Originally Posted by
Outlaw2097
Flight service call numbers keep dropping off every year. Obviously the big drop was during the transition from government to contract and the headache associated with it.
My question to you, as a pilot, is why did you stop using FSS?
If it is because you can self brief online, that is understandable. Just remember should you miss that TFR or restricted area, or even land on a closed runway, it comes back to you and you alone.
Just throwing this out here...next time before you fly, call up and get an abbreviated brief. It hits on the high notes regarding your flight and double checks on a couple things...more importantly, it is a free insurance policy. That way, should you clip that TFR or restricted/prohibited area, you have a leg to stand on since it was not mentioned by the briefer.
I haven't had any problems in the time that I've been using FSS in the last 7 months that I have been flying back in the civvie world and even used them often when I was flying cross country in the military world. I use them on a daily basis to issue/check NOTAMs and get my weather briefs, though I too am starting to use on-line weather briefing and flight plan filing.
Originally Posted by
flyou11
Two reasons for me:
1. The conveniance of getting on-line. It is easy, no wait, and I get exactly what I wanted.
2. I'm a visual person. So it is much easier to see TFR's, AIRMETS/SIGMETS, Radar, ect. in a picture form on the computer screen.
I'm a visual person too and one of the things that I did NOT like about the FSS (gov't or contract) was when the wx briefer would start with the "from a line 30 nm south of the (unknown to me) XXX VOR to a point 45 nm north of (insert another unknown navaid)....." etc, then I would get lost and find that I wasn't listening, and more importantly understanding, the briefing and important information was being lost.
Then I started using the WSBrief(ing) stations at the FBOs and I really liked bringing up the Route Briefing, the Radar image, and the Satellite pictures, plus anything other wx resources required WHILE listening to the route brief from FSS.
USMCFLYR