MODE S in Holland and Belgium
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Not close enough to my aircraft !
Posts: 107
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
MODE S in Holland and Belgium
Can anyone advise current Mode S situation for Holland and Belgium and in particualr has anyone flown there using MODE C in the last 2 weeks ?
Junes edition of AOPA states that “As from April 8th 2008, all motor powered aircraft flying in the Netherlands had to be equipped with a mode-S transponder which should be switched on above 1200 feet. Ary Stiger of AOPA Netherlands warns that traffic from abroad must indicate /S in the “equipment” box in the flight plan, otherwise the flight plan will not be approved. Penalties for failure to use mode-S will be introduced from July”.
However a call to one Dutch airfield brought the reply " if you do not have Mode S then you must remain below 1200ft and use class G airspace. Other than that, no problem?
A call to another stated " without Mode S fitted and active there will be no flight plan approved and no entry into Dutch Airspace.
Our CAA state the following :
The Netherlands
A copy of the Dutch AIC B 04/04 dated 1 April 2004 is available on the EUROCONTROL website but the Dutch regulator has recently stated the following [rephrased by CAA to aid clarity]:
A (Mode S) SSR-transponder is mandatory for all aeroplanes and helicopters for IFR flight.
For VFR-flights with aeroplanes (incl microlights and TMG) and helicopters an SSR-transponder is mandatory in all classes of airspace except below 1200 ft AMSL in class G, outside the airspace above the North Sea.
From March 31, 2008 the same requirement, for Mode S transponders instead of Mode A/C transponders, will be in force for all aircraft (incl balloons, sailplanes, hanggliders etc), except in Transponder Free Zones which only will be developed for areas where ACAS-aircraft or military fighters are not active.
Currently, there is also a Transponder Mandatory Zone around Eindhoven Airport where a transponder is mandatory for all aircraft. Additionally, there are two Caution Areas where all VFR flights are strongly advised to fly only with an operational transponder and (though it is only class E airspace) are required to have 2-way radio contact if they decide to fly in that airspace without a transponder.
Can ANYONE shed any light please ? Do the authorities actually know what is happening .....sems complete confusion since 31st March 2008 ?
Junes edition of AOPA states that “As from April 8th 2008, all motor powered aircraft flying in the Netherlands had to be equipped with a mode-S transponder which should be switched on above 1200 feet. Ary Stiger of AOPA Netherlands warns that traffic from abroad must indicate /S in the “equipment” box in the flight plan, otherwise the flight plan will not be approved. Penalties for failure to use mode-S will be introduced from July”.
However a call to one Dutch airfield brought the reply " if you do not have Mode S then you must remain below 1200ft and use class G airspace. Other than that, no problem?
A call to another stated " without Mode S fitted and active there will be no flight plan approved and no entry into Dutch Airspace.
Our CAA state the following :
The Netherlands
A copy of the Dutch AIC B 04/04 dated 1 April 2004 is available on the EUROCONTROL website but the Dutch regulator has recently stated the following [rephrased by CAA to aid clarity]:
A (Mode S) SSR-transponder is mandatory for all aeroplanes and helicopters for IFR flight.
For VFR-flights with aeroplanes (incl microlights and TMG) and helicopters an SSR-transponder is mandatory in all classes of airspace except below 1200 ft AMSL in class G, outside the airspace above the North Sea.
From March 31, 2008 the same requirement, for Mode S transponders instead of Mode A/C transponders, will be in force for all aircraft (incl balloons, sailplanes, hanggliders etc), except in Transponder Free Zones which only will be developed for areas where ACAS-aircraft or military fighters are not active.
Currently, there is also a Transponder Mandatory Zone around Eindhoven Airport where a transponder is mandatory for all aircraft. Additionally, there are two Caution Areas where all VFR flights are strongly advised to fly only with an operational transponder and (though it is only class E airspace) are required to have 2-way radio contact if they decide to fly in that airspace without a transponder.
Can ANYONE shed any light please ? Do the authorities actually know what is happening .....sems complete confusion since 31st March 2008 ?
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Amsterdam
Posts: 4,598
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Okay, here's the short version. Of course, the truth is in the AIP. And the most official place for the Dutch AIC would be http://www.ais-netherlands.nl.
