MOB APCH CTLR CONCERNED WITH RECURRING ASR-8 RADAR TRACKING PROBS WITHIN 15 MILES OF MOB ARPT; WITH KING KX76 TRANSPONDER EQUIPPED ACFT BEING BLOCKED BY THE ZHU CITRONELLE LONG RANGE RADAR SITE BEACON INTERROGATOR.

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TO EXPLAIN IT BRIEFLY; OUR BEACON DOES NOT INTERROGATE THE KINGS 76 TRANSPONDER. THUS; ACFT ARE NOT TAGGED APPROPRIATELY. (THEIR BEACON DOES NOT APPEAR ON THE RADAR SCOPE). THE POTENTIAL FOR AN OCCURRENCE IS GREAT. AN ACFT FLYING AROUND AS A PRIMARY TARGET IS EASILY FORGOTTEN. NUMEROUS PLTS HAVE ALSO TAKEN THEIR ACFT IN FOR MAINT BECAUSE WE INFORM THEM OF A PROB. THE PROB IS WITH THE FAA'S EQUIP; NOT THE ACFT'S. SOMETHING WILL HAPPEN SOMETIME IN THE FUTURE UNFORTUNATELY. AS YOU CAN SEE IN THE DOCUMENTATION ENCLOSED; THIS IS A NATIONAL PROB. IT IS NOW CLOSED; BUT IT WAS NOT SOLVED. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR ADVISED THE FAC RECEIVED A MEMORANDUM FROM ATX-400 STATING THAT THE CTLR UCR SUBMITTED IDENTIFYING THIS PROB; WHICH WAS SUPPORTED BY MOB FAC MGMNT AND THE FAA SOUTHERN REGIONAL OFFICE IS 'CLOSED'. THE CTLR ADVISED THAT THE TRACKING PROB CONTINUES TWO TO FOUR TIMES A WEEK; CAUSING MANUAL HDOF REQUIREMENTS TO ZHU; P31 AND/OR GULFPORT APCH CTLS PENDING DIRECTION OF FLT AND ALT. THE CTLR ADVISED OF THE CONSTANT POTENTIAL THAT A DROPPED DATA BLOCK WILL BE FORGOTTEN. THE CTLR ADVISED THAT DROPPED D/NON-TRACKED DATA BLOCKS DEFAULT TO A 'CST' LIST FOR APPROX FIVE MINS; THEN ARE DROPPED FROM THE CTLR'S RADAR DISPLAY. A FEW YRS AGO; MOB'S ASR-7 WAS UPGRADED TO AN ASR-8; ARTS IIE; DIRECT PROCESSING/ANALOG SYS. THE CTLR THOUGHT THAT SAV TRACON HAD A SIMILAR PROB; BUT WAS UNSURE.