Uninvited Guest

[Captain Airclues]

We were about to depart from Stansted yesterday morning when a light aircraft (Cessna 152?) made an approach and low go-around on runway 23 without talking to ATC. I was wondering what the ATC procedures are when this happens? At what stage do you stop approaches, and how far does the intruder have to be clear before you allow departures? Is your radar able to follow the aircraft to its ultimate destination?

Airclues

ps. I hope that the pilot has Flying Lawyer's telephone number!

[davedek]

The aircraft executed an approach to a busy international airport without ATC clearance, and without any contact with ATC whatsoever??? Are you sure??

If you are correct then that is extremely dangerous and extremely illegal as I am sure everyone here is aware. Why would anyone do that??

A lost PPL student on a cross-country perhaps? If it was a regular flight by a PPL holder that got lost then the PIC is in serious trouble, anyone know the likely punishment for this?

[Dances with Boffins]

A good kicking?

[bookworm]

Why would anyone do that??

It tends to come with simultaneous transmission that goes something like "G-ABCD, Cambridge, still not in sight, confirm a one mile final for runway 23...?". Equally Duxford.

[Standard Noise]

Or could the C152 have been kept on the APC frequency because the ADC had no reason to speak to him? Thus no one on the TWR freq would have heard any transmissions. This does happen at other airports, so it's possible it happened in this case.

[zkdli]

No, the aircraft is believed to be flown by a pilot that was unsure of his position and believed he was final for EGSC. Three aircraft were broken off the approach for him. Still its just one of the 190 unauthorised penetrations of Controlled airspace that have happened around the London TMA so far this financial year!:rolleyes:

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

davedek... You sound mightily amazed, which suggests you are not a controller! We could fill plenty of books with stories of PPLs getting lost and causing major problems. I was on watch when a Flying Instructor decided to show his pupil Windsor Castle one sunny Sunday morning - the carnage which ensued was amazing. I don't know if he was prosecuted but the punishments are (or were) pretty mundane. If someone who can afford to fly gets a couple of hundred £ fine it's probably small change.

ATC can track wildies (as we call them) but only for so far. If the aircraft is low it will soon go out of cover. Of course, if it has a transponder switched on that can help.

The excuses are brilliant: "I was flying xxx VOR but they seem to have changed its frequency so I was 20 degrees right of track".... "I was following a main road but my map must have been out of date".... "The plane had just been serviced and they couldn't have re-set the gyro correctly". The guy flying from Denham to Elstree, who ended up 3 miles east of White Waltham heading southwest was the best: "I must have misread my compass". And a CL-44 (yes!) went straight through the London Zone once at low-level. He'd taken off from one of the airfields north of Heathrow heading for Lasham and the controller at his departure airfield said something like "Cleared to Lasham" (meaning cleared to change frequency to Lasham). Pilot interpreted this as "cleared direct track to Lasham).

You've gotta believe it..............

[CAP493]

Similar thing happened yesterday afternoon at nearby Luton. The unknown aircraft flew through the 26 climb-out before tracking back towards Bovingdon and disappearing. All departures were stopped for a short period.

Coincidentally, the Luton-based police helicopter was in the area at the time - don't know if the crew were able to 'book' the zone infringer who must have sh*t himself when he saw it!!

:uhoh:

[5milesbaby]

If the a/c made an approach and low go-around surely someone in the tower would be able to get the bino's out and read the registration off the side?

[DC10RealMan]

Sometimes it just comes down to "The law of Sod" and or human error. I was invited for a chat after infringing Aberdeen Zone one bright sunny afternoon with a visibility of fifty miles. I am an "air traffiker" with hundreds of hours experience but I am unfamiliar with the local area. My passenger is a very senior BA captain who is very familiar with the local area and we were just "sightseeing" having flown up from Goodwood. I think that my passenger will tell me when we start to get near to the Aberdeen CTR, My passenger knows that we are well inside the zone, but thinks that I have said something in "air trafficese" to allow us to fly inside the zone. Result: Interview with SRG, bugger!!!!!

[Squadgy]

So.... what's the best thing to do if you find yourself on short final for a major airport in error?! Land and wait for a follow me truck, or go-around and go home. I think I know what the safest option would be - land. What do others think?

