Mob TRACON controller reported lost communications with two VFR aircraft which were attempting to av...

Attributes
ACN	1545467
Time
Date	201805
Local Time Of Day	1201-1800
Place
Locale Reference	MOB.TRACON
State Reference	AL
Environment
Flight Conditions	Marginal
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	PA-44 Seminole/Turbo Seminole
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	Descent
Flight Plan	VFR
Aircraft 2
Make Model Name	PA-32 Cherokee Six/Lance/Saratoga/6X
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	Descent
Route In Use	VFR Route
Flight Plan	VFR
Person 1
Function	Approach
Qualification	Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Experience	Air Traffic Control Time Certified In Pos 1 (yrs) 16
Events
Anomaly	ATC Issue All Types Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence

Narrative:

While working east radar position with adverse weather in the entire area; I had a very difficult time communicating with aircraft X and aircraft Y. Aircraft X was a VFR arrival into a satellite airport. I issued adverse weather to the aircraft and attempted to vector the aircraft around the weather safely but could not maintain communications with this aircraft. Aircraft X turned around and headed back to the east and I immediately advised the adjacent TRACON of the situation and asked if they were in contact with aircraft X. This aircraft decided to land at an airport and returned to the other TRACON frequency on its own due to not being able to talk to me. Moments later I had a communication problem with aircraft Y. Both of these aircraft were operating in locations where there was heavy precipitation and terrain obstructions. The radios here have been a problem for quite some time. This is a daily issue that needs to be resolved immediately before an incident occurs. The radio situation at this facility creates extra workload; unwanted frequency congestion; confusion; and a downright dangerous environment. I suggest to get these radio issues resolved as soon as possible.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: MOB TRACON Controller reported lost communications with two VFR aircraft which were attempting to avoid adverse weather in an area where radio communications are routinely lost.

Narrative: While working east radar position with adverse weather in the entire area; I had a very difficult time communicating with Aircraft X and Aircraft Y. Aircraft X was a VFR arrival into a satellite airport. I issued adverse weather to the aircraft and attempted to vector the aircraft around the weather safely but could not maintain communications with this aircraft. Aircraft X turned around and headed back to the east and I immediately advised the adjacent TRACON of the situation and asked if they were in contact with Aircraft X. This aircraft decided to land at an airport and returned to the other TRACON frequency on its own due to not being able to talk to me. Moments later I had a communication problem with Aircraft Y. Both of these aircraft were operating in locations where there was heavy precipitation and terrain obstructions. The radios here have been a problem for quite some time. This is a daily issue that needs to be resolved immediately before an incident occurs. The radio situation at this facility creates extra workload; unwanted frequency congestion; confusion; and a downright dangerous environment. I suggest to get these radio issues resolved as soon as possible.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.

Mob TRACON controller reported lost communications with two VFR aircraft which were attempting to avoid adverse weather in an area where radio communications are routinely lost.