A document titled "Guidance on Dealing with Aviation Objections and Associated Negative Conditions in Wind Turbine Consents" was published on the 23rd of January 2012 on the Scottish Government website. You can view the document here.
Following some recent discussions in the UK it is recommended that the following steps are taken for UK developments of turbines and anemometry masts (temporary or permanent).
Desk based aviation studies and aviation risk assessments can take many weeks until completion. Pager Power's Online assessments can help you assess risk at early stages. Please view our video below that will help you decide which assessment to undertake.
Pager Power's online Aviation Risk Data provides 3 charts which show the principle risk, the risk level and the statistically adjusted risk Level.
The Principle Risk
This dataset details the single largest aviation installation contributor to the combined risk value at each point location. It provides more detail on the issues likely to be faced and also gives an early indication of which stakeholders are the most likely to raise objections.
Pager Power's Online Risk Report identifies wind turbine aviation interference issues at a specific wind turbine location. This allows potential sites to be evaluated very quickly as once you have submitted a report you will receive it in your mailbox within 1 hour. The video below demonstrates how easy it is to submit a report.
For any further information please call us on 01787 315 135 or email us at online@pagerpower.co.uk .
This air defence radar is able to operate without interference from wind farms and is set to unlock significant offshore, and possibly onshore, wind farm generating capacity in the United Kingdom. The radar is understood to be affected less than other radar because of its processing capabilities and its vertical discrimination of targets. This type of radar was first trialled by the RAF in Scandinavia where the low levels of wind farm interference were first demonstrated.
CAP 764 (Civil Aviation Publication 764) provides Civil Aviation Authority's (CAA's) policy and guidance on a range of issues associated with wind turbines and their effect on aviation that need to be considred by aviation stakeholders, wind energy developers and Local Planning Authorities when assessing the viability of wind turbine developments.
The fourth edition of CAP674 incorporating ammendments to January 2012 has been issued. The latest version of the wind farm aviation guidelines is available in electornic format a the publications section of the CAA website.
Pager Power’s hugely successful online services allow developers of British Wind Farms to assess radar and communications issues for themselves – the first online product having been launched in late 2010.
We plan to launch Online services in Northern Ireland, Ireland, Belgium and South Africa during the first half of this year.. The first product is likely to be an online risk report for Northern Ireland.
If you have a specific idea or requirement for an online report we’d love to hear from you. For more information or a demonstration please contact us on 00 44 1787 319001 or email info@pagerpower.co.uk.
Mike Watson of Pager Power aviation studies has been involved in a recent wind turbine public inquiry in Wales regarding wind turbine and Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) interference. Following the public inquiry the wind turbine was given the go ahead and is now operational.The appeal was quite unusual because the wind turbine was small and had already been built. The wind turbine was situated next to the runway at West Wales Airport where Unmanned Aerial Vehicles are tested and was also in range of the Ministry of Defence (MOD) radar at their Aberporth test facility run by QinetiQ. Read more about the wind turbine unmanned aerial system/vehicle case study...
Pager Power recently attended the Renewable UK Working Group for Aviation Strategy in Glasgow. The working group discusses topical matters relating to the UK wind industry and constraints upon this generated by UK aviation. The meeting in Glasgow covered numerous matters, some of which included local infill primary radar mitigation, wind turbine stealth technology, Secondary Surveillance Radar Multilateration, local infill safety cases, and the Raytheon Solution. The biggest issue for regional airports is presently micro generation, notably the feed in tariff developments due to the recent growth in this area due to government incentives.
New wind turbines operating at East Midlands Airport safely in the vicinity of the primary surveillance radar PSR as well as the Instrument Landing System. Pager Power helps resolve wind farm radar interference issues.
Pager Power has recently created a new wall map which shows some aviation constraints in the UK and Ireland and an outline on creating a Pager Power online risk report.
The map is free of charge we are in the process of sending a copy to all of our customers.
If you would like a copy of the map via post or a PDF version via email, please contact us at info@pagerpower.co.uk and we will send one to you.
Pager Power’s online services allow developers of British Wind Farms to assess radar and communications issues for themselves - our products have now been identifying Wind Farm Radar and Communications problems in Great Britain for over a year.
Online services are due to be launched for wind farms in Northern Ireland, Ireland, Belgium and South Africa in early 2012. The first product is likely to be an online risk report for Belgium.
If you have a specific idea or requirement for an online report we’d love to hear from you. For more information or a demonstration please contact us on 00 44 1787 319001 or email info@pagerpower.co.uk.
