Help selecting a QXC route

[rich_g85]

Hi all,
My QXC is just around the corner and my instructor has been asking me to select a route.. I've come up with a few ideas, as follows (all starting and ending at Bournemouth):

Exeter & Bristol
Exeter & Cardiff
Exeter & Sandown
Shoreham & Bristol (just thought of that one, so not sure if it measures >150nm)

Can anyone that's been there before suggest whether Exeter/Bristol/Cardiff would be especially welcoming to a student on a QXC? Likelihood of being 'mucked around' in the air - orbiting/extending etc not a problem from a skills perspective, just thinking of the wallet!

Any pros & cons for the above routes? If you have recent knowledge of the landing fees at any of the above would be appreciated too (I know Shoreham is about £22 though, I was there a couple of weeks ago!)

Thanks in advance!
Rich

[stevelup]

Did you get out of the wrong side of bed today?

[rich_g85]

SoCal, I had a feeling someone would get the wrong end of the stick.

I know I need to do my own analysis and nothing should be handed to me on a plate.

However, I'm bored at work and I'd rather be flying. So I thought, why not stick a post on Pprune and gather some pre-intelligence before I get home and hit the Pooleys to make my own mind up.

I'm an inexperienced student pilot, sure my instructor won't let me do anything/go anywhere I'm not ready for but I'm looking for some practical real-world experiences and suggestions - perhaps from others who have recently been in my position.

Thanks,
Rich

[stevelup]

Bristol really isn't suitable. It'll cost you a fortune and is not really geared towards GA, let alone students.

How about Bournemouth > Goodwood > Kemble > Bournemouth. 164nm and two airfields used to training traffic.

It's also a nice triangle with fairly equidistant legs.

[rich_g85]

stevelup, airpolice - thanks chaps, that's just the kind of advice I was hoping for.

I'd not considered Goodwood or Kemble, but I will definitely add that route to the list of possibilities!

[BackPacker]

Something else. On your first few XCs, including the QXC, keep it simple. Don't go looking for hard-to-navigate terrain, crossing of controlled airspace and other difficult things if you can help it. Save that for later.

[pulse1]

It's easier on the pocket if you do Dunkeswell and Old Sarum. I believe that this is a common Bournemouth one. Choice of Old Sarum might depend on which day of the week you go. i.e. w/e a bit easier.

Having said that, I did Exeter and Bristol and thoroughly enjoyed it, especially being marshalled in and picked up by a minibus at Bristol. In the week, Yeovilton will give you a service all the way round and, for me, they arranged hand-overs to Exeter and Bristol. Only Bournemouth would not co-operate with that one.

In my day, Exeter and Bristol had cheaper landing fees for students.

[mad_jock]

Well I wouldn't send a student to any of them purely because they are big and landing fees will cost a fortune.

You could just choose 2 airports on the coast then the nav will be a piece of piddle

[DeeCee]

I am a little surprised because I thought that the Instructor would normally choose the route for a QXC and would know suitable airports and aerodromes. Am I out of date?

Good luck anyway. Mine was Stapleford / Norwich / Ipswich / Stapleford.

[IO540]

I would avoid grass airfields. They are a pig to find unless you either know the area, or use a GPS

Also I would avoid ultra busy places like Stapleford (especially on a weekend) because they can be hard work. I recall going in there a while ago and got cut up from the left, then went around and got cut up from the right, with these planes apparently having instructors in them too.

Exeter, Bristol, Shoreham, Lydd, Manston, Plymouth, etc.

Ones near the coast are easier to find because they are on the coast Once you get your PPL you will use a GPS anyway.

Got to keep this game enjoyable.

[Sillert,V.I.]

How about Bournemouth - Booker - Goodwood - Bournemouth? That was my own QXC route about 25 years ago, except that I started/finished at Booker.

[Cusco]

rich:

Go to the studes forum on FLYER Forums • View forum - Student Pilots Flyer Forums and ask your question.

There is an anti-flaming policy and you won't get grumpy or willy-waving responses, just genuine help.

Cusco

[Morris542]

I too was a bit surprised to see that you were free to choose your own route, I wasn't given the choice, but it was a route that I hadn't done before. Goodwood is quite good fun and deals with a lot of students. After I had landed there on my QXC the lady behind the desk grinned and said: "Well done! You should've come yesterday, the landing fees were half price".

In the end you know your own strengths and weaknesses so choose something that reflects those. If you do choose grass airfields, might be worth having some practise landing and taking off on grass before you set off - a tad more bumpy (or though that might just be my landings!).

[dan_vector]

Hi Rich, I did my QXC a couple of weeks ago. I'm training at Compton Abbas and my route was Compton - Dunkeswell - Kemble - Compton. As your out of bournemouth it's not that much further and the landing fees are ok, £10 at dunks and £17 at Kemble. Both fields were very easy to find and very accommodating to students - no difficult traffic or anything. wherever you decide to go good luck and enjoy - it is a fantastic feeling!!
Feel free to PM me if you'd like any other info.
Cheers,
Dan.

[neilgeddes]

I did Sandown - Hurn - White Waltham - Sandown back in the '80s

[RTN11]

Sandown isn't too hard to spot, but it's not in the best condition, only 600m usable and completely unlicenced.

How about Exeter - Kemble?

Would be more accommodating than either Bristol or Cardiff. Kemble has a great restaurant, nice pool table, remote control car racing track, and some great views of old aircraft being taken apart. Also worth popping in to chat to the Ultimate High team about more advanced training once you get your licence.

[o7i]

I did Bournemouth - Sandown - Compton Abbas - Bournemouth with a waypoint at Axminster to make up the miles.

Nice trip and easy to navigate along the coast

[rich_g85]

Well, I've spent the last hour and a half studying the chart, with help from skydemonlight.com, the Pooleys guide and various airfield websites.

And I'm still no closer to a decision! I'd love to visit everywhere suggested so far, guess I'm sorted for trips once my licence is in the bag.

[AndoniP]

Hi Rich,

As airpolice mentioned, one of the best things you could do is prefix your registration with "student", so that any ATC you speak to will go easy on you. I didn't and the controller at Cambridge got really sarcastic I wanted to get out and pummel his head in.

Also when planning your route, one thing that could make things a lot easier for you is planning your legs so that there are a lot of features en route - lakes, motorways, towns etc. will all help your dead reckoning and timing.

Bear in mind though that feature-crawling is something that your examiner won't want to see in the exam and that you're keeping a good watch on your leg timing and making corrections to your heading due to wind variation.

My instructor gave me my route (Elstree - Cambridge - Wellesbourne - Elstree), I wasn't told to plan my own. After having the worst time at Cambridge with ATC, the people at Wellesbourne were brilliant. Maybe the smaller aerodromes will make your approaches easier as they are generally more friendly?

Relax and have fun, it really is a great experience and you finish the long flight with a great sense of achievement!

Good luck!

[AndoniP]

p.s. I think Bristol is closing so it may be an idea to visit once you have your licence