[Captain Airclues]

5milesbaby

The tower did that. However, the people at the holding point and the ranger guy didn't need bino's as the aircraft got down to about 100ft before the go-around.

The reason for my post was that I was interested to know whether there are any set prodedures for this sort of incident (without giving away any state secrets of course). Do you put the landing aircraft back into the hold, or do you vector them clear of the intruder? It must be difficult when you don't know which way the intruder is going to turn. Also, what separation do you need before allowing the first departure? This subject has never come up on my many visits to ATC Centres.

Airclues

[nibog]

Check this out.

http://aaiu.ie/upload/general/3606-0.pdf

Strange, .... but true.


Radio Controlled model aircraft runs out of reciever battery power, servos & control surfaces lock in position, aircraft flies straight ahead for about 8 miles till all fuel is exhausted, then glides to a landing on link taxiway, EIDW, beside a B737.

... I wouldn't have believed it myself ...

[NudgingSteel]

nibog - same happened at a major Scottish airport a few years ago; smaller model, and didn't come from miles away, but still ended up on the aerodrome. Fortunately on a very empty patch of the manouevring area!

Squadgy - I'd be very cautious about landing without having spoken to the tower. Although you'd hope that someone would see you on final and work out there's something amiss, don't assume you'll definitely have a clear runway. Although you'd certainly see an airliner lining up in front of you, a vehicle might be harder to spot, and as for the fast jet turning in for a run-and-break....!
If you did ever find yourself in that situation, try to contact ATC and at least let someone know you might be in a zone. Although you might end up filling some forms in, the powers that be seem to be much kinder to pilots who hold their hands up and ask for some help! Plus from the ATC viewpoint, as soon as we know who / what / where you are, you cease to be a major problem to other traffic.

[Lon More]

Nibog: Was watching Supermodel on Sky recently; a model C17, wingspan looked about 15 feet, powered by 4 jet engines. Would definitely need brown trousers if you met that coming the other way. I believe r/c models can be fitted with a device to cut engine power as soon as control is lost

http://homepage.eircom.net/~skycam/C-17A_Globemaster_III/webpics/C-17.jpg

[niknak]

When this sort of thing happens, you really have to wonder about the competence of the instructor who authorised the flight.

Stansted looks nothing like Cambridge from the air, equally Duxford looks nothing like Cambridge, but it still happens, and similar elsewhere.

To an extent, the pilot (although obviously nowhere near competent) shares a very small proportion of the blame, it's the instructor who should be held to account.

Beat him severely I say....:E

[gooneydog]

Same happened to me at CYYZ #1 for 06L when a 172 sweeps in and lands unannounced and without contact. Just prior to seeing him, I started to see airbii for 05 & 06R starting GA's

Turned out to be an elderly PPL with a sickly grandson needing ground poste haste

[spekesoftly]

It happens. Back in the 70s(?) a light aircraft managed to mistake Gatwick (DC10 City, nice long tarmac runway, etc etc) for the nearby grass airfield at Redhill !

Then again, once upon a time, didn't a DH Chipmunk(?) manage to land at Heathrow ........ without being noticed? :eek:

[catocontrol]

An episode from my airfield this summer.

A foreign VFR Cessna had filed to land at Narvik airport(see map below) A local uncotrolled airport. His transponder was in and out, so I couldn't see him on the scope. Neither did the VDF point in the right direction, due to reflections from mountains. On his initial call, he reported "I am inbound your field". I asked him to confirm inbound Evenes(callsign for Harstad/Narvik airport). He confirmed this. I cleared him inbound the field, to expect RWY 17 for landing. The VDF pointed due north at this time. his correct pos, was north-east. He reported 5 miles north of field, and I gave him landingclearance. He replied cleared to land RWY17. I still couldn't see him, and the VDF pointed northbound.

