EDRK DCT KIR DCT GTQ DCT LUL DCT LSGL
While in Koblenz, we got back late one night (actually, make that early one morning!) and of course decided on a beer or three for a nighcap. We got chatting to the guy on the ‘graveyard shift’ at the hotel who served us and it turns out he too is an avid pilot. We talked about the next leg and he had been to Switzerland and Lausanne several times and rates it as his favourite destination. He was extremely helpful and brought in prints of plates and maps showing alternate route into Switzerland the next day that we talked through. Anyway, thank you so much for your help Rainer, it is always good to talk to someone who has actually been to where you want to go and pick up valuable tips – you made it easy for me!
We made our way to the airfield and loaded up.
I refuelled and paid up in the tower. I asked about weather (having checked it on the internet at the hotel) and they kindly printed the forecast and en-route TAFs and METARs. The weather for Switzerland was excellent, with clear skies and 40km visibility – just what I was hoping for for this, my first trip into Switzerland and some serious mountains (thinks, hmmmmm – when is a mountain not serious?).
I let out some of the water ballast to compensate for the various pressies we had bought (and no doubt the pounds we had put on in weight).
Just for the hell of it and because it is such a great approach, I asked for a take-off followed by a low approach and go-around, which they agreed to (my guess is that this is not an unusual request!). this I did while Dan snapped away furiously all the way around. I raised the gear and flew over the runway giving the tower a ‘waggle of the wings’ (I thought a victory roll inappropriate in a non-aerobatic plane!).
I set track for the KIR VOR, but swung deliberately east a bit to avoid Frankfurt Hahn controlled airspace.
The weather was good with high-ish broken cumulus and I was up to 4000’ easily. I could have gone ‘on-top’ but I was enjoying the view of the ground and was plenty high enough anyway, so why bother? I spoke to Langen Info on 123.52. It was a different controller this time, but again, very professional and helpful.
Approaching the border, I switched to Metz Approach on 125.90 and agreed a zone transit at 4300’. By now, the cumulus had changed to thin scattered cumulus and it was getting thinner and more scattered as I went south as predicted. I recall saying to Dan in Koblenz that just once, it would be nice to fly in a cloudless sky – someone must have been listening as that is what was happening!
I flew on past the GTQ VOR and contacted Reims Info. They immediately suggested I call Luxeuil instead. By the time I cut through their accent and found Luxeuil on the map, I was into their airspace with the airfield in sight – this was one I had missed somehow on the map in my planning! They were gracious about it and granted an immediate (and presumably retrospective) transit rather than scramble the Mirages!
I heard a familiar voice on the airwaves from another aircraft. It was Manuel Quieroz in his RV6, G-GDRV. I asked for and got an ‘air-to-air’ and said a quick hello. Manuel must have had trouble hearing the lady controller who asked several times for his full registration, so I relayed, deciding to help out this clearly inexperienced pilot – you really should get some hours in flying abroad Manuel (Manuel of course recently flew around the world in the RV6 in ‘Chasing the Morning Sun’!!!).
I went back to Reims Info as the ground got closer to the plane despite me flying at 4700’. It was getting more rugged as we approached the Jura Mountains. Reims got rid of me with 50nm to run to Lausanne and while still well inside France (cheers pal!). So I called Geneva Info on 126.35 who promptly suggested I contact Reins Info! I stayed on listening watch and Geneva Info couldn’t care less until you enter Swiss airspace (seems reasonable I guess).
I was aiming for a ‘notch’ in the Jura Mountains ahead of me now. As usual, from this distance, it looked like I needed more altitude. I decided to climb to 5000’ and see where we went from there, as I would only have to lose it again fairly quickly to get into Lausanne, only about 25 miles inside the border (I didn’t want a repeat performance of getting into Cannes last year where I was at 8000’ when the mountains fell away to reveal Cannes airfield at sea level with 30 miles to run!). Closer still, I decided on 5500’ for the crossing. We saw Mont Blanc sticking up clearly through the inversion layer on the horizon.
The ‘notch’ in the ridge turned out to be a small ‘pass’, so I used that and crossed the Jura Mountains with mountains above me on either side. By now, I was talking to a somewhat dis-interested Geneva Info who advise me to report at Yverdon on Lake Neuchatel.
I passed Yverdon and changed to Lausanne ATIS, picked up the ATIS and called the tower frequency. I heard a lot of calls, but no reply from the tower.
Descended to 3700’ as per the approach plates and approached for a left downwind join for runway 36 in use. I was still giving blind calls. While about 2 miles from downwind, I had a ‘close encounter of the brown trouser kind’ with a lovely yellow Piper Cub – only it wasn’t so lovely at the time. A classic case of ‘high wing below / low wing above’. I am sure neither saw the other until he had passed underneath!
I carried on giving blind calls and realised that everyone else was doing the same, so despite the ‘Tower’ designation, it appeared to be operating as an uncontrolled airfield – not a problem, just not what I was expecting – and boy, was it busy! The weather could not have been better, with clear blue skies and unlimited visibility.
This was another interesting airfield. At 1800’ it is the highest I have been to. It is on the northern edge of the town or Lausanne on the shores of Lake Geneva. The runway is not overly generous at about 850m and has an interesting 2.5 degree upslope on runway 36 – so I was glad I wasn’t landing on 18!
The approach is again very scenic, over the town while Dan was snapping away. I was ready for the optical illusion of an up-sloping runway and I mad e the final approach and gave my last blind call. This was rewarded by a good landing. As we wanted to get away early in two days time, I taxied straight to the pumps. Of course we had to get the keys from the tower, so Dan went off at a trot to collect the keys. He returned and we completed the refuelling easily enough and parked up on the carefully marked areas.
I checked into the reporting point in a smart, new terminal building where we filled out a customs arrival form. The lady told Dan (in French) that we had to wait for 30 minutes and if the customs officers didn’t show, we were free to go. There was a nice restaurant / bar downstairs, so it wasn’t a hardship. However, 10 minutes later, the lady appeared and explained that I might not have parked carefully enough. So she took me back to the plane in a car and inspected where the wheels were in relation to the ramp markings. Sure enough, I had missed the yellow line by about one foot, but she shrugged and said that was close enough – in broken English she explained that it was hard to see exactly from the tower and that space on the ramp was very tight.
We were met by our mutual erstwhile next-door neighbour who now works for the Olympic federation in Lausanne. We had arranged to stay with him and his family nearby and by coincidence, the next day was also Swiss National day with fireworks all over Lake Geneva.
The landing fee was SFr 32.00, Passenger Tax was SFr 6.10, Parking for 3 days was SFr 38.70 and there were minor charged for customs. All at a rate of around GBP 1.00 to SFr 2.35. Fuel was a bit cheaper but not hugely so.
My first trip in a small plane to Switzerland and my first bit of ‘serious’ mountain flying (no – I don’t count the Lake District or the welsh Hills), although I could hardly have chosen better weather for it, so not a huge challenge. But what a beautiful country and what fun it would be to land at other Swiss airfield – maybe next time!
