Landmark Northumberland 'golf ball' to disappear from skyline - but RAF chiefs say it will be replaced
The Northumberland skyline is about to change, albeit temporarily.
Work is currently being carried out at Remote Radar Head (RRH) Brizlee Wood on Alnwick Moor to ready it for its continuing role in providing an operational picture of UK airspace to the Command and Control Centre at RAF Boulmer.
Before Christmas, personnel from Engineering and Logistics Wing at RAF Boulmer successfully moved the Air Defence Radar which was situated at RRH Brizlee Wood, to the Operations Site near Lesbury.
Over the next few weeks the iconic ‘golf ball’ will be dismantled.
After a short absence, a new streamlined ‘golf ball’ will be installed, the Radar will be reinstated and Air Defence Activities will resume from the original site.
Station Commander of RAF Boulmer, Group Captain ‘Chesh’ Cowieson, said: “This upgrade will ensure Brizlee Wood continues as an integral component of UK Air Defence.
“While it will be unusual to many - including myself - to see the Alnwick skyline without the ‘golf ball’ on the hill, it will be replaced soon.
“My Engineering and Logistics Wing have done a fantastic job ensuring that this complex work will not impact our Air Defence operations, and I look forward to watching the work progress.”
Round the clock 365 days a year, Brizlee Wood scans the air approaches over the North Sea, giving the UK Air Surveillance And Control System (ASACS) ample warning time to identify and if necessary intercept potential intruders into United kingdom airspace.