Two minutes later:" Ehh I am on short final, confirm RWY 19, is there a RWY 17 too? VDF pointed due east at this time. The Cessna was on short final to Narvik airport, not Harstad/Narvik airport. I made a call to Narvik and asked if they had any traffic. Narvik is often used by D228s and Kingairs. Luckily they didn't have any at this time.

http://home.no.net/aspirant/images/ofoten%20basic%20two%20colour.jpg

Red line, reported track
Yellow line, actual track

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

<<Then again, once upon a time, didn't a DH Chipmunk(?) manage to land at Heathrow ........ without being noticed?>>

Sure did.... but there again, a US registered DC-8 landed at Heathrow and as he finished his roll out said "x"%^~# We're s'posed to be at Gatwick".

For he who asked...... ATC attempts to provide separation from unknown traffic and it's usually possible to keep the landing sequence going, even if people are routed all around the sky.

The answer, surely, is good flight-planning - make sure you have a list of frequencies for any airfields on or close to your planned route. If you become unsure of your position for Lordy's sake USE THE RADIO and talk to someone, even if it's 121.5. In my experience, ATCOs will fall over backwards to help someone who admits he's lost... but if they later find someone who hasn't spoken to them but caused mayhem then the roof falls in, and rightly too.

[AdmlAckbar]

Capt Airclues,
In answer to your question, there are no set procedures, it depends on the individual situation each time. In this case I think a couple of aircraft were broken off final approach, any others further out would have been sent towards the hold.

For departures, they would be held on the ground until the Tower & Radar controllers between them were happy that the aircraft was tracking away from the SID, and then judicious use of traffic information! Also depends on the weather of course, but hopefully on this occasion it was VFR.

[Hial Flyer]

Procedures are laid down by SRG. Any unknown aircraft inside controlled airspace must be avoided by 5nm's or 5000ft where ever possible.

[DFC]

niknak,

Are you an OJTI or an instructor?

If an ATC student you trained caused an airprox the first time they operate solo is it;

a) The OJTI's fault
b) The eamminer's fault? or
c) The ATCOs fault?

Provided the instructor ensured that the student has reached the required standard and had properly briefed/prepared for the solo flight then the instructor has little or no influence on what the student does once the flight has departed.

Using your system, the insurance for OJTIs, instructors, examminers, the CAA would be enormous.

Regards,

DFC

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

DFC... I understand what you mean but whether I accept that PPLs are trained to anywhere approaching the standard of professional Air Traffic Controllers is another matter.

[DFC]

HD,

I am not comparing the standard required. I am comparing the systems that follow a sylabus of training and sets standards for certain stages of training/qualification.

Provided that a person demonstrates the appropriate standard at whatever stage in whatever system, it is not the responsibility of the instructor who provided training during that stage if the student, PPL, ATCO or whatever ignores or forgets or accidently does not follow the training or instructions given.

To follow Niknak's line here, perhaps we should haul the CAA over the coals because this person was probably given a pass in the Air Law Exam but failed to follow the part of the Air Law sylabus pertaining to operations within Class D airspace.

Regards,

DFC

[aluminium persuader]

It'll always happen...

A hawk (I believe flown by OC Valley) twice, as I heard it, tried to land at Bristol instead of Filton

A commercial PA34 landed at Heyford instead of Oxford

and a personal favourite-

a BOAC Comet 4, scheduled flight full of pax landed on a road in a National Park instead of at Nairobi.

Didn't David Gunston used to talk about an Aer Lingus 747 landing at Birmingham instead of Manch?

:)

[booke23]

"whether I accept that PPLs are trained to anywhere approaching the standard of professional Air Traffic Controllers is another matter."

Looking at some newly qualified controllers I beg to differ.

[vintage ATCO]

a BOAC Comet 4, scheduled flight full of pax landed on a road in a National Park instead of at Nairobi.

Touch and go, I believe. I knew the controller. :D

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

booke23 said "Looking at some newly qualified controllers I beg to differ."

Where did you look at them?? By "newly qualified" do you mean just out of the College, or fully validated at a busy unit?

[halo]

Because of the increasing number of runway infringements in the past few years (38 alone at a major twin runway airport somewhere west of London) there is a big push going on from the CAA and NATS to make people more aware of them....

Hence...

