Edition 16 September ‐ 2014
Skyways Magazine No reproduc on of any part of this publica on, in any form or by any What’s included in means, without wri en consent from Fly UK Virtual Airways is permi ed. Any views expressed in the latest issue: this publica on do not necessarily reflect those of Fly UK Virtual Page 2: Featured Airport Informa on Page Airways. Page 3: July 2014 HR Report. Page 4: August 2014 HR Report. Editor: Craig Tyler (UKV2189) Page 5: July’s “On The Stand” Screenshot Compe on. (skyways@flyuk.aero) Page 6: August’s “Bridges” Screenshot Compe on. Page 7: Fly UK Online Events. Ar cle Authors: Page 8: Fly UK Flying Club. Andy Kewley (UKV4389) Page 9: Fly UK Training Academy. Page 10: Skyways Hubs: An Occasional Series.
August 2014 Screenshot Compe on— “Bridges” “Portuguese Sunset” by Massimo Solimbergo (UKV1485) Allan’s Facts: 1) Indonesia has 130 ac ve volcanoes. 2) During a kiss as many as 278 bacteria colonies are exchanged. 3) Backyard mechanics dump more used oil into Michigan’s environ‐ ment each year than the Exxon Valdez spilled into Alaska’s Prince William Sound. 4) Certain frogs can be frozen solid then thawed, and con nue living.
1 AIRPORT INFO
ICAO: EGNM IATA: LBA Airport Elevation: 681ft Runway: 14/32 Runway Length: 7350ft/2250m Runway Surface: Grooved Con- create Transition Altitude: 5000ft
ILS Information
Runway Frequency Course
14 110.900 140 32 110.900 320
CLICK HERE FOR FREEWARE AND PAYWARE SCENERY BY UK2000 CLICK HERE FOR NATS CHARTS FLY UK OPERATIONS AT LEEDS BRADFORD AIRPORT
Stand Allocation: 3-10 and 17-18 for TA | 52 flights to and from Jersey every week.
Leeds Bradford is Fly UK’s Training Academy hub. With thanks to Gary at UK2000 we have our own building situated on the site. Stands 17 and 18 have been reserved for the Fly UK Training Academy to use.
Stands 3, 4 and 5 are for ATR72 UK Domestic flights. Stands 6, 9 and 10 are for Embraer European flights. Stands 7 and 8 are for A320 European flights and B737 Low Cost flights.
For the attention of all pilots: Please be advised that RWY 09/27 is no longer in use as a runway and is now a taxiway, taxiway November. Landings made at Leeds Brad- ford on RWY 14/32 must be executed with the FULL flap setting on your aircraft.
The alternate airport for Leeds Bradford (EGNM) is Manchester Ridgeway (EGCC).
Would you like more information on this airport including available flights? Click here.
2 Fly UK July Monthly Round‐Up
Monthly Report Beginning: Monday, 7th July 2014 Ending: Sunday, 3rd August 2014 Within the last month a total of 3,835 PIREPS totalling 6,692 hours were filed.
IVAO Flights: 419* VATSIM Flights: 617* FSD Flights: 112* Offline Flights: 2,311* UKV3701 ‐ Guy Creve ‐ 24th Jul UKV3721 ‐ Dejan Burnik ‐ 24th Jul Mainstream Flights: 2,170 UKV4011 ‐ Cameron Park ‐ 24th Jul Event Flights: 66 UKV1430 ‐ Clinton Peake ‐ 25th Jul Tour Flights: 1,152 UKV1674 ‐ Jonathan Dring ‐ 25th Jul Training Flights: 51 UKV1742 ‐ Oliver Rhodes ‐ 25th Jul Flying Club Flights: 395 UKV2126 ‐ Jan Imhof ‐ 25th Jul UKV2961 ‐ Steve Trodden ‐ 27th Jul * - figure does not include flying club PIREPS. Green - increase compared to February. UKV1460 ‐ Nathan Smith ‐ 28th Jul Yellow - equal compared to February. UKV1464 ‐ Steve Birchall ‐ 28th Jul Red - decrease compared to February. UKV3703 ‐ Jorden Norton ‐ 28th Jul UKV1426 ‐ Thomas Pa son ‐ 29th Jul UKV1686 ‐ Tim Clarke ‐ 29th Jul Birthdays UKV1244 ‐ Fabrice Lecouty ‐ 30th Jul UKV1283 ‐ Dave Baggs ‐ 13th Jul UKV1371 ‐ Janos Kohary ‐ 30th Jul UKV1647 ‐ Chad Donoghue ‐ 14th Jul UKV3714 ‐ Colin Falck ‐ 30th Jul UKV3711 ‐ Alexandre camara ‐ 14th Jul UKV1395 ‐ Chris Leahy ‐ 31st Jul UKV1208 ‐ Damien Danja ‐ 15th Jul UKV1526 ‐ Dwayne Irwin ‐ 31st Jul UKV1328 ‐ Danish Yar ‐ 15th Jul UKV1683 ‐ Alan Lee ‐ 31st Jul UKV1639 ‐ Patrick Collins ‐ 15th Jul UKV1733 ‐ Craig Heath ‐ 31st Jul UKV1658 ‐ Daniah Yar ‐ 15th Jul UKV1262 ‐ François Brodahl ‐ 1st Aug UKV1127 ‐ Anthony Sandy ‐ 16th Jul UKV1270 ‐ Gerard Marley ‐ 1st Aug UKV1418 ‐ James Conway ‐ 16th Jul UKV1303 ‐ Tom Maskell ‐ 1st Aug UKV1637 ‐ James Mclean ‐ 16th Jul UKV1494 ‐ Colin Lock ‐ 1st Aug UKV1746 ‐ Ian Van‐Maanen ‐ 16th Jul UKV4038 ‐ Dean Be les ‐ 2nd Aug UKV4000 ‐ Horst Ebelt ‐ 16th Jul UKV1351 ‐ Joe Burroughs ‐ 3rd Aug UKV1552 ‐ Liam Piercy ‐ 17th Jul UKV1766 ‐ Jason Mann ‐ 3rd Aug UKV1721 ‐ Ovais Tariq ‐ 17th Jul UKV2980 ‐ Andrew Sutcliffe ‐ 3rd Aug UKV1860 ‐ Michael Shere‐Massey ‐ 17th Jul UKV4006 ‐ Shaun Waite ‐ 3rd Aug UKV1882 ‐ Michael Strange ‐ 17th Jul UKV1285 ‐ Ash Kirby ‐ 4th Aug UKV1407 ‐ Stu Metzler ‐ 18th Jul UKV1692 ‐ Graham Hines ‐ 5th Aug UKV1559 ‐ Alex Boyd ‐ 18th Jul UKV1320 ‐ Richard Gra on ‐ 6th Aug UKV2124 ‐ Nicholas Skinner ‐ 18th Jul UKV1347 ‐ Leslie Thelwell ‐ 6th Aug UKV3772 ‐ Jason Leung ‐ 18th Jul UKV1228 ‐ Charl Spalding ‐ 7th Aug UKV4030 ‐ Will Kinnaird ‐ 18th Jul UKV1261 ‐ Rodrigo Gomez ‐ 7th Aug UKV4017 ‐ Oliver Blyth ‐ 19th Jul UKV1158 ‐ Jay Collie ‐ 8th Aug UKV1412 ‐ Richard Jones ‐ 21st Jul UKV1238 ‐ Brian Hudson ‐ 8th Aug UKV1543 ‐ Tim Smith ‐ 21st Jul UKV1312 ‐ Paul Lee ‐ 8th Aug UKV1271 ‐ Callum Hurley ‐ 22nd Jul UKV1561 ‐ Mark Russell ‐ 8th Aug UKV1315 ‐ Colin Maclachlan ‐ 22nd Jul UKV1590 ‐ Joseph bolton ‐ 8th Aug UKV1279 ‐ Michael Gore ‐ 23rd Jul UKV1583 ‐ Michael O'brien ‐ 10th Aug UKV2223 ‐ Brian Mullender ‐ 23rd Jul UKV1584 ‐ Jus n Dodson ‐ 10th Aug UKV3750 ‐ Jonathan Griffiths ‐ 23rd Jul UKV3358 ‐ Ryan Bosomworth ‐ 10th Aug UKV1145 ‐ Steve Trueman ‐ 24th Jul UKV1631 ‐ Constan nos Kontoyiannis ‐ 24th Jul UKV1732 ‐ Edward Sawyer ‐ 24th Jul UKV2965 ‐ Graham Hilton ‐ 24th Jul 3 3 Fly UK August Monthly Round‐Up
Monthly Report Beginning: Monday, 4th August 2014 Ending: Sunday, 31st August 2014 Within the last month a total of 4,055 PIREPS totalling 6,575 hours were filed.
IVAO Flights: 363* UKV1737 ‐ Daniel Pokladek ‐ 28th Aug VATSIM Flights: 667* UKV4013 ‐ James Perry ‐ 28th Aug FSD Flights: 69* UKV2128 ‐ Chris Aldous ‐ 29th Aug Offline Flights: 2,405* UKV1131 ‐ Symon Walmsley ‐ 30th Aug
UKV1705 ‐ Antoine Zikry ‐ 30th Aug Mainstream Flights: 2,156 UKV2196 ‐ Marco Giraldi ‐ 30th Aug Event Flights: 76 UKV1633 ‐ Neil Lowing ‐ 31st Aug Tour Flights: 1,225 UKV1246 ‐ Stuart Raynor ‐ 2nd Sep Training Flights: 41 UKV2181 ‐ Ken Lun ‐ 2nd Sep Flying Club Flights: 550 UKV3367 ‐ Daniel Welsh ‐ 2nd Sep * - figure does not include flying club PIREPS. UKV1222 ‐ Or Sheffer ‐ 3rd Sep Green - increase compared to March. UKV1557 ‐ Howard Walker ‐ 3rd Sep Yellow - equal compared to March. UKV1586 ‐ Will Pienaar ‐ 3rd Sep Red - decrease compared to March. UKV1612 ‐ Lee Gray ‐ 3rd Sep UKV1550 ‐ Mike Donovan ‐ 5th Sep Birthdays UKV3437 ‐ Jan Johansson ‐ 5th Sep UKV1259 ‐ Philip Tither ‐ 6th Sep UKV1442 ‐ Gary Rickwood ‐ 11th Aug UKV2164 ‐ Reynaldo Duarte ‐ 6th Sep UKV1232 ‐ Finlay Waller ‐ 13th Aug UKV4101 ‐ Bartek Celinski ‐ 6th Sep UKV1417 ‐ Shaun Sewell ‐ 13th Aug UKV4388 ‐ Graham Taylor ‐ 6th Sep UKV1327 ‐ Alwyn Burgess ‐ 14th Aug UKV1370 ‐ Wesley D'hooghe ‐ 7th Sep UKV1217 ‐ Chris Hone ‐ 15th Aug UKV1376 ‐ Stuart Gorman ‐ 7th Sep UKV2037 ‐ Tony Clements ‐ 15th Aug UKV1411 ‐ Malcolm Sparey ‐ 7th Sep UKV1276 ‐ Craig Tomkins ‐ 16th Aug UKV1453 ‐ Paul McGinn ‐ 7th Sep UKV1402 ‐ Mike Lyle ‐ 16th Aug UKV2078 ‐ Mark Skeplorn ‐ 7th Sep UKV1458 ‐ Carlos Montero ‐ 16th Aug UKV3392 ‐ Chris Walker ‐ 7th Sep UKV1471 ‐ Neoklis Kontaratos ‐ 16th Aug UKV4386 ‐ Jacobo G.corvinos ‐ 7th Sep UKV1288 ‐ Paul Edwards ‐ 17th Aug UKV1421 ‐ Brian Sommers ‐ 17th Aug UKV1523 ‐ Darran Taplin ‐ 17th Aug UKV1691 ‐ Diarmuid Bogner ‐ 17th Aug UKV1214 ‐ Ma Cody ‐ 18th Aug UKV1521 ‐ William Alford ‐ 20th Aug UKV2226 ‐ Liam Evans ‐ 20th Aug UKV1174 ‐ Nico De_Lange ‐ 21st Aug UKV1368 ‐ Dean Barry ‐ 22nd Aug UKV1540 ‐ Gianluca Balloni ‐ 22nd Aug UKV1644 ‐ Lee Holland ‐ 22nd Aug UKV2946 ‐ Adithya Diddapur ‐ 22nd Aug UKV1359 ‐ Amrik Gill ‐ 23rd Aug UKV1390 ‐ Pete Gill ‐ 23rd Aug UKV1514 ‐ Chris an Thomsen ‐ 23rd Aug UKV1761 ‐ Roy Coombes ‐ 23rd Aug UKV3411 ‐ William Brandrick ‐ 23rd Aug UKV3404 ‐ Oscar Hardwick ‐ 24th Aug UKV1250 ‐ Vidmantas Jakstai s ‐ 26th Aug UKV1788 ‐ Sarg Sen ‐ 26th Aug UKV4662 ‐ Steve Prowse ‐ 26th Aug UKV3395 ‐ Richard Clegg ‐ 27th Aug UKV1546 ‐ Reginald Griffiths ‐ 28th Aug 3 4
Screenshot Competition | July 2014 In association with UK2000 Scenery “On The Stand”
“Misty Melbourne Morning” – Paul Bayley (UKV1513)
“Wet ‘N’ Windy Alaska” – Chris Jones (UKV1711)
“Dubai Delight” – Amrik Gill (UKV1359)
Want your screenshot to feature on this page? By entering the Fly UK Screenshot Competition you could be in for a chance to win a UK2000 scenery of your choice and have your shot featured in the next edition! 5
Screenshot Competition | August 2014 In association with UK2000 Scenery “Bridges”
“Portuguese Sunset” – Massimo Solimbergo (UKV1485)
“Inbound Inverness—Overkessock Bridge ” – Graham Hammill (UKV1625)
“The Coat Hanger” – Paul Bayley (UKV1513)
Want your screenshot to feature on this page? By entering the Fly UK Screenshot Competition you could be in for a chance to win a UK2000 scenery of your choice and have your shot featured in the next edition! 6
Fly UK Online Events
September see’s the start of the IVAO repeat event on a Sunday, we hope this will get supported as it was requested in our 2014 member survey, it will give our USA members a chance to fly online with us, due to the me zone differences.
We are ge ng new pilots joining the events each week, all are made welcome, those that need help will receive it. Our events are on IVAO: Saturdays 0600z and Sundays 1300z, VATSIM Tuesdays 1830z and Thursdays 1300z from the 26th October the mes change to 0700z, 1400z, 1930z and 1400z respec vely, due to the end of Bri sh Summer Time.
September theme India Delhi (VIDP) ‐ Mumbai (VABB). Mumbai (VABB) ‐ Chennai (VOMM). Kolkata (VECC) ‐ Lucknow (VILK). Lucknow (VILK) ‐ Srinigar (VISR).
October theme Australia/New Zealand Townsville (YBTL) ‐ Brisbane (YBBN). Brisbane (YBBN) ‐ Canberra (YSCB). Auckland (NZAA) to Queenstown (NZQN). Leg 1 Queenstown (NZQN) ‐ Christchurch (NZCH) then leg 2 Christchurch (NZCH) to Wellington (NZWN).
IVAO Saturdays 0600z and IVAO Sundays 13:00z. VATSIM Tuesdays 1830z and VATSIM Thursdays 1300z.
