It is a good Q what one would do. Obviously it depends on the weather and the terrain.
What I find notable about this video is that the pilot almost gave up. I wonder if this is a common thing?
I also wonder if any ATC in Europe would try sending you SMS messages, even if they had your phone number. AFAIK the details in the bottom part of the flight plan are not distributed to ATC and can be accessed only by SAR.
I wonder if he now has iPad and Foreflight?
I had a flight once to an event near Caen and we were flying at night from Schiphol-East to Caen departing from Schiphol just before 23.00 hrs LT in a Piper Archer. Over France and about 45 minutes out from our destination, I was confronted with an alternator failure. So, I had been in such a situation before over Brussels in a Piper Arrow 3, so learned my lesson. I had my iPad for further routing, told ATC about my intentions to continue to Caen and that I might lose radio contact due to an alternator failure and I had a hand radio at hand which I had to use to activate the pilot controlled lights at Caen. I was able to activate the runway lights while overflying the airfield and could do a “GPS” kind of approach from Skydemon into Caen. It is not something you want to experience every week, but thanks to the backup items within reach I was quite confident to make it. The luck was also that it was nice weather although a moonless night.
Proactively, does anybody have the telephone number for the local/transiting ATC in their mobile’s speed dial?
In the UK for airports ATC mostly you should (given that you have PPR’ed) but I doubt you get something for enroute ATC…
Timothy wrote:
wonder if he now has iPad and Foreflight?
Which I think could in theory and with practice save the day in this situation, using Synthetic View and Map. Practice is probably the key thing. I would tend to use two devices versus splitting the screen – I have two more or less panel mounted, my phone is number two and is used only for backup. Also, my permanent panel overlay has an independent 9 V dry cell battery backup to maintain panel lighting, that would help too.
I’m hardly an expert in this area, but how would talking to ATC have any effect on the outcome if you were already flying a GPS approach? I cannot imagine talking on a mobile phone while flying. A flight instructor friend does do it regularly, with phone blue toothed to headset, typically to tell his girlfriend when he’ll be home. Seems a bit silly to me, but don’t tell him I said that 
The D&D (do other countries have such a service?) landline number is in my mobile which when I fly is in my top pocket as a reserve communication device.
I have had two electrical charging failures at night both in the circuit at a well lit airfield. That was enough for me!
Outstanding ATC. I’ll fess up, I got emotional when the controller described his relief at learning the plane had landed.
I wonder if he now has iPad and Foreflight?
What would that cost? Presumably about 100 for Foreflight and about 1000 for a single device Jepp subscription (for “political Europe”)?
That would give you a GPS/LNAV DIY capability.
OTOH some of the handhelds ought to be able to do that too. I have no idea if my Aera 660 has any approaches, or any approach waypoints. Traditionally that would have been your backup. But flying the published IAP is safer than doing some hacked procedure.
I cannot imagine talking on a mobile phone while flying.
Nor can I. If I had a phone and it had a connection then I would use it to get nearby metars, rather than expect help from ATC who might be really busy.
does anybody have the telephone number for the local/transiting ATC in their mobile’s speed dial?
In the UK you will not find such numbers…
Peter wrote:
wonder if he now has iPad and Foreflight?What would that cost? Presumably about 100 for Foreflight and about 1000 for a single device Jepp subscription (for “political Europe”)?
That would give you a GPS/LNAV DIY capability.
Peter, can you use Garmin Pilot with Garmin Europe subscription?
Should be cheaper, right?
