Airspace Change Consultation Extended

Following feedback we received from local people during our Airspace Change consultation, the commissioned its route designers to undertake more work and as a result, a further option for southbound departures has been proposed.

Full details of the additional proposed route can be found at www.birminghamairport.co.uk, and it will be open for consultation up to Friday 17th May 2013. To give local people the opportunity to discuss the proposed route with members of the Airport team, we will be holding three further drop-in sessions, which will take place as follows:

Hampton in Arden – Monday 22nd April: 19:00-21:00 at Hampton in Arden Village Hall

Balsall Common - Wednesday 24th April: 19:00-21:00 at the Jubilee Centre

Barston - Thursday 25th April: 19:00-21:00 at Barston Village Hall

The departure routes consultation, which opened on 11th January 2013, is part of an ‘Airspace Change Process’, which the Authority (CAA) requires the airport to carry out due to changes to flight paths that will occur as a result of the extension. As the runway will be extended further south, there will be a change to the routeing of aircraft after taking-off to the south which will mean a change for some communities.

The new routes have been designed using the latest criteria to allow aircraft to fly more precisely than ever and are a legal requirement set out by the CAA. Currently, aircraft departing from Birmingham are directed to fly within a 3km ‘noise corridor’, up to 3000ft to minimise the noise impact on local communities. However, after redesigning the flight paths using the latest criteria, aircraft will be able to fly more precisely. The Airport has therefore committed to reduce the existing 3km noise corridor to 2km to demonstrate its confidence in the changes.

April 2013 ATC comes to BHX

Local Air Cadets have been given a privileged ‘behind the scenes’ view of operations at Birmingham Airport.

Members of 2030 (Elmdon & Yardley) Squadron Air Cadets visited the Airport recently to learn more about parts of the Airport the passenger never sees.

After hearing the latest updates on the runway extension, the group visited the make-up hall, where Terminal System Supervisor, Wally Roscoria, explained how thousands of pieces of luggage are screened, sorted and loaded every day.

Meanwhile Engineering Manager Geoff Brunt showed off one of the airbridges which take passengers from the terminal building directly onto the aircraft.

Next it was all aboard one of the fleet of passenger buses for the short trip to the Airport Fire Service, where Station Officer John McCorry and his colleagues gave the cadets a fascinating insight into the job of an Airport Fire Fighter.

John explained how the existing fire appliances are soon to be replaced by brand new, state-of- the-art vehicles, currently being built to order in the United States, before offering them the chance to sit in the hot seat and get a sense of what it must be like to operate one of these powerful machines.

2030 Squadron is one of more than 900 Air Training Corps squadrons in the UK which between them have more than 40,000 members, aged between 13 and 20 years. The ATC promotes and encourages a practical interest in aviation and the RAF, provides training and encourages a spirit of adventure in its members that develops qualities of leadership and good citizenship.

There are close links between the Airport and 2030 squadron, which operates from the TA Centre in Barrows Lane, less than three miles from the terminal buildings. Airport Chief Executive Officer Paul Kehoe is the unit’s Honorary President and the cadets have benefitted in the past from the Airport’s Community Trust Fund, which awarded a grant of £3,000 for new IT equipment in 2010.

April 2013

New procedure will benefit communities

Residents in communities to the south of the airfield may be familiar with the fact that aircraft on approach to Birmingham can sometimes be observed taking a that is slightly offset from the usual straight-in approach to the runway. This is a result of aircraft following a Non-Directional Beacon (NDB) approach.

NDB approaches are taken when the normal guidance system for arriving aircraft, the Instrument Landing System

April 2013 (ILS), is temporarily out of service, most commonly for maintenance purposes. They result in aircraft flying slightly to the east of the usual centreline. This is most noticeable to the residents of Balsall Common who observe aircraft flying closer to the village than normal.

Now a new procedure is being introduced which will provide better track-keeping in situations where the ILS is temporarily out of service. It’s called APV-BARO and uses satellites to accurately identify an aircraft’s position in relation to the extended centreline, while its own barometric altimeter provides height guidance. APV-BARO approaches are independent of ground-based systems such as the NDB and deliver better accuracy and safety.

For local residents, it provides a benefit because it replicates the ILS approaches, meaning even when the ILS is out of service, aircraft will still follow a straight line approach and the same descent profile. Not all aircraft will be able to use the new system, but its introduction should mean a reduction in the number of instances when residents notice aircraft flying ‘off-track’ when landing from the South.

The new procedure is due to be introduced in May. In the meantime, if you wish to find out more about arrival and departure routes, contact our Environment Helpline on 0121 767 7433.

Latest Development News

Local residents and those passing on the nearby A45 will have seen the steel framework for the new Monarch Engineering hangar rising from the Elmdon side of the airfield over the past few weeks. As the structure takes shape, the size of the new facility becomes apparent; with a floor area of more than a hectare it will be capable of accommodating two Boeing 777 aircraft side by side.

Construction has involved some impressive feats of precision and co-operation. The installation of the four valley trusses, each weighing around 20 tonnes, required five cranes to lift them to exactly the right position, so that workers could secure each one with 100 bolts. The £10 million project, which will bring up to 300 high-quality engineering jobs to the area, should see the first aircraft arriving for maintenance by the 1st November this year.

