24 September 2019
RAF Brize Norton recently hosted a stakeholder meeting at which its latest and near-final design for a larger area of controlled airspace surrounding the airfield was described in detail.
The GA Alliance (GAA), including the British Gliding Association (BGA), was represented at the meeting alongside others from the GA community, reports the BGA.
The revised design replaces previously proposed CTA Class D airspace with Class E+ airspace, which is a UK version of ICAO Class E with additional conspicuity. In the case of the Brize Norton design, the intent is that radio or transponder provides the required conspicuity.
Expert inputs have been made by the GAA regarding the CTAs at each end of the design and regarding CTA bases. The sponsor has agreed to reconsider those before a final submission to the CAA.
Another stakeholder meeting is being arranged by London Oxford Airport to describe their ACP submission. GAA including BGA will be in attendance.
The revised plan has been called a ‘dog’s breakfast’, ‘infringement hell’ and ‘an absolute disgrace’ on the FLYER forum, with one poster saying, “I can’t believe that any sane human being could propose that as a workable solution”.
6 comments
They are killing off GA except to train Military and ATPL pilots. We are in seeing the beginning of the end for private flying
Air space keeps expanding while Mr Shapps keeps talking about encouraging GA.
How long until the entire south of England is Class D? It’s all getting silly. Better to work out a way of sharing the airspace with GA without all of these fixed grabs. It’s only going to kill GA or result in more and more infringements and safety risks, diverting or deviating will become increasingly difficult especially with multilayered airspace displayed on a 2D chart and aircraft will be forced into narrower corridors trying to avoid it. Brize is regularly unable to provide LARS due to “Working at Capacity” so getting clearance through all of this won’t happen as much as it’s being made out it will.
Brize LARS is often at capacity – it’s busy airspace and there has to be a limit to what can be safely worked. Brize LARS also wont work inside this airspace – for the Zone crossing you need to speak to Brize Zone (see what they did there with the naming?). I’ve never been refused a Zone transit, albeit occasionally provided a safer level / route to avoid other known traffic. Their aim here is to reduce the amount of conflicting with aircraft which are much bigger and faster than most of us – is that really a bad thing?
I do not have any issues with flight paths until it affects people and the last couple of nights has been very disturbed, not just those in Drayton but Didcot, Harwell and other villages and towns. That’s the problem, all the villages surround Brize Norton so everyone suffers. There needs to be a clear gap of residential properties so that most residents do not suffer. Its no better than Heathrow trying to get another terminal. Balancing our defense with disturbance is difficult but workable if the plans are properly thought out
Andrew you’re absolutely right, they need a clear gap of residential properties to get to the airport safely. Unfortunately people chose to live in those flight paths, near to an airport which was here for many years already.
The council are currently looking at compulsory purchasing of all houses under the flight path, and knocking them down to create the safe routes for those aeroplanes to take. You’ll get a letter in the post soon enough, fear not.