Flight Service Stations MADE EASY (PPL Lesson 44)

Want to learn how to use Flight Service Stations? This video will guide you through calling and getting a weather briefing, filing a flight plan, opening a flight plan, getting an in flight weather briefing, and closing your flight plan with an FSS. This is Private Pilot Ground lesson 44! This training is intended to follow the aeronautical knowledge areas in Part 61.105 section b for single engine aircraft.
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[@Zertules]

I currently work FSS in Alaksa where it's still FAA. Good video! We are more than happy to help with most anything you as a pilot need! Don't be afraid to make a request, even if it's just to call someone on the ground and let them know you're running a little late. Up here at some locations we do airport advisories, which are just that, advisories. We'll let you know the current winds, favored runways, the traffic you can expect, and as a requirement a brief rundown of the AIRMETs. Apologies on our behalf when we end the call with the AIRMETS, SIGMETS, and CWA's in the area, it's required by the FAA that we do so. We'll end with the closest altimeter, which means you are free to say goodbye or ask any further questions you have. We can also do SVFR at select locations, on request! We can not solicit one, so remember to request it. We don't want to tell you bad news, so please if we say VFR Flight Not Recommended consider waiting. I've been one of the last people to talk to a few pilots who had get-home-ites and it doesn't get easier.

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thank you so much for your comment! It’s always good when I can get an expert to give us just a little bit more information! I’ve flown up in Alaska a few times and it’s super nice that you guys are integrated the way you are. I don’t use you too much, but when I do I really need the help. I called from the Sat phone on the C-130 a few month’s ago and it made all the difference in the world when we were trying to pick through thunderstorms on the way home. Great resource!

[@griam7641]

Great video! But as retired ATC, PLEASE drop the Kilo!!! All states in the lower 48 start with kilo. Not only is it not necessary, but the controller can only put in three entries in his scratchpad. If he types in a k, and then realizes that you’re giving him the four letter identifier, he has to retype the entry. This takes time and breaks his train of thought.

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thank you so much! And I really appreciate that feedback! Not even one person has ever mentioned that to me. That’s really good to know

[@Anticept]

How does this work with airports that have 4 letter identifiers these days? There are valid codes that consist of 2 letters and 2 numbers? (These are private only fields).

[@griam7641]

@@Anticept In those cases (which are the exception rather than the rule) the controller may put in anything that reminds him of where this aircraft is going such as a cardinal direction. He may not put in anything at all. What VFR pilots need to understand is that they are the controller’s lowest priority and this service is only provided on a workload permitting basis.

[@rawdawg15]

I've been trying to drop a kilo for a month now

[@griam7641]

@@Anticept Those with four characters are rare. The controllers will normally use some form of abbreviation of their choosing.

[@Jeff-ye6so]

I'm cramming for an exam right now and I was panicking because I didn't know what the big number meant (7:06), and to hear its a military frequency and I don't have to deal with it takes a huge load off! Looked everywhere for the answer and finally found it here!

[@FreePilotTraining]

Lol. I wondered the same thing for the longest time. There’s quite a bit of stuff like that

[@1dullgeek]

This is great! It's something that was super confusing in my training. I've got over 225 hours now and I've never spoken to FSS. Mostly because when I've tried they've never responded. I use flight following pretty religiously. So filing and opening a flight plan doesn't seem that valuable to me. But there have been a couple of times in the air that I wanted to get a better picture of the weather. And never fully understanding how to use them, I just aborted the flight and went home. I like the ability to have another option. This was a really great way to demystify how to use FSS. Thank you!

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thank you! Yes, I think a lot of people have this same exact mindset about the FSSs. I also rarely file VFR flight plans unless it’s with students, but these guys are great when it comes to getting weather information. The cool thing is that the weather doesn’t even have to be that bad in order to call them up and see what’s going on. They don’t get used a lot, so they’re usually pretty excited to help. Glad you enjoyed the video! Thanks for watching!

[@dennisjones1614]

Omg thank you for this! I could not figure out FSS from any written material. It makes perfect sense now.