Our Customer Relations Manager, Mark Pickett, will this evening be attending the RenewableUK Christmas Connect event, to be held at the British Film Museum.
Mark will be available to discuss your Wind Farm Radar and Communications problems with you, or alternatively he will be delighted to give you further information about our exciting range of Online products.
On the 1st November Pager Power Aviation Studies had two new members of staff start. Alana Smith joined as an online and marketing administrator focusing on Pager Power online wind farm radar and telecomms assessments, after graduating from Reading University. Kirsty Osborne joined as an administrator after spending the last 5 years working in customer service in retail.
We are delighted to announce that our Support Team Leader, Emma Jenkins gave birth to a baby boy on Saturday 26th November. Baby William weighed in at 5lb 9oz. Both William and Emma are doing well.
Pager Power's online Aviation Risk Data provides 3 charts which show the principle risk, the risk level and the statistically adjusted risk Level.
The Principle Risk
Risk Level
Statistically Adjusted Risk Level
Free Demonstration Available
If you are interested in our Aviation Risk Data and would like a Free Demonstration of this and any other of our Online Products, please contact us immediately.
As part of our Online range of products, Pager Power are now selling a package of products aimed solely at Feed-In Tariff customers. This package consists of an Aviation Risk Report, a Risk Report Commentary, a Microwave Link Chart and up to 30 minutes Telephone Consultancy all for £398 per project. This is heavily discounted to suit Wind Farm Radar and Wind Farm Communication Links constraints of the smaller wind projects. This package is only available for turbines up to a height of 80 metres to blade tip.
If you would like more details regarding this exciting new offer please call 01787 319001 or email markp@pagerpower.co.uk
Filton Airfield near Bristol is due for closure at the end of 2012. Although the airfield made a profit in 2010, previous year’s show the airfield repeatedly making a loss.
The closure of the airfield will result in job losses and many contractors will be affected.
The plan for the future is to sell the land for homes and offices.
From the 25th – 27th October 2011, the annual RenewableUK Conference and Exhibition was held in Manchester. Our stand was manned by our Customer Relations Manager, Mark Pickett, who welcomed numerous customers, old and new to learn about our new exciting Online products.
Pager Power have developed a range of online products that will make customers with proposed sites aware at an early stage of any Windfarm Radar, Communications and Television Interference issues that relate to their particular development.
Pager Power has recently created a new wall map which shows some aviation constraints in the UK and Ireland and an outline on creating a Pager Power online risk report.
The map is free of charge and was first distributed at the recent RenewableUK exhibition in Manchester.
If you would like a copy of the map via post or a PDF version via email, please contact us at info@pagerpower.co.uk and we will send one to you.
Grahame Stuteley will be attending the Renewable UK Aviation Strategy Group meeting in Glasgow this week – a regular meeting at which mitigation and other matters are discussed and resolved by wind farm developers and aviation consultants.
Pager Power is starting to use a standard measure when assessing the viability of radar mitigation schemes for wind farm developments.
This measure is known as Technology Readiness Level (TRL) and ranges from TRL1 [Basic principles observed] through to TRL9 [Actual Technology system qualified through successful mission operations]. TRL is considered along with many other factors, such as cost, when comparing mitigation solutions and recommending the most appropriate.
Actual solutions considered often involve local in-fill radar from Cambridge Consultants, c-speed and others, in-fill solutions from existing radar, modifications to the affected radar or “stealth” wind turbine blades.
Pager Power had an internal wind farm radar mitigation meeting last week. Topics included Technology Readiness Level Scale, Infill Radar solutions, Thales Star 2000 radar and TPS 77 Air Defence Radar.
Pager Power will be exhibiting at the Renewable UK Annual Conference and Exhibition at the Manchester Central Convention Complex from the 25th to the 27th October 2011.
This year Mark Pickett, Grahame Stuteley and James Mugford will be attending.
If you are visiting the exhibition, please visit our stand - 286.
Pager Power are working on a new wall map which will show aviation constraints in the UK and Ireland. The map will be distributed at the Renewable UK conference and exhibition in Manchester.
Pager Power’s new Feed-in-Tariff package is now available to use online. Once you have logged into your account, you will see a new tab labelled ‘FiT/Packages’ which will allow you to run the reports associated with this package.
The Feed-in-Tariff package consists of;
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An Online Risk Report
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A Risk Report Commentary
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A Microwave Link Chart
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Up to ½ an hour telephone consultation per site
This exclusive deal is for projects with a maximum blade tip height of 80 meters.
The price for this package is £398.00 (excluding VAT).
