altitudes and headings are illustrative. Frequencies, station names and runway numbers are this airport’s, from the FAA data.
- Tune 122.9. Nobody clears you; you announce and you listen. The airport name goes at the start and the end of every call, and the runway is always a number, never "the active" (AIM 4-1-9 g 8).
- YouLower Loon Creek traffic, Cessna Three One Six Zero Foxtrot, taxiing to runway one six, Lower Loon Creek.
- YouLower Loon Creek traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, departing runway one six, departing the pattern to the north, Lower Loon Creek.
- Announce until you are about 10 miles out; on the way back, start announcing at 10 miles (AIM 4-1-9 c 1, TBL 4-1-1).
- YouLower Loon Creek traffic, Cessna Three One Six Zero Foxtrot, one zero miles south, two thousand five hundred, landing Lower Loon Creek, Lower Loon Creek.
- YouLower Loon Creek traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, entering left downwind runway one six, full stop, Lower Loon Creek.
- YouLower Loon Creek traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, left base runway one six, Lower Loon Creek.
- YouLower Loon Creek traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, final runway one six, full stop, Lower Loon Creek.
- YouLower Loon Creek traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, clear of runway one six, Lower Loon Creek.
If things change. Do not use "any traffic in the area, please advise"; the AIM says it is not to be used under any condition (AIM 4-1-9 g 1). Listen for ten miles before you arrive; most of what you want to know has already been said.
Phraseology from AIM 4-1-9 c 1, g 1, g 8, h; TBL 4-1-1; 4-3-3. What TowerTalk grades against →
The calls you will make here
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Frequencies, runways and airspace from the FAA National Airspace System Resources (NASR) 28-day subscription, cycle effective Sep 3, 2026. Training use only. Always verify against a current Chart Supplement and sectional chart before flight; frequencies change. TowerTalk is not affiliated with the FAA. Report a discrepancy.
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