Peter wrote:
which makes most of the “I flew right across France in a straight line” claims either lucky or disingenuous
That really won’t do, Peter.
I fly in straight lines across France a lot. I do it too often, and have had few enough fails (ie zero) to make it luck, and I am certainly not lying (why would I?)
I think the main answer is to do it high, 95 or 105. There is almost nothing there.
I carry SkyDemon on an iPad and on a Samsung Note, and I have charging facilities in the aircraft, as well as a remote Garmin GLO, so I feel reasonably secure.
using the great help of FIS does not mean that you don’t prepare a plan B before taking off
Sure, but it is pretty difficult to work out the Plan B. So I reckon very few people actually do that. Last time I did a long VFR flight down there was 2014 and neither myself nor my passenger (who was a French PPL pilot) was the least bit inclined to try to unravel it. My Plan B was to request an IFR clearance 
and have had few enough fails (ie zero)
I am sure that’s possible on certain routes. It is probably possible on an infinite number of routes. But I would not promote it on a forum read by over 1000 aviation readers per day, without the caveats (which have already been posted in various forms).
The only routes which would give me concern would be straight across Paris (which is impossible, you have to dog leg Paris) and the Bordeaux area when they have military exercises, which I have never encountered.
The rest of it is as boring and straightforward as IFR.
Oh, and Lyons Class C can sometimes be a pain.
Indeed….. so not quite zero fails.
I wonder how many people get the narrow route notam briefing? In theory a radio contact should eliminate the need for any preflight briefing (except wx) but then what is your Plan B for a loss of comms? And it doesn’t have to be a hardware radio failure. It can be a wrong frequency given, or a misunderstanding on the digits (happens often enough).
Any flight relying on ATC clearances via CAS is vulnerable to a loss of comms.
And then there is the rest of Europe….
Peter wrote:
I am sure that’s possible on certain routes. It is probably possible on an infinite number of routes. But I would not promote it on a forum read by over 1000 aviation readers per day, without the caveats (which have already been posted in various forms).
Oh no? What’s wrong with that? That’s how it is done, except from the Paris area where you have class A. It is never a problem to get through the TMA of secondary airports or regional airports. Even Toulouse. As long as you have a transponder with altitude reporting. It does not mean you do not plan your route and compute estimates for enroute waypoints and fuel. It does not mean you should not familiarise yourself with the potential restricted areas on your route.
Years ago, I could not believe my ears when one French pilot told me that he used the 1:1.000.000 map to plan his flights because it showed airways and IFR waypoints which he would presumably enter into the GPS or use VOR navigation. If the weather is good enough that you can do it at some altitude like 6.500-11.500 feet (Paris do not allow VFR into the class D above FL115), that is really easy. When the weather is dodgy it gets difficult no matter how you plan it. Generally speaking the airways also keep you clear of restricted areas.
I seldom fly VFR unless it is a short sightseeing flight. But the other day, when my PFD failed I returned to LFPT (Pontoise) from LFMA (near Marseille) route ALM-AVN-MOU-PTV-EPR at FL085. That is almost a straight line, overflying at least one nuclear reactor. My first flight from Norway to France 20 y ago was conducted at FL105, partly on top, until I got to the Paris area.
In France the units that provide FIS to VFR are generally speaking the same that provide APP services to IFR, i.e. they own the TMAs through which you transit (if you fly low enough) so they provide deconfliction from IFR even though it is class D. It is often the same ATCO that mans all sectors of a TMA, even though you get frequency changes for radio range to the outlet.
Peter wrote:
Indeed….. so not quite zero fails.
I personally have had zero fails, unless you count planning a dog leg around Paris a fail.
I have heard of one guy having difficulty with military exercises in Bordeaux and I have heard on the radio one guy not being let through Lyons because they were either too busy or had an emergency (I forget.)
That is a pretty impressive record after flying VFR through the length of France for over 40 years (in the first half of which there was no answer from Paris FIS, ever.)
The problems of flying in France are hugely exaggerated. Incidentally, I have heard about people following airways in VFR, but that seems to be a waste to me, when a straight line is available.
Apart from France, I have had very few problems elsewhere. Western Holland can be a bit of a pain because of Schipol, but otherwise VFR seems very straightforward, mainly thanks to Tim Dawson.
Aviathor wrote:
In France the units that provide FIS to VFR are generally speaking the same that provide APP services to IFR, i.e. they own the TMAs through which you transit (if you fly low enough) so they provide deconfliction from IFR even though it is class D
I think that’s the only reasonable way to do it, except that I think its optional ATC contact for VFR, and not FIS. The issue is when ATC contact becomes a practical necessity for VFR, at which point VFR basically dies as a result of poor quality airspace planning.
Is it correct that FIS, as per ICAO spec, is intended to be a frequency aircraft can call to get information en route and not a form of junior ATC?
being unable to file IFR would change little to my trips. Planning wouldn’t even be much more difficult
Not being able to go through a layer might change much more.
ATC contact VFR is optional except in class D airspace (the terminal areas for the regional/secondary airports) .
Flight Information Service is usually provided in class G by the unit that controls an overlying controlled airspace. It is the pilot’s choice to get FIS just like one can get Flight Following in the US. Most of France is Class E… There are areas of France, like Lyon/Clermont, Marseille/Nice/Montpellier that just like the LA basin are littered with airports (including military) and terminal areas (class D) but where unlike the LA area, there is no VFR self-announce transit corridor. Flying through these areas can be a little bit like doing the SFO Bay tour, or flying through the LA basin outside the VFR corridor. However, if you fly through the class D airspace you usually get cleared through without any difficulty, or you can try to stay outside co trolled airspace talking to FIS to help you through and hand you over to the relevant ATC unit should the need to transit a class D arise.
The air force also needs airspace for training. And there are restricted areas somewhat like over Washington DC that must be circumvented.
I know that the TRAs that are created around wildfires in California/Nevada cause some of the same difficulties that we are discussing here. The additional difficulty is that they are not on the charts.
You need to keep in mind that continental France is only slightly bigger than California, but has twice the population density. California (and the US in general) has large areas with nothing. Not so here.
I remember I had a WTF moment prior to flying from Chino to Santa Monica. After having looked at the sectional I opted for an IFR clearance.
