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Flight plans in Italy - mandatory?

Italy AIP ENR 1.10 1.1

ESME, ESMS

See: http://www.vatita.net/drupal/airspace/VFR_rules

2. The presentation of a FPL/VFR is mandatory.

Maybe this site is the reason for the confusion? Although it’s a SIM page it is one of the top links you find on Google if you type in ‘VFR flights Italy’ and easy to be misleading

Of course, the Italian AIP (post from Dimme) is the official explanation and can be followed.

Last Edited by Charlie_Alpha at 14 Aug 12:14
Charlie_Alpha
EHBD, Netherlands

He who takes information from flight sim (!) sources should duly suffer the consequences
;-)
Everyone else looks in the official sources and goes flying ;-)

...
EDM_, Germany

Since a few years you need a flight plan to cross controlled airspace in Italy (and if you don’t have an elt, for any flight, I think). BUT you can open and close it inflight, so de facto the only real change is the wording used on the radio, nothing else.

United Kingdom

Sure; you need a FP for CAS everywhere AFAIK, per ICAO, but most places accept airborne filing, implicitly via the radio call requesting transit.

There are however lots of really tight countries, as mentioned in the links.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Possibly a daft question (my coat is at the ready) but can cross-border Schengen flights be made to/from unmanned airfields so long as a FP has been filed, either electronically prior to flight or with ATC whilst in flight? Or does it need a physical person on the ground at both or either end?

jgmusic
North Weald, United Kingdom

Yes, of course.

Any requirement for a manned tower etc is a separate issue.

Where a FP is required for a border crossing (it is in most cases; see links above) it has to be a “proper one”. In theory airborne filing is supposed to be supported now in EASA-land, but I don’t think it works. If you are airborne then I suppose it is a fait accompli, but IME a towered airport will not let you depart on an international flight unless they have the FP. Just file it with your favourite tablet app… the gotcha is if there is no internet connectivity.

I don’t know about Italian airfield staffing requirements but you can fly UK farm strip to Italy, or back, and you need the GAR form for the return flight only.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

No staff at airfield required.
I have had numerous FPs opened by Italian and French AFIS when calling them after T/O.
Same for arrival notice over the phone (if not closed prior to landing by last AFIS.

Last Edited by ch.ess at 14 Aug 13:29
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EDM_, Germany

Peter wrote:

the gotcha is if there is no internet connectivity.

Or there is, and you know you have filed a FP, but the airport can’t find it. I had to call Milan and do the whole thing manually over the phone when trying to depart Elba once, when all the time Sky Demon was proudly telling me it had been filed Presumably this must happen occasionally – people looking in the wrong place, or getting the wrong callsign, or just denying it for an easy life?

jgmusic
North Weald, United Kingdom

Yes, it happens fairly often with VFR ones. SD use EuroFPL to do it, and things can break along the way. I use EuroFPL for VFR flights but I am in their user interface interactively and I can see the “sent” status of the filed FP (there is no ACK with VFR FPs). Never had a problem with them. I did some notes here a while ago.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom
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