For further information please contact us on 01787 319001 or email us at info@pagerpower.co.uk
The UK CAA has issued updated guidance for wind farms. CAP 764 is now at Version 4. The updated guidance includes increased safeguarding and consultation distances for offshore heliports (9nm) and gliding sites (10km).
Pager Power is undertaking an in-depth review of this updated guidance and will update its online assessment tools as appropriate.
Pager Power’s online services allow developers of British Wind Farms to assess radar and communications issues for themselves – the first online product having been launched in late 2010.
Online services are due to be launched for wind farms in Northern Ireland, Ireland, Belgium and South Africa in early 2012. The first product is likely to be an online risk report for Belgium.
If you have a specific idea or requirement for an online report we’d love to hear from you. For more information or a demonstration please contact us on 00 44 1787 319001 or email info@pagerpower.co.uk.
Pager Power are pleased to hear that the first turbine has been powered up at Clyde Wind Farm in South Lanarkshire. The first phase of the project is expected to be fully operation by November 2011.
The first turbine of the Clyde Wind Farm has been powered up following resolution of wind turbine radar issues.
Pager Power participated in the past by completing various reports for the Clyde Wind Farm and by undertaking a Flight Trial.
It is understood that BAE Systems offering to wind developers has been reduced recently – possibly due to issues with software and wind turbine radar analysis. Pager Power has a wide range of software for assessing the impact of wind turbines and radar some of which is available online. Our standard line of sight assessment uses 50m DTM terrain data (for GB analysis) and a weighted average algorithm which gives more accurate results than the nearest-neighbour algorithm used by most other software.
Our Radar Detectability tool takes diffraction into account based on CAA and ITU guidance. Importantly we understand the inner workings of our modelling tools and are able to explain them if required. Informal radar observations have shown a good correlation between our modelling tools and actual wind turbine radar effects. Pager Power is in discussions with a UK airport and a UK University regarding formal validation of its analytical software.
For analysis outside the UK SRTM data is normally used.
The All-Energy Exhibition and Conference is taking place on the 18th and 19th May this year at the Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre.
Mark Pickett, Customer Relations Manager for Pager Power, will be visiting All-Energy on the first day, Wednesday 18th May.
If you are exhibiting or visiting All-Energy this year and would like to meet Mark whilst he is visiting, he would be very happy to hear from you. To speak to Mark, please call us on +44 (0) 1787 319001.
The African Wind Energy Association is hosting the 3rd Wind Power Africa Conference and Renewable Energy Exhibition, which is being held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre from the 9th to the 11th May 2011.
Kai Frolic, Technical Analyst from Pager Power, will be attending the Conference and will be giving a presentation on Wind Farms and Radar, Issues and Mitigation on day two of the conference – Tuesday 10 May.
Pager Power has recently undertaken assessments of in-fill mitigation radar for the interference that wind farms cause to Primary Surveillance Radar. Companies who hope to deliver these solutions include Cambridge Consultants, Qinetiq, Reutech and c speed.
The principle is that a new solid state radar is located in or near the proposed wind farm. Output from this new radar is integrated into the air traffic control system that will be affected by the wind farm – thus eliminating the potential interference problem. Some of these solutions are strongly back by airport operators who have wind farm problems.
The offshore wind farm has finally been approved in the U.S. after a decade of facing opposition and undergoing environmental and regulatory analysis.
The offshore wind farm, which will include 130 turbines, will be situated near Cape Cod in the state of Massachusetts.
Since December 2001, the wind farm has had public hearings, debates and environmental reviews. There were initially concerns that the wind farm could be hazardous to U.S air travel because of radar interference.
Pager Power helps resolve radar and radio issues for onshore and offshore wind farms worldwide. To contact us from the U.S. call 011 44 1787 319001 or email info@pagerpower.co.uk.
The latest release of Pager Power Online includes two new products, the Microwave Link Chart and the TV Interference Chart.
Microwave Link Turbine Interference - Microwave Link Chart
The microwave link chart provides a quick insight to potential turbine microwave link issues for a wind farm development site. It should be noted that the information provided is based on Pager Power’s microwave link database.
Wind Turbine Television Interference - TV Interference Chart
The TV interference chart displays areas where wind turbine television interference may occur (likely, possible and unlikely) covering an area of up to 20x20km.
If you require any more information, or if you are interested in trying our online system with a demonstration of all the products currently available, please contact us on +44 (0) 1787 319001.
It is understood that testing of the proposed mitigation solution is ongoing at Lowther Hill in south Scotland. Raytheon promoted this solution heavily at the recent international Air Traffic Control exhibition in the Netherlands. Our own assessment is that this solution will be good for the industry but that there are likely to be many wind farm sites where the solution is inappropriate because of NERL’s operational coverage requirements below controlled airspace.
