Ministry of Defence Future Combat Airspace for Military Collective Training

This proposal is for a Permanent change to the notified airspace design, and the change level is M1.

Air Command, on behalf of the Ministry of Defence, has an obligation to provide relevant tactical collective training to its combat and combat support forces to ensure UK Forces are correctly prepared to defend UK interests in line with the UK Defence Strategy. An

appropriate airspace that can safely facilitate exercising large forces of modern and future air platforms , in a representative combat

environment is required to meet this need.

Core military requirements :

Minimising the risk of MAC to the maximum extent whilst enabling;

Full tactical employment of aircraft and weapons capability

• Supersonic flight and rapid height changes

• Overflight and loiter of rural overland areas

• Use high and low altitude activity concurrently

• Representative employment ranges of simulated air-air and air-surface weapons

Representative operational numbers

Ability to oppose from ground and air simultaneously

Contested in electromagnetic environment

Changing external circumstances make current solutions untenable to deliver the required needs of Defence. Alternate airspace

would diminish required training objectives for Defence and increase the risk to all air users to an unpalatable level. This change

request will be, in part, informed by the associated trial data received through ACP-2020 -042, which is running concurrently.

This is the area which may be affected by this airspace change depending on its development. This area may change as the proposal is developed.