London Information any use?
Hi Guys, when I fly local to Manchester / Liverpool it is always nice to contact Liverpool Approach for a 'Basic Service'. The benefits are that I can hear local traffic.. some on the North Wales coast, some over Seaforth and maybe some over Oulton Park... It gives me some clue as to where everyone is and if they are likely to bump into me. Also Liverpool's ATC will give you the unofficial radar service and let you know if someone is on a collision course.
However if I fly into the Midlands / Wales area, the only service to be offered is 'London Information'. On a good day this is crowded with planes coasting in or coasting out at Lydd or Dover, these are of no real concern to me in avoiding any hazardous conflict. So that begs the question... What use is 'London Information' to anyone north of the M25?
Even though they give you a Squalk (1177.) they have no Radar screen, and my guess is that they just have a large Chart with Post-It notes on, to record any Notams or Events. I was once told by them that one valley had a search and rescue mission ongoing... by the time I deciphered their Lattitude and Longitude, I was several tens of miles away.
From listening to Airband over the years, I got to know which frequencies were used in which areas, say 133.6 from Wirral to Berry-Head, but if you ever contact them they are not interested unless you have turbofans under each wing. They suggest you call London Information...
Pete
Last edited by phiggsbroadband; 22nd Sep 2012 at 10:21.