BTW you are meant to leave the Euro zone from a customs designated airport (I assume still no change there either) but what is the point and who is concerned? If you leave form say a private strip in France, file your FP and GENDEC for clearing into the UK, are the UK authorities upset you have LEFT from a non designated field (and if so why) and do they know anyway which are and arent or whether it is one that is sometimes designated and you have arranged customs PTD, or is it the French that are bothered, but why is that different from when you leave the UK for France from a private strip?
Fuji_Abound wrote:
you are meant to leave the Euro zone from a customs designated airport
What you mean is the European Union. 
The Euro zone is this:
Fuji_Abound wrote:
are the UK authorities upset you have LEFT from a non designated field (and if so why) and do they know anyway which are and arent or whether it is one that is sometimes designated and you have arranged customs PTD, or is it the French that are bothered, but why is that different from when you leave the UK for France from a private strip?
AFAIK the French have implemented the customs rules differently from other countries. We have a similar situation with Switzerland. The French require customs on leaving France towards Switzerland (last time I checked) as well as returning. Departing from Germany, there is an implementing by-law that says you can pretty much leave the customs area from anywhere you like, but for coming back you’re more limited in your choice of airfield.
In my opinion, either the French really think they want to stop people from embarking with a suitcase of money to Switzerland with this requirement, or they just haven’t given it a thought when they drafted the regulations.
Since my French home airfield has no customs and cannot get it even on request, this has already prompted me to wonder if I couldn’t just hop over the border to Germany, do a touch-and-go on some nearby airfield to then depart to Switzerland and have EU customs covered. Almost the same for coming back, there are also smaller fields which are on the list for entering, though I would maybe do a full stop landing in Germany to avoid any doubt.
Really stupid scattered regionalism if you ask me, but it is what we have to put up with. You basically need to study all the local customs laws only available in the local language if you want to stay legal.
Yes, of course but the question still stands – albeit I do see France UK would be Eurozone to EU member.
I think that map is slightly optimistic on the “candidate” countries 
We could have a debate on what Jeppesen call “Europe” but we have done that one before
As to why any democratic country cares who leaves it, I don’t know. There is no point in controlling departures, especially since anybody can leave if they want to. And a proper criminal can always leave, on some little boat or, anywhere on mainland Europe, by driving a car or, gosh, walking….
Fuji_Abound wrote:
but the question still stands
I have edited my post above to add my thoughts on this.
Fuji,
no, generally, national authorities don’t care the least bit about whether you respect all the rules of the “other” country. Also, there is no “supra-national” authority to govern this.
This is because:
A) that’s just the way it is, i.e. national oversight ends at the national border.
B) they simply can’t know all the rules of the neighbouring countries. For example, the UK GAR system and all its rules is a total mess for anybody outside the UK to understand (actually even for those in the UK…). Also, there may be exemptions in place, etc. For example: With the right contacts, one might get approval from French police to depart from a local farm strip. Uk police would never make a fuss initially, only then to find out that everything was in order…
Peripherally on this topic, is there any evidence that any country takes action against pilots who have in the past departed from a non Port of Entry airport? (obviously I mean non Schengen situation)
It is quite frequently done when returning home. Say I am departing from St Yan LFLN (no C/I nowadays) to Shoreham EGKA, with a flight plan filed to LFAT. Approaching LFAT, I divert to Shoreham.
Obviously it would be useful if the wx at LFAT was poor but it doesn’t have to be.
I have never heard of any repercussions.
So the conclusion seems to be in Frances case it is the French that care, not us. Whist I am not suggesting disobeying the law, it begs the question what they would actually do when you requested your FP be activated. I own up to having done so a few times before I reliased the position and of course no one was remotely interested.
I have sometimes wondered about another question which is that you decide to do a few T and Gs or approaches somehwere in France which is not customs designated. So you file a FP of course, but no GENDEC either way becasue the intention is not to leave the airport or possibly even land at the airport. You therefore FP to Le XYZ, and then FP back to the UK with at no point actually closing the FP. I wonder if the FP and lack of any GENDEC works for both us and the French. Never done that one!
edited to add – Peter that is a very good work around but as you say looks somewhat intentional if the weather is CAVOK and you havent even attemtped an approach.
It reminds me of an occasions going somewhere I chatted to AT and it became clear I didnt really want to land at his airport only clear customs – so he cheerily said fly donw the runway for me, and be about your business – there izz no customs here anyway.
it is the French that care, not us
define “us” ?
What you meant to say was European Union
No. What he meant to say was the Schengen Zone.
I’d always assumed that exit France thing was a Schengen rule so that in some strange theory they could control those entering and leaving (eg to stop a terrorist who has committed a crime leaving the zone). But if other Schengen countries don’t require an exit C/I airport then that’s not it.
Perhaps it’s for the old chestnut of making checks on those carrying more currency than allowed, or carrying contraband?
