Military airspace changes to affect civilian pilots

A number of changes that could affect civilian pilots have been made to the way military airspace operates across Australia.

Existing military restricted areas have been reclassified to ‘conditional status’. There are three types of conditional status that indicate to civilian pilots how accessible the active military airspace may be - conditional status RA 1, RA 2 and RA3.

- Conditional status RA 1 is military airspace that civilian pilots can flight plan through or expect clearances through when it is active. A notice to pilots (NOTAM) will advise if this is not the case.

- Conditional status RA 2 is airspace civilian pilots should not plan or expect clearance through when it is active, although tracking may be offered by air traffic control.

- Conditional status RA 3 is military airspace where clearance is never available for civilian flights, except in an emergency. If pilots cannot determine the conditional status of any military airspace it should be treated as RA 3 and the area avoided.

The approach taken by the military to activating and deactivating airspace has also changed. While previously the process has been to have military airspace active and then deactivate it by NOTAM, in most cases the military will now activate airspace by issuing a NOTAM.

CASA hopes this new approach will give civilian pilots a clearer picture of military airspace.

“The changes to the way military airspace operates are the result of reviews over the last two years to achieve more flexible and efficient airspace usage,” the regulator says. “The aim is to allow civilian access to military airspace when safety and operational factors permit this to happen.”

CASA says information on the changes will be sent directly to pilots, flying schools, aero clubs and sport aviation clubs.

In the meantime, to read more about the changes to military airspace and how they could affect you click here.