UK Coastal Route – Stage 1

Stage 01

North Coates (EG0E) to Eshott Airfield (EGFL)

Humber Estuary to the Northumberland Coast

Distance
158.3 NM
Est. Time (ETE)
01h 15m
Target Alt
1,500–2,000 ft
Touch & Gos
3 Airfields

Stage 1 guides you from the bustling maritime and trading roots of the Humber Estuary and the proud industrial and shipbuilding heritage of Teesside and the North East, up to the independent spirit of Northumberland, historically forged through border conflicts and castle-defended shores. 

The journey begins at North Coates Flying Club, visits the Spurn Point Lighthouse spit and a delivers a challenging touch-and-go at Hollym Airfield’s cliff-edge grass strip.

Continuing north, you’ll navigate the sheer white chalk cliffs and seabird colonies of Flamborough Head, stop at Bridlington Aerodrome (if you can find it), track past Robin Hood’s Bay directly over the gothic ruins of Whitby Abbey, and perform a low approach near Redcar, before utilising the 14th-century ruins of Dunstanburgh Castle as your final turn inland toward a full-stop arrival at Eshott Airfield.

Formerly RAF Eshott, the airfield was born during World War II as a home to the No. 57 Operational Training Unit (OTU), where hundreds of pilots trained on Supermarine Spitfires before active service.

Route Map & Radio Navaids Visual


OTR VOR/DME (113.90): Covers Spurn Point (R-045) & Hollym
TEE VOR/DME (117.25): Tracks Whitby Abbey (R-122) & Yearby (R-085)
NEW VOR/DME (114.25): Fixes Dunstanburgh Castle (R-035) & Inbound EGFL

Navigation & Waypoint Breakdown

Ident Type Track (°M) Nav Aid / Radial Alt Leg Total ETE Landmarks & Notes
EG0E Departure — — 8 ft 0.0 NM 0.0 NM 00:00 Takeoff North Coates; turn right out over the coast.
SPURN Coastal VRP 030° OTR 113.90 R-045 2,000 ft 5.6 NM 5.6 NM 00:02 Track over Spurn Point Lighthouse; turn north along spit.
EGIH Touch & Go 338° OTR 113.90 R-010 Circuit 8.8 NM 14.5 NM 00:09 Hollym Airfield; grass strip right on the cliff edge.
FLAMB Coastal VRP 349° BNN 334.0 NDB 2,000 ft 24.5 NM 39.0 NM 00:19 Hug dramatic chalk cliffs at Flamborough Head Lighthouse.
EGGC Touch & Go 272° OTR 113.90 R-345 Circuit 5.6 NM 44.5 NM 00:24 Bridlington Aerodrome (Grass); touch & go, track north.
WHITB Coastal VRP 332° TEE 117.25 R-122 2,000 ft 25.0 NM 69.5 NM 00:35 Route past Robin Hood’s Bay directly over Whitby Abbey.
EGRC Touch & Go 289° TEE 117.25 R-085 Circuit 18.3 NM 87.8 NM 00:45 Yearby Airstrip; low approach / TNG near Redcar.
DUNST Coastal VRP 342° NEW 114.25 R-035 2,000 ft 57.2 NM 145.0 NM 01:09 Cross Tyne & Coquet Island to Dunstanburgh Castle.
EGFL Arrival 199° NEW 367.5 NDB 197 ft 13.3 NM 158.3 NM 01:15 Turn southwest off coast for full stop at Eshott.

Stage Highlights & Scenic Landmarks

Touch & Go #1

Hollym Airfield (EGIH)

A true coastal grass strip sitting directly on the cliff edge above the beach. Coastal erosion makes this approach one of the most unique and thrilling short-field Touch & Gos along the Holderness Coast.

Coastal VRP

Flamborough Head & Bempton Cliffs

Dramatic sheer white chalk cliffs jutting into the North Sea, capped by the iconic lighthouse. Mind the heavy seabird populations and maintain 1,500+ ft clearance!

Scenic Landmark

Whitby Abbey & Harbor

Routing north out of Robin Hood’s Bay brings you over the gothic 7th-century abbey ruins overlooking Whitby Harbor and the mouth of the River Esk.

Final Turn VRP

Dunstanburgh Castle

14th-century castle ruins perched on a basalt headland on the Northumberland coast. Marks the final turn inland heading southwest to Eshott Airfield.

