All,
Here is the (surprisingly swift) reply from the CAA. Government, not CAA decision, and microlights would need a transponder, and yes, its from the surface. Oh my!
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[FONT='Calibri','sans-serif']Thanks for your e-mail.[/FONT]
The decision to put restrictions in place, their size, location and the possibility to use that airspace is a decision taken by Government (Home Office / Department for Transport). Separately the CAA and NATS (with the MoD) are tasked with putting in place the operational system – with the proviso that everything has to be agreed by Government and, in particularly, its security teams.
The Government’s proposal is that the airspace runs from ground level to the base of controlled airspace and that for microlight flight a transponder would be required.
The Government has set up an e-mail address that you can use to raise issues over the basic principle of the restrictions, their size and the impact on business. I will forward your e-mail on to the Government for them to respond, but for your reference the address is: [FONT='Arial','sans-serif']
[email protected][/FONT]
The CAA and NATS has said that anyone with a suggestion or issue around the operational aspects of the airspace can contact us and we will work with them to see if a solution is possible, but these must be approved by the Government and, in particular, it’s security teams.
Any changes to the restrictions will be notified at www.airspacesafety.com/olympics where you can also sign up for automatic updates.
Regards
Jonathan Nicholson
CAA Corporate Communications