Mike Watson and Mark Pickett from Pager Power will be attending the UK – Sweden Wind Power Forum at the British Embassy in Stockholm this week on Thursday 31 March.
Mike will be giving a presentation on how wind turbines can interfere with radar systems and about the products and services Pager Power can provide to help alleviate these difficulties.
Pager Power is excited about the opportunity of helping to resolve potential wind farm radar issues in Sweden.
The latest release of Pager Power Online includes an initial version of the Aerodrome Protected Surfaces and an adjustment with regard to the layout of the online system.
Aerodrome Protected Surfaces
The Aerodrome Protected Surfaces assessment plots the Protected Surfaces or Obstacle Limitation Surfaces (OLS) around a licensed airfield based on ICAO guidelines and indicates whether these are infringed by wind turbines.
This version of the aerodrome protected surfaces chart indicates where proposed wind turbines are located compared to these surfaces in 2 dimensions. A later version of this product (coming in the near future) will analyse whether surfaces are infringed in 3 dimensions.
The price for the current version available now is £195.00 per chart, this includes one chart per aerodrome with up to 5 runways.
Pager Power Online Layout
Pager Power has made an alteration with regards to the layout of the online system. The tabs at the top of the screen have been changed in order to accommodate the latest new product and future products.
The Radar/Aviation tab includes five products; The Risk Report (& Commentary), Radar Line of Sight, Radar Area Assessment, Radar Detectability and the Aerodrome Protected Surfaces.
The Risk Data tab includes the Aviation Risk Data.
The other tabs are for future releases which will include Communications and TV.
If you require any more information, or if you are interested in seeing our online system with a demonstration of all the products currently available, please contact us on +44 (0) 1787 319001.
Pager Power will be exhibiting at the European Wind Energy Association Exhibition from the 14th to the 17th March 2011. This year the exhibition is being held at the Brussels Exhibition Centre.
Grahame Stuteley (Technical Team Leader) and Mark Pickett (Customer Relations Manager) will be attending the exhibition for the duration and Jan Georgopoulos (Technical Analyst and Developer) will be attending on Monday 14th and Tuesday 15th.
If you are visiting EWEA this year, please visit our stand in Hall 12, Stand number 12079.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority has recently issued guidance on the installation of solar energy systems in the vicinity of airports. Pager Power are able to assist developers of Photovoltaic systems overcome any airport or aviation objections. For more information call 01787 319001 or contact info@pagerpower.co.uk
Pager Power have recently been retained to undertake a detailed telecommunications study in the Western Highlands. This involved a very remote field study putting all of our experience and expertise to the test in order to meet the projects tight deadline. Pager Power are regularly required to assist clients with such work and have a proven track record for initiating and managing mitigation discussions with wireless communication link operators. If you have concerns with a site on the basis of Telecommunications, please drop us a line to discuss, and one of our technical members of staff would be happy to answer any questions that you may have.
At the same time Pager Power has been busy in the Western Cape of South Africa surveying a radar installation and terrain working on overcoming a radar objection. Whilst surveying it was necessary to avoid grumpy ostriches and their nests.
Pager Power's online Aviation Risk Data provides 3 charts which show the principle risk, the risk level and the statistically adjusted risk Level.
The Principle Risk
This dataset details the single largest aviation installation contributor to the combined risk value at each point location. It provides more detail on the issues likely to be faced and also gives an early indication of which stakeholders are the most likely to raise objections.
Risk Level
This dataset categorises each point into the following risk levels (in ascending order):
Negligible
Low
Medium
Significant
High
Severe
Hence, it indicates the likelihood of encountering issues at each location within the selected area. The listed categories are based entirely on the risk level, and the value at any given location is therefore comparable with any other location for which risk data has been obtained in Britain (onshore).
Statistically Adjusted Risk Level
This dataset is statistically adjusted to indicate the areas of highest and lowest risk within the area considered. This means the risk level displayed at any one point is relative to the other points within the area under consideration. Therefore, the dataset is designed to map the relative risk within a site; the data values should not be compared with other regions of the country.
There is a new Linked In Group called Wind Farms and Radar which a number of Pager Power staff have joined.
The group has discussions on the latest developments in wind farm radar issues, with recent threads on Stealth Turbines, Transponder Mandatory Zones and new Thales radar upgrades as radar mitigation solutions.
The group currently has 57 members who include wind developers, aviation consultants, airport safeguarding staff and radar suppliers.