[@FreePilotTraining]

You’re welcome!

[@107cdb]

good timing, hopefully this info will make my DP happy tomorrow, Thanks!

[@FreePilotTraining]

Awesome! Good luck! Let me know how it goes!

[@Steve-nh6kk]

Very helpful for me, a student pilot.

[@FreePilotTraining]

Awesome!

[@giorgiokolaj2192]

Hey Josh. Just want to thank you for all the TREMENDOUS and hard work you put into your videos. They are VERY helpful. With your help, I've aced my written (got a 98%!). So, thank you very much and God bless. Safe flying. Cheers from New York City.

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thanks! I appreciate you letting me know! That is super motivating for me! And congrats on that awesome score!

[@billhenderson728]

Your videos are so great! Really appreciate your style and all of the info you're able to cram into such short segments. I've only got 5 hours of flight so far, so I've got much to learn and I plan on leaning on your videos to help me through. Thank you!

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thanks Bill! That means a lot! Let me know if you have any questions

[@jtstuff2981]

Thanks for the great videos! I learn so many details on your channel that the others skip and my cfi never mentioned. Huge help. Many thanks!

[@FreePilotTraining]

You’re welcome! I appreciate the comment. It’s really motivating to see that all the extra stuff is useful to you guys! I’ll see you in the next one!

[@mikecoffee100]

Another well presesnated video and A quick story, once my father and I long ago were walking to a FSS with all the doors and windows open since it was a very good day. The folks saw us comming and jokingly yelled to us go away go away but we did go and checked the weather breifing anyway and even the FSS person showed us everything as per requiriment . Those were the days when you got personal service.

[@FreePilotTraining]

It’s crazy how much things have changed.

[@keithhoward9238]

Always amazing 👏

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thanks Keith!

[@swordoflorn]

Super freaking helpful vid. Thanks man

[@FreePilotTraining]

You’re welcome!

[@brianberezowski5352]

AWESOME info. THANK YOU for sharing. CYQT 👍🇨🇦👍😊

[@FreePilotTraining]

You’re welcome!

[@eddiemorris6161]

I like all the videos I watch and subscribed. Will buy some merchandise, wish I could do more to show how thankful I am. 21 getting ready for my PPL checkride You're the man!

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thanks Eddie! That means a lot! I appreciate anything you can do. Sharing with fellow pilots is especially appreciated!

[@rickmorty2670]

thank you for the info, im currently studying on my own before going to the 6months training.

[@FreePilotTraining]

You’re welcome! Thanks for studying with me

[@SimpleTakeoffs]

Very glad I came across this channel. After watching a lot of your videos I feel like you’re my CFI I’ve never met 😂. Keep up the great work man!

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thank you so much! Glad to have you!

[@OskiFats]

That was sweet. This is totally overlooked because of GPS and ForeFlight. During my check ride, which was at a remote destination, the DPE was super annoyed that I had little experience in calling a FSS.

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thanks! I know! No one ever used these guys, but they’re super helpful

[@justincaraway2116]

This is a GREAT video - dealing with FSS isn't something I feel people really harp on during Primary training.

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thank you! I agree, it is often not discussed as much as it should be

[@llxlxllxlxll]

You’re a saint! Truly one of the best pilots on KZbin! Are you a CFI?

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thank you! That means a lot! Yes I am

[@shayhayun6736]

Great video, but I didn't understand why at the end FSS should call you if you closed the flight plan 5nm before landing? Thanks again

[@FreePilotTraining]

It’s just an opinion. Most people prefer to close it out on the ground over the phone. Occasionally you may be able to reach them on the ground over the radio as well

[@marcogil5092]

And never forget to say SEE YA!

[@FreePilotTraining]

Lol

[@nicolasbilal8769]

First time I filed a flight plan I opened it too early and got a phone call literally just after I landed. I almost didn’t answer cuz I didn’t recognize it. They were really nice tho and closed my plan

[@FreePilotTraining]

😂 that’s pretty funny. I could see that happening. I’ve had them call the tower before because we didn’t answer the phone lol

[@local_lion]

What dod you do if you are on flight following and tuned to ATC but you need to get the weather from the FSS?

