Lakenheath working too hard?
I'm a PPL/IMC holder with around 110 hours total experience - so still definitely a rookie. Last Wednesday I flew from Old Buckenham in Norfolk (EGSV) to Oxford/Kidlington (EGTK) around 1300Z, planning to route via Wyton and DTY. There's a danger area (D208) on this track, so after departure from Old Buckenham I called up Lakenheath, who are listed in the AIP as the DAAIS provider. Conversation went something like this:
Me: Lakenheath Approach, G-XXXX
Lakenheath: endless instructions to military aircraft inbound, not even pausing for breath
Me: ditto (circling over a disused airfield while I wait)
L: ditto
Me: ditto
L, at last: G-XXXX, stand by.
The controller was working absolutely flat out. She didn't pause for breath (I couldn't hear the replies because I was only listening on VHF) and never called me back. As I didn't know whether D208 was active I routed to the south of it, over the top of the MATZ at 3200 on the Old Buckenham QNH (actual height above Lakenheath unknown as I couldn't get a QFE from her...), squawking 7000 but no Mode C, so she won't have known my altitude. When I got to the far edge of the MATZ I gave up on her:
Me: G-XXXX, request change to Wyton approach on xxx.xx.
L: station calling, FIS terminated, squawk 7000, good day.
Two questions:
(1) did I do the right thing, or should I have called London Info for the DAAIS?
(2) was she as overloaded as she sounded? For example, she didn't seem to know about my existence so was not in a position to offer an alerting service, which she surely is bound to do by law?
(3) would it be helpful to raise an MOR? I don't in any way blame the controller: but someone should have forseen that her workload would be too great.
Tim Morris