Does anyone know how the Swiss referendum result will affect flying in/out?
Customs controls were never removed but maybe there will now be immigration as well. Proper controls to ensure planeloads of illegal refugees from the EU can’t sneak in at Birrfeld !
Schengen and and the right of abode (which the Swiss voted against) are two different things. The UK is the best example: every German has the right to move to the UK but he will be subject to passport control.
However, it really doesn’t matter. As long as Switzerland is not in the EU customs union, you need to use a port of entry for flying from/to Switzerland and whether you or your goods get inspected hardly matters, does it?
PS: The purpose of the Swiss government is to find ways around the referendums that are incompatible with their international obligations. They will work out some complex compromise with the EU where they can still tell the electorate they have implemented the decision while in reality they haven’t. That’s how the Swiss government works 
I can imagine the Swiss national government would be highly motivated. Passport control at borders has an effect on tourism, and CH is already suffering in that regard from a non competitive currency value. As far as I can tell, even the Swiss no longer take their holidays in Switzerland!
Just to make sure there are no misconceptions: the Swiss voted on limiting immigration, i.e. establish a maximum number of persons to immigrate each year (quota regulation). This was in place before the right of abode was agreed with the EU.
They have not voted on Schengen or anything else. Schengen does not imply right of abode and vice versa. Therefore this is a complete non-event. My comment on the Swiss federal government was more about how they will most likely address the issue with the referendum being incompatible with the EU treaties they have signed.
The right of abode is like the guarantee of a bank to each of its customers that they can withdraw all funds whenever they like. It only works until a lot of people actually do that at which point it will collapse. Switzerland has seen between 5-10x the immigration the government expected. You can find the statistics here.
I only cross Switzerland by plane. And if I go skiing there I drive :-)
Of course swiss people did not vote against tourism. Has anybody a problem with showing a passport? When I fly to Switzerland it is not my intention to stay there for ever, compete with locals for a job and an apartement or wish to participate on social welfare for which I have never paid before.
Has anybody a problem with showing a passport?
It depends on how much hassle it is! If you’re on a motorcycle with a non-EU license plate on the back its a bit simpler to pass through the border without stopping to remove gloves etc, dig out and show passport, explain registration paperwork in a foreign language, show green card for insurance and possibly explain why your passenger has a different passport nationality etc. The prospect of that plus half price lodging and no currency conversion would make St Anton (Austria) look a bit more attractive as a place to stop. The same goes for entering the US, except there aren’t as many options nearby and the US is cheaper and much larger.
it is not my intention to stay there for ever, compete with locals for a job and an apartment or wish to participate on social welfare for which I have never paid before.
I haven’t and don’t intend to take a penny in ‘unemployment compensation’ or ‘social benefits’ in my life, anywhere, regardless of circumstances
What really would be good for GA in Europe is to eliminate (international) flight plans and customs checks entirely for light aircraft, as for individuals driving cars across the Schengen zone. That fairly clear analogy seems to be a leap too far for many.
What really would be good for GA in Europe is to eliminate (international) flight plans and customs checks entirely for light aircraft, as for individuals driving cars across the Schengen zone. That fairly clear analogy seems to be a leap too far for many.
I’m not sure I understand. There are neither regular customs checks for cars driving across the Schengen zone nor light aircraft flying across the Schengen zone. There are customs checks for cars driving into and light aircraft flying into the Schengen zone. Not correct?
Completely unrelated, yes – flight plans need to be filed when crossing borders, but this is more an ATC-related issue, isn’t it?
My observation is that I could get in my car in Estonia, loaded with anybody and anything I like, tell nobody where I’m going and drive non stop to Portugal, entering perhaps nine countries and offloading people and goods at each. Drawing from that analogy, my point is that I can’t see the logic in mandatory flight plans, mandatory ATC contact, or any contact with any authority to do the same thing in a light plane. What do you think?
If I understand correctly…
EU covers movement of goods.
Schengen covers movement of people.
ATC covers airspace, but only mandatorily in Classes A-D.
There is therefore customs ‘observation’ on some roads when remaining within the Schengen zone – if transiting borders into and out of the EU. I would suggest that similar random observation would suffice for light aircraft: no VFR flight plans, just tracking transponder traces and spot checking at airports if the flight crosses the EU border. However, if remaining within both Schengen and EU it seems to me that logic would require nothing whatsoever in terms of notifications or contact with government or ATC, if remaining in Class E airspace or lower.
It would be really great for European GA (certainly for my enjoyment anyway ) if one could fly across the Schengen zone under those conditions, as in the US – where US states arguably have more overall legal and financial autonomy than European countries in 2014.
The UK, being outside of the Schengen zone, would be different.
Its clearly a leap too far for many, regardless of logic or lack thereof.
