It's not easy to forget. It's obvious
This was a little tongue in cheek, as I suspect you realise. However are you sure it was so obvious to the designers of the air space. How is it that there is an airway from CP to ORTAC with a base of 3,500 whereas there is no airway across the channel with an operational base below FL80? I suspect there are more light aircraft crossing the channel between FL45 and FL55 than CAT using an airway designed for three or four daily trilanders. If trilanders "need" an airway why is it that light aircraft dont equally need a practical airway that they can use? In reality they have no choice but to cross without radar cover and below FL55 whatever the weather is doing.
I agree that IFR planning should of course be conducted on the basis of the aircrafts capability - I doubt anyone would dispute that. However as I said at the outset no one wants by choice to be bumping around in the tops of wet clouds for any longer than necessary, even if it might be safe, it can be bl**dy unpleasant. So what is some 2,500 feet of airspace actually being used for between FL55 and FL80 so as to practically exclude all north bound traffic?
There is no distinction between the rights of a 172 vs TB20 vs King Air vs Transport Jet to use CAS or OCAS
How so? There is every distinction if operationally the airspace is not useable? What is wrong with the airspace between FL55 and FL80 which would be more useable to most light aircraft.
It is interesting watching the stream of traffic north and south bound over SFD - have a look at the volume and the heights and even include the scheduled out of Gatwick. There is a great deal of not used and effectively unuseable airspace.
Last edited by Fuji Abound; 14th May 2010 at 16:09.