If you land without clearance, lost or not, you have committed a runway infringement and it will be very closely looked at. Obviously, if you have a technical or radio problem then the circumstances will be examined. If you have landed at an airport without clearance because you are lost then you can expect some quite heavy penalties and a thorough investigation into your skills and competency as a private pilot

[Lon More]

Pan Am, I think, put a 707 on the ground at Northolt instead of Heathrow. That was the reason for painting LL and WU on the gasometers.

[Carnage Matey!]

I was once sitting at the holding point for R16 at a US airport, which was uncontrolled at that time of night, waiting for landing traffic. A Saab 340 from a big US commuter airline was diligently announcing he was downwind for 16, turning base for 16, finals for 16. With no traffic in sight on the 16 approach I was rather surprised to see the said Saab land on R34 and taxy to the ramp without a further word said!:eek:

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Lon... It was actually "NO" on the Northolt gasholder. Doubly appropriate don't you think!! Jeezzz... if i had a quid for every pilot who assured me he had 23 in sight and went for 26 at Northolt I'd be very rich!!!

[ManfredvonRichthofen]

someone i learnt to fly with flew round the Luton circuit for about half an hour.

Said person was on qualifying X-country. 1st stop meant to be Cambridge....

[ok1]

These things happen to everyone...

In the 1950s a B-36 Peacemaker landed short of Boscombe Down AFB, because the crew confused the British runway markings with the US ones. Fortunately the field on which they ended up was frozen. Only one propeller was damaged after impacting a haystack.

After landing the pilot transmitted to the tower that their runway was kind of bumpy :D

[spanishflea]

Then of course theres last years infamous B52 who did his display over Blackbushe instead of Farnborough.

OK, so they blamed ATC but...

[AdmlAckbar]

..... and at the previous Farnborough the B-1B that did exactly the same thing .... just after a controller had been claiming that these aircraft could deliver a missile through an office window. Gave the chap at EGLK a shock!

And then many moons ago I believe there was an A10 that did a wonderful display at Cambridge, thinking he was at Duxford.

[Dances with Boffins]

Didn't someone put a load of passengers into the Martin-Baker plant in NI thinking he was at Aldergrove?

[LXGB]

Does Norwich still have "NORWICH" painted on the 04 Thld for the benefit of wayward visitors to Coltishall?

LXGB

[Widger]

It's not just the student pilots who are at fault. I remember quite clearly some years ago telling an aircraft under FIS that he was 2 miles from Lyneham Zone and heading straight towards it. The instructor came straight back and said,

"Radar don't tell the student where he is..."

Unbelievable..I sat open mouthed for some seconds.

[ukatco_535]

Widger,

That reminds me of quite a funny and true story from a while back.

An ex colleague, controlling LARS on a busy friday afternoon.

One of the A/C on frequency was callsign 'Exam 01'.

Said controller observes the A/C, under a RIS, trundling towards some major danger areas. He passes on a call;

"Exam 01, XXX danger areas 10 miles to the north"

Instructor - "No navigational assistance please"


A minute or 2 later

ATCO - "Exam 01 danger area now 5 miles north, is active, turn left heading XXX to avoid"

Examiner - "No navigational assistance please"

The A/C continues to trundle towards the danger area, before penetrating, then making a hasty retreat.

ATCO - "Exam 01, adopt the callsign 'Failed 01', squawk XXXX and contact XYZ Radar on....."

[Irish Steve]

For he who asked...... ATC attempts to provide separation from unknown traffic and it's usually possible to keep the landing sequence going, even if people are routed all around the sky.

Very true, and they do it well.

A VERY LONG time ago, as a very low hours student pilot, with a lot less experience than I have now, I had an opportunity to do a long cross country flight for business from the west country to Leeds and back, with (essential at that time) an instructor in the right hand seat. I jumped at it, it would be 5 hours flying in a touring aircraft I'd not flown before, and I thought it would be worthwhile experience as well.

At the time, I didn't realise just how true that was going to be.

The trip didn't go quite according to plan, the weather wasn't as good as we'd been led to believe it was going to be, but in the initial stages, as the instructor had instrument flying qualifications, I wasn't too worried, even though I was doing the handling. The trip up wasn't too bad, and we managed to get our business done quickly, so the return trip was looking OK as well, albeit time limited, as the home destination didn't have runway lights, and we were flying in February.

