Kemble EGBP IAP approved

Lots of restrictions too, so a good start, but how practical?

I didn’t read all 79 PDFs but spotted this:

The IAPs will be operated up to a maximum of 5 times per day in defined time slots

If this is current, it is like the Sywell 6/day limit which is a joke.

5 times per day in defined time slots? Do they think the IAP will “wear out” if pilots use it more or something? None of this is rocket science – all they need to do is look across at the Atlantic to see how it’s supposed to be done.

There are hundreds of pages in this, but another quick scan found this

In line with this, no holding pattern has been defined, and the justification is:

Maybe there is something different elsewhere but all these documents are of recent date.

I guess this is the (high) price paid for the money saved by not having ATC.

The 5 movements thing is going to be tied to Kemble having “noise sensitive” areas directly under the approach/departure ends to both runways. You can absolutely guarantee having a “nimby” counting each one too. No idea what happens when we come back at the end of the day and need an instrument approach. Either declare and emergency or piddle off to Gloucester I guess, which kind of ruins the value.

They say in one of the PDFs that the IAP flight paths are not much different to existing VFR approach paths.

Perhaps this was done to at least make a start in this massively difficult area of UK aviation which arouses huge emotional issues within the CAA. IAPs with no ATC is like flying without AME medicals. “We all know” it works just fine, but try to prove the safety case from first principles! And one can’t say it works in the US – because they have a taxpayer funded remote approach controller, which no non-ATC UK GA airfield could afford the NATS/etc bill for.

The IAP paths are significantly different to what would be considered a normal visual approach for Cat A/B, except for the visual approaches which are occasionally conducted by the transport category stuff which is parked or in for salvage.

A normal visual arrival is via the overhead, or if quiet direct to downwind, crosswind, base which then avoids the villages just off each runway. The IAP’s are going to be straight in, hence almost certainly part of the reason behind limiting the movements.

One assumes the hope is to get more private jet/turbine traffic in. Kemble is well served for ground transport being close to the M4/M5 and the village has a station with direct and regular connections into London. Potentially one could get into London quicker from landing at Kemble than from “London Oxford”.