As of 23th August our event figures: total for 2013 is 328 PIREP’s, total for 2014 is 593 PIREP’s, so we are 80% up on last year at this point!
By: Derek Bu erworth, Richard Jones and Mike Higgins 7
Fly UK Flying Club
Continuing the series of basics for the Cessna 172, this month we look at a straightforward take-off and climb on the downwind leg of the traffic pattern.
1. Complete the pre-flight inspection then the starting airplane inspection then taxi to the upwind runway. 2. Complete the before take-off checklist. Set the trim for take off ( white bar centred). The Cessna can take off with flaps 0º. You should know the local pattern and altitude procedures for circuits. 3. Obtain take-off and departure clearances if required. Look out and check that runway and approaches are clear. 4. Line-up on the centre of the runway, nose-wheel straight. Select a reference point straight ahead for tracking – avoid looking just in front of the cockpit! Mixture should be full-rich. Apply full throttle positively. 5. Keep straight with the rudder and check RPM for full power then ease the weight off the nose-wheel as the elevator becomes effective 6. Leave the runway at lift-off speed, using the right rudder to offset any torque. Keep the right hand on the throttle. 7. Establish the attitude which results in the best rate of climb with full throttle – (75- 85KIAS). Use trim to take off pressure on the stick. (You should be able to go ‘hands free’ when trimmed correctly. This takes practice and don’t expect an instant response from the engine – you may have to adjust the trim slowly as you climb. Lean the mixture when above 3000 ft. 8. When you reach cruise push forward to level off and trim again to take off pressure on the stick. Small adjustment to trim will maintain you hands free for the cruise.
By: Jim Lowery 8
Fly UK Training Academy Good new from the Training Academy!
We have 3 new trainers at the Training Academy so that means, it least I hope, the longer wai ng mes are over now.
New Trainers at the Training Academy:
UKV1777 ‐ Piotr Kaminski UKV1463 ‐ Conny Eklund UKV1722 ‐ David Moran
Introducing the TAA (none Staff role).
A TAA (Training Academy Assistant) is someone that helps out the TA Instructor during courses or events.
They help us out on several occasions like:
‐ Courses with 2 planes ‐ IVAO / VATSIM nights ‐ TA events to come ‐ Upgrading trainings ‐ You never know what :‐)
Members of the TAA are:
UKV1516 ‐ Ashley Fletcher UKV2221 ‐ Rae Johns UKV1375 ‐ Adam Salisbury
At this moment in me we are looking to give it shape where and when. So bare with us but we'll inform you about the progress.
What's next?
Big event coming up in October so keep an eye on the space.
By: Peter Faase 9
Houses by the Heath
In the parish of Harmondsworth, England lay the small Neolithic hamlet of Hithero. Quite literally a row of houses by a heath, in this case Hounslow Heath, the area consisted of an early se lement of 11 hut circles and a rectangu‐ lar structure bordering an extensive area of common land. It is considered that the rectangular structure was the remains of a shrine or temple and, since such buildings are uncommon in the Iron Age period, has a racted a great deal of interest by historians. The site was occupied throughout history and, possibly due to its posi on close to the Bath road, became the site of a Roman encampment. Discovered and named “Caesar’s Camp” by archaeologist William Stukeley in 1723, the site featured considerable earth works around the encampment which enclosed a mber building of unique 'concentric‐rectangle' plan (resembling that of a Romano‐Cel c temple), penannular house gullies, and two Neo pits.
Ar s c impression of Caesar's Camp by ar st Alan Sorrell.
By 1453, the site had become known as Heathrow and was an established agricultural area. The Royal Commission on Historic Monuments listed 28 historically significant buildings in the parish of Harmondsworth, a third of which were in Heathrow. Notable buildings included Heathrow Hall, a late 18th‐century farmhouse, which was on Heathrow Road, and Perry Oaks farm, which was Elizabethan.
Indeed, by the early 20th Century, there were no less than six individual farms located around the site of the original Roman se lement. Heathrow was away from main roads and further away from railways; that kept it secluded and quiet although near London. As Middlesex changed to market gardening and fruit growing to supply expanding London, parts of Heathrow held on to old‐type mixed farming, and thus was chosen for Middlesex area horse‐ drawn ploughing compe ons, which needed land which was under stubble a er harvest; the 99th (and last) such contest was held in September 1937. The 100th match (in 1938) was postponed to 1939 due to severe drought, and in 1939 it was cancelled because World War II had started.
Produce from the farms was taken to Covent Garden market, or by smaller growers to Bren ord market, which was nearer but less profitable. From Heathrow to Covent Garden is 14 miles by road, which was about 6 hours at laden horse‐and‐wagon speed, so goods to market had to set off at 10 pm the day before to reach the market when it opened at 4 am, un l motor trucks came. Lighter produce such as strawberries where freshness was important could reach Covent Garden Market in an hour and a half in a light vehicle behind a light fast horse.
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In 1925, Norman Macmillan, an RAF officer, made a forced landing and take‐off at Heathrow. He noted the flatness of the land and its suitability for an airfield. Four years later, Fairey Avia on was to purchase the first of several plots of land, eventually totalling 150 acres, west of Cain's Lane for the sum of £15,000 and there started the Great West Aerodrome. By then Macmillan was Fairey Avia on's chief test pilot. By that me, avia on had been com‐ monplace in the area with the Royal Flying Corps (RFC), the predecessor to the Royal Air Force, opera ng from the nearby Hounslow Heath Aerodrome. Home to a number of squadrons throughout the First World War, Hounslow Heath Aerodrome was a small grass strip opera ng B.E.2C’s of 15, 39 & 52 Squadrons, D.H.2S’s of 24 Squadron and S.E.5A’s of 87 Squadron.
