Contents of an Arrival Report

CAR 602.78 specifies that the contents of an arrival report for a flight plan or flight itinerary, which are listed in the CFS, shall include:

The aircraft registration mark, flight number or radio call sign
The type of flight plan or flight itinerary
The departure aerodrome
The arrival aerodrome
The date and time of arrival

Closing of a Flight Plan or Flight Itinerary Prior to Landing

A pilot, who conducts a flight in respect of which a flight plan or flight itinerary has been filed with an ATC unit, FIC, FSS, or CARS, has the option of closing the flight plan or flight itinerary with any of these agencies prior to landing. The closing of a flight plan or flight itinerary prior to landing is considered as filing an arrival report, and as such, it will result in the termination of all alerting services with respect to SAR notification.

When flying IFR in airspace under the jurisdiction of Canadian ATC, use of the phrase “Cancelling IFR” results in ATC discontinuing the provision of IFR separation, but it does not automatically close the flight plan or itinerary. Therefore, alerting service with regard to SAR notification is still active and is based on the information submitted in the original flight plan or itinerary. Because the pilot is now flying in accordance with VFR, the flight plan or itinerary must either be closed prior to landing, or an arrival report filed after landing, with an ATC unit, a FIC, a FSS or a CARS. When flying IFR in the U.S.A. or landing at a Canadian airport that underlies airspace delegated to the control of the FAA, use of the phrase “Cancelling IFR” results in ATC discontinuing the provision of IFR separation and also closes the flight plan or itinerary. Therefore, alerting service with regard to SAR notification is also terminated, unless the pilot files and activates a VFR flight plan.