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The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Please post movements and activities to do with RAF Coningsby here
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reaper493
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The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by reaper493 » Wed May 10, 2017 5:00 pm

Taken from RAF Coningsby Facebook page
On Thursday 11 May we will be conducting the Public Display Authorisation for the Typhoon and Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Display teams.
Conducting a safe display is always paramount in our planning. Further to recently published regulations we have made the decision to prevent access to the area known as ‘the Mound’ on Dogdyke Road.
We have consulted the tenant who leases the area from us; they are content with our decision.
The Mound will be closed all day on Thursday; a further decision about its future will be made in due course.
The official viewing area on Dogdyke Road will remain open as usual.
Thank you.

Cheers

Mike

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by powerslave » Wed May 10, 2017 6:06 pm

Could the mound be permanently closed,sounds like someone is thinking about it

Ian

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by Thunderbolt II » Wed May 10, 2017 6:20 pm

Didn't know the mound was leased from the RAF/MOD? Doesn't look good for future access.

TYPHOON3
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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by TYPHOON3 » Wed May 10, 2017 8:18 pm

The Typhoon seems to fly it's display more over Old Fen Lane than the mound anyway,well it did today anyway.

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by boff180 » Wed May 10, 2017 9:56 pm

The mound is spoil dirt from works on the airfield dumped on (leased to a farmer) MOD land - the farmer is allowed to use the soil as and when required (he has taken large chunks in the past).

I'm sure that the future of the mound is in question thanks to new regs and security concerns however I can't help also think that it's future - especially during display practices - has been called into question by certain individuals spamming social media with images taken from there and other live side locations during the display work ups over the past year or so. Greatly increasing the number of new people being interested in visiting during practices to get similar shots (especially with the team accounts retweeting/republishing it too).

Andy
Image

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by ConingsbyJack » Thu May 11, 2017 6:54 am

Please note that the RAF Police will also be moving people away from Old Fen Lane and Reedham Lane from 9am today too.
People are advised that the spotters car park is the only place to park and view flying today

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by C24 » Thu May 11, 2017 7:06 am

It certainly bodes ill for the residents of Scrub Hill.
Perhaps all the properties will be subject to compulsory purchase or at least during practice periods the residents will be evacuated.
There are some daft decisions made by even dafter bureaucrats. Are they the same people that make military decisions?
Merely my view on matters

Ps please take your rubbish home with you. :) :D :roll: :whistle:
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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by ConingsbyJack » Thu May 11, 2017 7:11 am

boff180 wrote:The mound is spoil dirt from works on the airfield dumped on (leased to a farmer) MOD land - the farmer is allowed to use the soil as and when required (he has taken large chunks in the past).

I'm sure that the future of the mound is in question thanks to new regs and security concerns however I can't help also think that it's future - especially during display practices - has been called into question by certain individuals spamming social media with images taken from there and other live side locations during the display work ups over the past year or so. Greatly increasing the number of new people being interested in visiting during practices to get similar shots (especially with the team accounts retweeting/republishing it too).

Andy
The farmer is also keen to re-instate the natural wildlife in the area around the crop field at the edge of the mound. Part of that plan is to remove the mound altogether and return the area to wildlife and close it off. It's a shame for spotters but he can do what he likes as long as it doesn't violate his lease. Sadly the mound has been causing the MoD issues for a while now and negotiations have been ongoing about how to get rid of it

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by Malcolm » Thu May 11, 2017 8:32 am

ConingsbyJack wrote:Please note that the RAF Police will also be moving people away from Old Fen Lane and Reedham Lane from 9am today too.
People are advised that the spotters car park is the only place to park and view flying today
On what authority? Is there a TRO in place? :whistle:

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by C24 » Thu May 11, 2017 8:58 am

:S

ImageDPY_3960-ed1 by Charlie, on Flickr

Caught during practice.
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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by C24 » Thu May 11, 2017 9:27 am

:S

" The farmer is also keen to re-instate the natural wildlife in the area around the crop field at the edge of the mound. Part of that plan is to remove the mound altogether and return the area to wildlife. "

Good thinking, Batman!

A sort of Bird-strike sanctuary or something similar?
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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by baz1 » Thu May 11, 2017 9:52 am

C24 wrote::S

" The farmer is also keen to re-instate the natural wildlife in the area around the crop field at the edge of the mound. Part of that plan is to remove the mound altogether and return the area to wildlife. "

Good thinking, Batman!

A sort of Bird-strike sanctuary or something similar?
if the mound is going to be removed were will it be moved to!?? :D
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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by Harkins » Thu May 11, 2017 10:56 am

Crikey, things are really speeding up in the killing off of this hobby (from a photography point of view at least).

Mound removal at Coningsby, talk of new bigger fences at Lossie and Marham for P-8 and F-35 arrivals, Mildenhall for the chop, a lot less to photograph generally, reducing numbers of airshows and increasingly tighter restrictions around them. Ironically it seems, even the increased interest and numbers of enthusiasts (or in some cases litter bugs and crop tramplers) turning up for stealth aircraft deployments appears to be contributing towards the decreasing tolerance of enthusiasts. I’m surprised the MOD don’t just go Greek style and start arresting people. I really do sometimes look at my camera and think ‘what’s the point?’ I’ve got more than enough unmarked Typhoon photos to last a lifetime already, and now I’m having to take them from increasingly worse vantage points.

Sorry to be on such a downer, but after an underwhelming week at Joint Warrior and life getting in the way of RIAT this year, even the removal of a heap of soil adds to the feeling a pastime in its death throes.

