Syndicate aircraft banned from unlicensed airfield?
 

Had the minutes of a meeting at which there were CAA folk present.

The minutes state:

"Post Brexit has complicated matters for fractional ownership aircraft, with foreign and GB
registrations, now unable to use unlicensed airfields."

Any idea what this might refer too?

ps Am keeping any details of the meeting private, so if you recognise this please don't mention people or places.

There are no legal flight restrictions, whatever the number of owners, from operating from anywhere other than those of the Flight Manual/POH. The above post is nonsense.

I fly a Permit G registered Syndicate aircraft, and have landed at unlicenced airfields since Brexit. I've heard nothing about this.

Gliders are aircraft. A high proportion of them are in sydicates. Gliders rarely fly from licensed airfields.

Like others, I'm struggling to see what the issue could be, and how it would be impacted by Brexit.

Also seems a bit odd that it has only surfaced now - many of us have been operating for a while without any issue!!

"fractional ownership" is also an odd term to be used in a light aircraft/unlicensed airfields context, usually used for the likes of NetJets - something getting lost in translation here?

Yes. Fractional ownership is not the same as you and some mates having shares in a syndicate Jodel and flying into farm strips.
Nothing to see here...
https://www.planesense.com/fractional-program

It is up to the farm strip owner to decide who flies into his strip. No-one else. He may say no group aircraft. He may say no microlights or whatever. It is his decision who or what flies in.

I wonder if the CAA term “fractional ownership” refers to a Netjets style operation?

Well you're the third poster so far to suggest that. Gosh, maybe we're onto something, do you think?

Is hooey!

Your aircraft has or has not ('sounds like has) national authorization to use any aerodrome which is dimensionally suitable - but that's not an insurance thing. If you're a G reg plane in the UK, you can land anywhere for which you have permission from the landowner, and that should not concern the insurer. Now, if you try to tuck it into a too short grass strip, and wreck it off the end, the insurer may justifiably "inquire" about were you operating within the performance of the airplane, and that brings up other questions. But if you're operating off a runway of suitable condition and dimensions, and with permission, that should be the end of the insurance company's interest. I would press the issue with the insurance agent. I have known flying club airplanes, where it was the flying club policy that you not take their plane into unlicensed runways, that was a flying club policy, and fair enough, it's their plane. If it's your plane (or share of) and being operated properly, that should be the end of the concern.

Hi all,

Thanks for the replies - it caught my attention since I own an unlicenced airfield and I had never heard of it either.

I will now get back to the author of the minutes (of a meeting I wasn't at) and seek clarification.

I will report back!

OK, explanation I got back was - as some guessed - due to fractional ownership: (country, airfield and aircraft details amended for privacy)

Since 1st January 2021 the UK CAA have said that they don’t recognise our fractional ownership program of European-registered single turbines which we operate under private flying rules.

To adapt we are putting one of these on the G-reg and partnering with a UK operator to use their single turbine UK AOC.

Under a UK AOC this aircraft can no longer access this particular runway as it doesn’t have sufficient fire category (we now require CAT 3). It’s also a short, grass runway which under the AOC rules makes the use very prohibitive, for instance, when the grass is wet we couldn’t operate at all.

We have the occasional visitors here at Strathaven Airfield for the racecourse at Hamilton, including a Cessna Caravan. So was wondering if that would stop. But I think that aircraft is owned outright.

Related to the Sala crash? "Which we operate under Private rules."
I see single turboprops using an unlicensed grass runway with the only fire response a volunteer unit in the town. They appear to carry assorted passengers, so unlikely just owner and pals.