VFR Flight Following

C

crazynut52

New Member
We had a pilot fly into our airport last week, who was on flight following and lost contact with center before landing. He then called them on the phone to tell them he was landed, and they said there was no need to call. It was my understanding that you must cancel flight following once you either have the airport in sight or land? So if Center lost you from radar and radio, would they send search parties after 1/2 hour, or is that only with a flight plan.
 
Flight Following and a Flight Plan are different. With a Flight Plan you have to close that with the FSS after you land if not they will call or look for you. Now with Flight Following if communtication is lost with tower/approach as what was said before they would not blink an eye. Probably less work for them. I hope this was helpful :)
 
One time my instructor buddy and I flew PNE-LNS (Lancaster PA) to grab a burger at the restaurant they have there. We filed a flight plan with FSS, flew, parked the plane, and were in the middle of eating when we both realized nobody cancelled it! I ran to the nearest payphone and sure caught a lot of flack from the guy on the other end, with him telling me "we were about 2 minutes away from sending out the search party!"
 
Sometimes you'll hear ATC say "Radar service teminated in the blind." or something like that.
 
jon1424 said:
I ran to the nearest payphone and sure caught a lot of flack from the guy on the other end, with him telling me "we were about 2 minutes away from sending out the search party!"
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I know that this was meant as sarcasm, but it sorta struck a chord (not in a bad way). One night, while on VFR flight following, coming back from Phoenix in a Bonanza with a student we encountered some clouds. Nothing major, but it required a little erratic manuvering to stay clear of them. We were over some part of the 4-corners area, desolate as can be, sometime past midnight.

Anyway, we were in the middle of dodging them and the center controller comes over the radio:

"bonanza XYZ are you guys OK?"

I gotta say, it made me feel a HECK of a lot better that night knowing ATC really does look out for us out there. I'm guessing he saw our track and altitude go a little haywire. Never really got to say thanks, so, well, thanks (I know I'm just broadcasting in the blind here ;)).

I know it sounded like you were "catching flack", but I bet the controller was having a heart attack wondering what happened to you guys.

Anyway, carry on :).
 
wheelsup said:
I know it sounded like you were "catching flack", but I bet the controller was having a heart attack wondering what happened to you guys.

Anyway, carry on :).
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That's true. I'd rather have someone watching my back like that than not watching at all!
 
crazynut52 said:
We had a pilot fly into our airport last week, who was on flight following and lost contact with center before landing. He then called them on the phone to tell them he was landed, and they said there was no need to call. It was my understanding that you must cancel flight following once you either have the airport in sight or land? So if Center lost you from radar and radio, would they send search parties after 1/2 hour, or is that only with a flight plan.
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If it's just flight following, 99% of controllers won't even bat an eye at you going off freq or off the scope. Flight plan, however, different story.

E time plus 30 minues and the phones start ringing all over the place wondering where you are. They don't automatically send out search parties though. That takes a bit longer. First they call every place along your route. Towers, tracons, centers, etc where you could have/should have flown through/by. Then they might call any additional phone numbers they have for maybe the FBO you flew out of/in to. Then they send out an ALNOT, then things could get more serious.

A little light reading for you: http://www.faa.gov/ATPubs/ATC/Chp10/atc1003.html
 
daveatc said:
If it's just flight following, 99% of controllers won't even bat an eye at you going off freq or off the scope. Flight plan, however, different story.


That may have been true in the not so distant past, but now, at least at ZKC, if you drop off our radar, and you are no longer talking to us on the radio, you are MISSING, and we will go looking for you....local FBO, local law enforcement, etc. So please, if you are getting flight following, please say goodbye before just departing the frequency, Thanks.

Nathan Larson
S/ATCS ZKC
CFI
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rvatornate said:
daveatc said:
If it's just flight following, 99% of controllers won't even bat an eye at you going off freq or off the scope. Flight plan, however, different story.


That may have been true in the not so distant past, but now, at least at ZKC, if you drop off our radar, and you are no longer talking to us on the radio, you are MISSING, and we will go looking for you....local FBO, local law enforcement, etc. So please, if you are getting flight following, please say goodbye before just departing the frequency, Thanks.

Nathan Larson
S/ATCS ZKC
CFI
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Yeah but aren't you a Center? Meaning if someone is talking to you their on a flight plan?
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