RAAF BASE WILLIAMTOWN and SALT ASH AIR WEAPONS RANGE … · 1. The NFPMS System The NFPMS is a...

RAAF Base Williamtown and Salt Ash Air Weapons Range

Noise and Flight Path Monitoring System

July – September 2006

Prepared by Environment Services

Report No: DoD YWLM06Q3

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RAAF BASE WILLIAMTOWN

and

SALT ASH AIR WEAPONS RANGE

NOISE AND FLIGHT PATH MONITORING SYSTEM

QUARTERLY REPORT

JULY - SEPTEMBER 2006

Department of Defence Project Reference CNN937

Airservices Australia Report No. DoD YWLM06Q3






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DISCLAIMER

This report contains a summary of data collected over the specified period and is intended to

convey the best information available from the NFPMS at the time. The system databases are

to some extent dependent upon external sources and errors may occur. All care is taken in

preparation of the report but its complete accuracy can not be guaranteed. Airservices

Australia does not accept any legal liability for any losses arising from reliance upon data in

this report which may be found to be inaccurate.

Prepared by Airservices Australia October 2006

Contact Details

Senior Environment Advisor

Defence Corporate Services and Infrastructure

Central Northern NSW

RAAF Base Williamtown 2314

Phone 02 4964 7339






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CONTENTS CONTENTS............................................................................................................. 3

FIGURES ................................................................................................................. 4

TABLES ................................................................................................................... 4

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY..................................................................................... 5

INTRODUCTION................................................................................................... 6 1. The NFPMS System............................................................................................................7

2. The ANEF System...............................................................................................................7

3. EMU Locations ...................................................................................................................8

4. Quarterly Aircraft Movement Numbers and Track Plots ....................................................9

4.1. Movement statistics.....................................................................................................9

4.2. Quarterly track density plots......................................................................................16

4.3. Quarterly Aircraft Movements Analysis Plots. .........................................................19

5. Supplementary Noise Data (Including Civil Operations)..................................................20

GLOSSARY........................................................................................................... 23

APPENDICES ....................................................................................................... 24

APPENDIX A ........................................................................................................ 25 The NFPMS...............................................................................................................................25

NFPMS System Overview ........................................................................................................26

A.1. System configuration and features. ...........................................................................26

A.2. System applications. ..................................................................................................27

APPENDIX B......................................................................................................... 28

The ANEF System ................................................................................................. 28 THE AUSTRALIAN NOISE EXPOSURE FORECAST SYSTEM ........................................29

B.1. System Overview. .....................................................................................................29

B.2. Australian Aircraft Noise Investigations. ..................................................................29

B.3. Land Use Planning. ...................................................................................................31

B.4. The ANEF Formula...................................................................................................31

B.5. Traffic Forecasts and Flight Path Allocation.............................................................32

B.6. Types of Aircraft Noise Contour Charts ...................................................................33

APPENDIX C ........................................................................................................ 34

Aircraft Movements and Track Plots.................................................................. 34 Aircraft Movement and Track Plots ..........................................................................................35

C.1. Movement statistics...................................................................................................35

C.2. Night movement statistics. ........................................................................................35

C.3. Propeller Aircraft Track Plots ...................................................................................35






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FIGURES Figure 1. Noise and flight path monitoring locations in Australia .............................................6

Figure 2. EMU sites around RAAF Base Williamtown and SAWR..........................................9

Figure 3. Military Jet Departures – July – September 2006. ....................................................11

Figure 4. Military Jet Arrivals– July- September 2006. ...........................................................12

Figure 5. Military Jet Over-flights – July - September 2006. ...................................................13

Figure 6. Civil Jet Departures – July – September 2006. .........................................................14

Figure 7. Civil Jet Arrivals – July – September 2006...............................................................15

Figure 8. Track Density Plot of All Aircraft Operations for July - September 2006................17

Figure 9. Track Density Plot of Military Operations for July - September 2006. ....................18

Figure 10. Indicative flight paths for operations at RAAF Base Williamtown . ....................19

Figure B.1. Example of ANEF Contours .................................................................................31

Figure C.1. Military Propeller Departures – July - September 2006........................................38

Figure C.2. Military Propeller Arrivals – July - September 2006 ............................................39

Figure C.3. Military Propeller Over-flights – July - September 2006......................................40

Figure C.4. Civil Propeller Departures – July – September 2006. ...........................................41

Figure C.5. Civil Propeller Arrivals – July - September 2006. ................................................42

TABLES Table 1. Aircraft Movements at RAAF Base Williamtown during July – September 2006...10

Table 2. Summary EMU Noise Data – July-September 2006.................................................20

Table 3. N70, N80 and N90 EMU Noise Data – All Aircraft – July-September 2006. ..........21

Table 4. N70, N80 and N90 EMU Noise Data – Military Aircraft – July–September 2006. .21

Table 5. N70, N80 and N90 EMU Noise Data – Civil Aircraft – July-September 2006. .......22






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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Following the completion of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Introduction of

the Hawk Aircraft at RAAF Base Williamtown (WLM) and Salt Ash Air Weapons Range

(SAWR), the Minister for the Environment issued 25 conditions under the now repealed

Environment Protection (Impact of Proposals) Act 1974. Condition number 3 states “The

environmental management strategies at both Williamtown and the Range will include long-term

noise monitoring. The impacts of noise will be reviewed periodically.”

