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Clearance over London

Stunning pics and best advert for a twin, ever

EGTF, LFTF

They usually ask for type and sometimes specifically if Twin or single
I was on a heli flight when a change of routing (due to having to wait for over 15 over a bridge) was denied because the heli was a single (singles cannot venture out of the vertical of the Thames)

I’ve got recent clearances trough roughly the city airport overhead (or just west of it) that I accepted and posted pics. It’s not the most comfortable place for glide clear, but there are the reservoirs, and there are certainly much less inhospitable places (thinking over wales or Scottish mountains)

Last Edited by Noe at 07 Mar 22:50

Autorouted Eurocontrol routings often go right across London and I have filed them. What I don’t know is what happens in the ATC system, and I have never seen it discussed anywhere (UK ATC is generally reluctant to discuss anything specific, due to rules on forum participation and the Official Secrets Act) but the appearance is that SEPs get shifted out of the way.

You also sometimes see SEP flights at low level across London and these can be authorised specially as Non Standard Flights. I have no idea about the procedure.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Emir wrote:

DA62

Yes, a DA62

Jujupilote wrote:

Was it IFR or VFR ? Is it required to fly a twin to get such a transit ?

It was an VFR flight. The clearance is quite simple, it’s Class D airspace so you just need to ask (in this case I started with Farnborough LARS and then got handing to Heathrow Radar).

I’ve noticed recently that I get asked if I’m a twin every time and then have to confirm again just before I enter the CTR. This wasn’t the case until recently and as Peter mentioned there was some ambiguity about whether the Thames counted in the glide clear rule (it’s seems that you now wouldn’t get clearance in a SEP).

Jujupilote wrote:

How do they coordinate you with the helo traffic over the Thames river downtown (from my memories of being a touristique in London )

You’re on frequency with non-approach traffic (does that make sense??) within the London and Heathrow CTRs, so yesterday it was a couple of helis into Battersea and a Police heli over Hammersmith. It’s all vectored and the controller will keep you away from any approaching traffic (which yesterday was a Gulfstream into City).

All in all it’s very easy and super enjoyable!

EGTR

2015

Noe wrote:

the heli was a single (singles cannot venture out of the vertical of the Thames)

Intuitively I’d far prefer my chances ditching in an SEP than a helicopter.

Great pictures, for a scenic flight like this do you have to fly a specific route North South and are there specific entery/exit points.

Noe wrote:

They usually ask for type and sometimes specifically if Twin or single

This happens sometimes and I do wonder why they ask for informations they already have from the flight plan.

Berlin, Germany

I don’t think ATC see the flight plan readily. There have been conflicting reports on what they see but it may be just the entry and exit points in their sector (not the filed route) and the aircraft type which will be helpful only if the person knows the various GA types.

Also you could mis-file the aircraft type in error, which is not a criminal offence, but if you accept the above clearance in a SE, that may become thus, so they would be asking the Q in order to put you on the spot. In the UK legal system, lots of things are not illegal (such as going under a fake name, or filing an incorrect tax return) unless you seek to gain an advantage from doing it.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Dublin will happily clear all and sundry east across the city from Weston and the usual limitation is not above 1700 ft. The only landing sites are the river which has an average distance of 400-500 m between bridges or a huge public park where the President lives.

EIMH, Ireland
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