Start-up clearance in SEP?

I use a small handheld as well. However in Zurich at the GAC you are just behind a huge metal hangar so the handheld radios don’t reach the delivery antenna. As a result a lot of people would start the engine and request a clearance afterwards and this is known and silently ignored. This is of course mainly to save battery as powering up the whole avionics to wait for the 430 to come up, set up the frequency and talk takes some time.

I actually did not bother asking for permission to start up, but then realised it might be bad form. So, I switch the master on, ask for start up, switch back off, and then do my start up drill.

BeechBaby wrote:

but then realised it might be bad form

This I have never heard of.

This is of course mainly to save battery as powering up the whole avionics to wait for the 430 to come up, set up the frequency and talk takes some time.

In fact you can talk instantly when you power up the 430 but you can not change frequency. So if you set the right freq before shut down you can start using the com right away… Obviously this will not work properly in a rental plane with many pilots.

Sebastian_G wrote:

Obviously this will not work properly in a rental plane with many pilots.

Exactly my situation.

Flyer59 wrote:

Do you switch on the Power to call, then switch it off again for engine start?

Yes always. Unless it has a “Ground Dispatch” switch (or whatever it is called with the various manufacurers) that powers COM1 only. This would be one of the first things I would get fitted if I ever buy an aircraft again (heaven forbid…).

Flyer59 wrote:

I wonder if such a switch could be installed …

Technically, it’s very simple. One pushbutton, a relay and two metres of wire. The paperwork however will probably drive the poor guy crazy who does the installation…