The Department of Defence contracted Airservices Australia to install and manage a Noise and

Flight Path Monitoring System (NFPMS) at RAAF Base Williamtown. The purpose of the

NFPMS is to identify noise emissions associated with civil and military aircraft operations at

Williamtown and military aircraft operations at SAWR to provide information to the general

public on aircraft noise emissions from the Base and SAWR in a format that is easy to read and

understand.

Due to technical difficulties with the radar feed at RAAF Base Williamtown, track data below

2,500 feet is currently not captured by the NFPMS. Therefore, a significant number of flights into

and out of Williamtown the correlation between noise and movement data will be incomplete.

Defence and Airservices are currently working to resolve these technical difficulties. As a result,

the Williamtown NFPMS was unable to determine whether the majority of the flight tracks are

arrivals or departures and these flight tracks are identified as over-flights. To compensate

Airservices Australia has implemented procedure that assists in determining if whether an over-

flight track is an arrival or a departure.

This report provides a summary of the data collected by the Williamtown NFPMS during the

July to September 2006 period. The data detailed in this report relates to both military and civil

aircraft operations at RAAF Base Williamtown and Salt Ash Air Weapons Range.

There were 6063 arrivals, departures and over-flights recorded at RAAF Base Williamtown of

which 2105 were military aircraft. Of the recorded operations, there were 1200 (Ref: Table 3)

flight tracks which had a correlated noise events with a sound level 70dBA or greater detected by

the monitoring units, of which 406 of these were military operations (Ref: Table 4)






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INTRODUCTION

Under a contractual agreement with the Department of Defence, Airservices Australia has

installed and manages a Noise and Flight Path Monitoring System (NFPMS) at RAAF Base

Williamtown. The Williamtown NFPMS is one of nine such systems located around Australia

that are managed by Airservices Australia. A map displaying all noise and flight path monitoring

locations in Australia is shown in Figure 1. An overview of the NFPMS is contained in

Appendix A.

Figure 1. Noise and flight path monitoring locations in Australia

This report is a summary of the data collected by the RAAF Base Williamtown NFPMS over the

third quarter (July to September) 2006. Primarily this quarterly report provides an overview of

aircraft operations at the Base and over Salt Ash Air Weapons Range (SAWR). Technical details

and supplementary data of all aircraft operations are provided in the Appendices.

The data contained in this report and subsequent quarterly reports will provide a baseline of the

impact of military and civil aircraft operations at RAAF Base Williamtown and over SAWR.

This baseline data will then be able to be used in the future to determine whether there has been

an increase or decrease in the impact of all aircraft, military or civil aircraft. The changes in






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impact may relate to changes to aircraft fleet or number of movements by the different aircraft

categories.

Due to technical difficulties with the radar feed at RAAF Base Williamtown, track data below

2,500 feet are currently not captured by the NFPMS. Therefore for a significant number of flights

into and out of RAAF Base Williamtown and the correlation between noise and movement data

will be incomplete. Defence and Airservices Australia are currently working to resolve these

technical difficulties. Due to the loss of radar data, the NFPMS is not able to identify whether a

flight track is an approach or departure track and identifies them as over-flights. To overcome

this situation, Airservices Australia has implemented a method to identify if an over-flight is

actually an arrival and departure operations. Although this detection process does not restore the

NFPMS data to the accuracy of the pre-October 2005 data, it does significantly improve the

reporting capability of the NFPMS for RAAF Base Williamtown.

This report is a summary of the limited data that was available during the fourth quarter (July –

September) 2006.

1. The NFPMS System

The NFPMS is a computer based system that combines aircraft flight track data from an air

traffic control radar system and the noise levels generated by the same aircraft and using this data

to report the impact of aircraft operations at and around an airfield. The measurement of aircraft

generated noise levels are undertaken by deploying noise monitors (Environmental Monitoring

Units) usually below the flight path of aircraft during their approach and departure phase of

flight. When an EMU detects an increase in the recorded noise level, it logs the measured noise

level as a “noise event”.

The NFPMS acquires radar flight track and operational information of all aircraft operations

from the Airservices Australia TAAATS system. The flight tracks within a defined distance

from the EMU are checked against each noise event and if the time of the noise event matches

that of the radar track of an aircraft, the noise event is attributed to that aircraft and is logged as a

“Correlated Noise Event” (CNE). Otherwise, it is regarded as part of the background noise.

Further details of the NFPMS system are included in Appendix A.

2. The ANEF System

The Australian Noise Exposure Forecast (ANEF) is a calculated (not measured) prediction of

aircraft noise in the vicinity of an airfield, at some future date, usually for a one year period. The

ANEF is used to assist land-use planning in the vicinity of the airfield, with the aim of achieving

compatibility between a site's aircraft noise exposure and the uses to which the site may be put.

In addition to the ANEF there is the Australian Noise Exposure Index (ANEI) which is a

calculated assessment of operations that have occurred at an airfield. A more comprehensive

description of the ANEF system is included in Appendix B.






