Fixes provided in routing for IFR flight plans - VFR waypointsokay?

Ron Natalie wrote:


>>
>
> You can put anything you want on a VFR route. It's not used for
> anything. it just goes into the computer and stays there until
> you don't show up at your destination and close the plan. They
> start calling around looking for you and if that doesn't yield
> anything, they might start looking at your route of flight filed.
> But really, they look more at how much fuel you claimed you had
> and where you could have possibly gone based on where you started
> from.

With intelligent preflight planning and intelligent use of RNAV, the
odds of SAR finding a downed VFR aircraft aircraft are very good
especially when the ELT doesn't work.

Travis Marlatte wrote:


>
> SAR is not going to be able to go directly to the point where you went down.
> All they know is when where you started from, where you were going, and how
> you were planning to get there. When SAR is initiated 1/2 hour after you
> don't arrive, they have the entire route to search. But, at least they have
> a route to search. The closer to the center line of that planned route you
> are when you go down, the better the odds of them finding you. Lat/long
> fixes or formal NAVAID fixes, it doesn't really matter.
>

For VFR flight plans LAT/LON has a huge advantage over published fixes
in many parts of the Western U.S., both to avoid restricted areas and
remain in valleys (ala Eastern California, most of Nevada, and other
states with similar topography.

Roger wrote:


>
> IOW in some cases SAR may not even be alerted unless some one calls
> and wonders where you are.

No doubt about it. A prudent course of action is to have someone who
gives a damn about you to make the wakeup call. But, once that is done,
SAR will benefit greatly from a precise VFR track.