If you want to fly IFR, you have to have mode S or get an exception through Eurocontrol.
If you want to fly VFR in any of the Transponder Mandatory Zones, you have to have mode S. TMZs are currently virtually everywhere FL65+ and a few places 1200'+. The FL65 limit is going to drop to 1200' over the next two years.
If you want to fly VFR outside the TMZs but higher than 1200', you have to have a transponder with at least mode A/C. (Well, actually you might need just mode A, I'm not sure.)
If you want to fly VFR below 1200' you currently do not require a transponder.
The following AIC explains it all:
http://www.ais-netherlands.nl/aim/08...dex-en-GB.html
To avoid ACAS reports you are NOT supposed to activate your transponder when flying underneath the Schiphol TMA, regardless of whether you have mode S or not. Although today, talking to Amsterdam info, I was specifically asked to turn it on anyway there.
I did my first cross-country flight in quite a while today and there were loads of aircraft being queried by Amsterdam Info about their mode S readout and so forth. All very friendly but you could tell that the controllers indeed do have mode S readouts on their radar screen and they do know what's in your flightplan. /C or /S. They are, when time permits, notifying aircraft of any discrepancies, faulty settings and so forth. Also, very unusual, I crossed the Schiphol CTR and did not get a separate mode A squawk. Apparently the mode S ID readout was good enough to let me through.
Another tip, especially for rental aircraft, is to check the Flight ID that's set in the transponder before startup. It should read your callsign as per the flightplan, without any extra spaces or anything. Apparently people are pulling pranks on each other with this. One example I heard was that "JESUS" was set in the Flight ID instead of the true callsign.
If you want to fly IFR, you have to have mode S or get an exception through Eurocontrol.
If you want to fly VFR in any of the Transponder Mandatory Zones, you have to have mode S. TMZs are currently virtually everywhere FL65+ and a few places 1200'+. The FL65 limit is going to drop to 1200' over the next two years.
If you want to fly VFR outside the TMZs but higher than 1200', you have to have a transponder with at least mode A/C. (Well, actually you might need just mode A, I'm not sure.)
If you want to fly VFR below 1200' you currently do not require a transponder.
The following AIC explains it all:
http://www.ais-netherlands.nl/aim/08...dex-en-GB.html
To avoid ACAS reports you are NOT supposed to activate your transponder when flying underneath the Schiphol TMA, regardless of whether you have mode S or not. Although today, talking to Amsterdam info, I was specifically asked to turn it on anyway there.
I did my first cross-country flight in quite a while today and there were loads of aircraft being queried by Amsterdam Info about their mode S readout and so forth. All very friendly but you could tell that the controllers indeed do have mode S readouts on their radar screen and they do know what's in your flightplan. /C or /S. They are, when time permits, notifying aircraft of any discrepancies, faulty settings and so forth. Also, very unusual, I crossed the Schiphol CTR and did not get a separate mode A squawk. Apparently the mode S ID readout was good enough to let me through.
Another tip, especially for rental aircraft, is to check the Flight ID that's set in the transponder before startup. It should read your callsign as per the flightplan, without any extra spaces or anything. Apparently people are pulling pranks on each other with this. One example I heard was that "JESUS" was set in the Flight ID instead of the true callsign.
Last edited by BackPacker; 14th Jun 2008 at 21:27.
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: S Warwickshire
Posts: 1,214
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The Dutch situation seems to have been changing a lot lately. I crossed under the Amsterdam TMA with mode A/C with no problems a few weeks ago, but from June 5th they've made almost the entire country a mandatory Mode S area (see AIC 07/08) as well as the requirement in the Amsterdam FIR unless below 1200' in class G. But ENR 1.6 states that VFR traffic is allowed to have mode A\c only and no transponder required below 1200' in class G.
So my interpretation is that, at least for a while, you don't need Mode S outside of the height and time limits listed in the AIC, but it need some careful reading. An earlier AIC effectively banning Mode A/C only was cancelled.
For Belgium though they seem to have backed off (see AIC 05/2008) and Mode S for VFR has been delayed to 2011.
So my interpretation is that, at least for a while, you don't need Mode S outside of the height and time limits listed in the AIC, but it need some careful reading. An earlier AIC effectively banning Mode A/C only was cancelled.