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3. EMU Locations

The selection of an EMU site is based on criteria that Airservices Australia has developed for the

management of an NFPMS system. Some of the selection criteria for these sites are:

1. close to regularly-used aircraft flight paths;

2. in a quiet location to ensure aircraft noise is detectable above the background noise;

3. line-of-sight from the microphone to the aircraft

4. not in close proximity to large buildings or steep terrain;

5. access to electrical power and telephone lines or mobile phone coverage; and,

6. secure from malicious damage.

Using the above selection criteria, four EMU sites are used to monitor the impact of aircraft

arrivals and departures at RAAF Base Williamtown. They are located at:

EMU 1. Grahamstown Primary School, Hasting Drive, Raymond Terrace; and,

EMU 2. Williamtown Primary School, Cabbage Tree Road, Williamtown.

EMU 6. Outer Marker for RAAF Base Williamtown, Raymond Terrace, and

EMU 7. Private residence Pacific Highway, Ferodale.

Two EMU sites were selected to capture aircraft noise associated with operations over SAWR

are located at:

EMU 3. Salt Ash Primary School, Salt Ash Avenue, Salt Ash,

EMU 5. Wirreanda Primary School, corner of Ferodale and Brocklesby Roads, Medowie,

Figure 2 shows the location of the EMU’s (red stars), RAAF Base Williamtown and SAWR

(boundaries shown as yellow lines) and key features of the local region.






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Figure 2. EMU sites around RAAF Base Williamtown and SAWR

4. Quarterly Aircraft Movement Numbers and Track Plots

4.1. Movement statistics.

As noted in the Introduction of this report, track data below 2,500 feet is not captured by the

NFPMS. In most cases at an altitude of 2,500 feet aircraft are too far from the runway for the

NFPMS to determine whether the operation was an arrival or a departure, or the runway used.

As a result, movement and track data on aircraft operations at RAAF Base Williamtown are

significantly affected for the period July to September 2006.

During the July to September quarter of 2006 there were 1874 arrivals, 2708 departures and 1481

“over-flights”, giving a total of 6063 movements at RAAF Base Williamtown for the period.

The NFPMS classifies flight tracks as over-flights when it cannot identify if the track is an

arrival or departure or there has been a change to the SSR transponder settings or loss of radar

data due to aircraft tracking at low altitude.






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Movement statistics for arrivals, departures and over-flights by military and civil aircraft and

helicopters at RAAF Base Williamtown are shown in Table 1. A comprehensive breakdown of

runway usage for arrivals, departures by military and civil aircraft is included in Appendix C.

Table 1. Aircraft Movements at RAAF Base Williamtown during July – September 2006

Aircraft Category Arrivals Departures Over-flights Total

Military Jet Aircraft 203 332 1233 1768

Military Prop Aircraft 42 47 248 337

Civil Jet Aircraft 616 716 NA 1332

Civil Prop Aircraft 724 1317 NA 2041

Helicopters 8 1 NA 9

Undefined 281 295 NA 576

Total 1874 2708 1481 6063

Operations at RAAF Base Williamtown and over SAWR may also involve multiple circuits or

aircraft fly two or more bombing/strafing runs, which the NFPMS records as a single movement

(an arrival, departure or over-flight) as there is usually only one continuous track associated with

such operations. This can lead to the movement summaries shown in Tables 1, and Tables C1

and C2 in Appendix C, differing slightly from data obtained from other sources. The reference

to Unknown in the Runway column is to allow for operations that does not include the required

information.

Track plots of arrivals and departures and over-flights by military jets are shown in Figures 3 to 5

and track plots for civil jet arrivals and departures are shown in Figures 6 and 7, which also

include the locations of the noise monitors. Track plots of military and civil propeller aircraft are

included in Appendix C.






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Figure 3. Military Jet Departures – July – September 2006.






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Figure 4. Military Jet Arrivals– July- September 2006.






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Figure 5. Military Jet Over-flights – July - September 2006.






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Figure 6. Civil Jet Departures – July – September 2006.






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Figure 7. Civil Jet Arrivals – July – September 2006.






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4.2. Quarterly track density plots.

To assist in the understanding of aircraft flight track patterns at RAAF Base Williamtown,

SAWR and over the surrounding area track density plots are provided in figures 8 and 9.

The track density plots shows the daily average density of aircraft flight tracks over the RAAF

Base Williamtown and SAWR region. These plots are generated by dividing the region into an

array of 250 metres by 250 metres grid squares and colouring each square based on the number

of flight tracks that pass through it. The colouring of grid squares provides an overall indication

of aircraft flight track patterns during the sample period. The colours used to represent the

average number of tracks are shown in the legend included in figures 8 and 9. Where a grid

element is not coloured, the number of flight tracks passing over that element was less than 1

over-flight per day.

As noted in the introduction of this report, track data below 2,500 feet are not captured by the

NFPMS. The lack of radar data has reduced the number of flight tracks captured by the NFPMS

which can be used for the preparation of these track density plots. This has resulted in Figures 8

and 9 only showing some grid squares away from the airport that indicate they are being

overflown by aircraft due to lack of flight tracks in the immediate surrounding of the airport.

Figure 8 shows the track density plot for all aircraft arrival and departures during the third quarter

of 2006 and Figure 9 shows the track density plot for military aircraft during the same period.

