Framework Briefing

RESTRICTED Walney Offshore Airspace Change – Framework Briefing Date: 21 May 2014 Author: Revision: Issue 1 Osprey Ref: 70791 004 This document is of UK origin and has been prepared by Osprey Consulting Services Limited (Osprey) and, subject to any existing rights of third parties, Osprey is the owner of the copyright therein. The document is furnished in confidence under existing laws, regulations and agreements covering the release of data. This document contains proprietary information of Osprey and the contents or any part thereof shall not be copied or disclosed to any third party without Osprey’s prior written consent. © Osprey Consulting Services Limited 2014 The Forge, London Road, Bentley, Hampshire. GU10 5HY 01420 520200 / [email protected] Registered in England and Wales under No: 6034579 RESTRICTED RESTRICTED Document Details Reference Description Document Title Walney Offshore Airspace Change – Framework Briefing Document Ref 70791 004 Issue Issue 1 Date 21 May 2014 Client Name DONG Energy Classification Restricted Issue Amendment Date Issue 1 (Redacted) 9 Jan 2017 7 May 2014 Approval Level Authority Name Author Osprey CSL Internal Approval Osprey CSL Client 1 Approval DONG Energy Client 2 Approval BAE Systems Document Details 2 70791 004 | Issue 1 RESTRICTED RESTRICTED Executive Summary DONG Energy (DONG) wish to develop an extension to the existing Walney Wind Farm, referred to as the Walney Offshore Extension Wind Farm (WOW03). The project development site will be located in the East Irish Sea, in close proximity to the Walney Wind Farms (Walney 1 and Walney 2) the operational offshore wind farms which are north of Morecambe Bay, approximately 35 kilometres (km) (18.9 Nautical Miles (NM)) northwest of Fleetwood and Blackpool, and 31 km (16.7 NM) east of the Isle of Man. DONG is the sponsor for the proposed airspace change herein detailed. The presence of the WOW03 Wind Farm would affect BAE Systems (BAES) Warton Aerodrome (Warton) flying and Air Traffic Service (ATS) operations, and potentially those of BAES at Barrow/Walney Island Aerodrome, thereby requiring a change to the arrangements and procedures in the immediate airspace surrounding the Wind Farms. DONG has engaged Osprey Consulting Services Ltd (Osprey) to project manage the Airspace Change Process on their behalf. Impact The most significant impact on the Warton Primary Surveillance Radar (PSR) and its operational environment from Wind Turbine Generators (WTGs) is the risk of wind turbine generated radar returns causing false target generation and track seduction. False or seduced tracks (which in many cases are indiscernible from real tracks) may cause disruption by forcing Air Traffic Controllers to take action in order to maintain radar separation in accordance with standards mandated by the CAA when providing an Air Traffic Service Outside Controlled Airspace (ATSOCAS). Any loss of radar performance in this area along with any misleading or unnecessarily distracting displayed radar information have the potential to erode levels of safety. Options In developing the plans to resolve the issues detailed in Section 2, DONG has considered a variety of options to determine how best to meet the needs of BAES Warton as well as other aviation and non-aviation stakeholders. In the event that no mitigating actions are taken for the WOW03 development, it is likely that this would influence the PSR service at Warton in the ways described below. WTGs located within PSR coverage can reduce the ability of the radar to detect aircraft. The WTGs present themselves as a large number of reflecting moving targets to the radar, which look very similar to aircraft radar returns. Each of these effects reduces the effectiveness of radar in detecting targets, which can result in misidentification of aircraft, loss of track position, loss of track identity and false plots. These in turn can potentially cause serious safety and operational issues. Warton’s preferred solution is to establish a Transponder Mandatory Zone (TMZ) with associated PSR suppression of the WTG reflected echoes of WOW03 and a 2 NM buffer zone around the operational Walney and its proposed extension, Ormonde, Barrow and the ‘under construction’ West of Duddon Sands Wind Farms. This would avoid issues with visual confusion Executive Summary 3 70791 004 | Issue 1 RESTRICTED RESTRICTED from the air, difficulty in navigation chart interpretation and visual depiction on ATC video display screens. The north-eastern boundary can be adjusted to obviate issues associated with the Barrow/Walney Aerodrome Traffic Zone (ATZ). The ceiling of the proposed TMZ would be Flight Level (FL)100 and active within the Warton Lower Airspace Radar Service (LARS) provision times. However, the active times of the proposed TMZ can be adjusted to suit the opening times of other Airports surrounding the Morecambe Bay littoral area. Executive Summary 4 70791 004 | Issue 1 RESTRICTED RESTRICTED Table of Contents 1 Glossary ..................................................................................................................................... 8 2 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 12 2.1 General ............................................................................................................................................................... 12 2.2 Purpose and Scope ....................................................................................................................................... 13 2.3 Document Structure .................................................................................................................................... 13 3 Background and Justification ............................................................................................ 15 3.1 Overview ........................................................................................................................................................... 15 3.2 Background ...................................................................................................................................................... 15 3.3 Aims ..................................................................................................................................................................... 17 3.4 Justification ...................................................................................................................................................... 18 4 Options Considered .............................................................................................................. 19 4.1 Overview ........................................................................................................................................................... 19 4.2 Option 0 – Do Nothing ................................................................................................................................ 19 4.3 Option 1 – A PSR Solution ......................................................................................................................... 20 4.4 Option 2 – Radio Mandatory Zone (RMZ) ......................................................................................... 20 4.5 Option 3 – Secondary Surveillance Radar-Only ............................................................................. 21 4.6 Option 4 – Primary Surveillance Radar Blanking or NAIZ Only ............................................. 21 4.7 Option 5 – A TMZ with associated PSR Suppression Techniques.......................................... 22 4.8 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................................................ 23 5 Development of the Proposed TMZ ................................................................................. 24 5.1 Overview ........................................................................................................................................................... 24 5.2 Aim ....................................................................................................................................................................... 24 5.3 TMZ Boundary Requirements and Operation ................................................................................. 25 5.4 Vertical Extent of the TMZ ........................................................................................................................ 26 5.5 Hours of Operation of the TMZ ............................................................................................................... 26 5.6 Implementation ............................................................................................................................................. 26 5.7 Work to Date ................................................................................................................................................... 27 6 Potential Impact on Airspace Use .................................................................................... 28 6.1 Overview ........................................................................................................................................................... 28 6.2 Impact on Military Operations ............................................................................................................... 28 6.3 Impact on Civilian Aerodromes

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