Military Low FlyingReview Of United Kingdom Military Helicopter Low Flying
In Response To A Rule 43 Letter From The Louth And Spilsby Coroner
Introduction
This Review of United Kingdom military helicopter low flying has been conducted by DAS in response to a Rule 43 letter sent to the Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (ACAS) by the Louth and Spilsby Coroner following the death of Mrs Heather Bell in a horse-riding accident in 2003. A low flying Chinook helicopter conducting tactical low flying training was deemed to have caused Mrs Bell’s horse to spook, causing a subsequent accident that inflicted fatal head injuries. The Louth and Spilsby Coroner made nine Recommendations to ACAS, and the purpose of this report is to provide a comprehensive response to these Recommendations.
the full text of this report is only available for download in Portable Document Format which requires Adobe's Acrobat Reader application. (click here to download Acrobat)
Executive Summary
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This review has been conducted by the Directorate of Air Staff (DAS) in response to a Rule 43 letter that made nine Recommendations about helicopter low flying training. The review considers the need for military helicopter low flying, and quantifies the scale and scope of training requirements for each helicopter type. Accurate patterns of helicopter activity are identified. Current and future levels of simulations are considered together with other means of mitigating the effects of helicopter low flying.
The need for tactical training is not in doubt and has been proved conclusively during recent conflicts. The activity with the most potential to cause disturbance to the public is tactical helicopter training that covers a variety of activities and is conducted by Battlefield, Naval, Search and Rescue and Training helicopters. A thorough examination of the various training syllabi has quantified the minimum levels of training necessary for operational readiness, and these levels cannot be reduced further without detriment to operational readiness. Much tactical training is conducted within existing Dedicated User Areas (DUA), but already high usage rates mean that these areas are at saturation level, and some training must be conducted in other parts of the UK Low Flying System (UKLFS). Because of the limited range and performance associated with helicopters, to maintain a high level of training efficiency, as much of the necessary training as possible is conducted close to main operating bases, and therefore a regular pattern of activity can be identified within low flying areas adjacent or close to DUAs. Patterns of activity within these routine training areas are well established, and the public is accustomed to the activity. Consequently, training that is likely to cause most disruption to the public is the small amount of tactical training that is conducted outside DUAs and routine training areas.
To ensure the minimum effects of this training on the public, there must be tight control of both supervision and authorization of flying, and procedures have been put in place to ensure that a fully auditable trail of the conduct and justification of these activities is available. To mitigate the effects of this training, more information must be given to the public as a matter of routine, and specifically when 'unusual activity' is planned. It is therefore proposed that routinely-used training areas are designated as Helicopter Training Areas (HTAs), to define the limited geographic area in which routine training occurs, thereby enabling better information to be made available to the public. Outside DUAs and the newly created HTAs, two measures are suggested to increase the accuracy of information available to the public. Firstly, a requirement for all exercises, both fixed and rotary wing, will be the production of a Public Relations plan to cover the intended activities that will be approved by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) Press Office before authority to use the required airspace is given. Secondly, it is proposed that for helicopter tactical low flying training outside DUAs and HTAs, information about routes or areas of activity is made a mandatory part of low level booking procedures. This latter proposal will only affect approximately 5-10% of all tactical flying and therefore is not onerous. However, it will ensure that the least frequent training activities that have the greatest potential for intrusion are properly publicised to enable more informed decisions to be made by members of the public.
A detailed examination of existing simulation shows that a high level of use is made of the synthetic environment, and available training is under constant development, not only to improve the quality of existing synthetic training, but also to introduce new synthetic training activities that will further reduce the need for live flying. Exporting helicopter low level training as a measure to reduce the impact of low flying is carefully considered, and it is evident that where possible, helicopters participate in training exercises overseas. However, increasing the amount of overseas training brings considerable cost implications if air transportation is necessary, and sea transportation, whilst less expensive, generates significant issues of aircraft availability and therefore the ability of MOD to meet National contingency commitments.
Trial BRIGHT EYES was conducted by the Rotary Wing Operational Evaluation and Training Unit (RWOETU) to investigate measures to increase visual detection of horse riders, as technical solutions using either Radio Frequency or Infra-Red devices do not offer a workable solution. The largest single factor that offers an improvement to rider safety would be the increased use of high visibility clothing that enables visual identification from the air at significantly improved ranges. This positive safety message will be taken into the riding community in a joint MOD and British Horse Society (BHS) safety initiative following release of this Review.
A number of recommendations were made to improve the ease of investigation of any incident that a future Inquest may have to consider. Procedures used by the Defence Flying Complaints Investigation Team have been thoroughly revised and new protocols introduced. The data-recording capability of all military aircraft has been established in conjunction with QinetiQ, Boscombe Down. Consideration will be given to introducing extended voice recording capability on new helicopter designs, or for upgrades to existing helicopters, but where currently fitted, voice recording capability meets Civilian Aviation Authority (CAA) standards. It is not considered practical or necessary to introduce cockpit video recorders as more accurate information for investigative purposes is already available from aircraft data recorders. Finally, there is no operational requirement to change the existing arrangement for Chinook radio altimeter warnings.
The avoidance area afforded to Middle Rasen will be retained as a mark of respect for the Bell family for helicopters only, and will be reviewed in 2009.
The major area in which improvement can be made is in communication with the public. The measures outlined above will enable MOD to provide far more accurate information on the pattern of helicopter training activity, and will ensure that unusual activity that takes place outside routine training areas is properly communicated to the public. This will significantly increase the utility of the free-phone advisory service and enable the public to make better informed decisions on any intended riding activity. A number of local initiatives are already in progress, and ‘best practice’ has been shared with all helicopter units. The reception of local initiatives is often initially hostile, but perseverance has demonstrated categorically that a very positive outcome can be achieved with local authorities and groups representing country activities. A very positive relationship between MOD and the BHS has been established to take joint safety initiatives forward, and following publication of this Review of helicopter low flying training, joint public relations action will ensure the widest publicity is given to this issue.
Be Seen - Be Safe
Trial Bright Eyes was conducted in conjunction with the British Horse Society and demonstrated how the use of High Visibility (hi-viz) riding gear improves the range at which helicopter crews can see horse riders, enabling earlier avoidance action to be taken. As part of its safety campaign to encourage riders to use hi-viz clothing, MOD has issued a leaflet and poster addressing safety issues for riders. These are available below to download and print.
- Military Helicopter Lowflying Safety: A Guide for Riders (PDF 577Kb)
- Military Helicopter Lowflying Safety Poster (PDF 442Kb)
The video clip below shows footage taken from the Trial helicopter sorties using 'normal' and 'hi-viz' clothing.
This movie clip uses the Macromedia Shockwave plug-in. (click here to download Shockwave Plug-in)
Last Updated: 12 Jan 06