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You can get different routings out of the computers depending on what other traffic is going to be arriving on an airway. I am glad it is not my job to write or support that software. I don't blame the controllers at all.

Colin wrote: ↑Thu Aug 08, 2019 2:44 pm You can get different routings out of the computers depending on what other traffic is going to be arriving on an airway. I am glad it is not my job to write or support that software. I don't blame the controllers at all.

Considering that we cannot predict the route, I do blame the controllers when they are unwilling to provide a clearance in the air.

Tim

Well, that was short. We got most of the way to Boise and looming ahead of us for the next 120 miles was a series of evil looking splotches on the Nexrad display in FF. Confirming parts of it and completely visible out the front of the plane was one of those "Night on the Bare Mountain" areas. Normally I would land and wait it out, but for this trip we're on a schedule. Back to Prineville we went and made airline reservations instead. You know that saying about old and bold pilots? Well, I'm already old, ergo...

For those complaining about controllers, today Seattle Center and Salt Lake Center were accommodating plenty of requests for diversions. Between smoke and t-storms lots of folks were getting amended clearances, inflight direct routings and such. the only one I heard turned down was a request that would take the flight right through a fire-fighting TFR. They worked out an alternative. Of course, this isn't NYC airspace.

Today the delay of the ADS-B Nexrad seemed to run 2-5 minutes. Perfectly suitable for strategic decisions, and you can look ahead a couple hundred miles.

Rich wrote: ↑Thu Aug 08, 2019 7:25 pm For those complaining about controllers, today Seattle Center and Salt Lake Center were accommodating plenty of requests for diversions. Between smoke and t-storms lots of folks were getting amended clearances, inflight direct routings and such. the only one I heard turned down was a request that would take the flight right through a fire-fighting TFR. They worked out an alternative. Of course, this isn't NYC airspace.

Oh I agree in general controllers do a great job. The only time I had a problem, clear skies, roughly 10am which is between major push times at KBOS.

Actually, later in the same flight I was talking to NY Center and there was some rather large storms right on the airway. We managed some cool coordination between the controller and the planes. For example, a Pilatus PC-12 wanted to stay low and head down V1 versus getting routed west of PHL, and the PC-12 was behind me. So when I had a break in the clouds, I got a vector due west, which let the PC-12 pass me instead of constantly doing a zig-zag. Once the PC-12 spotted me, I did a basically a U-turn back toward the airway and followed him for a little bit (I quickly lost him in the clouds). It was really cool how the controller and the pilots all worked together, since the controller was explicit about the limits of "his" airspace.

Tim

Around here (WI), the only time you don't get direct is when you file through Chicago airspace. In that case it's Direct KELSI Direct points east.