What is Flight Following?

[Scottler]

I'm sure I probably should have asked this ages ago, but I forgot I wanted to know it until a recent flight.

What exactly am I doing when I call ATC and "Request Flight Following"?

What is the purpose, how necessary is it, and by doing so, what am I doing?

Thanks!

[BFMF]

Flight Following allows ATC to track you during your flight and will advise you on things like air traffic, barometric pressure, ect.

[Scottler]

Oooooh.  Awesome, thanks!

[Woodlouse2002]

Like IFR flying with more flexability.

[fisharno]

Flight Following is normally used on longer VFR flights, so you have that extra security of having ATC keep radar contact on you. (Just in case )

[Scottler]

As always, thank you kindly.

[emh8]

Flight Following..........

They know who you are.

[Wing Nut]

So as long as we're on the subject, I was about 25 miles southeast of Des Moines last night, and they handed me off to Minneapolis Control.  Was that a glitch or is there something I'm missing?

[BFMF]

With vfr flight following, atc doesn't care where you go, just as long as you respond to their radio communications

[fisharno]

Dread.
I think Minneapolis Center actually does cover Des Moines airspace. And Andrew is right. They don't care what your destination is, they're just tracking you while in they're space.

You might also notice that ATC will have you contact the same Center, several times on different frequencies while you're in their airspace.
Some times only a couple of minutes apart.

I don't see the sense in that, myself.  ::)

[Scottler]

Indeed, I was wondering that myself.

[hiflyphil]

You know us newbies just need someone to hold our hand crossing the streets in the sky.

Phil

[Scottler]

I flew with a flight attendant one time to SLC who had the same philosophy...my pilots didn't let that go for the entire trip.  haha

[J G Parker]

No need to re-hash what has been said, but just to add a point about why they keep handing you off to the same Center:  Center (and Approach too) often distibute the work load by dividing different segments of the airspace into smaller areas internally, so a given controller has fewer planes to watch.  These are often based on geography (so one controller freq. covers North of the area south, for example).  Thus if you are just crossing over the airport you might go from one controllers to the other.  And if there is an airport in the area, you might go from the center to approach (as you pass over the TCA for the area) and then back to center (as you leave the TCA once again).  

[Wing Nut]

I can't tell you for sure, but I can theorize.  Maybe different controllers cover different sectors of the airspace.  Or maybe one controller is only allowed so many planes at once.  Or maybe the controller just had to go to the john...