What is VFR Flight Following? What are its limitations? Why and when should I use it?
Search strings: flight of two; formation flight; flying together; close formation; flight plan; contact ATC
VFR Flight Following is basically calling an Approach or Enroute (Center) ATC facility as you enter their airspace, making a normal radio call (“Salt Lake Center, Charlie Foxtrot Yankee Victor Alpha”). If the frequency isn’t too busy and I am near a good aviation landmark, I might include status and location in the initial call (“, VFR over Cut Bank VOR”). That just gives them a quickie clue as to where you are on their scope, out of all their other FLIB blips squawking 1200. If they can’t handle you right now, it also lets them make a brief response with no wasted comm time; such as “Victor Alpha, unable VFR Flight Following, traffic”, or “Victor Alpha, stand by”, since they already know you are VFR. You can try including things like your altitude, direction of flight, and aircraft type in the initial call, but they will almost always miss part of it (and ask you to repeat it later). Different facilities seem to develop different norms in what they can absorb, or like to hear, on the initial VFR call. As in most radio work, less is best when things are busy, as long as the point gets across.
When they respond, you say “Yankee Victor Alpha is a Beech Sundowner, BE23, at 5,500 feet eastbound to Sarnia, Ontario (give the destination airport ID too); requesting Flight Following”. They will then give you a squawk code, and will later call back confirming radar identification. They will advise you to “maintain VFR”, and will often ask you to alert them prior to any altitude changes (especially in Approach areas). From that point onward, they will normally give you alerts to any traffic. If you are leaving their airspace, they will normally hand you off to the next Center or Approach Controller.
If the first facility you encounter is an Approach facility, they will usually provide the requested service if they aren’t too busy; and many times they will also hand you off to Center. Sometimes you’ll get a clue that a handoff is in the works, such as if your initial contact was with Approach, and later on the Approach Controller assigns you a new squawk code (as you are leaving the Approach area). If they can’t take care of the handoff for some reason, they will tell you to squawk 1200, and will usually give you a good frequency for the next facility. Then you just start the process over again. It is rare to “get dropped” in the less busy parts of the country, but pretty common in the much more congested traffic areas of the East and West Coast. If your first contact is with a Center facility, they will virtually always hand you off to the next facility, whether another Center or an Approach.
NOTE: Requesting VFR Flight Following, as soon as possible after your takeoff, is also a very good way to get clearance through any Class B or Class C airspace on your route of flight. If you are already “in the system” in a less busy environment, especially with a Center controller, you are much more likely to be accepted as a low workload “good risk” in busy Approach airspace. Having said this, you should realize that there is some Class B airspace where controllers apparently just won’t let transient traffic pass through, if your destination is not actually within their airspace. Examples I have encountered in the Southeast are Charlotte and Atlanta. Doesn’t matter whether you are VFR or IFR; they just won’t let us flibs fly through; nor over, if you make the mistake of asking first (’cause you don’t have to ask, if you are staying in legal VFR airspace and outside theirs). Some others limit transients only when they are really busy. I have had no problem with most of the other Class B and C areas in the Southeast, nor in most other areas, for that matter. Also keep in mind that going straight through may not work well for you from an altitude standpoint, if you are landing right on the other side of the ring. For a number of reasons, the Approach Controller may keep you at an altitude that results in a “slam dunk” on the other side. Going around the perimeter may enable a more gentle descent, or a lower enroute altitude along the way. You also should have reviewed the Class B VFR Terminal Area Chart prior to the trip, and have it with you during the flight. There are often preferred VFR routes (“corridors”) shown on the chart, as well as preferred VFR altitudes.
VFR FF is an optional ATC service, workload permitting. While ATC is not legally obligated to give you these services when you are VFR, they almost always will. They are also not legally obligated to give you traffic reports, but they almost always will. Believe it or not, when you are on an IFR flight plan, ATC isn’t even legally obligated to give you advisories (nor separation) from “non-participating” (i.e. VFR) traffic; but fortunately they almost always do. It is a tremendous safety advantage, when you are traveling, to always be in touch with an ATC facility who knows who you are, where you are, and where you are going. If anything goes wrong, you can immediately say so and state your intentions. If you may need help on the ground, they’ll know almost exactly where to send it, and with no response delay. VFR FF also means that, while enroute, you can change your mind on where you are going, or the path you are taking to get there, and ATC will still be in on the plan.
On your part, the only drawbacks are going through the formalities, having to listen to the radio chatter, and the possibility of having to follow some directive (“YVA, turn right ten degrees for traffic”). Of course, being VFR you always have the option of responding “YVA, negative turn, canceling VFR Flight Following, squawking 1200 and changing frequencies”. That sure won’t endear you to the Controller (who may remember your N-number the next time you ask for assistance), and won’t prevent any resulting paint swaps or worse. If you use the system, you need to play by the system rules so everyone can coexist in peace.
While required in Canada for longer flights (outside the local Airdrome’s traffic area), VFR Flight Plans are not required in the USA (regardless of flight path distance). Under most circumstances, they are a complete waste of time (my personal opinion, of course), and they create the possibility of an unwarranted search effort (and resulting hassle for you), if you fail to close one. Contrary to what most people think, and unlike an IFR FP, VFR FPs never go to ATC. They remain within the Flight Service computers, just sitting there until someone closes them. Only if one remains unclosed does something happen, and then the fun begins. There is a long delay while phone follow-up begins, in an effort to locate the plane on the ground somewhere (and to check on any reported ELT alerts). Eventually (I don’t know exactly when), an actual search will begin. From all accounts, there is a huge waste of manpower and money every year as Flight Service and the Civil Air Patrol chase down unclosed flight plans and bogus ELT transmissions. They get plenty of practice from it, though!
There are uncommon circumstances for which a VFR flight plan might be advisable. If you will be flying over inhospitable and/or unoccupied terrain, and there are likely to be times when low altitude, distance, or terrain masking will keep you from talking to ATC or being seen by ATC radar, having a VFR FP on file provides a place for a search effort to begin looking. Under these circumstances, it will be important that you not make spur of the moment changes to your route, or any search won’t be looking in the right area. Even with a VFR FP on file, it is advisable to request VFR FF while enroute, when communications conditions will permit it.
Important note: While ATC will close your IFR FP if you land at an ATC-manned facility, they typically will not close your VFR FP. You remain responsible to contact FSS and close your VFR plan.
You can usually find the applicable ATC contact frequencies to use, by looking at VFR or IFR flight maps. If you study the map legends, you’ll see where scalloped lines separate facility airspaces, and you can see the frequencies. They are also often shown in remoted communications facilities boxes. You can also find usable frequencies by looking up facilities in approach plates and in the Airport Facility Directory, or by looking them up in your GPS database. It is no big deal if you pick the wrong frequency at first; someone will usually answer (if they can hear you), and will give you the correct frequency. If all else fails, you can make a call on FSS Flight Watch, and ask them for a good frequency for the area you are in.
Hope this helps; let me know if anything needs correction or clarification.