Non-towered · Class G at the surface
Big Southern Butte (U46) radio calls
Atomic City, IDFAA identifier U46; no ICAO code assigned
Big Southern Butte is a non-towered airport in Atomic City, ID. Nobody clears you to do anything: you self-announce on the CTAF, 122.9, as Big Southern Butte 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
| CTAFBig Southern Butte Traffic | 122.9 |
|---|
Airport
- Runways
- 01 · 19
- Elevation
- 5,073 ft
- Position
- 43.433, -113.055
Non-towered airport: self-announce on the CTAF
Sample calls at U46
Big Southern Butte 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 01; 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).
- YouBig Southern Butte traffic, Cessna Three One Six Zero Foxtrot, taxiing to runway zero one, Big Southern Butte.
- YouBig Southern Butte traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, departing runway zero one, departing the pattern to the north, Big Southern Butte.
- 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).
- YouBig Southern Butte traffic, Cessna Three One Six Zero Foxtrot, one zero miles south, two thousand five hundred, landing Big Southern Butte, Big Southern Butte.
- YouBig Southern Butte traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, entering left downwind runway zero one, full stop, Big Southern Butte.
- YouBig Southern Butte traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, left base runway zero one, Big Southern Butte.
- YouBig Southern Butte traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, final runway zero one, full stop, Big Southern Butte.
- YouBig Southern Butte traffic, Cessna Six Zero Foxtrot, clear of runway zero one, Big Southern Butte.
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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