VFR flight plans. Do you file them?

saddletramp

saddletramp

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saddletramp
I guess the title says it all. I had a Private Pilot applicant of mine get berated by an examiner because he'd never filed a flight plan. I teach flight following and explain how to file, open, & close a flight plan. There is a place for them but personally I never file them.
 
You're an instructor and your personal feelings regarding the usefulness of flight plans shouldn't prevent you from teaching them. It's your job to set a good example and effective teaching requires that you actually have the student perform the actions of filing, activating, and closing a flight plan, rather than just telling them a bedtime story about it.
 
I usually file them. In Canada, you have to file a flight plan or leave a flight itinerary with a responsible person every time you go further than 25 miles from the point of departure. I tend to also file in the U.S. especially since it's so easy here with text message to open and close the flight plan. If FF is denied due to capacity, at least I know there is a flight plan in the system.
 
saddletramp said:
I guess the title says it all. I had a Private Pilot applicant of mine get berated by an examiner because he'd never filed a flight plan. I teach flight following and explain how to file, open, & close a flight plan. There is a place for them but personally I never file them.
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VFR flight plans are included as both a knowledge and a skill demonstrations in the cross country flight planning task in the ACS. So exactly how do you expect your student develop a skill they never practice?

Specifically, the ACS provides the AIM as the reference and requires the applicant to demonstrate understanding of the elements of a VFR flight plan and simulate filing a VFR flight plan.

This means they are required to know and be able to explain the data entry for all the fields on an ICAO flight plan form (including proper surveillance and equipment codes) how to file, amend, open and close a VFR flight plan.

While you don’t use them, they are required when for the Washington SFRZ and international flights.
 
saddletramp said:
I guess the title says it all. I had a Private Pilot applicant of mine get berated by an examiner because he'd never filed a flight plan. I teach flight following and explain how to file, open, & close a flight plan. There is a place for them but personally I never file them.
Click to expand...
I’m with you on this. I only fly out of 5000’ and longer paved runways. So I figure that while there’s a place for short and soft field techniques, I personally never use them so I don’t bother teaching them.

Very unfair when those nasty DPEs fail them!! :mad::mad:


(Strangest part of your post is that you are near an extensive area of mountainous terrain where radar coverage and communications at lower altitudes can be spotty and basic VFR flight plans can have real value even in 2024)
 
My instructor showed me how and we used them a handful of times. I only use them occasionally. It’s really easy to do with an efb.
 
My DPE had me walk through the process and simulate opening it.

My CFI had me do it for real on all my cross countries.
 
Matthew said:
My DPE had me walk through the process and simulate opening it.

My CFI had me do it for real on all my cross countries.
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Back in the days before flight tracking, it was a way of keeping track of a student's solo cross country. I think the idea originated with mountain flights, but the process involves calling Flight Service on the radio to update position periodically.
 
midlifeflyer said:
Back in the days before flight tracking, it was a way of keeping track of a student's solo cross country. I think the idea originated with mountain flights, but the process involves calling Flight Service on the radio to update position periodically.
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We got back from a night xc training flight and a ramp guy came out to talk with my CFI. Apparently flight services had called because we were overdue by an hour or so. That made no sense to either of us since we filed over the phone, opened in the air, and it was only about a 2 hr flight. I called FSS to close the plan and find out what happened. No big deal, someone on their end just typed in the wrong starting time when it was opened.
 
saddletramp said:
I guess the title says it all. I had a Private Pilot applicant of mine get berated by an examiner because he'd never filed a flight plan. I teach flight following and explain how to file, open, & close a flight plan. There is a place for them but personally I never file them.
Click to expand...
My examiner wanted me to demonstrate I could file a vfr flight plan. It's the last time I've done so.
 
saddletramp said:
I guess the title says it all. I had a Private Pilot applicant of mine get berated by an examiner because he'd never filed a flight plan. I teach flight following and explain how to file, open, & close a flight plan. There is a place for them but personally I never file them.
Click to expand...
Besides explaining how to do it I think you should have them do it a couple times or so. Just like anything else. Explain it, demonstrate it, then have the student do it theory. Do you still have your C182?
 
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Matthew said:
My DPE had me walk through the process and simulate opening it.

My CFI had me do it for real on all my cross countries.
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The school I did PPL at required them on all Flights, local included. This was 1977. On my check ride the Examiner didn't bring it up at all. The FBO I rented from recently required them on cross country flights. Been about 3 years, don't know if they still do.
 
midlifeflyer said:
Back in the days before flight tracking, it was a way of keeping track of a student's solo cross country. I think the idea originated with mountain flights, but the process involves calling Flight Service on the radio to update position periodically.
Click to expand...
Making VFR Position Reports is a good idea. It narrows the search range for SAR if they gotta come looking for you. Giving a PIREP will accomplish the same thing and it will be useful to others.
 
It's a good question. Outside of PPL training I don't think I've ever filed one. Technically, it probably would be a good idea when crossing the Sierras, but on the other hand, if I go down in the Desolation Wilderness, which is pretty much all vertical granite pinnacles, the landing probably isn't going to be survivable anyway.
 
