Thanks – yes that perspective makes sense ..! And I think language also an issue for my friends..!
I can’t comment on Italy but there is isolated incidents of ATC making up new rules on the fly in the UK.
Once (around 10-12 years ago) we were refused taxi clearance at Gloucester until we went back inside and filed a full flight plan to go to the Isle of Man because the guy in the tower decided it should be mandatory because of an “overwater crossing”. It’s never happened again, though.
alioth wrote:
Once (around 10-12 years ago) we were refused taxi clearance at Gloucester until we went back inside and filed a full flight plan to go to the Isle of Man because the guy in the tower decided it should be mandatory because of an “overwater crossing”.
Of course that’s not mandatory, it is merely advisable..!
As is, of course, filing a flight plan to gain the benefit of an Alerting Service when flying over the mountains..!
The thing is filing a VFR flight plan is a waste of time. A VFR flight plan in the UK won’t alert anyone for you being overdue when you’re going to an airfield with no ATC, it’s far better just to tell whoever’s expecting you the other end when you’re expecting to arrive.
The other factor is that you can always reach someone on the radio between EGBJ and the Isle of Man (London Info works up to the north Wales coast, Liverpool works into the Irish Sea, then Ronaldsway Radar) so you’ve got the much more immediate ability to make a mayday call if it all goes tango uniform.
alioth wrote:
A VFR flight plan in the UK won’t alert anyone
Yes but it’s Italia we’re discussing … ;)
Peter wrote:
Call me an anorak if you like but here is a post by @bookworm from 2006 from uk.rec.aviation on this very topic
You’re an anorak, Peter. 
Chapter 8 of the ATFCM Manual describes the process. I didn’t get it completely right 12 years ago.
Very very rare for you to not get something completely right!
There are even a few cases where you don’t need to file a Cross-Border FPL.
Germany doesn’t insist on one, and a few neighbouring countries don’t do either.
So you can fly VFR from Germany to Poland, the Czech Republic or Austria without one if you don’t intend to land at a controlled airport (Then the VFR in C or D comes into play again).
I’m on my phone right now and can’t look up the respective AIP references, but will do so later.
And, by the way, a VFR flight plan in Germany will alert people if not closed. Our airfield gets regular calls from AIS-C on this ;)
It took me a while to find the thread but we did that here
There is a number of cases, although they are useful to some people and useless to perhaps most others. For example you cannot use this if you want a CAS transit at any point.
The reason I had originally asked about whether a flight plan had been filed was to get an indication of whether the Italians might have had a valid reason for thinking the flight departed in say Botswana But clearly not! They just could not spell s-c-h-e-n-g-e-n!
CharlieRomeo wrote:
And, by the way, a VFR flight plan in Germany will alert people if not closed. Our airfield gets regular calls from AIS-C on this ;)
Same in Italy – got a call when not closing in time in Caorle (where you to call to close, radio operator there does not do that for you, unlike most airfields/clubs)
