Going North to Kirkwall

[Stephen Furner]

Assuming a cloud base of 2000ft what is the VFR Sunday pilots route from Dundee to Kirkwall?

When I look at this on NavBox assuming Aberdeen lets GA travel along the coast through its airspace, a simple tactic of following the coast line looks good up as far as Inverness. Here restricted area EG R610 D buts onto danger area EG D703 from surface to 2000ft.

Is this really a problem or is there a route around this not obvious to those of us south of the boarder? The alternative I have at the moment is to route across Moray Firth, however this puts me over water for 38nm if I cross from Viewfield to Lybster Village so as to avoid restricted area EG R610 C. Generally I like to try and keep overwater time to the minimum necessary.

The sensible solution is of course to wait for a clear day and enjoy the scenery of flying over land. However, I suspect the weather can sometimes make this a longer wait than I have time available and with the first clear sky I will then need to go south not north.

[gasax]

If it is a solid 2000' then the coast is the obvious option.

Aberdeen will give you a transit - unlike many Class D units they actually live up to the rules and expedite traffic. Just sound sensible and you'll get the stonehaven followed by Inverurie or Peterhead land - but you need to say which!

At Aberdeen you have the choice of swinging inland and heading toward Nairn (the Inverurue lane!). The majority of the danger areas will be cold at the weekend unles there is a major exercise on, so they usually do not present an obstacle.

If the cloud base is solid and low then it can be a bit of a trek around the coast otherwise (Peterhead lane!).

IF the cloud is 2000 and well broken - then the route up Glenshee and the Lairig Ghru will quite possibly be passible. The massif tends to cause these clouds to break up, so in a SW or W there is often a few ways through south to north.

Given the pessimism of the forecasts these days I would try the direct route and divert east if necessary at Braemar. Of course if you cannot get to Braemar then it's the coast of nothing!

[NorthSouth]

I'd suggest you cut the corner and route from around Edzell northwards, skirting to the west of the Aberdeen zone. Once you get to around Alford or Huntly you'll be able to determine whether to route NW direct to Inverness or take a more coastal route.

It is a long way over water at 2000ft if Tain Range (D703) is active, as it usually is on weekdays, so Inverness northwards is likely to be the only possible route. R610C is only active 1500-2300 Mon to Thu which gives plenty scope for flying through it. If you are there during its active times you can ask for a crossing from Tain Range on 122.75. Same applies for R610D further up the coast.

Don't worry about taking enough fuel for Kirkwall though - there are plenty of suitable trees to land in just north of Dundee. :ok:

NS

[polar57]

Going all the way up the coast past Aberdeen could be a pain as all the heli trafic comes back down the coast that way(quiet at weekends tho). Inbound heli VFR traffic will either be at 1000 or 1500. Controllers are good but busy.

I tend to go via Banchory then west of Loch of Skeen avoiding the R22s. That keeps you out the way of most traffic, avoids the bigger hills and fog plus more direct with a better view. Just avoid the mast! Don't think I'd chance the water crossing without the right kit. The inverness route is much more interesting anyway. Have fun.:)

[gasax]

Turning inland before/at Aberdeen works. In a SW wind however it is not unusual for the ceiling to be lower at the eastern end of Dee valley than further to the west.

VFR flying in this area is always weather dependent have a variety of plans with the final fallback as the coast route.

If it gets significantly worst there are a useful number of diversion fields along the coastal route and also along the more direct one.

[Stephen Furner]

Many thanks for these comments. Very useful advice that has me back looking at the maps both paper and electronic with much greater care. Given the scarcity of mountains here in East Anglia there is little opportunity to build any serious experience of flying within a mountainous geography and the impact weather has on it. The suggestion of a set of pre-prepared options/alternatives that can be used for different weather minima looks to me to be a very sensible way forward as does the routing north of Inverness around the danger area and along the coast.

Stephen

:ok:

[Captain Stable]

Keep off the golf courses in Dundee. :}

[140KIAS]

Stephen, if you get to Inverness then the hard bit's over as far as high ground / low cloud base is concerned. However you are correct to have a few alternative routes up your sleeve just in case.

After Inverness route north to BONBY staying above 2000' for R610D. Then up the coast taking care not to stray into D703. You also need to be above 2000' for R610C. DACS is available for both via Tain range if you cant make the 2000'.

Turn north abeam Lybster and then route via Loch Watten pretty much direct track to Kirkwall.

Perth - Inverness tracking the A9 is possible with a 3000' cloud base. The only tight bit is Drumochter Pass to the north of Blair Atholl.

[NorthSouth]

Thanks 140KIAS, you reminded me that I had R610C and R610D the wrong way round in my previous post. R610D's the one over Easter Ross next to Tain Range, R610C's the one further north at Dunbeath.
NS

[mad_jock]

Check the times for the highland danger area you might find you can go in.

And there is some cracking scenery inside that area

[140KIAS]

As NS stated 610A, 610C and 610D are all active Mon-Thu, 1500-2300 local. SFC-5000'. Same for 610B 750' - 5000'

See The Air Navigation (Restriction of Flying) (Scottish Highlands) Regulations 2008 No. 1239 (http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2008/uksi_20081239_en_1)

There are very few trees in Orkney :ooh:

[Stephen Furner]

Interpreting the advice I’ve been given cautiously so as to keep the workload to a minimum for an inexperienced VFR mountain flyer I have plotted a route on NavBox and uploaded the map view to Facebook at:

Stephen Furner's Photos - Dundee to Kirkwall | Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2020053&id=1118091118&l=a3fd36d831)

:)

[140KIAS]

Stephen

Thats certainly a worst case route that would allow you to continue with a low cloud base. However it will add quite a bit of time.

