tmo wrote:
It does show how rusty one can get and how fast it can happen.Thank you for sharing
Thanks. It was kind of a “focusing error”. I focused so much on avoiding on piece of airspace that I forgot about the other.
It was my first flight in two months and the first in a long time were I actually had to watch out for airspace. I performed two class D transits on the same day, including one directly overhead a Luftwaffe airbase. Lots of valuable experience for me.
Personally my lesson was to always be upfront and contact ATC immediately if one thinks there are any kind of problems. Also I need to better brief my departure.
Well done Medewok for posting your experience.
In the UK you would have been busted, prob 100.000. Hopefully a warning letter, but it depends on how many they can stuff down the gasco “course” pipe.
I am certain most busts are brief like yours, and I am equally certain that most are the result of distractions, etc, not “faulty planning in the armchair” which almost nobody does (a few % perhaps). That’s why neither “education” nor “punishment” have any effect – other than by making people give up flying or, as in my case, change their flying to avoid flying anywhere near certain airspace especially with passengers.
As to the tx setting of 7600, FIS do not like you to do so unless you are on a flight plan or crossing controlled airspace (effectively meaning the same).
When you do not reach an airfield, go back to FIS and let them check/contact them for you.
Coming from CZ last year (w/o FPL as both countries had dropped the requirement pre-Covid) I had a total radio failure (internally jammed switch pilot side, switches off any TX after some time), I set 7600 and was told in no unclear terms afterwards that they rather have me fly home NORDO than tracking me and raising alarm along the route (reportedly, the FIS folks get continuous/unstoppable warnings about 7600 flights on their working screens).
ch.ess wrote:
As to the tx setting of 7600, FIS do not like you to do so unless you are on a flight plan or crossing controlled airspace (effectively meaning the same).When you do not reach an airfield, go back to FIS and let them check/contact them for you.
Coming from CZ last year (w/o FPL as both countries had dropped the requirement pre-Covid) I had a total radio failure (internally jammed switch pilot side, switches of any TX after some time), I set 7600 and was told in no unclear terms fterwards that they rather have me fly home NORDO than tracking me and raising alarm along the route (reportedly, the FIS folks get continuous/unstoppable warnings about 7600 flights on their working screens).
Thanks for your input. Afterwards I felt really stupid about this, more so because I could clearly hear the traffic in the circuit, so I thought it was a radio failure on my part only.
The guy from Langen Information was very friendly on the phone, he just wanted to make sure I landed okay.
I flew with a friend a while ago and we had what appeared to be radio failure so squawked 7600 and continued making blind calls
Like you when we arrived at the destination the phone rang and a very concerned ATSO asked if we were okay. I thought it was pretty nice of him
The radio problem was a bit weird, we asked the maintenance guy to take a look at it
He just switched on and everything worked perfectly and has continued to do so, since
I hate ot when that happens.
Roughly 10 years ago I was at a presentation at NATS at Swanwick and the subject of 7600 came up. The senior NATS guy said you will get shot down (by the military). I asked him to repeat it, basically, which he did, seriously. The other 10-15 in the audience seemed to just accept this.
I thought that NATS could have dug up a more useful presenter from their huge pool of £100k+ employees 
MedEwok wrote:
(I had set 7600 on the transponder when I couldn’t reach my destination for minutes, but it turned out I had just dialled in the frequency wron
Before squawking 7600 I would always try to reach someone at 121.5.
Rather than dialling a new frequency, I would toggle back to the previous frequency which worked…
squawking 7600 is not RT specific you can do it when you see hot CHTs nothing to do with radio issues or comms failures, obviously ATS would want to know better on RT comms first rather than Christmas tree on every radar screen, in the UK, once they get hold on you on RT, they will ask you to switch to a different comm frequency and put you on a different squawk to avoid swamping everybody
Also 7600 will not open CAS for you, you still need clearance and it is subject to traffic flow, 7700 will open every bit of CAS for you, even if you have no RT contact but you may have to explain few things later, both codes are managed by D&D RAF(U) at Swanwick and they are not part of NATS or rest of ATC units
You need to be above a certain height for 121.5 to work in every place (4000ft?), but there are airlines who cal rely, but usually much easier to call nearby ATC units and surprisingly only few of them monitors 121.5 (this job is left to D&D unlike France where almost every controller monitors 121.5, I once called ground for taxi to fuel clearance on 121.5 by mistake, got a funny reply: clear to taxi, no need to call on121.5 unless you are planing to run out of fuel half way )
Unlike NATS or various ATC units, RAF(U) D&D seems less interested in Class D CAS busts, LTMA altitude busts or loss of separation they are more in making identification and RT contact for intentions…
Well, acc to ICAO 7600 is radio / communication specific…
