I‘ve been ramp checked in France two or three times and the Gendarmes were most interested in the journey logs of the plane.
I forgot about the other reports, also from France. This is interesting. I wonder why France is especially interested in this. OTOH it is known that if you land at LFBZ you will get turned over by the police there, but that’s because there is a training school there, not because they want to check you 
Why would a training school at LFBZ have anything to do with being ramp checked.
It is standard procedure in France to carry the journey log in the aircraft for any flight between A and B. A to A is unnecessary. The journey log is filled in by the PIC after every flight.
Ours just has date, PIC or student/instructor, flight from and to, UTC OBT UTC brakes on, type of flight eg school or private, fuel and oil added either at.depart or return, a remarks section (if all is well we put RAS in here indicating that all is well and.we sign it as being correct.
So for the “gendarmes de l’air” they can see everything they wish to know about the aircraft and also the pockets of the journey log also contain the noise certificate, insurance certificate, weight and balance template etc.
In the clubs this book is normally kept in a briefcase along.with the keys to aircraft, flight manual, aircraft keys and often the portàble personal locator beacon.
gallois wrote:
Why would a training school at LFBZ have anything to do with being ramp checked
He means “School of Douaniers”, well it’s just a pilot forums myth there isn’t any “Biarritz School of Customs” !
But fresh students from LaRochelle School will get their ground training in Biarritz during summers 
I think the La Rochelle school is closed now or at least all the buildings that used to be there, ne t to the airport have all been demolished now.
gallois wrote:
for the “gendarmes de l’air” they can see everything they wish to know about the aircraft
As I have said once before on this forum, I got well and truly ‘turned over’ one evening by this happy bunch at La Rochelle, they had especially flown up from Biarritz just to meet me and they were joined by 4 others that were based at La Rochelle, it was a real fun party, me and 8 of them, I had the full treatment including a free vacuum of the plane and all this in the rain and the dark, not a great experience being unnecessarily treated like a criminal.
My friend had a similar experience in Biarritz, along with being breathalysed at 11 in the morning.
Is there something about this area of France?