However, it should be noted that the track density plot for military aircraft only relates to the 62

days when the aircraft did actually operate as local training operations are usually limited to

weekdays, not weekends nor public holidays during Q3 2006.






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Figure 8. Track Density Plot of All Aircraft Operations for July - September 2006.






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Figure 9. Track Density Plot of Military Operations for July - September 2006.






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4.3. Quarterly Aircraft Movements Analysis Plots.

To assist in understanding the arrival and departure operations at RAAF Base Williamtown by

military and civil aircraft the indicative flight paths of these operations are shown as bands in

Figure 10, colour coded red for arrivals and green for departures. Overlaid over each flight path

band are the percentages of use by all military and civil aircraft arrivals and all military and civil

departures, respectively, during the period of July to September 2006.

Figure 10. Indicative flight paths for operations at RAAF Base Williamtown .

North-West

Mil. Arr: 21% Civil Arr: 40%

Mil. Dep: 12% Civil Dep: 5%

North

Mil. Arr: 16% Civil Arr: 19 %


West


Mil. Dep: 7% Civil Dep:32%

South-East


Mil. Dep:36% Civil Dep: 6%

South








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5. Supplementary Noise Data (Including Civil Operations)

Each EMU measures and records A-weighted average noise exposure levels (LAeq) for different

time intervals over the 24 hour period, in addition to the noise levels of individual events. Each

EMU logs a noise event when a measured noise level exceeds the noise and duration settings for

that EMU. The NFPMS then compares the noise event data with TAAATS flight tracks to

determine whether a noise event can be associated with an aircraft’s flight track.

Although the ANEI value is a calculated indicator of aircraft noise levels over a one year period

and thus cannot be measured, studies undertaken by Airservices Australia at airports equipped

with an NFPMS system have shown that it is possible to derive an approximation of the ANEI

value for each EMU site over a shorter period.

One of the functions of the EMU is to measure the long-term A-weighted average noise exposure

(LAeq). By subtracting 35 from the LAeq for the month, an order-of magnitude estimate of the

ANEI for the month is obtained. The LAeq – 35 derived ANEI will be an estimate because the

measured level also includes noise generated by other sources to which the microphone has been

exposed, not just the noise of aircraft, nor does it include the tonal or night-time weighting

applied in an ANEF/ANEI study. Airservices Australia has found at locations where aircraft

noise is a main component of the total noise the agreement between measured and calculated

ANEI. Table 2 also includes the LAeq for the whole day (24 hours) and night time period (2200

– 0700) as well as the derived ANEI estimate for each EMU for the quarter. The noise threshold,

the operational hours and total number of CNE for each EMU are shown in Table 2.

Table 2. Summary EMU Noise Data – July-September 2006.

Location Threshold

setting

(dBA)

Op

Hours

CNEall

(night)

LAeq dBA

(night)

ANEI

estimated

*

EMU 1, Grahamstown Primary 60.0 2170 778(61) 60.4( 49.6) 25.4

EMU 2, Williamtown Primary 60.0 2202 224(14) 64.9( 54) 29.9

EMU 3, Salt Ash Primary 60.0 1682 236(3) 56.3( 49.4) 21.3

EMU 5, Wirreanda Primary 60.0 2200 367(8) 56.4( 48.6) 21.4

EMU 6, Raymond Terrace 60.0 1660 519(19) 70( 63.7) 35

EMU 7, Ferodale 60.0 2205 422(4) 56.7( 53) 21.7

∗ Note The ANEI estimated values are in ANEF units

N70, N80 and N90 Values

Due to normal maintenance activities or equipment downtime, any one EMU may not have been

operational for the entire sample period. To ensure that the average daily noise figures are not






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influenced by downtime, the average noise parameters shown in Tables 3-5 for each EMU are

only based on the days the EMU was fully operational.

Analysis was undertaken of the CNE's to determine the number of aircraft flights that exceed a

given noise level at each EMU. In this case, 70 dB(A) was selected as it represents an external

sound level which “should cause no difficulty with reliable communication from radio, television

or conversation in a typical room with windows open” (Sydney Airport Draft Noise Management

Plan, Volume 2, p6.13).

The number of CNE's recorded by an EMU over a 24-hour day with a maximum noise level

greater than or equal to 70dBA is referred to as the N70 value for the EMU. This metric is

commonly used to compare the impact of aircraft noise at different locations. In addition to the

N70 values, the daily average number of CNE’s with noise level greater than or equal to 80dBA

(N80) and 90dBA (N90) were also calculated. The daily average N70, N80 and N90 values at

each EMU for the July to September 2006 period are provided in Tables 3 to 5.

Table 3. N70, N80 and N90 EMU Noise Data – All Aircraft – July-September 2006.

Location Operational

Days

CNE70

N70 N80 N90

EMU 1, Grahamstown Primary 85 363 4.3 2.2 0.6

EMU 2, Williamtown Primary 89 48 0.5 0.3 0.1

EMU 3, Salt Ash Primary 67 79 1.2 0.3 0

EMU 5, Wirreanda Primary 88 173 2 0.7 0.1

EMU 6, Raymond Terrace 67 334 5 1.8 0.9

EMU 7, Ferodale 91 203 2.3 1.2 0.1

Table 4. N70, N80 and N90 EMU Noise Data – Military Aircraft – July–September 2006.