In 1925, Norman Macmillan, an RAF officer, made a forced landing and take‐off at Heathrow. He noted the flatness of the land and its suitability for an airfield. Four years later, Fairey Avia on was to purchase the first of several plots of land, eventually totalling 150 acres, west of Cain's Lane for the sum of £15,000 and there started the Great West Aerodrome. By then Macmillan was Fairey Avia on's chief test pilot. By that me, avia on had been com‐ monplace in the area with the Royal Flying Corps (RFC), the predecessor to the Royal Air Force, opera ng from the nearby Hounslow Heath Aerodrome. Home to a number of squadrons throughout the First World War, Hounslow Heath Aerodrome was a small grass strip opera ng B.E.2C’s of 15, 39 & 52 Squadrons, D.H.2S’s of 24 Squadron and S.E.5A’s of 87 Squadron.
Map showing the loca on of the Hounslow Heath Aerodrome.
On the 1st April 1918, the RFC and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) were merged to form the Royal Air Force. The buildings at Hounslow Heath by then included four permanent hangars and several Bessonneau canvas hangars, and based aircra included Sopwith Dolphins, Sopwith Snipes and Avro 504s. Training and communica ons squad‐ rons of the RAF con nued to use Hounslow Heath un l the airfield was handed over for civilian use the following year. Civilian opera ons at Hounslow Heath were to be short‐lived, however. The aerodrome was closed on the 27th March 1920 and, although a few aircra demonstra ons and landings took place into the 1930’s, the land was handed over to the Bri sh Army for use as a repair depot and training school with civilian opera ons moved to the developing Croydon Airport which was officially opened on the 29th March. Today, the site of Hounslow Heath Aer‐ odrome has reverted to an undeveloped open space and nature reserve and there is li le evidence of the RFC’s existence.
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Croydon Airport was expanded during the 1920s, with a new complex of buildings built adjoining Purley Way, in‐ cluding the first purpose‐designed air terminal in the UK, the Aerodrome Hotel, and extensive hangars. The devel‐ opment cost £267,000 (£14 million in today's prices). Plough Lane, which had ini ally remained a public road cross‐ ing the site, and road traffic was halted when necessary, first by a man with a red flag and later by a gate, was closed permanently to let heavier airliners land and depart safely. Croydon was the first airport in the world to in‐ troduce air traffic control and in 1923 flights to Berlin Tempelhof Airport began and the airport became the oper‐ a ng base for Imperial Airways, remembered in the road name Imperial Way on the site today. Increasing passen‐ ger numbers led to the airport's development with a new terminal building and control tower being completed in 1928; the old wooden air traffic control and Customs building were demolished. The new buildings and layout be‐ gan opera ons on 20 January 1928, and were officially opened on 2 May
Aerial photograph of Croydon Airport, 1925.
On 15 August 1940 Croydon Airport was a acked in the first major air‐raid on the London area. At around 6.20 pm 22 Bf 110 and Bf 109 fighter‐bombers of Erpr.Gr.210 mounted a final raid of the day, intended for RAF Kenley near‐ by, but a acked Croydon (4 miles further north) in error. The armoury was destroyed, the civilian airport terminal building was badly damaged, and a hangar was damaged by cannon fire and blast. Another hangar and about forty training aircra in it went up in flames. Six airfield personnel died (four airmen from No. 111 Squadron, an Officer of 1 (RCAF), and a female telephonist from Sta on HQ). Factories next to Croydon Airport took the worst of the bombing. The Bri sh NSF factory (making electrical components) was almost en rely destroyed, and the Bourjois perfume factory gu ed. The Rollason Aircra factory also received bomb hits and accounted for many of the 62 civilians (including 5 women) killed and 192 injured. Of the raiders eight aircra were downed by the Hurricanes of 32 and 111 Squadrons.
Following the end of the Second World War it was realised that post‐war airliners and cargo aircra would be larg‐ er and air traffic would intensify. Urban spread of south London, and surrounding villages growing into towns, had enclosed Croydon Airport and le it no room for expansion. In 1952, the airport was eventually to be closed and the Great West Aerodrome, by then renamed Heathrow Airport, was therefore designated as London's airport.
The Great West Aerodrome boundaries were south of the Bath Road, north‐west of the Great South West Road, and about two miles west of the west end of the Great West Road (the la er of which gave name to the airfield). The airfield was about three miles by road from the Hayes factory, and it was declared opera onal in June 1930. That year, an addi onal plot of 29 acres (12 ha) was bought, and a hangar was built by Fairey Avia on. By March 1938, a second permanent hangar and a temporary canvas Bessonneau hangar had been built.
