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Non-towered · Class G at the surface

Sparta Community-Hunter Field (KSAR) radio calls

Sparta, ILICAO KSAR · FAA SAR

Sparta Community-Hunter Field is a non-towered airport in Sparta, IL. Nobody clears you to do anything: you self-announce on the CTAF, 123.075, as Sparta Community-Hunter Field Traffic, with the airport name at the start and end of each call. The approach control for the area is Saint Louis Approach on 125.2, which is who you call for VFR flight following.

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

CTAFSparta Community-Hunter Field Traffic123.075
Approach / DepartureSaint Louis Approach125.2

Airport

Runways
09 · 27 · 18 · 36
Elevation
538 ft
Position
38.149, -89.698

Non-towered airport: self-announce on the CTAF

Sample calls at KSAR

Sparta Community-Hunter Field has no operating control tower. Every call below goes out on the CTAF, 123.075, to the other aircraft, not to a controller. The runway shown is 09; 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.

  1. Tune 123.075. 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).
  2. YouSparta Community-Hunter Field traffic, Cessna Three One Six Zero Foxtrot, taxiing to runway zero niner, Sparta Community-Hunter Field.
  3. YouSparta Community-Hunter Field traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, departing runway zero niner, departing the pattern to the north, Sparta Community-Hunter Field.
  4. 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).
  5. YouSparta Community-Hunter Field traffic, Cessna Three One Six Zero Foxtrot, one zero miles south, two thousand five hundred, landing Sparta Community-Hunter Field, Sparta Community-Hunter Field.
  6. YouSparta Community-Hunter Field UNICOM, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, one zero miles south, request wind and runway information, Sparta Community-Hunter Field.
  7. A UNICOM operator, if one is on, answers with the wind and the runway in use (AIM 4-1-9 h). If nobody answers, choose the runway from the wind and the pattern traffic you can hear.
  8. YouSparta Community-Hunter Field traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, entering left downwind runway zero niner, full stop, Sparta Community-Hunter Field.
  9. YouSparta Community-Hunter Field traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, left base runway zero niner, Sparta Community-Hunter Field.
  10. YouSparta Community-Hunter Field traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, final runway zero niner, full stop, Sparta Community-Hunter Field.
  11. YouSparta Community-Hunter Field traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, clear of runway zero niner, Sparta Community-Hunter Field.

If things change. Want flight following after departure? Call Saint Louis Approach on 125.2 once clear of the pattern: identification, type, position, altitude, destination, "request VFR flight following" (AIM 4-1-18 a 3). 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).

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

Nearby in Illinois

Frequencies, runways and airspace from the FAA National Airspace System Resources (NASR) 28-day subscription, cycle effective Oct 29, 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.