This is common.
The airway options were designed to make such a shortcut not possible (in the lower airspace, anyway).
Is it difficult for ATC to coordinate?
I can’t say how difficult it is but Austria, Slovenia and Croatia usually give the shortcuts even before you ask for it. Flying few weeks ago from LOAN to LDZD, I got direct to ALANU (begining of STAR for LDZD) when I was still close to Graz switching from Austrian to Slovenian ATC.
How did it turn out, Peter? Last weekend I had a similar situation, and Brussel Control gave me a radar vector “to shorten”. The heading brought me nicely to my destination.
I got a little shortcut across a bit of NL
I fly that route regularly. I tend to get the same as you. I think it’s more to do with mil activity than Beek.
Peter, usually the military airspace(s) TRA N A in Belgium / Holland are active, therefore there won´t be a shortcut available. Their usage is a lot less flexible than in Germany, where TRA´s are only active and blocked for GAT when actually needed.
Shortcuts in that area are often given when this is not the case. Beek Approach is very flexible, and I think a good direct helps the colleagues at Brussels as well, since you would stay north of their TMA.
Similar on the way back today
https://www.autorouter.eu/track/12965sf3J
From FR24:
So the shortcuts through NL seem to work sometimes.
Look at all that airspace you’re not allowed in…
So maybe there is a good reason why this little bit of the NL is not so easy to cross, but I have seen this sort of thing in lots of other places which is why I wondered if there is an ATC coordination (letters of agreement) issue.
Thanks for posting that pic, @airways One could get an inferiority complex seeing the “132” under my symbol, but I had 20kt of headwind