Thanks Timothy, that’s very interesting. So a great deal of GA chatter could be avoided by pilots just using listening squawks and transponding? I won’t jump on the radio in future but listen out and concentrate more on flying.
Timothy wrote: Timothy wrote:
in IMC, being told that there is traffic four miles away isn’t much help
Indeed, not much use at all, although it was drilled into my IMC training to always request ‘the best service available’. Not actually that helpful in reality.
You should always ask for a traffic service but often you won’t get it, due to ATCO workload or due to you flying below a specific altitude.
It is very hard to spot a GA plane at 4-5nm, unless the light and the contrast conditions are just right. A 737, yes.
A Basic Service is virtually useless, partly because most people flying in the same area are not participating. It is little better than a listening watch, for emergencies.
