Just fly off won’t do unless you think you can outrun a Rafale
For what it’s worth, Denmark has recently tightened the checks for flights in and out of Shengen.
If you leave Shengen, they will want to check your paper AND your plane. You can just show them your passport and then go find the plane, they want to be sure you’re not carrying more people than you state. It is a check on the ramp just before EOBT to depart after you fuelled up etc. Same when you land
Obviously, if you taxi out way before EOBT, they’ll be late. I seriously doubt it will be a career progressing move for them to shoot at an unarmed civilian plane, though.
Peter wrote:
two armed policemen
Is there any other kind of policeman in Avignon? If not, is this not redundant information?
Not all police is armed in France. Historically, only the central police commanded by Paris was armed and local police (police municipale) was not allowed to carry arms. This was to ensure that the central government remain in control of the whole country at all times. In the last decade or so, local police started to carry weapons as well. The armed Paris commanded police in the outskirts is gendarmerie nationale and police nationale in the big cities. A bit complicated.
However, the French police of the 5th Republic (no matter which flavor) don’t just shoot people. France is not Zimbabwe.
Realistically, if the police wanted to make a show of force they wouldn’t have bothered to walk (!) all the way to your plane but would’ve ordered you through ATC to taxi back and shut down to be checked.
Realistically, if the police wanted to make a show of force they wouldn’t have bothered to walk (!) all the way to your plane but would’ve ordered you through ATC to taxi back and shut down to be checked.
I did wonder about that but it was clear ATC had no way to communicate with them.
Aviathor wrote:
This is absolute baloney [….]And how are you supposed to know the difference between the “police” and the “gendarmerie”!? Particularly if you’re from a country where there fortunately is not such concept as “gendarmerie”.The Gendarmerie on the other hand is allowed to fire after having made appropriate warning, even on a fugitive ie someone running away.
Peter wrote:
I did wonder about that but it was clear ATC had no way to communicate with them.
I feel that the real issue here is that the police was on the maneuvering area without authorisation or even contact with ATC.
But I know from other cases that the police frequently think they are above such mundanities.
