Biggin to Rome

Since you need immigration on your flight from EGKB, that rules out a lot of places.

Generally the southeast of France sounds right, since it’s about halfway and Avgas prices are acceptable.

LIRA is expensive. Figure something between 150 and 280 Euros. Try to reserve a “self maneuvering parking position”, to avoid being levied their funny towing fee. Can’t help you with the best handling agent.

Colmar, Ancy, Gremoble or Cannes when you not won´t to fly over the Alps. At the first three no Food aviable, Cannes has a restaurante and a MC 5 Minutes away, The most fuel stations are closed for lunch 12-13 LOC in France.

Hans, if you don’t need IFR approach or 24h operations, you could land at Roma Urbe instead of Rome Ciampino. Much cheaper, and much closer to the center of Rome. Urbe is also a “deposito fiscale” for AVGAS (like Ciampino I guess), so if you leave for a non-EU Country in the way back (say Switzerland or Jersey or Montenegro), you can get AVGAS vat-free and duty-free (so ~1.4Eur/L).

Just a question.

If fuel is purchased in UK and fly over the Channel to tour in France/ Italy etc then I understand that AVGAS purchased is VAT and duty free under “drawback”.

So from France (as opposed to from Italy) any fuel purchased, if you leave for a non-EU Country on the way back (ie go via Jersey), you can get AVGAS vat-free and duty-free?

Is this workable for all AVGAS purchased in France or only the last fill-up? Just a thought!!

Jude,

I don’t really understand what you’re trying to ask, but firstly there is no VAT refund for a private flight from the UK to France/Italy. The refund is only for Duty. Some commercial organisations can get fuel without VAT, but they would have been entitled to claim it back anyway. For a private flight, you can only claim back duty, not VAT.

So from France (as opposed to from Italy) any fuel purchased, if you leave for a non-EU Country on the way back (ie go via Jersey), you can get AVGAS vat-free and duty-free?

This bit, I don’t follow at all. I was not aware of any duty or VAT refund scheme for flights out of France. I could see how they MIGHT be one for flights out of the EU, but I’ve never heard of it. I’m not aware of any countries apart from the UK which give a duty refund for private international flights.

Or do you mean simply, could you could refuel in Jersey, which is a location that doesn’t charge VAT anyway?

I’m not aware of any countries apart from the UK which give a duty refund for private international flights.

It was common some 10 or 15 years ago.

Nowadays, for example in Switzerland, you can only get dutyfree fuel for international training flights.

It was common some 10 or 15 years ago.

Indeed. Ireland used to do so too, but not anymore.

Jude, to get vat-free fuel in uk you have to declare you fly for business and towards a non-uk destination (say, France). On that fuel you can also claim back duty, irrespectively if the flight was for business or leisure (some uk airports, like Lydd, sell directly duty-free fuel for oversea flights). France and Switzerland, I’m not sure how they work, but unless you have an AOC, I suspect that you pay always all the taxes on fuel. Italy will sell you vat-free and duty-free fuel if you fly outside EU (Jersey and Switzerland included), but only at bigger airports (known as “deposito fiscale”), like Linate, Urbe, Perugia, etc…