Days

CNE70

N70 N80 N90


EMU 2, Williamtown Primary 89 23 0.2 0.2 0


EMU 5, Wirreanda Primary 88 40 0.5 0.1 0

EMU 6, Raymond Terrace 67 57 0.9 0.5 0.2

EMU 7, Ferodale 91 91 1 0.5 0






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Table 5. N70, N80 and N90 EMU Noise Data – Civil Aircraft – July-September 2006.


Days

CNE70

N70 N80 N90


EMU 2, Williamtown Primary 89 25 0.3 0.1 0


EMU 5, Wirreanda Primary 88 133 1.5 0.6 0.1

EMU 6, Raymond Terrace 67 277 4.1 1.4 0.7

EMU 7, Ferodale 91 112 1.3 0.7 0.1

The lack of radar data below 2,500 feet has resulted in a small number of flight tracks available

for correlation with the noise events measured by the NFPMS for the third quarter of 2006.

Consequently, N70, N80 and N90 values are significantly below the true values.






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GLOSSARY Correlated Noise

Event (CNE):

CNE is a Noise Event (NE) that is linked to an aircraft movement.

EMU: Environmental Monitoring Unit. A measurement device comprising a noise

monitoring terminal (NMT) and communication capabilities. At present there are

3 EMU's located in the surrounds of RAAF Base Williamtown.

LAmax Maximum A-weighted sound pressure level of a noise event using ‘slow’ time

response

Local Operation

(LO):

An operation which has an SSR code between 5000-5260. These are not fully

flight planned in TAAATS and are mainly associated with military aircraft

training.

N70 Average daily number of correlated noise events equal to or greater than 70dBA



NFPMS: Noise and Flight Path Monitoring System

Night time The period from 2200 to 0700 local time

Noise Event (NE): When the noise level exceeds a threshold value and remains above that value for

more than 5 seconds then the system identifies this as a noise event, records the

event, and checks whether it correlates with a flight track.

Sortie A military aircraft operation which includes an arrival and departure from the

same airfield.

SSR Code Code used in the radar system to identify a particular aircraft in controlled

airspace. Military derivative also known as IFF.

TAAATS The Australian Advanced Air Traffic System – Airservices Australia’s Air Traffic

Control radar system

Undefined A movement where the aircraft type cannot be determined

Unknown A movement where the runway used cannot be determined

Visiting Military

Aircraft

Military aircraft not based at RAAF Base Williamtown






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APPENDICES






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APPENDIX A

The NFPMS






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NFPMS System Overview

A.1. System configuration and features.

The Noise and Flight Path Monitoring System (NFPMS) at RAAF Base Williamtown is a state-

of-the-art fully automated installation, whose operation is overseen from Airservices Australia’s

Head Office in Canberra, under a contractual agreement with the Department of Defence. The

NFPMS and its operating procedures are outlined below.

In the area surrounding the airfield are a number of environmental monitoring units (EMU’s),

which may be permanently located or portable. An EMU basically consists of a microphone, atop

a mast, and an electronics box. The noise level to which the microphone is exposed over the

range 30 to 130 dB(A) is continuously measured and then transmitted, via the telephone network,

to the NFPMS central computer where it is processed and stored for later analysis. Apart from

measuring the aircraft noise, the EMU also continuously monitors the background noise levels.

Through the air traffic control radar system, the NFPMS acquires flight track and operational

information on aircraft operating in and out of the airfield, and within a preset radius of the

airfield.

On a computerised map display of the airfield and its surrounds, the system displays the noise

levels measured by each of the EMU’s and the flight tracks and operational details of the aircraft

in the vicinity of the airfield.

When the level and duration of noise from any noise source in the vicinity of an EMU exceed the

threshold level and duration which have been set for that EMU, a "noise event" is recorded. The

time at which the noise event is recorded at the EMU location is then checked against movement

times and radar tracks of aircraft operating in the vicinity. If the time and EMU location of the

noise event match the movement time and radar track of an aircraft, the noise event is attributed

to that aircraft, i.e. it becomes a “correlated noise event”. Otherwise, the noise event is regarded

as part of the background noise.

The NFPMS collects noise and flight path data 24 hours a day, seven days per week. It also

accumulates flight plan and weather data. The incoming data is stored in the central computer

and can be recalled to display the tracks flown by any user selection of aircraft operations,

together with the noise levels which those operations produced at the EMU’s. The track

information includes aircraft identity, altitude and speed.

The system includes statistical and acoustical software to undertake analyses of noise or flight

track information, and produce tabular and graphical reports on that information, as and when

required by the user. It includes the capability to analyse aircraft tracks, by selecting and listing

the tracks which have passed through defined windows and corridors. The analysis can be






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selective, e.g. on specification of aircraft type, or operator, the route being flown, or the time

and/or day of operation.

A.2. System applications.

