Call Le Bourget not CdG. The number is in the textual info.
Here is a debrief of the first leg.
I decided to fly the LFOP to LFPT leg IFR, because I wasn’t in a rush and a bit curious how it would work out with the whole revamp of the approach and IFR setup in Rouen.
The approaches have been rationalised quite a bit since last time I went there and now Lille is controlling the approach. The plate indicate April 18, so seems like it’s quite recent.
UK to LFOP
The ILS Z is now much more straight forward and has an IAF NAKIB at 7.0 on a 90° intercept course that I got directed to directly from SITET coming from the UK, very smooth. I can’t access the old plate, but I remember that the initial approach setup was much more convoluted before. You would be direct ROU and then getting on the ILS wasn’t straight forward with a point ROUBO that wasn’t technically an IAF. Maybe a local remembers, all I remember was struggling working it out in the pre-plan.
LFOP TO LFPT
To go to LFPT, I filed IFR, just because I wasnt’ in a rush and wanted to see how it’d work out. The setup has also changed now with Lille controlling the airspace.
I took off 22 cleared straight ahead to 4000, then handed out to Lille. Lille vectored me around south, I believe because of the gliding zone, then direct PON. I believe in the past they would direct you to MOPAR.
After a while, they redirected me to PT420 which is the next point on the approach after MOPAR (but it’s not an IAF).
Then they told me to contact “Pointoise approach” giving me “le Bourget” frequency… Which I thought the name confusion was interesting, must be they are getting used to the new setup. Or maybe typical to use different names?
Le bourget cleared me for the approach and all fine.
Link to the Flight
(for those unfamiliar you can see the com changes, nav point etc)
That seems about standard for LFPT coming from Rouen. Le Bourget has been handling APP from north or east for some time now. IIRC it also depends on runway in use at CdG and whether the restricted areas are active.
I admit although I have flown Rouen to Pointoise on several occasions it was a while ago I didn’t as analyse it in detail I just fed ATS directs into the G1000.🙂
That seems about standard for LFPT coming from Rouen
What is new I think is you go to Lille in between LFPT and Bourget
Maybe that’s because Rouen used to be on a POGO. I’ve never found out what it stood for but they are short IFR hops between Paris airfields and those nearby.
roznet wrote:
Then they told me to contact “Pointoise approach” giving me “le Bourget” frequency… Which I thought the name confusion was interesting, must be they are getting used to the new setup. Or maybe typical to use different names?
It changed in mid-2022. Pontoise used to have their own approach, now it’s Le Bourget TMA (it has pretty much nothing to do with Le Bourget and is just airspace / HR restructuring, just like the Rennes and Lille TMAs that just replaced the approaches to Deauville and Rouen – calling “Lille approach” when you’re in Rouen is a bit misleading).
Just call “approach” it simplifies things a lot these days.🙂
If there is no ATS when leaving Pontoise LFPT you.can get IFR clearance or by telephone from Le Bourget.
Ok, made it back to London today. Here is debrief of second leg.
roznet wrote:
In my previous flights to Paris (either LFPN or LFPT) I had done customs stop via LFOH, LFOP mostly based on weather considerations or LFAT when no time to do PR on weekend.
With respect to my original question. I had booked on Thursday custom at 3:30pm in Rouen/LFOP. Back then forecast was marginal but I thought could go either way.
Yesterday, forecast was clearly bad for this afternoon north of France, so I called Rouen (Saturday for Sunday flight) see if any chance to move custom to the morning, but no. So cancelled Rouen and planned flight via LFAT departure 11am local.
Took off in the rain, nice plane wash, logged some actual IMC, but was smooth.
Departing LFAT around noon, you could see the build up stopping on the coast of France, and great sun in the UK.
And now, from the comfort of my home, I can watch the storm on windy over Rouen at the time I was supposed to clear custom…
Bonus debrief
For the flight from LFAT to UK I decided to go airways after looking on Flight Radar lots of VFR traffic on this beautiful Sunday. Let’s the IR ticket and ATC do the conflict resolution for me. But they started vectoring me straight into a big build up over the channel, so asked for immediate turn and descent OCAS, oh well. And Farnborough radar was ultra busy… So the flight in the sunny southeast England was probably the most intense part :)
