Mike,
I had something come up recently when receiving VFR radar services from PHX approach, a class B facility with several class D airfields below it.
I was cleared into the class B but at an altitude corresponding to the base of one of the wedding cakes. 100ft or so (no charts on me here) below me was IWA class D, I was heading for FFZ (Class D) which almost touches the IWA class D, and normally when heading for FFZ from that direction I would be at an altitude which would require me to traverse the IWA class D, with appropriate communication with IWA tower.
Clear as mud so far??
When midfield above the IWA class D, PHX approach said something to the effect of 'Flight following cancelled, sqwark VFR, descend at pilots discretion'. So I was in class B, yet the controller had essentially told me I was 'on my own', was sqwarking VFR, had not communicated with the Class D tower below, but approach had essentially told me it was fine to descend at my discretion - this would take me
into the class D below if I was to make a sensible descent towards FFZ.
Now FAR 91.129 says
Each person must establish two-way radio communications with the ATC facility (including foreign ATC in the case of foreign airspace designated in the United States) providing air traffic services prior to entering that airspace and thereafter maintain those communications while within that airspace
So as PHX approach is not the controlling agency over the class D, and they had cancelled flight following, and I was VFR anyway, am I going to get asked to make a phone call if I descended into the class D? Should I have stayed in the Class B until clear of the class D below, which would have caused problems with communicating and getting into the FFZ class D.
And from experience I know IWA tower are more than happy to ask (allegedly
) errant pilots to call them for a pep-talk
I should know this of course, but don't, and never did call PHX approach to ask them what they would like me to do and where I would stand. As it happened I descended into the very thin gap between B and D and took a non direct route to FFZ, but am still interested to know whether I would have been legal to descend into the D if B and D touched. I think not, but I'm not the ATC procedure expert.