Radio Navigation Frequencies

  • Ottringham VOR/DME (OTR): 113.90 MHz
  • Teesside VOR/DME (TEE): 117.25 MHz
  • Newcastle VOR/DME (NEW): 114.25 MHz
  • Newcastle NDB (NEW): 367.5 kHz

Local Cautions & Procedures

  • Seabird Warning: Bempton Cliffs (Flamborough) has heavy seabird populations. Maintain 1,500+ ft AGL clear of cliffs.
  • Teesside Airspace: Monitor Teesside Radar (118.850 MHz) when crossing the Tees Estuary near Yearby.
  • Eshott Join: Standard overhead join at 1,200 ft QFE. Watch for microlight traffic.

North Coates Flying Club (EG0E) Departure

Hollym Airfield (EGIH) Touch & Go

A true coastal grass strip sitting directly on the cliff edge above the beach. Coastal erosion makes this approach one of the most unique and thrilling short-field Touch & Gos along the Holderness Coast.

Bridlington Aerodrome (EGGC) Touch & Go

Yearby Airstrip (EGRC) Touch & Go

Eshott Airfield (EGFL) Arrival

Download MSFS Flight Plan (.PLN)

Copy the XML snippet below and save it as UK_Coastal_Stage_01.pln to load directly into Microsoft Flight Simulator:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<SimBase.Document>
    <FlightPlan.FlightPlan>
        <Title>EG0E to EGFL Stage 1 UK Coastal Circumnavigation</Title>
        <FPType>VFR</FPType>
        <RouteType>Direct</RouteType>
        <CruisingAlt>2000</CruisingAlt>
        <DepartureID>EG0E</DepartureID>
        <DepartureLLA>N53° 29' 52.00",E0° 3' 43.00",+000008.00</DepartureLLA>
        <DestinationID>EGFL</DestinationID>
        <DestinationLLA>N55° 16' 42.00",W1° 43' 13.00",+000196.50</DestinationLLA>
        <ATCWaypoint id="EG0E">
            <ATCWaypointType>Airport</ATCWaypointType>
            <WorldPosition>N53° 29' 52.02",E0° 3' 43.25",+000008.00</WorldPosition>
            <ICAO><ICAORegion>EG</ICAORegion><ICAOIdent>EG0E</ICAOIdent></ICAO>
        </ATCWaypoint>
        <ATCWaypoint id="SPURN">
            <ATCWaypointType>User</ATCWaypointType>
            <WorldPosition>N53° 34' 42.96",E0° 8' 30.12",+002000.00</WorldPosition>
        </ATCWaypoint>
        <ATCWaypoint id="EGIH">
            <ATCWaypointType>Airport</ATCWaypointType>
            <WorldPosition>N53° 42' 55.55",E0° 3' 1.14",+000022.40</WorldPosition>
            <ICAO><ICAORegion>EG</ICAORegion><ICAOIdent>EGIH</ICAOIdent></ICAO>
        </ATCWaypoint>
        <ATCWaypoint id="FLAMB">
            <ATCWaypointType>User</ATCWaypointType>
            <WorldPosition>N54° 7' 0.12",W0° 4' 42.96",+002000.00</WorldPosition>
        </ATCWaypoint>
        <ATCWaypoint id="EGGC">
            <ATCWaypointType>Airport</ATCWaypointType>
            <WorldPosition>N54° 7' 13.47",W0° 14' 14.58",+000306.00</WorldPosition>
            <ICAO><ICAORegion>EG</ICAORegion><ICAOIdent>EGGC</ICAOIdent></ICAO>
        </ATCWaypoint>
        <ATCWaypoint id="WHITB">
            <ATCWaypointType>User</ATCWaypointType>
            <WorldPosition>N54° 29' 18.96",W0° 34' 17.04",+002000.00</WorldPosition>
        </ATCWaypoint>
        <ATCWaypoint id="EGRC">
            <ATCWaypointType>Airport</ATCWaypointType>
            <WorldPosition>N54° 35' 4.80",W1° 4' 11.22",+000085.70</WorldPosition>
            <ICAO><ICAORegion>EG</ICAORegion><ICAOIdent>EGRC</ICAOIdent></ICAO>
        </ATCWaypoint>
        <ATCWaypoint id="DUNST">
            <ATCWaypointType>User</ATCWaypointType>
            <WorldPosition>N55° 29' 18.96",W1° 35' 40.92",+002000.00</WorldPosition>
        </ATCWaypoint>
        <ATCWaypoint id="EGFL">
            <ATCWaypointType>Airport</ATCWaypointType>
            <WorldPosition>N55° 16' 42.06",W1° 43' 13.76",+000196.50</WorldPosition>
            <ICAO><ICAORegion>EG</ICAORegion><ICAOIdent>EGFL</ICAOIdent></ICAO>
        </ATCWaypoint>
    </FlightPlan.FlightPlan>
</SimBase.Document>
Scroll to Top