The STP dogleg was very probably due to airspace structure. There is no controlled airspace below FL140 in the area north of Cannes (raised floor of the LTA over the Alps) and French ATC will – by default – try to keep all IFR enroute traffic within controlled airspace. If looking for a shortcut, you have to tell them explicitly that you are OK with uncontrolled airspace.
If looking for a shortcut, you have to tell them explicitly that you are OK with uncontrolled airspace.
Normally, IME, the French offer you the option. In this case the controller just said “there is no route” and that was it. No arguing with her, and my request for FL140 was ignored 2 or 3 times. This was Nice, and they were quite busy, but they could have allowed a climb up on track STP.
Emir wrote:
Emir 16-Sep-15 17:33 #224
What has happened? In 2012 it was full of GA. Even in 2014 there were lots.
100€ landing fe
Its obvious the guy running the show (making the fees) has a pay check not dependent on the income of the airport. Or in new parlance “disassociation performance”.
Probably a govt bureaucrat living off the fat of the land day dreaming about retirement..
Mooney_Driver wrote:
Mooney_Driver 17-Sep-15 16:43 #232
So Croatia also starts going the Anti GA way? What a pity.100 Euros at Zagreb? Why? To discourage GA? Again why? They are not that busy that they can’t accomodate the odd GA Plane.
And Split can’t handle 70 landings per day? Just because the beancounters say it can’t or because there is a honest lack of skill?
It is a disease which seems to be contageous from airport to airport. And it has NOTHING to do with capacity, it has to do with attitude.
I was once told by one of that species that he would advocate one landing fee only for ALL airplane types, as each is the same work for ATC and their people who do bills and stats. When I asked how much it should be he answered 12’000 Euros. That is what he claims is the cost each airplane has to pay in order to finance the whole airport overhead and structure. Thankfully that moron never will decide stuff like that and even if he would be stopped by the CAA but that is their attitude.
They do not calculate that with each movement they loose they still loose money. It’s about principle. And plan economy (to maximize airport movements well below capacity). At one airport large enough to take about 10 747’s I once heard “we are busy today, sorry it took 2 hours to make your bill but we have a lot of movements today”. Well, they had TWO. 737’s. One in the morning the other in the afternoon. And were stressed out?
Sorry. People like that need to take a hike. Or need to be trained up, like with 1 year duty at La Guardia or JFK.
Mooney D you have the right attitude. These are all lazy incompetent govt workers who would rather sit on the bowl and read the paper than to work for a living. Kinda like welfare but in this case you have to go to a specific place for a few hours a day.
How about doing some sort of performance based pay check.? 70 movements per day! How pathetic!
Peter, Thanks for the great narrative. I was surprised to see the picture of the GA planes tied down in Corfu included mine. I left on the 18th. When did you leave?
I passed through LGKR on the 17th Sep
Split airport has always provided very good service to me. The people there were always exceptionally friendly. Before we judge that they are all lazy idiots we should maybe know more about the background (like: how many people do they have for these 70 flights, how many other rescources, why is 70 flights the limit, etc.).
People at Split airport are extremly friendly and they are not lazy – I have no doubt about that. But their perception of “a lot of flights” if different than the one which staff at large airports has. If you have 10 flights a day during six months, 30 flights a day during next four months and 50 flights a day during only two months with peeks of 70 flights on Satrudays and Sundays then it’s pretty normal that you feel stressed with 70 or 100 operations. But it’s not “a lot of flights” to be handled for airport like Split – it’s just something that they are not used to.
A few random pics from the trip
Final at Skiathos LGSK
A selfie with Justine and Atmilatos (it was windy up there at the castle)
Taxiing back out
Skiathos airport
From Bol, Brac Island, Croatia
It would be a good location for a fly-in…
Those who didn’t make this meet-up really missed out 
