D: shows it is a danger area as opposed to restricted or prohibited
7: shows that north of 57° there be dragons - the only digit that applies to the latitude
03: is the danger area descriptor - in case there are other danger areas at this latitude (this is an assumption on my part...)
/: shows that you are about to get a limit
15: in this case means sfc-15000' amsl
Once again, as I understand it, it is merely to give you an indication, so if your GPS says that you are at N56°59'59.99" you *should* be safe.
That's quite a dangerous assumption. The 'latitude' indication is merely to give you a hint as to where you need to start looking when checking your chart to see if any Danger Area activity is going to affect your flight.
As another poster stated, Danger Areas can, and do, cross lines of latitude. The numerical indicator only gives a clue as to where the bulk of the area lies. You still need to consult your chart to ensure you will not be flying through any active areas.
As an example, the EGD323 complex starts down in the 53N area but extends almost all the way North to 55N. So anyone flying within EGD323C on the assumption they are OK because their GPS reads N54 40 00 and
*should* be safe might get a surprise !!
I am a bit confused still.
With the
"D117 - North of 51 degrees North
D307 - North of 53 degrees North"
How do you know it is north? You also say the next two digits (marked in bold) are simple numerical identifers and have no geographical value. What is the point of this then? Would appreciate if you expanded on this. Sorry for being a newbie Dont ask, dont learn
Don't get hung up on the North aspect. Danger Areas can cross lines of latitude. Think of it more as a 'lying between' system. So anything with 3 will (in the main) be lying between 53N and 54N but could also lie South of 53N or North of 54N in part, anything with 7 will (in the main) be lying between 57N and 58N but could lie South of 57N or North of 58N in part, and so on.
The next 2 digits are the unique identifiers for each specific Danger Area. There are many areas of latitude with more than one Danger Area within them, so this is essential so that everyone knows which specific one is being referred to. You can't just say it's EGD3 ''the funny shaped one near that town with the railway bridge'' or EGD3 ''the one where the RAF fire missiles near Wales''.
Danger Areas can also be further divided so that those which form part of the same complex (or an adjacent grouping of linked Danger Areas if you prefer) are given the same identifier number but are then uniquely identified with the addition of a letter, e.g A, B, C, etc. As an example, EGD701 is the core Danger Area for the South Uist rocket range, but depending on the missiles being fired, they might need to sterilise a larger piece of airspace. So they can also open EGD701A, EGD701B, EGD701C, EGD701D, EGD701E, etc, if they need to. This will be done either by specifying opening and closing times in the AIP, or by issuing an appropriate NOTAM.
There are no classes showing different degrees of danger, only different types of Danger Area status. Some are Managed Danger Areas, in that activities are co-ordinated between miltary and civil ATC agencies for access on a dynamic tactical basis. Some are permanent Danger Areas and are active H24. Some are notified as active with times in the AIP. Some are only activated by NOTAM. Some are Temporary and won't be on any chart, for example high seas firing of guns, missiles, and rockets by naval warships outwith the published Danger Areas - these are in NOTAMS. Or it might be a Temporary area established for SAR Ops.
Some you can fly through if you choose (although airmanship and the fact you are possibly endangering an aircraft should make this choice for you). Others you are legally prevented from entering by Statutory Instrument.
In all cases, the type of activity or the agency using the area is specified in the UK AIP or the NOTAM. This gives an indication of what you are likely to encounter should you enter, and you can assess for yourself the danger you are likely to be in.
