Menu Sign In Contact FAQ
Banner
Welcome to our forums

What to expect around/within Paris TMA

Guillaume will probably hate me, but I’ve found by insisting a bit “I’ll take any altitude from 2000 to FL120, will accept routings through uncontrolled airspace, as long as it avoids going round Paris” usually results in getting radar vectors and something fairly sensible.

It’s fair to ask for shortcuts, I often do when I’m flying. I just don’t count on it.

Thanks, all. I will go with option 1 then and ask for shortcuts and consider cancelling IFR to shorten my route. I used to live south of Paris and fly out of LFPU (before my IFR days) so am reasonably familiar with the VFR route options.

EGTF, EGLK, United Kingdom

Thanks for all your help and suggestions. I ended up filing option 1 and asked for shortcuts which were not given by Paris Control, however I then told the controller that I wanted to fly IFR OCAS at 3,000 ft upon which I was given approximately the route below:

I continued to stay on the Paris Control frequency until handed over to Seine Approach which then vectored me on to the RNAV 28 approach at LFPM.

On the return flight, Seine Approach let me climb to FL60 relatively early and gave me a shortcut to VATRI and then towards REM. I was not able to get any more shortcuts in the Paris TMA. As I was already at FL70 and did not want to descend down to 4,000 ft at that point, I just let it be. I did then receive a climb to FL100 going through the Paris TMA (sector 7) but without shortcut.

The issue seems to be approaches into LFPG as the ILS approach for runways 27L/R starts at 5,000 ft relatively far east, which means that the controllers need to get the aircraft down from LORNI or VEBEK to 5,000 ft without much opportunity for vectoring around traffic. I wonder whether there would have been more opportunities for shortcuts if easterly runways had been in use as the STARs for the easterly runways show a decent only to FL110 rather than FL70.

In any case, flying IFR OCAS offers an opportunity for shortcuts but it helps having the Paris region VFR paper chart in the cockpit (which I did have) as there is a confusing layer of TMA and LF-R layers on top of each other which I found difficult to make sense of on the iPad until I clicked through the various TMA sectors and read the various LF-R descriptions. The official Paris region VFR paper chart has a big red box “VFR max <x,xxx ft>” which helps a lot.

EGTF, EGLK, United Kingdom

Also, regarding POGO, I found the following in the LFPT AIP, which is why I refrained from using the POGO option, given my ETA:

Users of POGO routes linking PONTOISE to TOUSSUS and VILLACOUBLAY are to schedule the time of arrival within the following time periods (local time) : before 0730, between 1230 and 1630 and after 2000.

EGTF, EGLK, United Kingdom

I noticed area R205 has recently been created within the Paris TMA (Class A). It seems to restrict IFR traffic but any such traffic would be controlled and probably vectored anyway, so I wonder why this area was designed.
Maybe Guillaume has an answer ?

LFOU, France
25 Posts
Sign in to add your message

Back to Top