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Flight Plan to FL220 and Return?

My turbo-normalised Bonanza was ready for air test on Friday. We did a couple of ground runs, made a couple of adjustments, and flew a short flight in the overhead of EGTF. On Monday, weather permitting, I’m planning to do a more extensive flight including a climb to at least FL220 to prove the turbo.

So how do I file an IFR flight plan to depart EGTF, climb to FL220 in any direction, then return to EGTF? Achim has suggested I climb VFR to the base of Class A then negotiate with ATC, but is there any way I can do it on an IFR flight plan?

Spending too long online
EGTF Fairoaks, EGLL Heathrow, United Kingdom

Don’t know about the kinks of the UK ATC system and its restrictions programmed into the Brussels computer, but in Germany, that would be no problem. You would just file A to A and maybe use the STAY indicator on a nearby waypoint to allow you to adjust the ETE as you wish.

Last Edited by boscomantico at 16 Apr 14:07
Mainz (EDFZ) & Egelsbach (EDFE), Germany

Thanks boscomantico, I’ll try that.

I spoke to the Euro Control help desk yesterday and they said file an invalid flight plan and they’d sort it out, but I can’t file an invalid plan!

Spending too long online
EGTF Fairoaks, EGLL Heathrow, United Kingdom

I did the same one time from Rotterdam (EHRD) where I wanted to climb to FL250 to test the Emergency Descent Mode (EDM) as described here: http://www.aeroplus.nl/emergency-descent-mode-edm-garmin-perspective

I filed an IFR flightplan from Rotterdam to Calais via a route over the Northsea (not the most efficient route, but valid) as Dutch ATC told me I had to ask 2 days ahead to do such a test. Once I was in contact with London Control I explained what I wanted to do and also that I wanted to divert back to Rotterdam (my alternate) instead of flying on to Calais. They accepted. I did my thing at FL250 and returned to Rotterdam.

Just make sure you call ahead to the controller (where possible) to explain what you want to do as well as to the destination airport that you will be diverting back to the airport of departure and why you filed the flightplan like this.

You can also use the STAY feature suggested above. I would fly south-east bound and file to e.g. Le Touquet at FL220. Call Le Touquet that you will not come and tell London Control as well as Fairoaks of your plans and all should work out. I had no problem explaining what I wanted with London Control and getting approval to do it. One suggestion would be to do it outside the peak traffic hours.

Last Edited by AeroPlus at 16 Apr 15:09
EDLE, Netherlands

You can do this quite easily in TRA2 (Boscombe/Yeovilton). You email [email protected] and [email protected] and they send you a form to fill in saying where when and what altitude and they will approve a flight. It is a request for a civilian flight test to receive service from London Mil ATC. They were very helpful when I did it.

UK AIP ENR1.1 para 4.8 refers.

Last Edited by JasonC at 16 Apr 15:34
EGTK Oxford

That is all OTT. After all, what you want to do is check out the altitude performance of the engine and little more. So even while we might call it a “test flight”, from an ATC perspective it is just another flight from A to A. No need to pre-notify such a flight, etc.

Mainz (EDFZ) & Egelsbach (EDFE), Germany

You can go to FL195 around Norwich. I’ve done that a number of times, after any maintenance to the engine / fuel system. It’s Class G.

But no higher appears to be possible. They told me it would have to be filed via London Control in the usual way.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

boscomantico wrote:

That is all OTT. After all, what you want to do is check out the altitude performance of the engine and little more. So even while we might call it a “test flight”, from an ATC perspective it is just another flight from A to A. No need to pre-notify such a flight, etc.

While you are right in general, try doing such a round trip flight anywhere near the South of the UK. Because of airways, you won’t get the altitude you need for a brief climb to FL250, 350 or FL410 as needed for some testing. TRA2 is a hole in the airways structure and run by London Mil so a good place for high altitude testing if you need it without going far from home.

EGTK Oxford

Thanks for all the advice. I think I’ll try the TRA first.

Spending too long online
EGTF Fairoaks, EGLL Heathrow, United Kingdom

Try doing such a round trip flight anywhere near the South of the UK. Because of airways, you won’t get the altitude you need for a brief climb to FL250, 350 or FL410 as needed for some testing.

Sorry, but why are you suggesting that one would be denied access to the airways for an A to A flight? The airways are there for this reason. Nowhere does it say that airways are reserved for flying from A to B…

Mainz (EDFZ) & Egelsbach (EDFE), Germany
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