You can now view your turbine or boundary location on OS maps when undertaking analysis for wind farm radar issues.
The OS mapping module has been integrated to the online risk report, radar line-of-sight analysis, radar detectability analysis and aviation GIS risk data.
Please contact us if you would like a user account created on 01787 319001 or info@pagerpower.co.uk
Pager Power are undertaking an increasing number of TETRA radio impact assessments.
TETRA is a digital radio system normally used for communications to emergency service vehicles and personnel. In the UK the system is called Airwave. Wind Turbines reflect and block radio signals which can adversely affect the performance of radio systems.
System operators can raise objections in situations where analysis shows that there is unlikely to be radio coverage, or where there is coverage from alternative transmitters which the wind farm will not affect.
Pager Power has custom software that predicts areas of wind farm interference.
Pager Power has recently completed a radio navigation beacon interference assessment in mainland Europe. As well as affecting radar, wind turbines can affect the accuracy of radio navigation beacons because their components can reflect radio signals from them. Beacon operators can be concerned where wind turbines are planned within 15km of these beacons which are typically used so aircraft can determine their distance or bearing from them.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) have recently announced that they will no longer be processing the pre-planning enquiries for wind turbine developments. Consequently this means that Pager Power will no longer be able to undertake the CAA consultation service that is currently offered.
The CAA’s decision to end the processing of the pre-planning enquiries will not affect the formal planning process.
Pager Power’s Online Risk Report allows you to enter details of your wind farm site online. A PDF report will then be emailed to you with details regarding radar issues and also includes line of sight charts. If you are interested in a demonstration, please call us on 01787 319001.
Mark Pickett and Jan Georgopoulos are attending the RenewableUK Connect Event on Wednesday 15th December. If you would like to have an informal chat in person about how Pager Power can assist with any of your projects, please find Mark or Jan and they would be more than happy to assist.
Pager Power Customer Relations Manager Mark Pickett and CEO Mike Watson delivered a presentation to Estonian wind developers in Tallinn last week. There are significant barriers to wind development in Estonia because of the impacts of wind turbines on NATO air defence radar. Estonia shares a land border with Russia with its airspace adjoining Russia’s. The Estonian government is expected to consider the issue of wind farms and radar in depth in 2011 and develop requirements for technical assessment. A number of wind farm developments have been cleared by radar operators, following reductions in proposed turbine numbers and wind farm size.
According to RenewableUK, approximately 68% of wind farm projects in the UK planning system, an equivalent of 6.5 GW of wind energy, are subject to wind farm radar and aviation objections.
Pager Power's online risk report can help identify potential wind farm aviation interference risks within a few minutes from order. Download a sample report here. Contact us on 01787 319001 or info@pagerpower.co.uk for further information and to set up a user account.
Undertake radar Line-of-Sight online via Pager Power online services and identify wind turbine radar interference issues at early stages. You can undertake this for any location in England, Wales and Scotland. This takes only a few minutes of your time and it will be delivered to you by email. Contact us on 01787 319001 or info@pagerpower.co.uk for further information and to set up a user account.
Newcastle Airport has objected to a number of wind farms in the past, mainly due to the potential impact of wind turbines on their primary surveillance radar. Pager Power has helped developers overcome a number of these objections through analysis and positive dialogue with the airport.
The airport has published its Radar Blanking Strategy that allows the effects of wind turbines to be blanked from its radar screens. There is an up-front cost of £20,000 together with a per turbine cost between £46,154 and £125,000.
There are two areas where such mitigation may be acceptable to the airport – a northern area and a southern area. The northern area is north of the airport and east of the Northumberland National Park. The southern area includes the city of Newcastle Upon Tyne and the area south of a line from Whitburn to Derwent Reservoir.
Pager Power is able to assist wind farm developers and consultants in finding cost effective mitigation solutions at Newcastle and other airports. For more information call us on 01787 319001.
Whilst the level of objections to wind farms from radar operators is highest in the UK – with national air traffic services NATS thought to object to more wind turbines than any other organisation in the world. Over 13GW of wind development is stalled by radar in the UK. There are nevertheless a number of other countries where wind turbine developments are subject to radar objections.
Pager Power has recently completed Wind Turbine Radar Impact Assessments for developments in Bulgaria and Greece. Issues considered include Air Defence Radar, Secondary Surveillance Radar, Radio Navigation Beacons and Instrument Flight procedures.
According to the EWEA, the National Renewable Energy Action Plans (NREAPs) handed by EU Member States show the EU-23 countries will average at 21.5% renewables in 2020, exceeding the 20.8% target set in 2009 and plans forecasting a cumulative wind capacity of 201 GW. However, constraints such as the wind farm aviation and wind farm radar could hinder these targets.