On the way back, we flew IMC over the Pennines from Leeds, heading back to the west country.

Due to some very inept navigation over the hills in IMC, (I was P/ut, and fully stretched to fly the thing in IMC, so the instructor was supposedly navigating and communicating), we ended up a good bit further north than we were supposed to be, and after getting back into VMC, which reduced my work load some, we ended up going right through the active approach at Manchester, and at the worst possible height, 1500 Ft, and to compound the felony, the instructor maintained radio silence.

The radio was tuned to Manchester, and once I'd got things my side back together again as we were VFR again, I realised what was happening, and to my horror, worked out that the gombeen in the right hand seat was taking us through the active runway approach at about 5 miles from the airfield at 1500Ft, which explained all the vectors and other avoidances that were being given to the heavy jets that were at this stage visible. To say that I was less than happy was putting it mildly. At the time, I wasn't able to say or do much about it, as there were other people in the aircraft that were not aware of what was going on, and I didn't want to alarm them even more than they already were by the weather conditions, and as a low experience student, I wasn't about to get into an argument with the instructor with at least 2 hours flying still in front of us.

We continued on our way, and eventually, after several more hairy moments with deteriorating weather conditions, we scraped into a diversion alternate just before it too was weathered out by a front coming in off the Atlantic. Once we were on the ground, and there's a lot more to that than I'm going to talk about now, the instructor was "invited" to visit the control tower, from whence he returned about 30 minutes later, looking very shaken and unhappy, and rightly so.

I learnt several things from that experience.

First, I resolved that day that whatever the cost, I was going to make sure that I never got caught in the same situation again. A subsequent multi engine CPL with Instrument rating was a big help in that direction. An exceptional Multi instructor at Shoreham who made very sure I was safe in my own (hot ship) twin before he let me loose with it was also another major factor. I never did get to use it professionally, due to other circumstances like Saddam, but I have no regrets about making sure that I was capable of flying safely and correctly.

Second, I resolved I would never fly with that instructor again, and I didn't. About 3 months later, probably as a result of the inquiry into that flight, which I'd reported in writing to the CFI, and I'm sure that several controllers on our route has also made appropriate reports, the instructor concerned was "advised" by the CFI to find himself alternative employment outside of the aviation industry.

In all the flying I've done before and since, I don't think I've ever been as unhappy and unsettled as I was during that flight, the scary thing being that personally as a pilot, when I looked back at what I'd actually done on that trip in terms of aircaft handling in IMC, the way I'd flown the aircraft was way beyond what I should have been capable of at that stage of my training. That was simply down to the fact that I'd spent time simulating instrument flight on whatever computer I had at the time, so at least I had some understanding of what the instruments were telling me.

OK, I'm the first one to recognise that what we ended up doing was way out of line, and I was very lucky not to get my a**e royally chewed out. I guess the redeeming aspect was that I had recognised the things that were wrong, even if I didn't have the knowledge or the skills at the time to resolve them, and as such, as pilot under tuition, the instructor was responsible for the conduct of the flight. Nuff said.

Bottom line is that while there's no excuse for trying to land on the wrong airfield, there are times when circumstances will combine to produce a result that causes all sorts of problems, and the only way to solve that is to try and make sure that the training provided is sufficient to ensure that if someone gets it wrong, they are prepared to admit to it then, rather than continue blindly in the hope that they'll either get away with it because no one noticed, or that they'll be able to bluff their way out of it when they've had chance to think of a suitable excuse.

Our mistake was not just that we were where we were not supposed to be, it was in then trying to ignore the situation, rather than communicate with the already stressed controller. If we'd talked to him, at least then he would have been able to get us out of his hair in the most expeditious manner, rather than have to cope with an aircraft in a place that was causing him huge grief.

Part of the problem at the club I was flying at back then was that the previous CFI had a very old fashioned approach to radio. His attitude was simple, and might have been effective 20 years earlier, and it was simply, "if you're not close to an airfield, turn it off, it's one less noise to have to listen to". OK, in that part of the world, there were not many airfields, and even less controlled airspace, but as things changed, and got busier, that attitude was less than helpful, and it took a long time for that attitude to get changed, and where larger airfields with controlled airspace was concerned, to ignore them was folly of the highest order!

