Aart, from your long silence I was beginning to wonder if you had perhaps been stunned from my delicate and intricate style of humour… 
But, in all seriousness, it seems unlikely I will be there – I cannot afford too many days off work and this trip would require three at the very least – only in absolutely perfect weather could I fly such a distance in a single day, and if I did I would be exhausted from at the very least six hours of hand flying VFR. Which is not my idea of a wekend of fun and/or relax.
Worse, big airports like LFMK are not the kind of place neither for my bird nor for myself. And I found little suitable alternative, nothing better than LFMZ Lézignan-Corbières which is quite a dump at the end of the civilised world, as some here would say. And even they don’t offer MoGas.
So I will wish you all a merry time in Carcassonne, and I hope to meet you at another occasion. Friedrichshafen, perhaps, the week before? Or the LKRK airshow where Alexis will be our host?
On a closing note, it is not kind to accuse me of Calvinist inclinations. Remember, the protestant spirit (haha!) was carried from the Southern Netherlands to the North, some five centuries ago – not the other way round! I am a full Burgundian, and proud to be so.
Peter wrote:
What would be the rationale behind that?It means anyone arriving say Friday will have to get back to the airport on Saturday or Sunday and taxi to the pump.
Its because ENAC have a large training operation here, the pump is on their ramp and I guess they don’t want visiting aircraft getting in their way!
They don’t work at weekends and holidays of course…
This is in fact an improvement as prior to last year no fuel was available to visitors, i have been moaning about this to them for years, our strategy is to break the journey at either Poitiers or Limoges, refuel, and arrive at Carcassonne with plenty of fuel in out tanks !
Well, I will be happy to do what certain southern European aeroclubs “allegedly” do for certain visitors: pay for everybody with my AIR BP card and be reimbursed in cash, at cost + x%
Don’t worry guys, I’ll fill my aux tanks with 100LL and you can siphon it out. First come first serve. Price: you’ll find out..
I’ll give the airport a call to see if something can be arranged.
This is in fact an improvement as prior to last year no fuel was available to visitors,
Interesting, as I have been able to refuel and pay the guy at the fuel station in cash without any issue when I was there in 2011.
I intend to join the fly-in, possibly with one or two other guys from Austria, and look forward to meet everyone in person.
I just talked to Victoire at OPS and she of course served a slightly different story from AIP/NOTAM.
Customs
What the AIP says
Mon-Fri 05:30-21:30 Sat 06:30-SS+30. Sun and HOL 0700-2130 ( No NOTAM)
What Victoire says
O/R 48 hrs prior
Fuel
What NOTAM says:
Mon-Fri: 100LL not available
Sat-Sun: BP card only
What ENAC says:
You should be able to fuel without any problem as long as there is not a steady stream of airplanes, but need BP card. Err. Let me ask…….. You need to call operations.
What Victoire says:
BP card only 7/7
You know me. I always choose the most favorable answer . Following AIP and NOTAMs you can’t go wrong, so I would disregard the Customs O/R. Afterall Ryanair has X flights there every day. Concerning the fuel, given what ENAC and OPS told me, we can refuel 7/7 provided we have a BP card. No other payment possible.
I tried to call the aeroclub but could not get hold of anyone there. I may try again.
A HUGE THANKS for that, @Aviathor
I should have checked this out before going for Carcassonne but I simply did not believe that a “proper airport” could have such anti-GA issues. How many French pilots have the AIR BP card?
This is why certain type specific groups (as in here) charge €200+ for organising a fly-in Here, I am just relying on locals to flag issues like this. It doesn’t always work e.g. the last-minute cancellation of Venice LIPV in Sep 2015.
I am sure we can find a way around the “AIR BP only” limitation. Those without it may have to bring € cash, and pay those of us who do have the card. I am happy to receive any amount of euros because I can always spend them on trips. The trick will be to work out the exact amount of money because with AIR BP you don’t easily know the exact price until you get the invoice, and I get billed in GBP. I will give them a call…
blueline wrote:
Interesting, as I have been able to refuel and pay the guy at the fuel station in cash without any issue when I was there in 2011.
Sure, that this guy was airport staff?
I pursued the Customs issue and managed to get hold of someone at the airport but she could not answer my questions. Instead I obtained an e-mail address where I will ask specific questions about customs procedures.
The good news is that the summer flying program starts in April, and from then on there are daily extra-Schengen flights to/from Carcassonne. What I want to know is the procedure for requesting customs outside of the times where there are scheduled flights – particularly for the winter season, just to get a feel for how complicated it is. I will also be pointing out the information in the AIP.
