Chilli
"I said a busy combined Commercial & GA airport - did I not?"
Sorry, you are correct, although I suppose solent does support one GA airport and one that use to be (and still does a bit of GA).
"Actually the priority is to provide a safe, orderly and expeditious flow of Air Traffic. If that means occasionally denying access to CAS or delaying access then so be it."
I was being provactive. However, you use the word expeditious and air traffic, without limitation which leaves you close to my point. The service is not limited to meeting these priorities for commercial traffic or GA traffic BUT for ALL air traffic.
"I love the fact that most PPL's, with no training, are all experts at my chosen career. You did your ATC course - where?"
That is always a dangerous one. Whilst I am certainly not an expert, I am a recipient of your service. From my stand point I am no more interested in what it takes for you to provide your service than how a doctor arrives at his diagnosis. I simply require that the doctor makes me better, as I would hope you would provide me with safe, orderly and expeditious flow . If I wanted to understand how the doctor makes me better I may as well be the doctor and not bother with his services in the first place. That is why you are an expert and I would hope do you best to provide me with the serivce I require.
"Call early enough and you probably won't have to do either. Call a mile from the zone boundary and that's your own fault."
Sorry, but you are wrong. I have been transiting CAS for a very long time. I reckon I know when and how to make the call.
"That is rather insulting, and has no place in rational debate - mainly because it's a complete untruth."
True - forgive me for being provocative agian.
"Like I said - total incomprehension of the system and how it works. That "slot" is normally because the other end has delays (weather, serviceabilities etc etc). To fit in the flow that aircraft has to arrive at destination at a certain time - therefore it has to leave at a certain time. On that basis I have a finite window to depart them, and if it means you pitch up at the wrong moment you get the slight inconvenience. Sorry, but that's how the game is played.
Real world scenario. Greek airport, popular holiday destination, has a major equipment outage. Arrivals restricted to 5 per hour. That affects every departure for there throughout Europe, some departing from us. Believe me - that departure window cannot be broken (And I'm not going to be in the office explaining why I have)."
.. .. .. but that is the point. You actually manage the commercial pressures very well and it is not usually in my experience a significant problem. However as CAS grows, as commercial pressures grow, as the sytem causes more and more delays the occasions where GA lose any priority become more frequent (because you are not going to be in the office explaining why), GA gets frustrated and the problems identified on this thread arise. Is it your fault - probably not. However the regulator obviously felt there was a problem by asking GA to report CAS transit denials. The original poster obvioulsy felt there was a problem becasue he felt GA had no place under his localiser. I feel it is a problem becasue I get my call in, in plenty of time and are all to often left wondering whether I will get the clearance and when.
I suppose it is a bit like the NHS. See the patient in 5 minutes and you can claim there are no delays. Tell the pilot to remain out side controlled airspace, I will come back - and the transit has not actually been denied, but by the time it has been granted there is a good chance the pilot's b**%£"" of some where else and even better will not bother next time. Trouble is he has become a different problem because he is now under my localiser not talking to me and there is nothing I can do about it but claim more CAS.