Example of the Bessonneau hanger design. 12
The maiden flight of the Fairey Night Bomber (K1695), designed to meet Air Ministry Specifica on B.19/27 for a twin‐engine night bomber to replace the Vickers Virginia, was the first major experimental ac vity at the Great West Aerodrome. Flight tes ng began on the 25th November 1930 but, on the 15th March 1931, the aircra overran the boundary at Cain's Lane during an emergency landing requiring re‐design of engine installa ons, major repairs and led to a significant project delay. Other notable Fairey types flown from the Great West Aerodrome included the Fox, Gordon, Firefly II (biplane), Fantome, Swordfish,Albacore, Barracuda, Ba le and Firefly (monoplane). At the invita on of Richard Fairey, chairman and managing director of Fairey Avia on Company Ltd, and a past president of the Royal Aeronau cal Society (RAeS), the RAeS held its annual garden party fly‐ins at the airfield from 1935 un l the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939. Fairey, who started in business with model aircra , also let model aircra clubs use his airfield at weekends when prototype flight tes ng was not taking place.
In 1942, Richard Fairey was knighted as Sir Richard Fairey, and held the posi on of Director General of the Bri sh Air Mission, based primarily in Washington, DC. In 1943, the Air Ministry, headed by the Secretary of State for Air (Sir Archibald Sinclair), secretly developed plans to requisi on the airfield under war me legisla on – the Defence of the Realm Act (1939). The plans were stated to be designed to suit the considerable needs of long‐range bomb‐ ers, such as USAAF Boeing B‐29s, but they were actually based on recommenda ons from professor Patrick Aber‐ crombie for a new interna onal airport for London. The project was headed by Harold Balfour (then Under‐ Secretary of State for Air, later Lord Balfour of Inchrye), who kept the true nature of it hidden from parliament. The decision and plans were finally revealed in January 1944.
In 1943, Fairey Avia on had bought 10 more acres of land to add to the 230 acres (93 ha) acquired in 1929, 1930, 1939 and 1942. The company intended to relocate its produc on facili es from Hayes to the aerodrome. The war‐ me legisla on provided no obliga on to pay compensa on; Fairey Avia on was offered compensa on at the 1939 farming land market rate of £10 per acre, and rejected it. Sir Richard wrote to his co‐chairman of Fairey Avia on:
“It is manifestly so much easier for the Civil Avia on authori es to look over the airports near London, that the foresight of private companies has made available, and then using government backing forcibly to acquire them, than to go to the infinite trouble that we had in making an aerial survey to find the site, buying the land from different owners, and then building up a fine airfield from what was market‐gardening land. And why the haste to proceed? I cannot escape the thought that the hurry is not uninspired by the fact that a post‐war government might not be armed with the power or even be willing to take ac on that is now being rushed through at the ex‐ pense of the war effort.”
A er evic on no ces in May 1944, demoli on of Heathrow domes c and farm buildings, and closing roads enter‐ ing the site, the new airfield was s ll under construc on at the end of World War II. By then, the plans had already changed from tenuous war me military use to overt development into an interna onal airport. On 1 January 1946, ownership of the site was transferred from the military department of Air Ministry to the civilian Ministry of Civil Avia on. On 31 May 1946, the newly named London Airport was officially opened for commercial opera ons by Lord Winster, the Minister of Avia on. The first aircra to use the new airport was a Bri sh South American Air‐ ways (BSAA) Avro Lancastrian named Star Light captained by BSAA's managing director AVM D. C. T. Benne . BSAA, a er two high‐profile aircra disappearances (of which the most notable was the loss of the Avro Lancastrian “Star Dust” due to an unexplained Morse Code transmission “STENDEC” received by San age airport just minutes before the aircra crashed), was merged into the Bri sh Overseas Airways Corpora on (BOAC) at the end of 1949.
When the airport began opera ons in the late spring, passenger facili es were rudimentary consis ng of an area of Army tents and duck‐boarding next to the south side of the Bath Road. Later the tents were replaced by prefabri‐ cated buildings opposite the Bricklayers Arms public house, which in 1954 was renamed the Air Hostess, and in 1988 was demolished. The first control tower was a fairly crude brick structure (consis ng of 3 storeys, plus 2 huts on its flat roof) situated roughly where the airport police sta on is now. The first aircra of a foreign airline, a Panair Lockheed 049 Constella on, landed a er a flight from Rio de Janeiro on the 16th April 1946. BOAC's first scheduled flight was an Avro Lancastrian headed for Australia on a route operated jointly with the Australian airline Qantas.
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Expansion of the site, by now commonly referred to as Heathrow Airport, con nued through the late 1940’s and runways formed a triangle consis ng of 100/280 (9,200 feet (2,800 m) long), 156/336 (6,300 feet (1,900 m) long), and 52/232 (6,700 feet (2,000 m) long). A parallel runway farther west soon replaced 156/336 thereby expanding the planned terminal area inside the triangle. Temporary prefabricated passenger and cargo buildings were con‐ structed at the northeast edge of the airport, just south of Bath Road and the Perry Oaks farm had been demol‐ ished to allow for further expansion. In the la er part of 1950, revision of the northward extension plan led to much of Harmondsworth being demolished and three more runways were completed to make a rough hexagram arrangement within which two runways would always be within 30° of the wind direc on.
Aerial photograph of Heathrow circa 1955 showing hexagram runway arrangement.
