Sun Jun 06, 2004 11:15 pm
#86266
Because the French NOTAMs said I should, I had box 2 on 121.5 all the way from Southend to Quiberon on Friday, and on the way back on Sunday.
Apart from the usual traffic on 121.5 - one practise PAN, and several commercial aircraft coming off the Atlantic and calling on 121.5 ("guard") when they meant to call on an ATC frequency - I was surprised to hear:
1. A French military aircraft trying to raise the G-reg civilian aircraft he was flying alongside. Obviously the G-reg hadn't read the NOTAMs about Normandy airspace and the D-Day celebrations, and was "asking" to be shot down.
2. Two other calls from radar units to infringing aircraft that hadn't got as far as an interception.
3. Lots of "Bonjour Pierre" "Ello Claude" (but no callsigns) - it seems 121.5 is also the French air-to-air frequency.
4. Several American voices arranging events and handovers.
Colonel Panic (who was a little behind me and further to the North) was asked by Brest Info to listen for an emergency beacon on 121.5. He heard the beacon - I listened but didn't.
It was quite an entertainment - but probably will prove embarrassing and potentially expensive for at least one G-reg pilot. It rather appears that either he didn't read the NOTAMs at all, or stopped before he got to the important bit.
Apart from the usual traffic on 121.5 - one practise PAN, and several commercial aircraft coming off the Atlantic and calling on 121.5 ("guard") when they meant to call on an ATC frequency - I was surprised to hear:
1. A French military aircraft trying to raise the G-reg civilian aircraft he was flying alongside. Obviously the G-reg hadn't read the NOTAMs about Normandy airspace and the D-Day celebrations, and was "asking" to be shot down.
2. Two other calls from radar units to infringing aircraft that hadn't got as far as an interception.
3. Lots of "Bonjour Pierre" "Ello Claude" (but no callsigns) - it seems 121.5 is also the French air-to-air frequency.
4. Several American voices arranging events and handovers.
Colonel Panic (who was a little behind me and further to the North) was asked by Brest Info to listen for an emergency beacon on 121.5. He heard the beacon - I listened but didn't.
It was quite an entertainment - but probably will prove embarrassing and potentially expensive for at least one G-reg pilot. It rather appears that either he didn't read the NOTAMs at all, or stopped before he got to the important bit.
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