Corona / Covid-19 virus - airport and flying restrictions, and licensing / medical issues

There is a lot of TS here in Venice today as well. We flew Cannes-Mali Lošinj-Pula-Venice over the last week. If I was to fly from the UK I would probably fly to overhead Cannes and along the coast to Albenga.

I must say getting direct transits at any altitude of your choosing through the normally restricted airspace in these parts is an unexpected pleasure.

We are still locked down until June 17 in Belgium.
Waiting :-(

B2089/20
From:18 MAY 20 00:00 Till:17 JUN 20 23:59
Text:COVID-19: VFR FLT ACROSS BELGIAN STATE BORDERS NOT ALLOWED, EXC MAINT FLT AND COMMERCIAL FLT AS DEFINED ON WWW.MOBILIT.BELGIUM.BE (SECTION AVIATION/COVID-19)

B2090/20
From:18 MAY 20 00:00 Till:17 JUN 20 23:59
Text:COVID-19: VFR FLT SHALL LAND AT DEP AD, EXC MEDICAL, POLICE, SAR, STATE, MIL, MAINTENANCE, TECHNICAL INSPECTION, COMMERCIAL FLT AS DEFINED ON WWW.MOBILIT.BELGIUM.BE (SECTION AVIATION/COVID-19) AND FLT TO ASSURE FUNCTIONING OF THE STATE

B2091/20
From:18 MAY 20 00:00 Till:17 JUN 20 23:59
Text:COVID-19: VFR FLT NOT ALLOWED IN AIRSPACE CLASS C, EXC MEDICAL, POLICE, SAR, STATE, MIL, MAINT, TECHNICAL INSPECTION FLT, FERRY FLT, COMMERCIAL FLT AS DEFINED ON WWW.MOBILIT.BELGIUM.BE (SECTION AVIATION/COVID-19) AND FLT TO ASSURE FUNCTIONING OF THE STATE

Authorities in Scotland have made flying reasonable lately. But my two shared aircraft are at an airport 50 miles away.
Note the charge made against two hillwalkers in the report below, copied from BBC News:
“It comes after two people were charged with culpable and reckless conduct following their rescue at the weekend.
Police said they had breached lockdown guidance around travel for recreation.
The 27-year-old man and 23-year-old woman had travelled more than 60 miles (96km) from Glasgow to climb a mountain near Crianlarich.”

Biz jets (and top-end ones at that) now being pressed into cargo service: https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2020-06-04/dassault-converts-falcon-900b-medical-cargo-duty

I remember seeing Falcon jets being converted into freighters at Avcon in Newton, Kansas circa 2001. The conversion involves putting a giant door in the side of the fuselage, and I mean giant. I was there on other business but remember being told that a typical application was nightly runs out and back to Mexico, picking up seat belts and delivering them to US auto plants. The aircraft being converted were apparently cheap to buy and did the job.

Things aren’t over as of yet after all. From here.

Torp, Sandefjord is a private commercial airport (not AVINOR). What the article doesn’t say, but is mentioned other places as the root cause, is that the airport management has opted for reduced operation, most probably due to much reduced traffic. This has caused the ATC, which is AVINOR, to send most of the crew on leave, since the airport can’t pay them.

The result is that the airport is only open morning and evening, and for commercial airlines only. The airport has 3 flight academies, and they all have to close. According to the article this means 200 employees at the flight schools are put on leave, and 500 pilot students are sent home.

That’s pretty bad. What wonders me the most though is that the flight schools have 200 employees and 500 students. I would have thought it was 1/10 of that, hmm.

Also, why on earth cannot the flight academies operate without ATC? There must be more to this.

Anyway, the last word has not been said apparently, but that’s what commercial airports are like IMO.

Peter wrote:

Looks like a good time to do a trip, before they get organised.

I’d be careful with that. This was the way it was done in other countries and the police checked on people every day at different times, sometimes twice, sometimes thrice. If found breaking quarantine it was a fine equivalent to about a yearly salary in that place. Be sure the UK authorities will know about this and implement it.