Victor and Transit Lanes

[kgwilson]

I have started this thread because it was suggested in the Hunter Valley Crash thread which we now know has nothing to do with Victor or Transit lanes. I heard on the ABC radio news this morning that Dick Smith is calling for action on transit around Coffs Harbour following the Mooney Crash in poor weather to the west on 20 September. For some reason they either would not or could not fly down the coast and chose the inland route with disastrous consequences. RAA aircraft with a RPC pilot  are also forced to take this route which has hills rising to nearly 4000 feet with tops often in cloud and it is all tiger country. At present the only option is not to go or take the risk. Coffs is not a busy airport but the main runway is only a hundred metres from the beach & parallel to it. The threshold of the short runway (28) is also about 100 metres from the beach. It would be easy for controllers to allow RA aircraft past here or get them to orbit if something was due. Nothing has ever been done & CASA seems to be head in the sand over it.

 

Coffs Aero Club RAA Flying School & another RAA school operate there, I did my RAA conversion there. If you go when it is Class G (before 8am or after 5pm I think) there is no problem, just overfly at 1500 or more. No problem & there are RPTs coming & going then as well. There is no logic other that bureaucracy.

 

 

[skippydiesel]

Having used the transit lane north from Cessnock, only once, I had such a rough/tough time that I swore I would never use it again.

 

Far to narrow, both in width and hight, turbulence like a washing machine, constant fear of hitting the ground  and to a lesser extent breaking into military airspace.

 

NOT FUN!!!!!

 

The sadist who dreamt this one up should be forced to fly it, in an RAA aircraft, on a regular basis.

 

 

[Camel]

There is currently a RAPAC submission to have a VFR lane through Coffs.  Further submissions to RAPAC or letters of support would certainly help. 

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