The information collected can be used to:

• determine the contribution of aircraft to overall noise exposure;

• indicate the relative contributions to aircraft environmental noise from civil and military

operations;

• assess the effects of operational and administrative procedures for noise control and

compliance with these procedures;

• assist in planning of airspace usage;

• validate noise forecasts and forecasting techniques;

• assist relevant authorities in land-use planning for developments on areas in the vicinity

of the airfield;

• provide reports to, and responses to questions from, Government and other Members of

Parliament, community groups and individuals;

• reports as specified in the Noise Management Plan (CNN803) or as requested by RAAF

Base Williamtown Community Consultative Forum (WCCF); and,

• assist in answering noise complaints and enquiries about aircraft operations from the

general public.






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APPENDIX B

The ANEF System






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THE AUSTRALIAN NOISE EXPOSURE FORECAST SYSTEM

B.1. System Overview.

The aircraft Noise Exposure Forecast (NEF) technique was first developed in the United States

of America in the late 1960s. It was subsequently refined in Australia in 1982. The NEF system

is a procedure for calculating aircraft noise exposure levels around aerodromes. It is intended for

land-use planning around aerodromes. In the Australian NEF system, noise exposure levels are

calculated in Australian Noise Exposure Forecast (ANEF) units, which take into account the

following factors of aircraft noise:

(a) The intensity, duration, tonal content and spectrum of audible frequencies of the noise of

aircraft take-offs, approaches to landing, and reverse thrust after landing (for practical reasons,

noise generated on the aerodrome from aircraft taxiing and engine running during ground

maintenance is not included);

(b) The forecast frequency of aircraft types and movements on the various flight paths,

including flight paths used for circuit training; and,

(c) The average daily distribution of aircraft arrivals and departures in both daytime and night-

time (daytime defined as between 07:00am and 07:00pm and night-time defined as between

07:00pm and 07:00am).

ANEF charts are provided for most aerodromes throughout Australia. The charts are plans of the

aerodrome and the surrounding localities on which noise exposure contours of 20, 25, 30, 35 and

40 ANEF units have been drawn. These contours indicate land areas around an aerodrome that are

exposed to aircraft noise; the higher the ANEF value, the greater the noise exposure.

In the areas outside 20 ANEF, noise from sources other than aircraft tends to predominate over

aircraft noise. Within the area from 20 ANEF to 25 ANEF, aircraft noise exposure starts to emerge

as an environmental problem, while above 25 ANEF the noise exposure becomes progressively

more severe.

B.2. Australian Aircraft Noise Investigations.

Following a study commissioned in 1979 that was jointly sponsored by the then Department of

Transport together with the Department of Defence, the National Acoustic Laboratories (NAL) of

the Department of Health undertook a major socio-acoustic investigation to assess the impact of

aircraft noise on residential communities in Australia.

The report of NAL's extensive and definitive study was published in 1982 and as a result, the

Department of Aviation decided to revise its existing American-based NEF system to reflect the

specific Australian findings. The system was renamed the ANEF system.






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The following changes were included in the new system:

(i) The 'night-time' period was changed from between 10:00pm and 07:00am to between

07:00pm and 07:00am. The weighting of noise in the `night' hours was lowered from 12

decibels to 6 decibels;

(ii) The 20 ANEF contour was included on all newly issued ANEF charts (despite the relatively

low degree of confidence in its location); and,

(iii) Tabulations of aircraft movements and runway usages were included on ANEF charts.

The findings of the NAL survey also provided information on the percentage of residents living

around established aerodromes who are either moderately or seriously affected by aircraft noise.

Such information, which is called a dose/response relationship, provides the basic information

necessary for formulating appropriate recommendations on compatible land use around Australian

aerodromes.

Prior to 1982, Australian land use recommendations were essentially similar to the criteria used in

the U.S. NEF system. In the NEF system, the U.S. criterion of 30 NEF was adhered to, but, in

accordance with a recommendation of the House of Representatives Select Committee on Aircraft

Noise (1970), cautious restraint was urged to be applied by land-zoning authorities when applying

the system to Australian conditions. Where possible, the 25 NEF contour was used rather than the

30 NEF as a conservative safeguard until the system was validated in Australia.

However, with the availability of the NAL derived Australian dose/response function, the U.S.

criteria were revised to take into account the reaction of Australian communities to aircraft noise.

In essence, this revision was limited to a firmer definition of the criterion for residential land-use

compatibility.

The NAL Report provided substantial evidence to support the use of 25 ANEF as the appropriate

criterion for residential land usage. The 25 ANEF as a residential land usage criterion was

recommended in 1985 by the House of Representatives Select Committee on Aircraft Noise, and

subsequently adopted as policy by the Commonwealth Government. The only qualification

arising from the findings of the NAL Report is that some people will find that the noise exposure

at 25 ANEF is still unacceptable (refer to Appendix A for the percentage of people affected in the

20 ANEF to 25 ANEF zone). Accordingly, the issuing authorities enter the 20 ANEF contour on

all ANEF charts, stressing that the actual location of the 20 ANEF contour is difficult to define

accurately, because of variations in aircraft flight paths, pilot operating techniques, and the effect

of meteorological conditions on noise propagation. For that reason, the 20 ANEF contour is

shown as a broken line on ANEF charts. An example of ANEF contours is shown in Figure B.1.






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Figure B.1. Example of ANEF Contours

B.3. Land Use Planning.

