Carriage of ATS flight plan details

Karl Rattassep
Karl Rattassep • 5 August 2019
in community General Aviation
7 comments
1 likes

Dear EASA and GA community,

Several private pilots have asked how to follow the implementing rule on the carriage of ATS flight plan details in Part-NCO:

NCO.GEN.135 Documents, manuals and information to be carried

(a)    The following documents, manuals and information shall be carried on each flight as originals or copies unless otherwise specified:

/…/

(9)    details of the filed ATS flight plan, if applicable;

From the practical point of view, it’s sometimes quite difficult (or nearly impossible) to carry the ATS flight plan details when you have filed the flight plan from the air via radio, for instance. Also there seems to be not so much value to carry such information on board, because the pilots have filed the flight plan themselves and know exactly what they are doing. Can anybody explain what the purpose of this rule is? How is it implemented in other European countries?

Any comments from your side are welcome.

Comments (7)

Thomas Dietrich
Thomas Dietrich • 5 years ago

ITS Just one of many stupid Rules from an overruled subject done by no flying burocrats. Just keep that piece of Papier where You copied your Clearance. Thats your fpl and should make every body Happy.

Dominique Roland
Dominique Roland • 5 years ago

Could you try to be a bit more polite? I am one of these stupid bureaucrat... I invite you to join me in a ride with a two seat unlimited aerobatic aircraft just to show you how bureaucrat can fly :)

Thomas Dietrich
Thomas Dietrich • 5 years ago

Dominique Roland Dominique, you are anything but a stupid bureaucrat, you are the sword cutting though this bureaucracy jungle with pretty good success. But you did not build this jungle and it will be hard to cut down to a easy suitable landing strip.

Julian Scarfe
Julian Scarfe • 5 years ago

The purpose of the rule is primarily to make sure that the flight crew and ATC work from the same information, particularly as regards routes and levels. Is it really so hard to have a record of the flight plan filed on the ground? All the services I've used to file FPLs provide a copy, e.g. by email. It doesn't have to be on paper.

I don't think this was ever intended to cover the case of a simple abbreviated flight plan filed in the air, but doesn't writing down the ATC clearance have an equivalent effect?

Paul Mansfield
Paul Mansfield • 5 years ago

I have a question (and also appreciate the work that Dominique and colleagues do).

The list in NCO.GEN.135 includes:

(8) the journey log, or equivalent

and GM1 NCO.GEN.135(a)(8) says "’Journey log or equivalent’ means that the required information may be recorded in documentation
other than a log book, such as the operational flight plan"

but there is no requirement for an operational flight plan in NCO... (!)

SPO.GEN.140 displays the same confusion/conflict.

This is not the case in NCC.GEN.140, which contains the same GM on 'Journey Log' being ~ OFP, but actually goes on to cover OFP in NCC.OP.145 and lists 21 items it may contain.

Are NCO.GEN.135 & SPO.GEN.140 perhaps copies of NCC.GEN.140?

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