Another flight following thread.

DFH65

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DFH65
For the last several years I have mostly been flying planes with no electrical system or my current plane that has no transponder. Most of my flights have been local and so haven't bothered with FF but hoping now that I have my own airplane to make some longer trips.

Anyone have much experience with getting and using FF without a transponder is it really practical.

May get a transponder eventually but nowhere I fly really requires it at this point.
 
While possible, I’ve found getting advisories to be hit and miss when flying things that don’t have transponders. To me it isn’t worth the hassle, I just use the radio when necessary and I’ll monitor the frequency for the controlling agency and speak up if they’re calling me out as traffic to someone else.
 
I almost never request VFR advisories. I do have portable ADSB-IN so I see quite a bit of the traffic. Normally when I ask radar services it goes like this:

I say "XYZ approach Luscombe at ABC location, 3000' request VFR advisories, negative transponder"
They nearly always say "aircraft calling XYZ approach Squawk 1234"
I then say "XYZ approach Luscombe, negative transponder"
they say "Luscombe say your position."
I say "ABC location"
they say "is that you at ABC location I have a primary there"
I say "Luscombe, affirmative"
They say "say type aircraft"
I say "Luscombe 8A"
They say "what is that some kind of experimental?"
I say "No, production aircraft, think Cessna 140"
They say "Okay, turn right 45 degrees for radar identification."

After that, no issues except they can't hand me off, so our conversation always ends with "radar service terminated". I was told by Philly approach that they can tag up a primary target but can't hand it off.
 
Kind of what I figured. I flew into a class D once without a transponder in a J5 for a fly in type event they kept asking me my altitude every couple minutes. I knew FF was possible without a transponder but have never tried it.

I have ADSB-IN as well.
 
I almost never request VFR advisories. I do have portable ADSB-IN so I see quite a bit of the traffic. Normally when I ask radar services it goes like this:

I say "XYZ approach Luscombe at ABC location, 3000' request VFR advisories, negative transponder"
They nearly always say "aircraft calling XYZ approach Squawk 1234"
I then say "XYZ approach Luscombe, negative transponder"
they say "Luscombe say your position."
I say "ABC location"
they say "is that you at ABC location I have a primary there"
I say "Luscombe, affirmative"
They say "say type aircraft"
I say "Luscombe 8A"
They say "what is that some kind of experimental?"
I say "No, production aircraft, think Cessna 140"
They say "Okay, turn right 45 degrees for radar identification."

After that, no issues except they can't hand me off, so our conversation always ends with "radar service terminated". I was told by Philly approach that they can tag up a primary target but can't hand it off.

You can be handed off. But it's a time consuming process that can involve a lot of landline chit chat between controllers. When they terminate you, do they offer up a frequency to try the next controller with your request for further Flight Following?
 
You can be handed off. But it's a time consuming process that can involve a lot of landline chit chat between controllers. When they terminate you, do they offer up a frequency to try the next controller with your request for further Flight Following?

About 50% of the time.
 
I almost never request VFR advisories. I do have portable ADSB-IN so I see quite a bit of the traffic. Normally when I ask radar services it goes like this:

I say "XYZ approach Luscombe at ABC location, 3000' request VFR advisories, negative transponder"
They nearly always say "aircraft calling XYZ approach Squawk 1234"
I then say "XYZ approach Luscombe, negative transponder"
they say "Luscombe say your position."
I say "ABC location"
they say "is that you at ABC location I have a primary there"
I say "Luscombe, affirmative"
They say "say type aircraft"
I say "Luscombe 8A"
They say "what is that some kind of experimental?"
I say "No, production aircraft, think Cessna 140"
They say "Okay, turn right 45 degrees for radar identification."

After that, no issues except they can't hand me off, so our conversation always ends with "radar service terminated". I was told by Philly approach that they can tag up a primary target but can't hand it off.

Can’t do automated but can still do a manual handoff if they felt like it. All depends on if the receiving controller wants a primary target for FF. Manual handoffs are still done on a regular basis for PARs.

Generally with a primary targets not talking, they might tag someone up and just label them as traffic. Or if they’re bored, they might label it as birds until it drops. But yeah, you can’t flash that to another sector.
 
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