We report on the AAT-AAOmega LRG Pilot observing run to establish the feasibility of a large spectroscopic survey using the new AAOmega instrument .
We have selected Luminous Red Galaxies ( LRGs ) using single epoch SDSS riz -photometry to i < 20.5 and z < 20.2 .
We have observed in 3 fields including the COSMOS field and the COMBO-17 S11 field , obtaining a sample of \sim 600 redshift z \gtrsim 0.5 LRGs .
Exposure times varied from 1 - 4 hours to determine the minimum exposure for AAOmega to make an essentially complete LRG redshift survey in average conditions .
We show that LRG redshifts to i < 20.5 can measured in \approx 1.5hr exposures and present comparisons with 2SLAQ and COMBO-17 ( photo- ) redshifts .
Crucially , the riz selection coupled with the 3-4 \times improved AAOmega throughput is shown to extend the LRG mean redshift from z =0.55 for 2SLAQ to z = 0.681 \pm 0.005 for riz -selected LRGs .
This extended range is vital for maximising the S/N for the detection of the baryon acoustic oscillations ( BAOs ) .
Furthermore , we show that the amplitude of LRG clustering is s _ { 0 } = 9.9 \pm 0.7 ~ { } h ^ { -1 } ~ { } { Mpc } , as high as that seen in the 2SLAQ LRG Survey .
Consistent results for this clustering amplitude are found from the projected and semi-projected correlation functions .
This high amplitude is consistent with a long-lived population whose bias evolves as predicted by a simple “ high-peaks ” model .
We conclude that a redshift survey of 360 000 LRGs over 3000 deg ^ { 2 } , with an effective volume some 4 \times bigger than previously used to detect BAO with LRGs , is possible with AAOmega in 170 nights .