On the 7 February 1952, Princess Elizabeth returned to the United Kingdom as Queen Elizabeth II arriving on the BOAC Argonaut Atalanta and, amongst the first of her public du es, ceremonially laid the first slab of a new runway the following year. 1953 saw the airfield cater for 62,000 flights with passenger numbers reaching 1 million. It was not to go all Heathrow’s way, however. Due to strong public protest, plans to expand the airport northwards had to be abandoned.
1955 saw the first permanent passenger terminal, the Europa Building, opened by Queen Elizabeth II. Later to be‐ come Terminal 2, these terminal buildings stood in the central area in the middle of the star pa ern of runways and were reached by a twin access tunnel from the Bath Road (A4) passing under Runway 28R/10L. This was followed, the following year, by the comple on of the Britannic Building which became the second central terminal. The Roof Gardens on top of the Queen's Building and Europa Terminal were very popular with the public, and above the tun‐ nel there was a ground enclosure from which sight‐seeing flights operated. A new 38.8 metres (127 ) control tow‐ er, designed by Frederick Gibberd, was opened to replace the original 1940’s tower in April of the same year.
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Runway 10R had been extended westerly to 11000 feet by the April of 1961 and runway 15L had been taken out of use. By the end of the year, the Oceanic Terminal (renamed as Terminal 3 in 1968) was opened to handle long‐haul flight departures. Expansion plans con nued and Terminal 1 opened, comple ng the cluster of buildings at the cen‐ tre of the airport site in the Spring of 1968. By this me Heathrow was handling 14 million passengers annually. Building 1 and Building 2 were subsequently renamed Terminal 2 following inaugura on of Terminal 1in the May of 1969. The loca on of the original terminals in the centre of the site subsequently became a constraint on expan‐ sion. Built for easy access to all runways, it was assumed that passengers using the terminals would not need ex‐ tensive car parking, as air travel was beyond all but the wealthy, who would o en be chauffeur‐driven to the air‐ port with the chauffeur leaving with the car once his passengers had departed, and later coming back with the car to collect his returning passenger.
The legal dispute between the Bri sh government and Fairey Avia on was finally se led in 1964 for £1,600,000. Fairey's 1930 hangar, in legal limbo for 20 years, and used as Heathrow Airport's fire sta on and as backdrop for an adver sing billboard for BOAC, was then finally demolished and the cargo terminal was built to the south of the southern runway, connected to Terminals 1, 2 and 3 by the Heathrow Cargo Tunnel, was completed towards the end of the decade.
Terminal 3 was expanded with the addi on of an arrivals building in 1970 and other new facili es included the UK's first moving walkways. Heathrow's two main east‐west runways, 10L/28R and 10R/28L (later re‐designated 09L/27R and 09R/27L) were also extended to their current lengths to accommodate new large jets such as the Boe‐ ing 747. The other runways were closed to facilitate terminal expansion, except for Runway 23, which remained available for crosswind landings un l 2002. Scandal was to hit Heathrow in 1973 when the truth about the secret Air Ministry plan da ng back to 1944 eventually came out in Harold Balfour's autobiography (Wings over Westmin‐ ster, publ. Hutchinson, London, 1973). In his memoirs, Balfour wrote:
“Almost the last thing I did at the Air Ministry of any importance was to hijack for Civil Avia on the land on which London [Heathrow] Airport stands under the noses of resistant Ministerial colleagues. If hijack is too strong a term, I plead guilty to the lesser crime of deceiving a Cabinet Commi ee.”
However, with air travel numbers spiralling and plans well underway to improve access to Heathrow, the scandal was soon forgo en by the na onal press.
In the dawn of a new decade, annual passenger numbers had increased to 30 million, and Heathrow required more terminal space. As a result, Terminal 4 was constructed to the south of the southern runway, on the site of farms called Mayfields and Mayfield Farm, next to the exis ng cargo terminal and away from the three older terminals. Connec ons to Terminals 1, 2 and 3 were provided by the exis ng Heathrow Cargo Tunnel and a one‐way under‐ ground railway loop serving Terminal 4 was added to the London Underground Piccadilly line in 1984. Heathrow Central sta on (also on the London Underground Piccadilly line), which had been completed in 1977 pu ng the airport within an hour of the City of London, was renamed Heathrow Terminals 1, 2, 3. The improvements to the connec vity of the airport were, however, overshadowed by the events of the 20th April. At 7:55pm, a bomb ex‐ ploded in the customs hall of Terminal 2, the terminal serving the Middle East, leaving 23 people injured. Nobody has ever claimed responsibility for the a ack although it came in the same week as the Libyan embassy siege in central London and the ming coincided with the departure of the Libyan airlines flight an hour before the blast occurred.
Terminal 4 was opened by the Prince and Princess of Wales, and became the home of the newly priva sed Bri sh Airways, on the 1st April 1986 and the London Orbital Motorway (the M25) was opened providing a direct motor‐ way link to much of the country. In the following year, following priva sa on of the Bri sh Airports Authority (BAA), the newly formed BAA limited expanded the propor on of terminal space allocated to retail ac vi es and invested heavily in retail development. This included expanding terminal areas to provide more shops and restau‐ rants, and rou ng passengers through shopping areas to maximise their exposure to retail offerings, a feature of airport design that con nues to this day.
