Private airports vs. windmills

AuntPeggy

AuntPeggy

Final Approach
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The Oklahoma legislature has removed setback distance requirements from private airports that once required a 1-1/2 mile setback from a runway for windmills. The FAA and the Oklahoma Aeronautics Commission are also permitting unlit windmill construction. As a result, there are unlit windmill farms within 10 nm of a regional airport and 20 nm of Vance AFB.

If you live in Oklahoma, you may want to contact your legislators.

If you live elsewhere, you may want to watch your legislators.

Blue skies. Watch out.

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Unfortunately the FAA is not the enforcement agent for obstructions and/or lighting. They have to evaluate the impact on aeronautical activity and issue a report, but they do not have the ability to prevent or monitor construction. If an obstruction is found to impact protected airspace for an airport or approach, all they can do is alter the approach in response to it. It is up to the local jurisdiction to have adequate zoning protections in place to protect the airports and approaches.
 
Well there also was massive abuse of this law.when it came.out. a lot of private airports popped up especially around OKC.
 
In Texas, all of the windmill farms I've seen have lights. It surprised me the first time I was flying and saw one on the horizon. All of the lights are synced and flash at the same time.
 
Not a huge fan of those things in general, seems to only be a good deal for those who sell or work on them.
 
Hubby just phoned the writer of the letter. Law allows a windmill within the landing pattern. On windmills with lights, the lights are on only when the blades are turning. The lights are on only when the windmill is on the grid. When the connecting grid went down due to an ice storm, all the blades stopped and all the lights went off.
 
tonycondon said:
Well there also was massive abuse of this law.when it came.out. a lot of private airports popped up especially around OKC.
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Our airport was established in 1958. The law allows windmills next door. We want the setback restored.
 
Make all those private airports public. Also drop some netting when you're flying over.
 
James331 said:
Not a huge fan of those things in general, seems to only be a good deal for those who sell or work on them.
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Agree. They've proven they aren't that effective and there are better designs. However, when the ultra-rich get their hands on something, they have friends in government to help them. In this case, T. Boone Pickens put a lot of money into windmills.
 
How low are you people flying? o_O

From Wind Watch:
The widely used GE 1.5-megawatt model, for example, consists of 116-ft blades atop a 212-ft tower for a total height of 328 feet.​

When I called FSS I told them I only wanted to know about unlit towers that were within 5 miles of the airport and more than 500' tall. Anything else and I would already have bigger issues to deal with. :eek:

Windmill are getting taller, for more power. So, yes an unlit 500'+ windmill within 1 - 1.5 miles of the runway could start to be a problem.
 
We had this issue a couple of years ago. The base commander called some of the local politicians and said you need to stop those or we won't be able to fly around here and if we can't fly around here there's no reason to have the base. The county came through with an ordinance with effectively banded the windmills
 
asicer said:
I've seen ones that weren't synced and didn't flash at the same time. It was even more trippy.
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I have two of the largest wind farms in CO not far from my house. No, they all don't flash in unison, and yes it's pretty trippy seeing 800+ wind turbines flashing from the air. On a clear night you can see the ones located outside of Limon and the ones on the Pawnee grasslands all flashing. Pretty cool stuff.
 
wayne said:
How low are you people flying? o_O

From Wind Watch:
The widely used GE 1.5-megawatt model, for example, consists of 116-ft blades atop a 212-ft tower for a total height of 328 feet.​

When I called FSS I told them I only wanted to know about unlit towers that were within 5 miles of the airport and more than 500' tall. Anything else and I would already have bigger issues to deal with. :eek:

Windmill are getting taller, for more power. So, yes an unlit 500'+ windmill within 1 - 1.5 miles of the runway could start to be a problem.
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Some of the new ones are topping out over 500' in our area. Our airport had to work with the county zoning to put the kiebash to several projects that were looking to put up 500' turbines within a mile or two of the runway thresholds and well within the airport's Part 77 airspace.
 
Where I work, we’ve evaluated systems that are radar detection activated so that the lights stay off until the radar sees a plane in the wind farm envelope. North Dakota I think has this as a new mandatory law that requires this at all wind farms.
 
jheyen said:
Where I work, we’ve evaluated systems that are radar detection activated so that the lights stay off until the radar sees a plane in the wind farm envelope. North Dakota I think has this as a new mandatory law that requires this at all wind farms.
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Nothing could go wrong with that plan.
 
How low are most people flying? Or frequenting private airports on days with poor visibility?
 
wayne said:
How low are you people flying? o_O

From Wind Watch:
The widely used GE 1.5-megawatt model, for example, consists of 116-ft blades atop a 212-ft tower for a total height of 328 feet.​

When I called FSS I told them I only wanted to know about unlit towers that were within 5 miles of the airport and more than 500' tall. Anything else and I would already have bigger issues to deal with. :eek:

Windmill are getting taller, for more power. So, yes an unlit 500'+ windmill within 1 - 1.5 miles of the runway could start to be a problem.
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How would you feel about a bunch of drones flying 24/7 at 328 right in the pattern legs of your airport?

Because, god forbid if you somehow did impact, nailing a drone would do WAAAAAY LESS damage than a giant green energy windmill blade.
Funny how everyone would freak the heck out, news media included, if ONE person was flying a little plastic DJI right by a airport, but numerous very hard windmills swinging solid blades that reach waay up, that would likely down a aircraft if hit, meh nothing to see here, move along....ahh marketing
 
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tonycondon said:
Well there also was massive abuse of this law.when it came.out. a lot of private airports popped up especially around OKC.
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Then it's a poorly written law - It should say any airport established before a certain date.

Although, I sure do like the idea that there's a way to all of a sudden get all of your neighbors very interested in having an airport right next door. :D
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Then it's a poorly written law - It should say any airport established before a certain date.

Although, I sure do like the idea that there's a way to all of a sudden get all of your neighbors very interested in having an airport right next door. :D
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People were basically registering their backyards as airports.

The SW Regional AOPA guy said they are working this session to get legislation that grandfather's private airports that were established before the original law passed.
 
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