Westair Flying School Safety Notice
Parachute Centre Drop Zones
An incident has recently come to our attention in which an experienced pilot infringed the Cockerham Parachute Centre Drop Zone. The pilot had assumed that as there was some cloud cover at around 5000′ the drop zone would not be active and it would be safe to route through the zone.
The parachute drop plane spotted the aircraft in the zone and suspended its parachute dropping activity until the aircraft had cleared the zone. No one was injured and no aircraft were damaged, but it could have easily turned into a serious incident.
Pilots and instructors flying from Westair are reminded that there are a number of drop zones, glider wire launches, restricted and danger zones within a short flying distance of Blackpool airport. All these zones and activities are clearly marked on the map, and are shown on GPS navigation systems like Skydemon.
The parachute drop zones at Cark and Cockerham should always be treated as active and should not be entered without specific clearance from the drop zone operator. Parachute dropping occurs from a range of heights from 2000′ to 15000′ and in a variety of conditions depending on the nature of the training being delivered.
Glider sites
The glider site at Chipping uses a steel tow wire which the map shows may rise up to a height of 3600′. And multiple gliders may frequently be seen in the vicinity operating between the surface and up to and beyond 10,000′. When operating in the vicinity of the glider site maintain a good look out do not fly directly over the launch site.
Restricted and Danger Zones
The nearby Restricted Zones are at Heysham Power Station EGR 444 (SFC to 2000′) and Springfield Processing Plant EGR 312 (SFC to 2100′). These should always be avoided.
The nearest danger zones are the D406 areas west of the Lake District Coastline north of Barrow. These are frequently active and must be avoided. Activity status can be confirmed by consulting Notams.
ATZ’s, CTA’s, Class D, TMZ’s, RMZ’s…..
Please always allow yourself a margin when flying near the controlled airspace of Warton, Manchester and Liverpool. Don’t attempt to fly right up to the edge of any zone, and within 100′ of the airspace limit. It only takes a moments distraction or a thermal to suddenly find yourself inside a controlled zone and having to explain your actions. Wherever possible allow yourself a 2 mile and 200′ margin for error.
And finally, before every flight remember to check the weather, Notams, and carry a current chart with a plan of your flight on it : when you sign the tech log you are taking responsibility for the aircraft and all the appropriate planning and actions for your intended flight.
Thanks for reading this note.
Safe Flying.
Westair Flying School.
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