Pager Power can assist wind farm developers to avoid or overcome radar and aviation interference related concerns. Pager Power besides the UK has undertaken assessments for Ireland, Belgium, Bulgaria and Greece among other EU countries.
Between the 2nd and 4th November Pager Power was exhibiting at RenewableUK 2010.
The main focus of the Pager Power stand this year was to promote our new Aviation Risk Data products and show how they can assist in managing potential wind farm radar interference.
Kai Frolic and Mark Pickett manned the stand for the full 3 days and had lots of visitors wishing to know more about the Aviation Risk Data products. Kai and Mark gave demonstrations of the new products to over 50 people.
Feedback on the Aviation Risk Data products was very positive with a number of customers instantly requesting an account for the Online Risk Report, and many other brochure requests for absent colleagues.
The Strategic Defence and Security Review was released yesterday. Mike Waston, CEO of Pager Power has read the review and highlighted sections that are particularly relevant to the wind farm radar interference issue. Click here to view and download the highlighted review (adobe pdf).
Our online risk report has been demonstrated to the CAA and a number of customers. Our first six reports were delivered to customers last week. The reports allow customers to enter wind farm details online and receive pdf reports with radar issues and line of sight charts automatically by email.
For a demonstration please contact us on 01787 319001
Mike Watson was interviewed by Aviation Week regarding wind farm radar interference. Information from Mike’s interview was used in Aviation Week’s article ‘Radar Upgrades Cut Wind Farm Interference’. In the article Mike discusses wind farm radar interference and current solutions applied in the UK.
Pager Power’s new risk data products are now operational and being tested. The online risk report is now being served from our live internet site and is being rigorously tested by our technical team.
GIS Aviation Risk Data is also being tested with five counties in England, Wales and Scotland being focussed on initially.
Both services are likely to be available before the end of October.
Pager Power were pleased to hear of the news. EDF Energy Renewables has erected Burnfoot Hill Wind Turbines; a project, developed by Wind Prospect. Pager Power assisted Wind Prospect with the TV interference planning condition through desk-based prediction modelling using the TV module of Sightlines, Pager Power's in-house software that models Wind Farm Radar and Radio interference, and a TV baseline survey.
Grahame Stuteley attended the South West of Scotland Regional BAA Solution Meeting held on 17th August in Glasgow at the Scottish Renewables office.
Meeting Presentation Title – Practical implications of the final radar feasibility study. (The study was recently published in Feb 2010 by the Scottish Government).
The meeting was held with representatives including the Head of Aerodrome Safeguarding BAA, the Head of Projects and Design NATS Services Ltd. and the Scottish Government, and followed on from the recently issued report. The main purpose of the meeting was to re-engage with people so to clarify the situation. The meeting reemphasised the complexities involved in various radar mitigation options, such as infill zone boundary issues, and the effects on radar such as slant angle range problems when an aircraft is being tracked by 2 radar and is not transponding. There is also the issue of unsynchronized rotation. BAA stated that they are getting a large number of queries at the moment from wind farm developers etc.
According to the New York Times, in 2009 approximately 9 GW of proposed wind turbine developments were abandoned or delayed as a result of wind farm radar interference concerns raised by military and aviation stakeholders.
Many landowners and developers are working on wind developments with a generating capacity of less than 500 kilowatts. This is because of the new Feed In Tariffs available to such developments. Such wind turbines can interfere with radar systems, communications systems, airfields and airports. These issues all need to be dealt with, via the planning process.
Pager Power offers its full range of products and services to developers of these smaller wind developers. The amount of work required, and consequently the cost, for assessments of such developments is reduced as such developments typically have only a single turbine. Wind Farm radar interference issues are less likely for these smaller wind developments because turbines are shorter and less likely to be detected by radar.
Pager Power Sightlines software is used to assess wind farm radar interference issues. It is also used for assessing physical safeguarding issues considering airport’s protected surfaces. The company’s protected surfaces software has recently been enhanced resulting in quicker, more comprehensive, more accurate and better presented assessments.
Pager Power will be attending the South West of Scotland Radar Mitigation Update meeting on the 17th August in Glasgow, this follows on from the initial meeting regarding the regional solution. The update meeting will be held with BAA, NSL, Scottish Government and interested developers, a full summary will be added to the Pager Power news page in due course.
