David Corbett wrote:
> Please could our friends in the Netherlands give us (in UK) an update as
> to whether aircraft flying below 1200 ft under the Amsterdam TMA are
> still being required to turn their Mode S transponders off whilst in the
> relevant airspace? This request is on behalf of the UK General Aviation
> Safety Council.
Yes, this is still the case. :-(
And yes, it is still mandatory for us to carry a mode-S transponder on
board. :-(
I have hold it off as long as possible, but I just bought an expensive
mode-S transponder which I have to turn off over half the country.
I also had to buy an expensive 406 MHz ELT (PLB is not allowed as an
alternative), mandatory if you want to cross the boarder, although the
countries around us don't require it. The ELT is only mandatory for the
split second we are actually crossing the boarder, we don't need it
before reaching the boarder, and not after we have passed it.
Why we need it is a mystery, in this heavily populated country it is
impossible to crash your airplane without numerous people noticing it
and complaining about the damage it caused on their property.
Oh wait, we also have a lot of water around us! Too bad then that we
have to install a fixed ELT, with a mandatory switch on the instrument
panel and associated wiring, making it impossible to remove the ELT in a
hurry, so to guarantee that it will sink together with the airplane and
beep its silly signals to the fishes rather than to the satellites.
Well, there is also a good side to this country: Today I received the
first bunch of official documents for my airplane, never having had an
inspector nor a certified mechanic even in the neighbourhood of my
airplane. :-)
Big grin day is getting close. :-)
Frans
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