Fixes provided in routing for IFR flight plans - VFR waypoints okay?

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.

Sam Spade writes:

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.

I sometimes fix up user waypoints for precisely this reason. When you
can't fly at FL340, it's handy to be able to plan a route that avoids
really high terrain, but the official waypoints are sometimes too thin
on the ground to serve the purpose.

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