Osprey has won a new contract with London Oxford Airport to develop an Airspace Change Proposal (ACP) for submission to the CAA that would see the introduction of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Area Navigation (RNAV) Instrument Approach Procedures and an associated Radio Mandatory Zone (RMZ) in the vicinity of this increasingly busy regional airport.
In recent years, London Oxford Airport has made significant improvements in its infrastructure, including the installation of a Primary and Secondary Surveillance Radar, which improves the range of services it can provide. The next stage of this development is to introduce procedures and an airspace construct that better reflects the demands of the airport and its operators.
Collaboration – the key to success
Osprey is already contracted to manage another ACP at neighbouring Royal Air Force Brize Norton to alter the existing Controlled Airspace to facilitate connectivity with the airways structure. To ensure that these separate but related projects proceed in a co-ordinated and complementary manner, Osprey intends to establish an Oxfordshire Airspace Programme; overseen by Rich Connelly, the Osprey CSL Operations Business Area Manager. This approach is fully supported by the CAA.
Connelly said “We are really pleased to be awarded this contract and look forward to working with the team at London Oxford Airport. We also look forward to establishing the Oxfordshire Airspace Programme, which will allow Osprey to deliver two separate, but complementary airspace change programmes, one for London Oxford Airport and the other for Royal Air Force Brize Norton. Our collaborative approach will ultimately allow the risks of each programme to be minimised and will allow us to develop a more comprehensive proposal to solve some of Oxfordshire’s most complex aviation challenges.”
Osprey maintains that the key to successful Airspace Change programmes lies with early and open stakeholder engagement to fully understand the effects of the proposed changes. These effects can then be mitigated through the overall design process. Osprey is uniquely placed to provide value to the London Oxford Airport project through its extensive experience and knowledge of the issues faced within the surrounding Oxfordshire airspace.
This new contract was awarded in May 2015 and is expected to run between 18 and 24 months.
