Are there any mandatory VFR routes OCAS?

Alpha_Floor wrote:

most of the flight was in Class G but flying the VFR routes in Morocco was “de facto mandatory”

Nice video bloody high though

The routes are also mandatory for gliders but no height restrictions and thermals going up to 10kft, if you ask to go too much “off VFR airways” regional ATC will start asking “Rho & Theta” to IFR waypoints or aerodrome every 5min, at some point you keep it for yourself, they also feel the need to clear you for field landouts, give wind & QNH while asking you to call them later to close your FPL

Alpha_Floor wrote:

When I flew to GMME Rabat Morocco, most of the flight was in Class G but flying the VFR routes in Morocco was “de facto mandatory”. The controller was asking for frequent position reports.

That is a really amazing video to a guy who hasn’t filed any kind of flight plan in going on 20 years and who very rarely maintains any kind of radio contact with the ground en route.

It looks like the route to Rabat would be to follow the shoreline. Assuming the controller doesn’t have radar (the only reason I can imagine for the excruciating number of position reports requested) you have to wonder why can’t he just ask your speed and figure out when you’ll get to those points all on his own, allowing you to do other things like fly the plane

“You could 100.000% legally turn off your radio and fly anywhere OCAS you want (usual caveats apply e.g. P D R areas, border crossings, etc).”

What about uncontrolled airfields OCAS. Eg LFFK. Radio is mandatory here, you can 100% not turn your radio off.

When I flew to GMME Rabat Morocco, most of the flight was in Class G but flying the VFR routes in Morocco was “de facto mandatory”. The controller was asking for frequent position reports.

In LPCS Cascais Portugal, there are VFR arrival and departure routes. They separate the inbound and outbound flows by 500ft, so inbound is maybe 1500 and outbound is 1000. I believe those routes keep you below the Lisbon TMA CAS, yet they seem to be kind of “de facto mandatory” again.

Peter wrote:

What exact authority does ATC have for this?

dunno, but if AIP says you have to have a FPL with reporting points and contact some ATC, I guess you should even if it is OCAS…

I am no expert on regulation but from my experience with Corsica, the routes are there because of the overflight points that do not get validated otherwise in your flight plan. You may be OCAS but are still expected to report overflying these points to FIS. That being said, whenever I have asked for more directs, say halfway the crossing asking for a direct to Propriano, I have always gotten this…

Uncontrolled airspace does not mean there are no rules or procedures for flying within that airspace. It merely means there is no control (in the sense of radio contact and mandatory adherence with ad hoc ATC instructions).

You could 100.000% legally turn off your radio

Sure.

and fly anywhere OCAS you want

Not if there are published rules that say otherwise.

Minimum altitudes is a similar thing: You can’t go below it just because it’s uncontrolled airspace.

You can test it at court if you like, but otherwise, I recommend to just acccept it. These published procedures are rare enough not to worry about them. Also, as said, you can always negotiate deviations from such routes on the spot.

I think boscomantico gave a good example on this chart with the routes to Corsica.
But I’ve heard that is it s indeed possible to deviate slightly from said route.

As for reading this chart (which looks like a 1/500k IGN) It’s indeed quite hard and also why IGN has edited a few 1/250k charts for better readability.
It’s way easier than to get all actors to agree on simplifying the airspace…. (not from a pilot’s point of view obviously…)

VFR routes are also used in Morocco.