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by ST24 » Thu May 11, 2017 11:28 am

Harkins wrote:Crikey, things are really speeding up in the killing off of this hobby (from a photography point of view at least).

Mound removal at Coningsby, talk of new bigger fences at Lossie and Marham for P-8 and F-35 arrivals, Mildenhall for the chop, a lot less to photograph generally, reducing numbers of airshows and increasingly tighter restrictions around them. Ironically it seems, even the increased interest and numbers of enthusiasts (or in some cases litter bugs and crop tramplers) turning up for stealth aircraft deployments appears to be contributing towards the decreasing tolerance of enthusiasts. I’m surprised the MOD don’t just go Greek style and start arresting people. I really do sometimes look at my camera and think ‘what’s the point?’ I’ve got more than enough unmarked Typhoon photos to last a lifetime already, and now I’m having to take them from increasingly worse vantage points.

Sorry to be on such a downer, but after an underwhelming week at Joint Warrior and life getting in the way of RIAT this year, even the removal of a heap of soil adds to the feeling a pastime in its death throes.
:thumb: My feelings exactly. PDA days, particularly Coningsby used to be a must do event- a great way to see what the RAF had lined up to entertain it's tax payers for the year. With this pathetic, pointless blanket ban on movement within a 50 mile exclusion zone I'm just glad there's nothing worth seeing/shooting any more..

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by Andy_99 » Thu May 11, 2017 12:14 pm

So the Mound is closed, Reedham Lane is Closed, Old Fen Lane is closed. It's OK the Spotters Car park is open but...... It's of a limited size so when that gets rammed Joe Public will then park here there & everywhere without any consideration for others so making the problem 100% worse than the pen pushers ever perceived it to be.

How about.....
Not publishing when PDA day is on Social Media, that way you won't get the crowds, you'll get the regulars & the occasional visitors passing through (as we do) & no issues with traffic, litter, crop trampling etc....

Granted you'll always have issues with interesting visitors but that's a fact of life that unfortunately you can't really manage without TRO's on all the surrounding roads.

I can't understand the display regs coming into it as a) PDA day isn't a public display b) Last time I looked the BBMF & Typhoon were RAF assets so exempt from the CAA regulations.

Just my thoughts

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by baz1 » Thu May 11, 2017 12:19 pm

wonder what will happen next at scampton with the Reds training!?
Comfortably Numb

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by iaint » Thu May 11, 2017 12:24 pm

Sorry I just don't get the hype for this supposed marvel that is "PDA day". Surely to anyone outside the wire it appears as nothing more than another practice display. Going by the at best mediocre photos that get retweeted/shared on social media ad infintum by the teams/base, most have already seen it numerous times.

Now the closure of the mound (and as it appears, some other roads 'live side') for one day only is a truly hypocritical (and unnecessary) move by the base." No you can't stand there for the day of PDA, it's not safe; but we'll share endlessly photos from these same prohibited locations from yesterday and every other day that a practice display has occurred"... where's the logic :S
How is it any less safe on pda day than any other practice day?


No this in no way calls for a permanent closure of the mound (would be a terrible decision imo, pushing people onto the roadside) and I head there for most, if not all my (relatively rare) visits to Coningsby (wind direction etc)

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by Tronk 11 » Thu May 11, 2017 12:58 pm

Being devils advocate here. But IF a jet or prop go down on the public hitting a mound full of photographers the implications of watching aircraft at bases doesn't bear thinking about. The flight line south of the base needs to be clear for safety, end of. You can kiss goodbye to most photography if a crash happened.
I'm just grateful to what we can get and I think a lot of people here should have a word with themselves. A bit to much me, me, me, locals, locals, locals. Bigger fences and security aren't meant for us! They are there to protect our assets, crying about bigger fences and access won't get people anywhere. It's a price we have to pay.
Rant over.

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by ConingsbyJack » Thu May 11, 2017 1:04 pm

iaint wrote:Sorry I just don't get the hype for this supposed marvel that is "PDA day". Surely to anyone outside the wire it appears as nothing more than another practice display. Going by the at best mediocre photos that get retweeted/shared on social media ad infintum by the teams/base, most have already seen it numerous times.
Rather harsh on some of the excellent work from photos/photographers I have seen lately.

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Re: The Mound CLOSED 11.5.17

Post by iaint » Thu May 11, 2017 1:24 pm

Tronk 11 wrote:Being devils advocate here. But IF a jet or prop go down on the public hitting a mound full of photographers the implications of watching aircraft at bases doesn't bear thinking about. The flight line south of the base needs to be clear for safety, end of.
The safety card is a load of bull to be honest, the 'easy' answer... if safety was truly behind this decision, then why are these "prohibited areas" fully accessible with no issue during any other day especially when the practice displays are occurring? It could even be suggested that the practices, particularly in their infancy are less safe than a fully rehearsed display being performed for approval... Failures could happen on any day that could god forbid lead to a crash, so here's no heightened reasoning there,
the routine is worked up and choreographed on the sim anyway so that itself mitigates some risks arising from the actual routine

The point Andy_99 made about hundreds of people being drawn on this apparently most hallowed of days bringing issues re parking and chaos to roads I hadn't given much consideration to, but then it returns to the question about why is pda day so revered by everyone? What's so different in the day/display to any other bog standard practice display for anyone watching outside of the wire or in these spotting locations?

I agree with him that if they don't want people coming, don't darn advertise it!

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