Temporary Restriction of flying: NE Norfolk coast
 

Alas, those Tiger Moths and microlights will have to stop landing on the beach to go crab fishing. The affected area is mainly out to sea, towards the rigs, but it touches the coast from North Deanes to around Happisburgh. See below for details of the restriction:-

Between 17 May and 14 September 2004, the Cromer primary radar will be withdrawn for essential maintenance.
To prevent a potentially serious flight safety incident in the busy airspace over the Southern North Sea, the
Secretary of State has deemed it in the public interest to introduce Restriction of Flying Regulations under article
85 of the ANO 2000: Details will be included in an AIC, but the main points are listed below
With the exception of certain specific aircraft, between 0530 hrs and 2100 hrs (UTC) daily during the period 17
May to 14 September 2004 inclusive, no aircraft will be allowed to fly below a height of 3,500 feet above mean
sea level over the area listed in the AIC and shown on the map below, unless it is equipped with secondary
surveillance radar equipment capable of operating in Mode A, and operates that equipment in accordance with
such instructions as may be given to the aircraft by one of the notified air traffic control units. In addition, the
commander must obtain permission to enter the restricted airspace from one of these units
The Air Traffic Service units notified in the AIC to give permission to enter and issue transponder instructions will
include both Anglia Radar and RAF Coltishall.
Any extension to this Restriction will be notified by NOTAM. Details of Restricted Airspace feature in the daily
AIS Information Line message (0500-354802) and will be included on the Pre-flight Information Bulletins (PIB)
through the AIS Web site at http://www.ais.org.uk.

Most aircraft operating at and above the dazzling height of 3500ft will be TXPDR exquipped.

The Tiger Moths will just go underneath!

:ok:

FD

FD,:D ;)

FFF
--------------

Doh!

Grammar OK but I can obviously not speed read!!

Wel spotted!

:D :D

FD

Thanks for the info FNG. I will make this a sticky nearer the time. :)

A group of us are going to Cromer this weekend. We'll make the most of the beaches while we can then. :}

This starts Monday after next weekend.

Full details are in Mauve AIC 20/M103/04.

It shouldn't be a problem to most, you just have to fly around the back of North Denes and stay inland until you pretty much get to Coltishall stub.

The decent landable beaches around Wells Next the Sea are unaffected :)

The quietest beach to land on is on Scolt Head, but look out for Mr Labouchere coming the other way in his Puss Moth.

OK so what is the reasoning behind this. Are we likely to see more when radar is inoperative, is it the thin end of a very wide wedge? Who will benefit from this restriction? If radar is an absolute must for safety then why dont we have mandatory radar services all over the UK? etc etc. What am I missing please?

I can also see no reason at all for the restriction.

Yes there are lots mil boys over that area, yes there are big heli's going out to the rigs (of which there are many, see the AIC) from North Denes but how a few non transponder aircraft flying along the shore at 1500ft affect this, I don't know.

After all, if the radar is turned off for repairs, its turned off, what difference does having a mode A transponder make? If the can't see you, they can't see you. Unless there's something going on that that they don't want us to see.

I think the AIC is pretty self-explanatory; it makes perfect sense to me. ;)

If the intention is to ensure 1000' seperation between rotary traffic in the corridor and non Xpdr traffic, then it does make perfect sense to me.

Could someone tell me what HMR stands for and what is the status of the (assume) route? Is it similar to class F?

Thanks

SD

Can't say I know much about the area but if this is being done for the safety of aircraft operating offshore it sounds to me like there should be permanent protection through the establishment of a suitable class of airspace. Now, before everyone gets ansy about more airspace, if it's managed properly, no-one need suffer any restriction on wat they do unless it's not safe.

Just thinking out loud really .......

I think the intention is to provide the Anglia radar controllers with a "radar picture" where they can see all the traffic that is operating within that airspace. Consequently, they can provide an effective RAS/RIS. Ac which have a transponder will not be stopped from operating autonomously within this airspace; they merely need to confirm its operation with an approved agency as a condition of entry.

HMRs have no "status", they are within Class G airspace. If you make it class E or F, someone will have to provide an ATC service. From what I gather, the rig operators cannot even manage to set-up effective RT coverage.

WBS - thanks, but what soes it stand for? Helicopter M? Route?
:confused:
SD

Helicopter Main Route. UK AIP ENR 1.15 refers.

WBS - of course the wording makes sense but I repeat - for whose benefit is this restriction and what is the reason? Just because Anglia is down for maintenance should noy mean ristriction in open FIR. There has to be much more to this than we are being told. AND if the radar is down then from where is the service provided for mode A signals?

I am also missing this one.

We need permission and transponders to fly through class G airspace in VFR conditions, because a radar is down?

Because of the transport role of the ND helicopters, I can understand the need for transponders in IMC in this area, but not on a fine summer's afternoon. That's what the front windows are for.

To put it in a nutshell/carrier bag or whatever takes your fancy:

1 - The radar head at Cromer Radar (located at Cromer on the north Norfolk coast) is being replaced, next week the whole system will be taken out of service while this happens.
This head provides both secondary (mode C) and primary (mode A) signals to Anglia and Coltishall Radar - the 2 providers of the East Anglian southern North Sea radar services.

2 - The Cromer radar head also provides SSR (mode C) to Norwich Airport.
At the moment and from next week, Norwich are getting/will get their SSR (mode C) information from the Debden radar head, near Stansted, Anglia will get theirs from Claxby, near Humberside, and Coltishall will get theirs from Honington near Lakenheath.

3 - Norwich and Coltishall will get the primary radar signals (mode A) from their own radar heads at the airfields, Anglia Radar will get theirs from Claxby to cover the southern north sea.

This means that each unit is operating at an extremely reduced level of radar coverage.

The nature of primary radar (mode A) is basically "line of sight", the further away from the radar head the aircraft is, and the lower it is, the less chance you have being seen as a primary signal.

With SSR, (mode C), much the same principal applies, the further away from the radar head and the lower the aircraft is, the lower the chance of it being seen on radar.
This has led to us having a very difficult time in seeing and separating any aircraft at low level on radar.

The majority of North Sea helicopter operations are, by the nature of the restrictive nature of helicopters, conducted below 5000ft.
The new airspace restrictions have squeezed the extensive military activities that take place over the North Sea into the area of rig helicopter operations.

All this, combined with the restrictions in being able to provide a full radar service, has led to the introduction of the temporary restricted area.

All Working Hard has to do is comply with the AIC and ask before flying over that bit of the North Sea that is very rarely used by any G/A aircraft, it's not all that difficult, just be prepared not to get the excellent radar service that normally prevails in that area.