To coin a well used phrase from an aviation magazine I used to subscribe to "I learnt about flying from that"!!!

[davedek]

Nice story Steve, must have been terrifying at the time...

One question - when you realised the terrible position your instructor had led you to (and I understand not wanting to tell him at the time if you had pax), did he realise as well? Or was he not aware of it at all until he was 'invited' to the tower afterwards?

[Irish Steve]

Nice story Steve, must have been terrifying at the time...

Got it in one. If I'd not flown with the CFI the following day to take the owner so he could position the aircraft back to home base, I'd probably never have flown again! Even now, some 20 years later, I've looked back at that day and realised that I was VERY lucky to still be alive at the end of it, and that it was luck and nothing more that kept us alive, as I didn't have the skills to completely cope with the situation, and the instructor wasn't coping either.


One question - when you realised the terrible position your instructor had led you to (and I understand not wanting to tell him at the time if you had pax), did he realise as well? Or was he not aware of it at all until he was 'invited' to the tower afterwards?

The scary thing is that I think he was sort of aware of how serious things were getting, but he was out of his depth at that stage, and unable to come up with alternatives.

My reason for that comment is that much later in the flight, after a while VMC, we were nearly home, but once again IMC, and we were offered vectors to the ILS for the approach and landing, and he "declined", asking for an SRA, and it was painfully clear that he wasn't able to deal with setting up and flying an ILS, which should have been a lot simpler and safer!

It was also by that stage very clear to me that while he had a paper instrument qualification, his ability to use it adequately was very much in doubt, to the extent that I became the autopilot, obeying the instructions we were given by ATC, and he was sitting there almost visibly twitching, which did nothing at all for my confidence in what we were about to try and do.

I declined to try and fly the approach, as I'd never flown any form of instrument approach, and at this stage, I'd been flying IMC for close on an hour, and was feeling the strain of it.

His "handling" of the aircraft on instruments was worse than mine, even though it was my first time in the aircraft, and we were sent around before even breaking cloud because we were so far from the approach profile. To say that I was aware of the stress in the approach controllers voice was putting it mildly, it was clear that we were nowhere near where we should have been, and I was just glad we had headsets on, so the pax couldn't hear what was being said to us.

The second time round, I realised that ATC were allowing us to continue as we were relatively safe from a terrain point of view, and we broke cloud at 900 Ft QNH (about 800 QFE), and fortunately, due to a very good local knowledge of the road structure around our destination, I was able to instantly pick up where we were, (about half a mile north of the approach centre line and about 2 miles from the runway, ( Yes it was that bad!!!), and able to point "There's the runway!" to the instructor. At this stage, not only was it IMC, it was also night, which had not been the plan!!!

So yes, I think he was aware of how badly things were going, but he was unable to cope with coming up with a Plan B.

I'd already decided that if we didn't get in off that approach, as we had the fuel remaining to go elsewhere, a diversion 70 miles east to another airfield close to the coast that was not yet weathered out was looking like our best chance of staying alive, and I use that phrase in the full knowledge of the implications of it!

In hindsight, he was a relatively new instructor who had got "the basics" some while earlier, then spent too long flying in Rallye 110's in VMC around the circuit with relatively low time students, and for whatever reason, he'd allowed his other skills to deteriorate to the point of being dangerous.

If I'd realised just how little real decision making he was going to do, we'd not have gone, as I was more than well aware that the trip we were doing was not just a little local hop, and that it had the potential to go wrong if the weather wasn't in our favour.

When it came down to it, if he'd been current on instruments, and more importantly, IFR navigation, we would have had no problems, in that I was capable of the basic flying of the aircraft on a heading altitude and speed, but I didn't know enough at that stage to be able to set up and correctly interpret the relevant aids to get us to where we were supposed to be.