April 2013 Meanwhile, the A45 diversion works, ahead of the runway extension, have been progressing through the winter rain and snow.

As well as the actual construction of the road, among the complexities of this £35m project have been the removal of 110,000 cubic metres of earth, the diversion of a sewer and a fuel pipeline, drainage works and even the relocation of dozens of white-clawed crayfish while culverts are created to realign watercourses.

From 21st June to 1st July 2013, there will be lane closures along the A45 as the new section of road is ‘tied in’ at each end, after which the old course of the road will be closed to allow the construction of the runway extension to begin in earnest.

By extending the existing runway by 405 metres, aircraft will be able to take off from Birmingham with more fuel and fly non-stop to destinations currently out of reach, such as China, South America, South Africa and the West Coast of the USA. Work is scheduled for completion by the spring of 2014.

And finally this month, the £5m Tower project will shortly be completed.

Although the tower and its associated bas building has been a feature of the airfield skyline for more than a year, the intervening period has seen a comprehensive fitting-out process to install the complex equipment required to operate the air traffic control systems.

An extensive programme of training and testing has been taking place ahead of the planned transfer of operations from the existing facility in the Elmdon Building on 17th April.

April 2013 On Track for Success

Airlines operating from Birmingham have been recognised for their contribution to reducing community disturbance through the 8th annual Operation Pathfinder awards.

Councillor Ken Meeson, Leader of Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, joined Airport Chief Executive Paul Kehoe to present the awards at a ceremony staged at the Airport in April.

Operation Pathfinder was established in 2006 as a forum for airlines, Air Traffic Control provider NATS and the Airport’s own environment team, to work together to improve environmental performance at Birmingham. The initial aim of the group was to improve track-keeping performance, - raising the percentage of departing flights that stayed within designated noise routes. In 2012 almost 99% of flights were on-track, well-ahead of the 95% target set by the Airport.

Speaking at the awards ceremony, Councillor Meeson thanked representatives of some of the major airlines flying from Birmingham for their commitment to reducing the impact of their operations on the residents of Solihull and surrounding areas. Among the best performers were Ryanair, who won the best track- keeping award for those airlines operating more than 200 flights each month and Thomson, who won the award in the more than 100 flights per month category.

Selim Ozturk of with Cllr Ken Meeson (left) and Paul Kehoe (right)

Top performers though, were Turkish Airlines, who won the best track-keeping award in the category for airlines operating more than 50 flights per month with an unblemished 100% on- track record. Other airlines recognized were Aer Lingus, Eastern Airways, Flybe, Monarch

Airlines, Thomas Airlines and Thomson Airways.

April 2013 Since its early days, the scope of the forum has moved on to include other measures to improve environmental performance, such as the use of Continuous Descent Approaches (CDAs). CDAs are an operational technique which reduces noise, emissions and fuel consumption and our work on them now forms part of the national ‘Sustainable Aviation’ initiative, set up by the aviation industry to drive improvements in environmental performance by setting challenging targets to reduce noise and emissions. Mark Howarth receives an award for Thomas Cook

With the collaboration of its partners, Birmingham Airport is now leading the way in reducing CO2 emissions from aircraft both in the air and on the ground.

Students get a taste of Airport life

If you think catering is all about limp sandwiches and miniature bags of peanuts, then a trip around the production facilities of Alpha LSG at Birmingham Airport would soon convince you otherwise. That’s exactly what happened when students from Small Heath School visited the Airport recently and gained a fascinating insight into the world of in-flight catering.

When Head of Technology, Dawn Tate, came up with the idea of approaching an airline caterer, she had no idea how they would respond; “In fact Alpha have been brilliant”, she said. “We wanted to set the students a challenge to design, plan and produce an airline , with the idea that it would show them the commercial realities of a large food production operation. The Alpha team understood exactly what we were trying to do and their response was amazing. They’ve provided so much help and advice and have given the students a unique and privileged inside view of what airline catering involves.”

April 2013 Alpha is one of the UK’s largest flight catering companies, operating at all major UK . Employing up to 150 people at Birmingham, they produce between forty and fifty thousand each week, including all those served in business and , which are cooked on the premises by a team of chefs.

During their visit, Director of Sales & Business Development Iain Stewart, gave the students a detailed breakdown of what they would have to consider when planning their meals, including how the aircraft type, seating configuration and crew has an impact on what food is served, as well as the length of the flight, the passenger profile and of course the all-important budget.

Later in the day, the students were treated to a behind-the-scenes visit to Alpha’s production facility, where they were able to see at first hand just how the operation works.

“We are absolutely delighted with the way the day went”, said Dawn. “I can’t thank Iain and his team enough for the way in which they have so generously given us their time and consideration. They understand that it’s such valuable experience for the students, who see the connection between what they are learning in school and the realities of the world that school is preparing them for.” Her comments were echoed by Richard Riley, Small Heath’s Head of Work-Related Learning, who works closely with the Airport to develop programmes of this kind. “The school has worked hard to develop links with business partners, the aim being that both sides gain from the relationship. Our children develop the employability skills needed by businesses and, hopefully, our partners gain from the association too. This project has a long way to run and we look forward to continuing such a valuable relationship.”

April 2013