Land-use planning is a function carried out by State or local government authorities. It is realised

that many unrelated non-aviation factors have to be taken into account and could influence

decisions taken in specific land-use considerations. However, it is considered that the public

interest is best protected by ensuring that the long-term viability of the aerodrome is preserved

wherever possible by exercising land use planning in accordance with

Australian Standard AS-2021 – 2000.

B.4. The ANEF Formula.

The ANEF system is based on survey evidence of the reaction of Australian communities to aircraft

noise. The ANEF unit incorporates the noise levels produced by the various aircraft operating at an

airport, plus a logarithmic function of the daily average number of aircraft movements, with a

weighting for the evening or night-time hours when the sensitivity of people to noise is increased.

The daily average number of aircraft movements is determined from the various flight paths flown

(take-off, landing or touch-and-goes), and the proportion of aircraft movements by day and by

night, provides the input to determine this aircraft number weighting factor.






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The basis for combining aircraft noise levels with a logarithmic function of frequency of

occurrences is called the principle of energy equivalence. Briefly, this principle holds that people

respond to a number of noise events in the same way as they react to their loudness, and therefore

the number of noise events should also be expressed in logarithmic form. This implies that a loud

noise perceived only a few times per day produces similar subjective response to a moderate noise

perceived many times. Most social surveys, including the Australian survey by the NAL, have

confirmed that 'equal energy' units of aircraft noise exposure are better correlated with community

reaction than are other units known as peak-level indices which have also been postulated for

aircraft noise exposure measurement.

The ANEF combines the above two factors of aircraft noise (i.e. noise level and frequency of

movements) by a mathematical formula. Noise of evening/night operations (defined as between

07:00pm and 07:00am in the ANEF system) of aircraft is weighted to account for the increased

sensitivity of communities to noise during periods of relaxation or sleep. The actual aircraft noise

level measurement used in the ANEF formulation is the Effective Perceived Noise Level (EPNdB)

which takes into account known annoying aspects in both the temporal and frequency domains.

(The EPNdB unit is also used for the international noise certification of new aircraft).

B.5. Traffic Forecasts and Flight Path Allocation

The ANEF method is sensitive to the forecast of air traffic movements and to the allocation of

aircraft to the flight paths on which they depart and arrive. Every attempt is made to ensure that the

traffic forecast and flight paths are as accurate as possible. However, accurate definition of flight

paths to the extent of the 20 ANEF contour is difficult to achieve. For that reason, the confidence

in the location of the 20 ANEF will be less than for the 25, 30, 35 and 40 ANEF contours.

The ANEF computation is based on forecasts of air traffic movements on an average day.

Allocations of the forecast movements to runways and flight path are on an average basis and take

into account the existing and forecast air traffic control procedures at the airport which nominate

preferred runways and preferred flight paths for noise abatement purposes (as described in

Airservices Australia Aeronautical Information Publications). Aircraft movements are categorised

by:

(a) night or day;

(b) type of aircraft;

(c) take off, landing or touch-and-go;

(d) range/route;

(e) runway used; and

(f) flight path.






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B.6. Types of Aircraft Noise Contour Charts

There are three different types of aircraft noise contour charts produced using the ANEF system.

All three types of chart are prepared using the same computational procedures: the differences arise

from the types of data that have been input to produce the following charts:

(a) ANEF—Australian Noise Exposure Forecast This is a contour map showing the forecast

of noise exposure levels that will exist in a future year. It may be for a particular year, generally

about 10 years from the date of issue, or in the case of some of the busier civil airports, it may

represent the airport operating at “ultimate capacity”. It is based on a firm forecast of aircraft

movement numbers, aircraft types, destinations and a given set of runways at the aerodrome.

The ANEF chart is the only one of the three types of chart which is intended to have status in land-

use planning decisions. It will have been subjected to review by relevant authorities before release,

and the chart will display the official endorsement of Airservices Australia or the Department of

Defence.

(b) ANEI—Australian Noise Exposure Index This is a contour map based on historical data

from a previous year, where exact numbers and types of aircraft which used the aerodrome are

known. It shows the average daily aircraft noise exposure around the aerodrome for that year.

ANEI charts are used principally as benchmarks or indicators of change of aircraft noise exposure.

(c) ANEC—Australian Noise Exposure Concept This is a noise contour map which may be

produced during consideration of options for aerodrome development. It is based on a hypothetical

set of conditions of runways, aircraft types and so on, and there may be several ANEC charts

prepared for the same future year. It may be a supposition for a long way into the future, and may

never occur.

Because it has a hypothetical basis and may not have been subject to review by relevant authorities,

an ANEC chart is not intended for use for land-use planning purposes.






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APPENDIX C

Aircraft Movements and Track Plots






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Aircraft Movement and Track Plots

C.1. Movement statistics.

As noted in the introduction of this report, track data below 2,500 feet are not captured by the

NFPMS. In most cases aircraft are too far from the runway for the NFPMS to determine if an

operation is an arrival or a departure, and what runway was used when they are at an altitude of

2,500 feet. This has resulted in the movement and track data on aircraft operations at RAAF

Base Williamtown are significantly affected for the period July to September.

