Definition
Air traffic control services provided to aircraft arriving at, departing from, or transiting the airspace around busier airports. Approach Control handles aircraft inbound to the airport, sequencing and separating them as they descend toward the runway. Departure Control handles aircraft after takeoff, providing separation and routing as they climb away from the airport and join the en route structure. These services are typically delivered from a TRACON (Terminal Radar Approach Control) facility, though at some locations they are provided directly by an Air Route Traffic Control Center.
Plain English
The radar controllers who guide you in for landing and watch over you on the way out, working the airspace close to a busy airport.
Context Anchor
You encounter this term when reading about which air traffic control facility handles you after takeoff, before landing, or while being guided to or from an instrument approach.
Why Pilots Care
They provide separation from other aircraft and issue vectors and clearances needed for safe instrument arrivals and departures.
Intuition Check
Do not read “approach” and “departure” as just ordinary descriptions of getting closer to or farther from an airport. Here they name specific air traffic control services used during those phases of flight.
Example Sentence 1
After takeoff, the tower instructed us to contact Departure Control on 124.7.
Example Sentence 2
After departure the aircraft was handed off to Approach/Departure control services for the climb clearance.