For Belgium though they seem to have backed off (see AIC 05/2008) and Mode S for VFR has been delayed to 2011.
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Amsterdam
Posts: 4,598
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
That's politics working for you.
Basically both the ATC and the big iron drivers (because of spurious ACAS reports) wanted mode S to happen yesterday, everywhere. And initially that's what seemed to happen.
Until the GA community, the glider community, the hot ballooning community and anything else low-budget or low/no-power aviation started lobbying that things were going too fast, that low-power or low-budget mode S transponders were not available soon enough and so forth. Because of that, countries have delayed timetables and made exceptions in the form of airspace where mode S is not required yet. But those exceptions will not last forever. For the Netherlands, March 2010 seems to be the date where everything man-made that flies above 1200' has to have mode S.
My club has bitten the bullet and installed mode S in all planes this spring. We already did the IFR-capable planes about a year ago. If you haven't upgraded yet, flight planning will get more and more interesting. Especially now that flightplans without /S are being rejected in certain cases.
Basically both the ATC and the big iron drivers (because of spurious ACAS reports) wanted mode S to happen yesterday, everywhere. And initially that's what seemed to happen.
Until the GA community, the glider community, the hot ballooning community and anything else low-budget or low/no-power aviation started lobbying that things were going too fast, that low-power or low-budget mode S transponders were not available soon enough and so forth. Because of that, countries have delayed timetables and made exceptions in the form of airspace where mode S is not required yet. But those exceptions will not last forever. For the Netherlands, March 2010 seems to be the date where everything man-made that flies above 1200' has to have mode S.
My club has bitten the bullet and installed mode S in all planes this spring. We already did the IFR-capable planes about a year ago. If you haven't upgraded yet, flight planning will get more and more interesting. Especially now that flightplans without /S are being rejected in certain cases.
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: UK
Posts: 433
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
"I wish the UK CAA had the balls to go down the Netherlands route!"
....What? And kill of sport aviation in the UK using the claim that the technology improves safety without the evidence to support it ?
Have heard rumours that in the Netherlands they've had problems already and have asked pilots to switch off their Mode-S when near controlled airspace due to the volume of spurious TCAS alerts. Did wonder what effect a glider with Mode-S being winch launched would have. Next thing you know they'll be asking for pilots to switch off Mode-S when doing aerobatics too! Mind you the Dutch are leading the way with evaluating the operation of UAV's in airspace (http://www.nlr.nl/id~7012/lang~en.html). The current continued expansion of Danger Areas in the UK to cater for UAV's confirms the trend too...http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/06...ury_plain_spy/ .
And you thought Mode-S was about safety ?
....What? And kill of sport aviation in the UK using the claim that the technology improves safety without the evidence to support it ?
Have heard rumours that in the Netherlands they've had problems already and have asked pilots to switch off their Mode-S when near controlled airspace due to the volume of spurious TCAS alerts. Did wonder what effect a glider with Mode-S being winch launched would have. Next thing you know they'll be asking for pilots to switch off Mode-S when doing aerobatics too! Mind you the Dutch are leading the way with evaluating the operation of UAV's in airspace (http://www.nlr.nl/id~7012/lang~en.html). The current continued expansion of Danger Areas in the UK to cater for UAV's confirms the trend too...http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/06...ury_plain_spy/ .
And you thought Mode-S was about safety ?
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Amsterdam
Posts: 4,598
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Have heard rumours that in the Netherlands they've had problems already and have asked pilots to switch off their Mode-S when near controlled airspace due to the volume of spurious TCAS alerts.
Nothing to do with Mode-S. In fact, Mode-S will probably lead to less spurious TCAS alerts allowing us to keep our transponder on at all times. My last two flights in this area I was specifically asked by ATC to switch it on anyway.
Did wonder what effect a glider with Mode-S being winch launched would have.
The Netherlands is actually not that bad in supporting GA. Schiphol airport is only marginally smaller than Heathrow and has more runways in more directions. Yet it is class C and transits are normally only refused if they actually interfere with departing and arriving traffic. Pick your route carefully and you can fly directly over the tower of Schiphol "not above 1000 feet".