The Greek (Hellenic) Airforce has started objecting in wind farm proposals in terms of radar interference. Pager Power is currently working with a wind farm developer investigating potential interference to radar operated by the Greek Airforce. One of the staff members is Greek and can answer any queries you may have. Any one requiring further information should contact Jan Georgopoulos at 01787 315 132.
The company’s development of Aviation Risk Data products is ongoing. A prototype GIS risk data tile has been built and is undergoing testing. Developers will be able to improve the way they manage wind farm radar interference issues. The self assessment web based service is also under development.
These products will be available for UK wind developers and consultants from Autumn 2010.
Aviation Risk Data will enable developers to increase the value of their wind farm portfolio and improve their competitive position.
Any one requiring further information should contact Mark Pickett on 01787 319001.
We are all very pleased that the proposed Fewcott wind farm has gained planning approval following initial objections from Oxford Airport and the MOD because of potential wind farm radar interference issues.
Pager Power are pleased to have worked with the developer, Oxford Airport and the MOD to arrive at an outcome that is satisfactory to all parties.
The four turbine development, next to the M40, lies approximately 15km north of Oxford Airport.
Pager Power continues to develop its new aviation risk products which are due to become available from October 2010. Wind Farm Radar Interference issues can result in wind developments being delayed or not progressing. Managing aviation risk in a developers wind farm portfolio increases overall portfolio value significantly.
New GIS products include a national and county risk maps. New online products will include the ability to assess specific wind farm sites online and a Site Update Service that alerts developers when aviation risk changes.
These new products will initially be aimed at UK onshore wind developments. For more information please contact Mark Pickett – markp@pagerpower.co.uk
Pager Power has just completed a physical safeguarding and radar assessment for a large wind farm in the vicinity of a South African Air Force base.
After exhibiting at EWEC in Poland and presenting at the AWEA conference in Dallas, the company has received enquiries from a number of countries including Turkey.
Mark Pickett, Customer Relations Manager, is due to meet wind developers in Romania next month.
A wind farm near Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire, Wales that Pager Power undertook work for, has recently been given planning consent.
The four turbine Wear Point wind farm was granted planning permission on the 25th May by Pembrokeshire County Council’s Planning Committee and is planned to be constructed in 2012.
Over the past couple of years, Pager Power has undertaken various aviation, telecommunications and TV work for the Wear Point Wind Farm and it is great to have participated in its successful outcome.
Mike Watson attended the Windpower 2010 Conference and Exhibition which was held at the Dallas Convention Center in Dallas, Texas from the 23rd to the 26th May 2010.
Mike attended the conference on Monday 24th May where he gave a presentation which was well received by the audience. The speaker session in which Mike was involved in was ‘Airspace Conflicts: The Latest on Radar and Aviation Concerns’ – Mike’s presentation was titled ‘Resolving Radar Issues with Data Fusion’.
Grahame Stuteley attended the Cyrrus RVSE product Launch this month, below is his summary of the product:
This isn’t quite the “one solution fits all” technology it has been marketed as. Nor does it really introduce anything amazingly new to the industry. But what it does do is simplify the application of radar infill for airports and developers, and could have a few useful applications such as optimising airspace detection with relative ease.
Pager Power will be exhibiting at the European Wind Energy Conference & Exhibition 2010. It will be taking place over 20 – 23 April at the Expocentre in Warsaw, Poland. Please come and visit us at stand 3041, Hall 3
Pager Power is now up and running with a new customer relationship management (CRM) system - NetSuite.
NetSuite is an integrated web-based business software suite which means that Pager Power can manage their customer relations and projects more effectively and efficiently.
When dealing with microwave link operators the contrast in helpfulness is huge. During 2009 Pager Power found it difficult to obtain link information from some operators. To overcome this we decided to submit a number of Freedom of Information (FOI) requests directly to Ofcom. By wording these in a specific way Ofcom assisted us in successfully obtaining link information on a number of occasions, allowing many wind farms to move forward. However, due to conflicting legislation Ofcom had to review this process so that if a FOI request is made they now have to notify and give link operators 10 days to respond. Should a link operator challenge one such FOI request due to this conflicting legislation it is likely that further review will be required by Ofcom’s legal team. Pager Power will be continuing to use all avenues to obtain link information for its customers.
Radar line-of-sight analysis is a good indication of whether a wind turbine will be visible to a radar. The most important result of the analysis is the visible height - the extent to which a turbine is visible, or hidden, from the radar beam.
The building block of a line-of-sight is the terrain profile between the turbine and the radar. For computer generated charts this terrain profile is built from a series of height data along the path between the radar and the wind turbine. This height data is often derived from Digital Surface Models (DSM) or Digital Terrain Models (DTM).