I file from FF because it's easy, but I don't usually open them because it involves finding a frequency that works, maybe tuning for duplex. If it could be opened with ATC or if calling Radio was always as simple as calling ATC, I suspect many more would do it.
 
bflynn said:
I file from FF because it's easy, but I don't usually open them because it involves finding a frequency that works, maybe tuning for duplex. If it could be opened with ATC or if calling Radio was always as simple as calling ATC, I suspect many more would do it.
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You can sign up for easy open and easy close. Allows you to open and close via text message. Before starting the engine, I just send a text message to open and once I shut down the engine, I send another text message to close. If I forget, I get a text message asking me if I arrived. No need to call Radio.
 
Hmmm, investigating more, I see that foreflight has an activate button too, although that will require connectivity on the ground. I can tether through my phone, so that should work.
 
bflynn said:
I file from FF because it's easy, but I don't usually open them because it involves finding a frequency that works, maybe tuning for duplex. If it could be opened with ATC or if calling Radio was always as simple as calling ATC, I suspect many more would do it.
Click to expand...
Once you File a VFR flight plan in ForeFlight, there's a button right there to Activate that flight plan. At the end of the flight, you can click the Close button to close that flight plan. No need at all to get ahold of FSS.
 
I filed with the on field FSS every VFR flight in Alaska for me.

I did company flight following in the lower 48.
 
I only file VFR flight plans if I'm intending to go through a TFR that covers my airport. But most of the time I fly I'm on with ATC doing FF.

I might file them if I was flying in the wilderness. But as it stands: in the midwest, flying where I do, I think people are going to notice my smoking ruins pretty quickly. Never going to need a SAR mission. And my brand new ELT is the back-up for that...

Also: my instructor never taught me how to file them. I just figured it out on my own in the ForeFlight app. DPE didn't care.
 
saddletramp said:
I guess the title says it all. I had a Private Pilot applicant of mine get berated by an examiner because he'd never filed a flight plan. I teach flight following and explain how to file, open, & close a flight plan. There is a place for them but personally I never file them.
Click to expand...
Nope.. Day VFR only for me.. even cross country I only fly in good weather. Take off at first light, quit flying 5 hrs later.
 
I did it once or twice when flying through a mountainous area where I wasn’t sure of ATC coverage but otherwise I only file if flying IFR.

I do almost always get FF though which IMO is more useful.
 
Filed a number of them during primary training. DPE had me do it for the check ride, I think. Never done it since then, though I’ve used flight following a few times.
 
wayneda40 said:
Once you File a VFR flight plan in ForeFlight, there's a button right there to Activate that flight plan. At the end of the flight, you can click the Close button to close that flight plan. No need at all to get ahold of FSS.
Click to expand...

If you have FF it's almost too easy compared to the old days!

I filed my first flight plan in probably over a decade this summer, so I don't file too often. That said, they have their place and I would definitely have students filing them for every XC...
 
saddletramp said:
I guess the title says it all. I had a Private Pilot applicant of mine get berated by an examiner because he'd never filed a flight plan. I teach flight following and explain how to file, open, & close a flight plan. There is a place for them but personally I never file them.
Click to expand...

Our club requires that we fill out and file a flight plan if we are flying more than 50 nm from KOLM. Nothing said about flight following as a substitute.
 
As with so many things in aviation, my answer is "it depends". My decision not to does sometimes involve some risk. For example, if I'm flying to an airport buried in the mountains that has no phone or cell service and I don't intend to fly very high, no. I've only done that a couple of times, though, and I would never do it (without a flight plan) with anyone other than me and my husband on board--I'd fly high enough to close from the air, but note even that involves some risk because landings on mountain airstrips can be tricky, so you could close and still crash on landing. But if there's no other way to close the flight plan, one doesn't have much of a choice. But if I'm on a long cross-country, I always file, give PIREPS if I encounter anything odd (and can reach Flight Service--in the mountains, even flying as high as I can sometimes isn't enough), and give updates if I have some kind of delay (like needing to stop to pee).
 
I have filed a few. But I also fly for CAP which requires one for more than 50 nm from departure to destination.

But mostly, I just file IFR.
 
I haven't actually filed a VFR plan since primary training 24+ years (OUCH! That hurts to type!) ago. I am also pretty much always flying in areas with plentiful radar coverage, and even if I don't pick up FF b/c I'm just puddle jumping, I usually have regional Class B approach in the #2 comm in case I need to call for help.

I do somewhat miss the 'old' days of transmitting on Comm #1 and listening to FSS a VOR freq (or however that worked back then). Made it feel like you were 'getting your hands dirty' a bit with communications. It was fun.
 
I don’t file VFR flight plans. If I’m putzing around the airport (class D) it’s irrelevant, and if I’m going somewhere, I file IFR.

The only thing I do besides those two is to go out the the practice area for stalls/steep turns/other maneuvers.
 
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