Much later experience, a lot more training in a much more capable multi engine aircraft with a highly experienced instructor (at a different airfield) proved that it could be done, and now, with that training and experience under my belt, IFR in IMC with the right aids and equipment doesn't bother me in the same way, but that day was for sure one I shall never forget, both for the worry it caused me, and more relevant to this thread, for the massive hassle it must have caused the controllers at Manchester.

I still prefer to be mutiple crewed even when flying light aircraft in IMC, if only because it means that there's another pair of eyes and a different brain processing what's going on, and that's a very valid safety consideration. I will happily fly single crewed in IFR/IMC, but only when I am comfortable with the workload that imposes, and there are some areas where it's not so comfortable.

Hopefully, if nothing else, this section of the thread will have given a few GA people "pause for thought", and that's no bad thing. When we set out that morning, there was no way I was expecting to be causing massive hassle to a significant number of commercial flights, and no way I was planning some of the other events that followed, but the experience was a big learning curve, and one that I didn't enjoy, in that so many things went so wrong, and in such a dangerous way.

If others reading about it now look at this and at some stage in the future remember it, then I'm happy that it's served it's purpose. At the same time, I guess it's a salutory reminder that it's all too easy to get badly in other people's way without even realising it at the time, which is where we came in.

Happy New Year

[Downwind.Maddl-Land]

Northolt: 1974-ish.

Story 1. Baby ATCO (me), in at crack of sparrows-f@rt for the airfield inspection and opening-up checks. Go into the Approach room to check Tels have got the AR-1 on and warming-up, and to check which RW Big Brother is on, so that we follow suite.

Oh Dear (or words to that effect) its 23! Nice long line of maggots on the approach herald a 'challenging' day.

Proceed upstairs to the VCR, open log book, select all the airfield lights prior to leaping into the Landrover to do the airfield inspection. Having just selected all the AGL, as I turn for the stairs, I notice a set of landing lights – previously en-route to 23 - much brighter than the rest. Reason is soon quite obvious, as he's not en-route for 23 - he's on Final for my 5,540 ft of Tarmac; and – judging by his size - he’s gonna need a hell of a lot more than that to stop in.

Thinks! - Cause and effect? Promptly hit the airfield blackout knob and EGWU is plunged into anonymity. Landing lights decrease brilliance and then disappear as Captain Speaking presumably starts following the 23 ILS again! A check of the said AR-1 showed one maggot’s afterglow with a distinct 30º right and 120º left dogleg in it! Which, of course, didn’t do much good for the sequence separation against the track behind either. It also took days to get the AGL working properly again! Those of you that remember the RAF’s old ‘Organ Annie’ lighting panel (and the effect of using the blackout facility) will know what I mean.

Story 2. Fellow ATCO in VCR watching landing RNAF F27 on RW 26 (as it was then) on VERY short final with his hand over the West End Road traffic light switch, ready to flick these to green as soon as it was safe to do so. The wrath of God would descend upon you, with questions being asked in the House, if you didn’t. His concentration was rudely interrupted by his AATC pounding on his shoulder; he replied with words to the effect

‘Not now, son - I’m watching the F27’

to which the pounding got more violent and increased in intensity!

‘What is it?’

allied to a glance to his right, gave the answer as he followed the gawping, frozen in fright, mouth and outstretched arm that was pointing at a French Navy PA 31 just touching down on 08!

‘Break off the approach, IMMEDIATE right turn’ bellowed down the ‘Squawk Box’ to Talkdown fortunately had the desired effect, as did the PA 31’s Landing being rapidly converted to a Touch and Go followed by the initiation of the Rule of the Air that states ‘aircraft approaching head on (or nearly so) will each turn to the right to avoid collision.’

For a few seconds the circuit (such as it was) resembled the closest thing to an Air Display that Northolt is ever likely to see!

The F27 completed a right-hand circuit and landed visually, whereas the PA 31 must have realised where he was, and executed an equally violent left turn to exit the Heathrow CTZ to the north at height that he obviously thought could not be followed on radar (and would have done credit to 617 over the Dams) and at a speed that Mr Piper probably had not considered was feasible for his pocket rocket. Unfortunately for the PA 31 our low level coverage at Leavesden (his real destination) was good! However, what follow-up occurred I never did find out.
:D