I expect to make a refueling and food stop somewhere in the vicinity of Hannover on my way to Friedrichshaven in April. Any particular reason to choose one or the other of Hannover and Braunschweig? (Or to avoid both?) I flew into Hannover a couple of times before and was quite satisfied then, but that was in the previous century…
Hannover seems slightly more expensive but their web site makes a very good impression from a GA point of view.
From the big airports in Germany, Hannover is by fast the most GA friendly. Braunschweig airport is the home of the glorious LBA — the German CAA.
I would choose my airfield by fuel price. Coming from Sweden, you don’t need anything but a flight plan.
Yes, the fuel price is an issue. Therefore I would recommend Hildesheim, EDVM , which is not far away from Hannover. AVGAS is 1,95 Euro !
I would strongly avoid Braunschweig because on the phone they tell you a quite low fuel price. After refuelling they say sorry, we have to add the VAT (Mwst).
Thanks. Hildesheim looks nice, but as I’ll be going IFR it depends on the weather situation.
Is there any reason to avoid Braunschweig other than misleading fuel prices? (Is the fuel more expensive than on neighbouring airports when the VAT is included?)
Why don’t you file to the most convenient VFR airport with Braunschweig or Hannover as alternate?
In the flatlands, German ATC bring you almost to the final approach before you have to cancel IFR.
Ok. Does it matter for how ATC handles you at which point in your filed route you change flight rules? The EuroGA autorouter puts the flight rule change at the last filed waypoint which is usually quite a distance from the destination.
Does it matter for how ATC handles you at which point in your filed route you change flight rules?
Well yes and no. Obviously they will be looking for you to cancel near where you say you will. The last waypoint indicates you will cancel when you can before the destination. I have never had a problem with them pushing me to cancel except when going to Egelsbach. Then they can be pushy if busy.
You just keep flying following ATC instructions from the final waypoint and cancel when (and if) you can. In practice it is quite straightforward.
The flight rule change waypoint in your flight plan has no relevance to German ATC. They know the airfields and try to work out the best strategy to choose the right moment. You can also change your airport of destination at any point, it’s really easy.
