The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has tightened rules around stunts and increased the distances between displays and crowds, following last year’s Shoreham Air Show disaster.
The crash site last year as emergency services surveyed the scene
The CAA’s Civil Air Display Review has focused on civil air displays as a whole but was launched immediately after the incident at Shoreham in August, in which a vintage jet crashed on the A27, killing 11 people.
The final report from the review, published today, builds on the measures announced in an action report published by the CAA in January. It confirms further safety requirements that air show organisers and display pilots will have to meet for the 2016 air display season.
They include:
- Strengthening post-display reporting requirements to reflect the importance of feedback and safety reporting from air displays;
- Increasing the distance between the display line and crowd line for any situations where distances were previously less than those in place for military displays;
- Increasing the minimum altitude at which ex-military jet aircraft can do aerobatic manoeuvres;
- Strengthening the competency requirements for pilots performing aerobatic manoeuvres in civil registered, ex-military jet aircraft.
Dame Deirdre Hutton, chair of the CAA, said: ‘We began this review immediately after the accident at Shoreham last summer with the sole purpose of doing all that we can to make UK civil air shows even safer. It has been an extensive review, looking closely at all aspects of air show safety to identify any areas where the system can be strengthened.
‘Air shows are enjoyed by millions of people up and down the country and we want them to be successful. And while we recognise implementing these changes will require significant work from the air show community, we believe they are essential to enhancing the safety of UK air shows and safety must always be the top priority.'
Measures announced in January’s action report included enhanced risk assessments for displays and strengthening requirements for areas such as training and checks for those overseeing displays and the experience, skill and health of display pilots.
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