ETOPS Barbados - LHR

[omega]

I returned from holiday in Barbados recently(lucky me!) Booked to fly BWIA but had been subbed to a LOT B767ER. We appeared to fly virtually direct Barbados to Lands End. Is this possible complying with ETOPS, or doesn't everybody have to? Any thoughts?

[Herp]

A straight line from Barbados to Lands End will keep you within the 1200nm range of a suitable airfireld..caribbean at one end, azores in the middle and europe at this end. So long as the aircraft had 180mins ETOPS clearance, there would have been no probs. The distance is calculated as 3hrs at 400 kts still air.

Hope this helps.....

[newswatcher]

Omega, when I asked a similar question with regards Jamaica, Pax Vobiscum directed me to this site (http://gc.kls2.com/) which I have found quite useful for "mapping" great circle routes. :ok:

[Airbubba]

>>Booked to fly BWIA but had been subbed to a LOT B767ER.<<

LOT makes two stops on their ETOPS routes. One for fuel, the other for directions...

You can cover most of the North Atlantic with 120 minute ETOPS, all of it with 180 minute ETOPS.

[SM82]

120 min etops would not be possible for flights from TBPB BGI to UK and bare in mind TXKF is closed aswell

[spiney]

Interesting snub on LOT Polish Airbubba; I travelled a coupla round trips POS-LHR (subbed from BWIA) in the last 6 weeks and LOT were very good - on time, excellent service - actually they never got lost once... or if they did, they hurried up so as not to miss their slot...

[omega]

Thanks for that, everyone - I think my knowledge of ETOPS was a couple of years out of date.

[kaikohe76]

Omega,
Just an after thought to your post on the subject of ETOPS. The Great Circle Route web site that `Newswatcher`mentions I think is very good value. However if for no more than a little fun, if you can get hold of any North Atlantic plotting charts that all the airlines use, can I suggest you try plotting out some various routings yourself. Once you have done this, you can then show the ETOPS ranges / times from the various alternates, Keflavik, Lajes, Santa Maria, Gander, Shannon etc. Having got this far and with your planned track within all the ETOPS ranges, try closing one of the en route alternates for whatever reason and see how you would change your track then, ie what would you do if!!!!
All good fun and I used to try this many years ago when we just started flying the Atlantic on the 75, got the brain into the right frame of mind anyway if nothing else. Can be quite lonely at 30w on a dark night.
Cheers.

[Alberts Growbag]

Barbados to the UK in a 767 is perfectly legal under 180mins ETOPS. I have operated the route myself.

However I am bemused as to why LOT seem to be picking up so much long haul sub charters.

I recently witnessed an approach at Antigua by a LOT 767 that to put it mildly made my blood run cold. It was obvious that the crew could not manage enough English to communicate efficiently with the tower, and after blowing their first approach so badly even the tower had to prompt them into an orbit they still managed to land half way down the runway. It was a surprise to hear them ask for a back track rather than see the fire service bolt out of the station!

I am not disparaging Polish crews, who in their more familiar territories are no doubt professional and competent, but out in pastures new, with limited English at both ends of the radio they are a total liability.

[atb1943]

Poor old LOT! I've had a soft spot for them ever since an IL-18 crewmember walked across to us spotters over a Heathrow North to ask if we'd like to look at his aeroplane. Still got the lapel pin somewhere.

And the one time I got to fly them, on return from Warsaw to somewhere in Germany, the TU-154 stopped, dropped the backstairs, and pax started moving about, obviously surprised to be able to exit so soon. Then the cabin crew ushered us to our seats again, the stairs came up, and the aircraft carried on to the gate! Hmmm...!

[atb1943]

My last post was a load of peacocks! It wasn't LOT at LHR Northside, it was Seaboard World, but LOT did show us over an IL-18 at Central. However it was properly organized by one Bob Ruffle, who was at LATCC at the time. Bob is doing a grand job, some 40 years later, at Shoreham.