Meteorological associations around the world assess weather conditions; particularly monitoring of rainfall levels, using radar systems operating at high frequencies. Such frequencies are typically in C and S frequency bands. Meteorological radars are generally of relatively low resolution as weather tends to be an area effect. Rainfall calculations are typically made with 1-5km resolution, higher resolution being available at shorter ranges, typically up to 75km.
A report has been recently completed on behalf of Ofcom by ERA which examines the current method used for the analysis of wireless communication link path interference for microwave and UHF telemetry technologies as a result of wind turbine proximity. The current method advised by Ofcom for this analysis considered wind turbine clearances on an individual structure basis, however the more recent paper demonstrates that a potential cumulative turbine impact may exist for larger wind farms. Pager Power is consulting Ofcom and BWEA to further understand how this may change future methods of analysis.
Pager Power has recently fitted out a new bespoke survey vehicle to assist with their field work. The vehicle is primarily aimed at TV assessments, with an inbuilt 10m telescopic mast which can be electronically raised or lowered by using the inbuilt compressor. The vehicle also helps with a range of other work types ranging from blocking point analysis, to telecommunication link path line of sight analysis. Cameras and a range of bespoke fixtures and antennae are used to collect data for reporting.
In February the CAA released its first update to Civil Aviation Publication (CAP) 764 ‘CAA Policy and Guidelines on Wind Turbines’, originally released in 2006 to provide guidance on the wind farm radar issue. The CAA have replaced the original method for assessing impact on primary radars with a ‘simplified [line of sight] methodology’. For turbines with line of sight it recommends more detailed assessment. Pager Power will continue to offer such assessments using the original methodology within CAP764’s first edition.
The largest onshore wind farm in Europe, Whitelee in Scotland, faced severe opposition during the planning process because of likely radar interference. Pager Power worked closely with Scottish Power and BAA to identify a site for a new radar from which none of the turbines would be visible, but aircraft flying into Glasgow airport would be seen. This case study explores the specific challenges that lay ahead and how 322 MW of clean energy was finally achieved.
If the UK is to come close to meeting Government targets regarding electricity supply, then wind energy must be more effectively harnessed. Yet wind farm development is often hindered by some of the most stringent radar safeguarding procedures in the world.
At Pager Power, we use our expertise to design individual solutions for wind farm developments, and in this article we examine a variety of technical mitigation options that help us to manage ‘the radar issue’ for our clients.
Pager Power will be exhibiting at BWEA’s 31st annual conference and exhibition. It will be taking place over 20 – 22 October at ACC Liverpool. Please come and visit us at stand 84.
Pager Power’s next Wind Farm Radar Seminar will be held on Wednesday 2nd December.
A core part of Pager Power’s work involves the use of our custom in-house software Sightlines. A large upgrade project has been undertaken to introduce a web front end and improve calculation speed. We are now in testing and looking to go live during October. By taking Sightlines forward via the .Net 3.5 framework, not only will our speed improve but it also takes us one step closer to offering advanced services via the web to our customers.
Eurocontrol issued Guidelines on how to assess the impact of wind turbines on radar for consultation in June. Pager Power has reviewed the document in depth and has produced a review document.
The Eurocontrol document is likely to be issued in 2010 and is likely to impact wind energy development within and beyond Europe from December 2010. It describes a process for defining geographic zones around radar sensors. For each zone there is a process for deciding whether wind development is tolerable.
Pager Power can assess the potential impact of a wind turbine's shadow on residential buildings in the vicinity of a proposed development site. This analysis takes in to account the angle of the sun, the time of year, the location of the site on the earth, and the duration of the effects. Shadow Flicker can be problematic to local residents when the shadow passes a window which is the sole source of natural daylight for that room. This leads to a stroboscopic effect and can be most undesirable. Once the potential impacts are identified, and the likely extent of the problem has been assessed, suitable mitigation is discussed and recommended.
Due to continuous changes within the UK aviation industry, Pager Power believe that there may be some merit for developers and consultants alike to re-visit some of the older sites within their development site portfolio.
As wind farm development throughout the UK continues to expand, the number of attractive potential sites is diminishing. Wind farm developers and consultants alike are continuously searching for suitable locations. To rely on discovering sites that have no issues impeding development is now more than ever an unrealistic and short-sighted strategy, because any potential site is likely to carry risks, it is evaluating the significance of these risks and the associated consequences for the development that can determine how successful, or indeed unsuccessful, a site finding strategy will be. Pager Power believes that development of a computer based risk assessment will offer an unrivalled advantage for strategic development.