Ive been up to Kirkwall several times and never had to hug the coast quite as much as you are planning.

I'd prepare a couple of other routes which reduce distance & time;

1. Direct (or more of less), say PTH - INS. Perhaps include a few waypoints to roughly follow the A9 and stay clear of the highest group.

2. South of Aberdeen, say Edzell - Banchory - Inch - Nairn. You should have a good idea before you depart Dundee.

If you are stopping at Dundee you should be able to get a good idea of which route to follow before you depart.

Fingers crossed for a successful trip no matter what route you take. Hoping to get back up there myself next month and get a few of the remote islands in the log book.

[Stephen Furner]

:)

I’ve created two NavBox Dundee to Inverness routes for a higher cloud base and put them in a Facebook album. The first goes west of Aberdeen via Insch. Keeping roughly a 1000ft between the aircraft and any solid ground out to around 5 miles either side of track so there is a nice big margin of error for the inexperienced VFR mountain flyer makes this one good for 3500ft and above. The second follows the A9 and again keeping roughly 1000ft clear of anything solid out to 5 miles either side of track makes this good for 5000ft and above.

Stephen Furner's Photos - Dundee to Inverness via the high road | Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2020148&id=1118091118&l=f1e1017d39)

[140KIAS]

Looks reasonable - personally I'd probably have a few less waypoints but there's nothing wrong with what you've plogged.

Just be aware that route will take you through the Lossie/Kinloss MATZ. Could be quite busy with fast pointy things mid week.

[Scotsheli]

Hi Stephen,

Out of curiosity, what type are you going to be flying?

Watch the mountain wave if you've not been up here that often (forgive me if you have!); anything 20+ from the west or southwest will produce a nice wave, particularly for any leg along the Moray coast west of Banff and north to Helmsdale.

On my patch Lossie is generally closed at the weekends but Kinloss will be active for light aircraft and gliders - give them a call if you're passing close to the MATZ and they'll tell you what traffic is where. There is also a gliding site at Easterton, just south of Elgin which is one to watch out for.

Aberdeen radar will give you a service to approximately mid way to Inverness (so just after Huntly on your plog) and then you'll be in range for Inverness. Inverness radar are usually very helpful so if you intend to cross the Moray Firth i'd recommend doing that from just east of Nairn (as per your plog) and give Inverness a call to let them know that you're crossing from that point. This will keep you well away from their inbounds and they'll usually keep an extra eye on you until you're past Invergordon and back over dry land.

My only other precaution would be to pack some extra feet on the leg north between Golspie and Hemsdale, where the craggy stuff meets the water - just in case it goes quiet.

Oh, and watch Wick's opening hours at weekends - last time I looked they closed mid afternoon on a Sunday!

Otherwise have a great flight and enjoy some of the best scenery in GB. If you get a chance to do some island hopping on Orkeny, Westray to Papa is a great flight. Don't blink mind.

Happy Landings,

Scots

[Stephen Furner]

Good point about the number of waypoints. I fly an old 1968 Cessna F172H with a Garmin GPS100 in the avionics stack to control a simple S-TEC auto pilot/wings leveller. The GPS100 will only accept 9 waypoints in a route although it does store multiple routes. Keeping the number of waypoints down not only simplifies the paper PLOG and mapwork but fits in better with my older avionics fit. If the aircraft could speak it could probably tell me the best route since according to its papers it used to operate out of Aberdeen

Good point about the mountain waves theses are not something I have any experience of. Mountains are very rare here in East Anglia I have only read about mountain flying I have little or no experience of it. So far the furthest north I’ve flown was a trip to Perth last year.

I have simplified the routes and also avoided the MATZ. These are posted on Facebook at:

Stephen Furner's Photos - Simplified high road Dundee to Inverness | Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2020329&id=1118091118&l=793f02e477)

:)

[gasax]

Best of luck with your trip - a couple of points to consider.

Routing from Dundee is OK but unless you have a particular need to stop at Dundee then Glenrothes (good restaurant) or Perth (cafe but lots of runways) make better stopping off points.

Suggest you google mountain flying, there is some good material on the net, much of it Canadian or US - that will give you a clue as to what to expect.

Flying with the wing leveller connected if there is anything over 10 kts may not be such a good idea. Just moving from one side of the glen to the other can take you out of strong lift into the equivalent sink and requiring significant power.

Picking the right route on the leeward ridge can allow you to 'surf' along, conversely it can make life difficult getting it wrong. There is no mystery to it, the material on the net explains it all. But there are times when nature aborrs straight lines.

[Scotsheli]

I'd take the second of the routes posted today for better radar coverage but if its CAVOK then the first is certainly more scenic. Per an earlier post I wouldn't head into the mountains with anything less than stonking vis and the right cloudbase - the aforementioned 2000' is a definite "no no" on route 1 and perhaps even a bit marginal for most cross country routes north around Aberdeenshire, Moray & Highland. Bag every foot you can get! And the view's better!

Previous post offers good advice on wave. Read up, keep the VSI in the scan and you'll be fine.

Enjoy the views and have a great trip.