From: dls@genrad.com (Diana L. Syriac)
Newsgroups: rec.aviation
Subject: Re: Cleared to enter the TCA...required?
Date: 23 Jul 92 11:41:30 GMT
Organization: GenRad, Inc.

In article <1992Jul13.190511.20505@peck.com> geoff@peck.com (Geoff Peck) writes:
>This was the misunderstanding which resulted in one of the
>most amusing TCA clearances I've ever heard Bay Approach give:
>    "Cleared into the San Francisco TCA, youShouldReallyAskFirst".
>They knew who I was, where I was going, and they were talking to me.  After
>that amusing clearance, I asked "why"?
>
>Apparently, when you make that first IFR approach to a field, and it's solid
>VFR, they simply cancel out your IFR clearance and let you proceed VFR.  If
>they were to maintain you as an IFR aircraft, this would require more
>separation between you and other aircraft, which would be inconvenient for
>both you and the controller.  ATC probably simply can't accomodate practice
>approaches in a busy area while you are on an IFR clearance because of
>separation rules.

I heard a rather IRATE controller bawling out the pilot of 6287T (I remember
the tail number cuz I FLY THAT PLANE sometimes...not this time :-) last night.
From what I could gather from the conversation on the frequency, the plane 
was on an IFR flight plan to go from BEDford, MA to MancHesTer, NH to do some
practice approaches.  He found out that he wouldn't get any ILS approaches,
so requested a modification of the IFR flight plan in the air.  The controller
told him in no uncertain terms that he should have done that on the ground,
and it's not that easy to work in modifications to IFR plans, due to the
requirement to keep airplanes 1000 feet apart, whereas VFR only requires
500 feet (vertical) separation.  This bawling out went on for five minutes....
after which the controller issued him a modified IFR clearance "direct 
Lawrence, direct Pease" for practice approaches there.

It surprised me to hear this plane going to MHT....or Pease, for that matter.
Both are outside the bounds of Massachusetts...CAP planes (in Massachusetts :-(
aren't allowed outside the bounds of the state without prior permission from
the Wing commander.  At the last MASS Wing Conference we (pilots) were told
in no uncertain terms that there would be NO flying outside the state, EVEN
to MancHesTer, which had been allowed with the previous Wing commander.  Our
current Wing commander is not a pilot and doesn't quite understand why we
might want to go outside this "BIG" state ("there's plenty of places to go
to right here in the state!").  He doesn't quite understand why we insist on
wanting to go at least 50 nautical miles from the airport we takeoff from.
He also doesn't understand why we want to go to bigger airports that have
ILS's and LIGHTS at night instead of going to this rinky dink uncontrolled
airport with no approaches and no lights....or why we can't just go to Boston,
"that's big enough, right?".

I heard another CAP airplane last night flying out of Massachusetts...to
Plum Island, Maine...gee, two in one night...maybe they finally changed the
MAWG regulations and I just haven't been told about it yet!!!  (I can hope, 
right?)  [ MAWG = MAssachusetts WinG ]

And before all you CAP pilots come back with quoting the regs in CAPF 60-1,
I KNOW that it says:  "anywhere in the Region".....Yeah, but try and tell
our Wing commander that....it's local politics involved here, not CAP
regulations....sigh :-(.

(Note, BEDford to MancHesTer,NH is about 30 NM, BEDford to Pease, ME is about
35 NM, BEDford to ProViDence,RI is about 35 NM, BEDford to Great Barrington, 
MA, the furthest MA airport from BEDford, is about 45 NM....big choice we 
have IN MAssachusetts, right?)

Diana
->Diana L. Syriac (Carlson) dls@genrad.com	Ham: KC1SP (Sweet Pea)      <-
->I'D RATHER BE FLYING!	P-ASEL, INST		CAP: 1LT, Freedom 690 Mobile<-
->AD ASTRA, PER ASPERA				Airplane: C-172 N6513E	    <-
->GenRad, MS/6, 300 Baker Ave, Concord, Mass.  01742  (508)369-4400 x2459   <-
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