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Heathrow was to hit the headlines of the na onal press again in 1997 with more controversial expansion plans. The planning stage of the Terminal 5 Public Planning Inquiry ended at a total cost of £80m. Tes mony was heard from 700 witnesses and 100,000 pages of transcripts were recorded. In total the consulta on process took 524 days; eight years had elapsed from the first applica on to final government approval – the longest ever planning process in UK history. Following the success of the applica on, the Heathrow Express began providing a railway service from Paddington sta on in London on the 23rd June 1998. A special rail line was constructed between Heathrow and the Great Western Main Line for this service.
Heathrow Express Class 332 at Paddington
September 2002 saw Phase 1 of the Terminal 5 construc on commence. Its first stage (which took 18 months) was the Twin Rivers Diversion Scheme, diver ng the Longford River and the Duke of Northumberland's River around the western perimeter of the airport, and realigning the A3044 dual carriageway and the Western Perimeter Road. Con‐ struc on was to take 6 years and the new terminal was opened to the public on 27th March 2008, which included an expansion of the Heathrow Express rail service with a dedicated T5 sta on facility, following the official opening by Queen Elizabeth on the 14th March. Whilst work was underway to build Terminal 5, 2006 saw the comple on of a £105 million Pier Terminal 3 in order to accommodate the Airbus A380 superjumbo, and provided four new air‐ cra stands. Other modifica ons cos ng in excess of £340 million were also carried out across the airfield in readi‐ ness for the Airbus A380 which made its inaugural test flight to Heathrow on the 18th May of that year. It would be a further 2 years before the first A380 would enter service at Heathrow a er suffering substan al produc on de‐ lays. Singapore Airlines Flight 380, with registra on number 9V‐SKA, touched down from Singapore carrying 470 passengers marking the first ever European commercial flight by the A380 on the 18th March 2008.
A new 87‐metre (285 ) high £50 million air traffic control tower entered service, and was officially opened by Sec‐ retary of State for Transport Douglas Alexander on 13 June 2007. The tower was designed by the Richard Rogers partnership and is the tallest air traffic control tower in the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, in the November of that year, the consulta on process for third new runway and a sixth terminal began. The plans had received ministerial approval as far back as 2003 but met with public opposi on, most notably from Boris Johnson, the Mayor of Lon‐ don and the then shadow transport secretary, Theresa Villiers. However, despite the opposi on, the 3rd runway & 6th terminal plans were, controversially, approved by UK government ministers on the 15th January 2009. This deci‐ sion was to be rescinded, 14 months later, on the 12th May 2010. Significant changes to flight opera ons were made in 2009 following the comple on of Terminal 5, closure of the original Terminal 2, and the demoli on of the Queens Building. Terminal 2’s replacement, Terminal 2B, began construc on and Bri sh Airways vacated Terminal 4 to move to their new home at Terminal 5.
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The second satellite building for Terminal 4 was completed in 2010 and the old Terminal 2 was demolished as the second phase of Terminal 2B construc on commenced. The project, which will also see redevelopment of Terminal 1, is expected to complete in 2019. On the 1st June 2011, Terminal 5C was officially opened, having been unofficially opened on the 20th May. To accommodate the an cipated arrival of 7,000 athletes and their non‐compe ng follow‐ ers leaving when the 2012 Olympics ended, a temporary new terminal was built on a staff car park. Described as being "the area of 3 Olympic sized swimming pools", it seemed to be made of plas c shee ng on metal posts. Con‐ struc on started in February 2012. A er check‐in the passengers were bussed to departures of the permanent ter‐ minals where their flights were to depart from.
As we head into the second half of the decade, Heathrow s ll pursues expansion and the UK Government has set up the Airports Commission to make recommenda ons on how to maintain the UK’s global avia on hub status. Heathrow’s operator claims that:
“capacity is constrained at the UK’s only global hub, Heathrow, which has been virtually full for a decade. Other interna onal hub airports, such as Frankfurt, Paris and Amsterdam, have spare capacity and have been able to provide more services to an increasing range of growth markets. The UK therefore urgently needs addi onal ca‐ pacity at its hub airport to compete.”
How Heathrow might look if plans for a sixth terminal and four runways succeed.
The commission would seem to agree as, despite describing Heathrow as full in 2010 and Gatwick due to be at full capacity by 2020, they point out that a new runway would need to come into opera on by 2030. At Heathrow, commission officials have iden fied two op ons. One is the construc on of a new 3,500‐meter runway to the air‐ port’s northwest, suggested by Heathrow’s owners in July 2013. An independent op on, proposed by the Heathrow Hub group, would lengthen the airport’s northern runway to at least 6,000 meters, enabling it to be op‐ erated as two separate runways: one for departures and one for arrivals. The commission also forecasts the re‐ quirement for a second addi onal runway in England’s southeast by 2050 which lends weight to Heathrow’s pro‐ posal for four runways. The commission is also analysing a series of short‐term solu ons to capacity, including the op miza on of U.K. airspace, using enhanced en route traffic management systems, and performance‐based navi‐ ga on. It also calls for conduc ng trials at Heathrow to smooth early morning arrival schedules to minimize delays and provide more predictable relief from noise and pollu on for local communi es. The report also urges improve‐ ments in surface access to airports, including be er rail links. But while officials say such measures are “worthwhile on their own terms … none of them can provide a long‐term solu on to the U.K.’s airport capacity problem.”
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