PilotEdge Forums

Hi all,

If I plan a flight from KONT to KRAL, or whatever short flight within the LA area, should I always request Flight Following as a local rule for PE controllers to better coordinate my flight? Or does that not really make a practical difference to PE controllers? I know in the real world it would be a very safe thing to do, but in case of PE, do PE controllers also appreciate us using Flight Following in those cases ... or does it only unnecessarily add to their workload, with no real advantages to their end?

Same for cases when I plan to do some random sight-seeing flying very close to a Charlie or Bravo airspace, like around the LAS Bravo.

If there is only training-value on the pilot's end to requesting Flight Following in these cases, I guess I won't bother PE controllers with the additional workload and only request Flight Following when I feel like it (acknowledging that FF should be used in the real-world as much as possible, if not always).

Thanks,
Tim

If you would do it in RW, do it on PE.

Flight following enhances controller workload as it creates another aircraft that we need to attend to. However, paying attention to you is our job and it is why we are here...not to mention flight following is definitely the safer way to fly for a pilot due to all of the VFR traffic buzzing around out there. ATC is there to serve you so if you want it, pick it up; but if you don't care about it, we aren't going to be upset if you decline the services.

For what it's worth, on the SNA-ONT or ONT-SNA VFR flights, if you don't get flight following, that is the one common route where it actually becomes more labor intensive for ATC because you will be terminated when you hit the airspace border and then you will have to call SoCal for the arrival Charlie right away thus requiring a new radar ID and squawk code. So, unless you are requesting "negative radar services" which is where the class C tower will terminate you right as you leave their 3-4mi inner Charlie ring, from an ATC workload perspective the SNA-ONT or ONT-SNA route is probably the only common route I can think of where we would rather the pilot get flight following.

Got'ya, thanks.

If they don't want you, they'll let you know.