Lee on Solent Management Changes
 

I've been told that it's now a done deal so here's the latest.

From 1 April Hampshire Constabulary will no longer control LoS. The Police Islander stopped flying in October last year and since then there has been reduced manning resulting in no visitors at weekends.

The new operator will be Britten Norman, who already have two facilities on site, building an Islander and maintaining Defenders. The new Aerodrome Manager will be Peter Dalby and a/g will be provided 7 days a week, replacing the current service which only operates when gliding is taking place.

The new Aerodrome Manual is under preparation and negotiations are in hand with CAA & MoD to ensure a smooth handover of control.

For more information keep checking the website at Welcome to the LFA Website which will be updated as more news comes out.

LoS's 1100 metres of tarmac is the only hard runway on the South Coast between Bournemouth and Shoreham that is available for GA.

This is very good news :ok:

What does it mean for Bembridge?

What does it mean for the gliding club there?

What has happened to Southampton - it was available last time I checked!

Although available, I was under the impression they were actively discouraging GA and if you really do need to drop down there the financial penalty was steep... Hearsay only as i haven't flown in there since 2005 so I stand to be corrected

Southampton has essentially no parking, especially if you want to stay overnight.

I suppose the LOS development means B&N will move out of Bembridge so the airfield will have to stand on its own two feet. I can't see why it cannot. In the many times I have been there I never saw a single B&N movement, so while obviously there are some they cannot amount to a majority of movements.

Bembridge may go AFIS, especially as it has no (published) IAP.

No problem at Southampton overnight as long as you are prepared to pay. Day charges are actually quite reasonable now.