[@FreePilotTraining]

Hopefully you have 2 radios. If not, you can ask ATC to go off frequency for a few minutes to get the weather from the Flight Service Station

[@AlexanderGarzon]

Maybe I'm wrong, but I would not close the flight plan if I still on the air. Only after I finally landed I close the flight plan.

[@FreePilotTraining]

Great point. I only showed this because it is an option, but if you crash near an airport I bet you would probably draw quite a bit of attention

[@RomeoFox]

My local charts?! KZbin recommended me someone in my area? Wow

[@FreePilotTraining]

😂 I don’t know how they do that. I get that a lot

[@08DrAke08]

Same here, greetings from a student flying out of KFYV

[@RomeoFox]

@@08DrAke08 I fly out of KASG wow lol

[@user-sc7cj5yu1s]

About the flight plan, I always have a question. Can I file a flight plan on any website which ATC can still know about it?

[@FreePilotTraining]

There are a few places you can file from. One is 1800wxbrief.com

[@john9663]

Would appreciate your thoughts on filing a VFR flight plan vs. just using VFR flight following. Also, are Flight Service Stations the best source for MOA information, especially for information such as if active or not?

[@FreePilotTraining]

To be honest, I rarely file VFR flight plans. I only do it because students are required to know how. I do highly recommend flight following. If you crash with flight following, you will probably get rescue services just as fast if not faster since ATC is watching you in real time. As far as MOAs are concerned, I actually know quite a bit about that since I’m a military pilot. ATC actually has the best picture on whether MOAs are active. Military pilots call ATC and tell them when they are established in certain segments of a MOA, then ATC can vector IFR traffic around. VFR pilots can fly right through with no issues. That may not be the smartest since around UPT bases, there are a lot of brand new pilots doing barrel rolls and loops. Lol anyway, FSS may be aware of some traffic in these but ATC has the most up to date data. Now, on IR and VR routes (and SR routes that aren’t depicted), an FSS should have the information on those. We typically make a radio call on 255.4 announcing that we are entering the route and we also say what time we should be exiting. 255.4 is the UHF FSS frequency, but I honestly don’t know how much of that information they log and relay to other pilots. I never hear them respond to our entry calls. They’re just advisory calls, we don’t have to establish two way with the FSS

[@john9663]

@@FreePilotTraining Thanks for your comprehensive response. Very informative. You have a wonderful gift for teaching by keeping it simple, yet professional. Thank you!

[@FreePilotTraining]

@@john9663 thanks John!

[@perrysplus]

Great video, but if the airport you are going to underlies class c airspace, which this one does, just have approach close the FP for you. I’m sure you just used the FSS as this was the point of the video.

[@FreePilotTraining]

Thanks! You’re right. You can have them close it. That’s technically not their job though and they can deny your request. In fact, they are not obligated to provide flight following either. I’ve never seen them deny the request, but just in case…

[@RandyJonesPT]

Great videos, thank you for sharing these.

[@FreePilotTraining]

You’re welcome! Thank you for the Super Thanks!

[@dman0044]

What if you're taking off from a private runway? Get more info on wording?

[@FreePilotTraining]

These also have codes associated with them. You can find them if you turn the aeronautical data overlay on ForeFlight

[@dman0044]

@@FreePilotTraining I need the aeronautical maps for several States, Indiana/Illinois (Logansport,IN is through Chicago map), States through to AZ and down to Louisiana from Indiana.

[@deani2431]

I have flown with an ex Air Force pilot. He always chastised me whenever I said “Roger that”. Said it drove him crazy as “that” is superfluous.

[@FreePilotTraining]

Lol, yeah. I got snapped at by an instructor during AF pilot training by using it. It cracks me up now that I think about it

[@stephenyoungblood3683]

Are you the Josh I meet today at NLR Air?

[@FreePilotTraining]

Yes, I am