Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to ensure the CAP1616 airspace design change process supports (a) general aviation, (b) gliding and (c) parachuting in the UK.

The government’s overarching policy on airspace change is set out in the Air Navigation Directions 2017 and reflected in the Civil Aviation Authority’s CAP1616 airspace change process.

The Directions were amended in October 2019 to help support general aviation in the UK, and a further amendment to provide additional assistance is due shortly.

The objective is for the UK to be the best place in the world to undertake general aviation-related activities in order to inspire the next generation of pilots, engineers and designers, and an appropriate airspace change process is crucial to ensuring this.