LFA7T

[Lossie23]

Hi all,
With the relatively small size of LFA7T (considering how much ground you can cover in a GR4!) there must be regular routes flown by past/present users of it. Am looking to try and find some new locations for low level photography in LFA7T. Had a look on the map and was wondering if Llyn Brianne Reservoir in south Wales is flown over much and if so from what directions?

I have been shooting low level for 10 years and know all the main routes Mach Loop, Dunmail, Moffat Valley, M6 Pass, Star Wars Valley etc and have done most of them (some many times) though like to try new locations as for me going to the same places gets stale. I know all the usual caveats no guarantees etc but have in the past researched locations purely by using good judgement and looking at likely locations on a map - with some success though not always in these days of a smaller air force.
Having done a lot of fly fishing in the past I view low level photography the same way, love the scenery and relaxing in a stunning location - some days you get lucky others you catch nothing so don't mind giving a new location a go. However, every fisherman prefers a day when they catch! Thus the reason for this post so was wondering if any past or present aircrew can advise if the location I mentioned above is used or suggest any other valleys (ideally not too wide) that are regularly used in LFA7T.
Just to put anyone's mind at rest I am NOT trying to arrange anything/flybys. I would pick a random day when I have time off and try a valley and see if I get lucky. However, as some valleys are rarely if ever used it would just be nice to know if there is at least some reasonable chance of getting some traffic in the valley I have mentioned or any others in LFA7T.

[Easy Street]

When fast-jet OLF training was a common occurrence, Llyn Brianne would occasionally get flown along, but more often the U-shaped system of reservoirs further north in the Elan valley was the focus for pilots looking to test themselves by getting right down into the nap of the earth. However, the amount of fast-jet OLF training carried out these days is vanishingly small. What little was being carried out was largely to sustain the capability to perform low-altitude "shows of force" in Iraq and Afghanistan, and with that all finished it's a very long way down the training priority. You could wait for weeks and weeks and see not a single aircraft below 250 feet in LFA7(T). On the very rare occasion that it is carried out, you can bet that the aircrew will be trying to get up to the Scottish OLF areas instead, which are far more practical.

In any case, the terrain in LFA 7(T) is not really conducive to the type of valley flying that produces great photographs, even when flying at 100 feet. Although aircraft in the usual spots further North are no lower than 250 feet, the depth of the valleys is such that aircraft can actually get properly into them. Only an experienced OLF pilot can stick to the bottom of the Elan Valley all the way along, and there aren't many of those left (and those that are are out of practice!). Hawks from Valley don't do anything below 250 feet. In sum - I wouldn't waste my time down there.

If you're bored of the usual Mach Loop locations, then the car park at the top of the Bwlch y Groes (SH9123) is a good place to go for spectacular views and the possibility of being overflown impressively. Plus you don't need to walk far from the car, so you can easily set up a luxury viewing experience!

[Lossie23]

Thanks EasyStreet for your reply. Have spent a day at Elan at the dam and saw a C-130 drop into to one of the reservoirs further along but other than that we blanked. Quite a few people have tried Elan and blanked so I agree with you about there. Thanks for the suggestion, have sat up in the BYG car park one morning for a change but blanked, but it does get regularly used so was just unlucky.
Thanks again for taking the time to comment.