During the July to September quarter of 2006 there were 1874 identified arrivals, 2708

identified departures and 1481 over-flights, giving a total of 6063 identified movements at

RAAF Base Williamtown for the period. The overflights are tracks which the NFPMS cannot

classify as an arrival or departure track or when there has been a change to the SSR transponder

settings or loss of radar data due to aircraft tracking at low altitude, both of which result in a

broken track.

Movement statistics for arrivals and departures by military and civil jet and prop aircraft and

helicopters at RAAF Base Williamtown are shown in Table C.1. The flight tracks obtained

from the NFPMS do not always include comprehensive operational details for all movements,

hence the movement statistics are a combination of data from the NFPMS and RAAF Base

Williamtown scheduled flying programs.

There were 2105 movements by military aircraft types (jets and non-jets) and 3958 operations

by civil aircraft (jets, non-jets and helicopters) at RAAF Base Williamtown during the July to

September Quarter 2006. There were also 576 undefined operations during the same period,

most of which were determined to be small general aviation aircraft.

C.2. Night movement statistics.

Movement statistics for aircraft operating during the night period (2200 to 0700 hours) are

shown in Table C.2. There were 392 arrivals, departures and over-flight movements during the

night-time during the July to September Quarter 2006.

C.3. Propeller Aircraft Track Plots

Track plots of aircraft operations by all military and civil propeller aircraft and their runway

usage are shown in Figures C.1 to C.4. The locations of the three noise monitors are also

shown.






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Table C.1. Arrival and Departure Statistics for July - September 2006.

July-06 Aug-06 Sept-06 Quarter 2 2006

Movements Movements Movements Movements Percentage

Approach 51 82 70 203

Departure 103 150 79 332

Over-flight 411 539 283 1233 Military Jets

Total 596 771 432 1768

Approach 10 2 30 42

Departure 18 11 18 47

Over-flight 74 51 123 248 Military Prop

Total 102 64 171 337

Approach 1 4 3 8

Departure 0 0 1 1 Helicopters

Total 1 4 4 9

Approach 202 205 209 616

Departure 243 245 228 716 Civil Jets

Total 445 450 437 1332

Approach 226 250 248 724

Departure 425 468 424 1317 Civil Prop

Total 651 718 672 2041

Approach 106 85 90 281

Departure 130 92 73 295 Undefined

Total 236 177 163 576

Approach 596 628 650 1874

Departure 919 966 823 2708

Over-flight 485 590 406 1481 All Aircraft

Types

Total 2000 2184 1879 6063

Rwy 12 23 10 31 64 3.4%

Rwy 30 8 19 9 36 1.9%

Helipad 1 4 3 8 0.4%

Arrivals -

Runway

Usage

Unknown 564 595 607 1766 94.2%

Rwy 12 9 5 15 29 1.1%

Rwy 30 123 122 114 359 13.3%

Helipad 0 0 1 1 0.0%

Departures -

Runway

Usage Unknown 787 839 693 2319 85.6%

Rwy 12 32 15 46 93 2.0%

Rwy 30 131 141 123 395 8.6%

Helipad 1 4 4 9 0.2%

Runway

Usage For All

Movements Unknown 1351 1434 1300 4085 89.2%






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Table C.2. Night (2200 to 0700 hours) Movement Statistics for July - September 2006.

July-06 Aug-06 Sept-06 Quarter 2 2006

Movements Movements Movements Movements Percentage

Approach 0 0 0 0

Departure 0 0 0 0

Over-flights 0 0 0 0 Military Jets

Total 0 0 0 0

Approach 0 0 0 0

Departure 0 0 0 0

Over-flights 0 0 0 0 Military Prop

Total 0 0 0 0

Approach 1 2 2 5

Departure 0 0 0 0 Helicopters

Total 1 2 2 5

Approach 3 1 1 5

Departure 25 29 23 77 Civil Jets

Total 28 30 24 82

Approach 4 11 6 21

Departure 75 99 90 264 Civil Prop

Total 79 110 96 285

Approach 4 4 8 16

Departure 2 0 2 4 Undefined

Total 6 4 10 20

Approach 12 18 17 47

Departure 102 128 115 345

Over-flights 0 0 0 0 All Types

Total 114 146 132 392

Rwy 12 0 0 2 2 4.3%

Rwy 30 0 1 0 1 2.1%

Helipad 1 2 2 5 10.6%

Arrivals -

Runway

Usage Unknown 11 15 13 39 83.0%

Rwy 12 0 0 1 1 0.3%

Rwy 30 11 19 29 59 17.1%

Helipad 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Departures -

Runway

Usage Unknown 91 109 85 285 82.6%

Rwy 12 0 0 3 3 0.8%

Rwy 30 11 20 29 60 15.3%

Helipad 1 2 2 5 1.3%

Runway

Usage All

Movements Unknown 102 124 98 324 82.7%






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Figure C.1. Military Propeller Departures – July - September 2006






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Figure C.2. Military Propeller Arrivals – July - September 2006






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Figure C.3. Military Propeller Over-flights – July - September 2006






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Figure C.4. Civil Propeller Departures – July – September 2006.






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Figure C.5. Civil Propeller Arrivals – July - September 2006.

RAAF BASE WILLIAMTOWN and SALT ASH AIR WEAPONS RANGE … · 1. The NFPMS System The NFPMS is a...

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