Visit to UK AIS at Heathrow 12 June

[Mike Cross]

If you put your name forward for this visit please check your e-mails.

If you were one of the first 30 to reply you will have had an email from me asking for you to confirm that you will definitely be able to attend. If I don't get that confirmation I will be offering your place to the next person on the list so email me now ([email protected]) in reply.

Please let me know if you can't make it so your place can be re-allocated.

We need to be in the foyer of the Control Tower Building at 10:20 on 12 June. I will be at the Costa Coffee Shop on the mezzanine floor in Terminal 2 from about 10:00 and everyone attending will get an e-mail with my mobile number. Suggest we meet up there and walk over en masse.

If you miss the rendezvous the Control Tower Building is opposite Terminal 2, the entrance is on the right hand side of the building looking from T2. Use the entryphone to get in.

Expect to finish around 14:30, later if everyone is having fun.

Feel free to bring cameras and binoculars. The view is superb.
There's a link to the original thread here (http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=88705)

See you there :ok:

Mike

[Mike Cross]

Finally sorted out the list. The 30 who got places :D have all had an email from me today containing the names, locations and emails of everyone who is attending.

Those who didn't :{ have also had a mail today and their details have been passed on to AIS so they can get invited on a future visit.

FREE PARKING AT HEATHROW! :ok:
I have a free parking space (courtesy of AIS) for the first person to email me ([email protected]) with the names of the other 3 persons he's giving a lift to.

I will be going from Portsmouth via Aldershot and the M3 and have a spare place if anyone wants a lift.

Mike

[Saab Dastard]

Mike,

Fantastic day, many thanks for putting so much effort into organising it.

Many thanks also to all those at AIS and in the VCR who gave their time and so much energy into hosting us for the day - in one case even going so far as to give up a day's holiday!

I have a much better understanding now of what goes on behind the scenes and the scope and scale of the work that is done.

I can put names and faces to NOTAMS now!

And the view's not bad either ;)

Much appreciated :) :)

SD

[Mike Cross]

A few photos from the visit to AIS at Heathrow today. If you identify yourselves I will caption them.

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/Phil.JPG
Phil Bate, Manager UK AIS and our host, on the roof of the Control Tower building at LHR.

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/Flower.JPG
Flower holding forth

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/Roof.JPG
Visitors on the roof

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/Roof2.JPG

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/Roof3.JPG

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/Flower_Howard.JPG
Flower talking with Howard Dubrovie from CAA DAP, Aeronautical Charts & Data

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/VCR.JPG
Exterior of the Visual Control Room

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/VCR_Inside.JPG
and the interior. Approach, Departure and Ground Movement Control

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/radar1.JPG
Steve Harben of AIS explains the capabilities of the display at Thames Radar

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/Radar2.JPG
and a quiet moment for the Thames Radar Controller

Mike

[Trinity 09L]

Many thanks to all organisers for an excellent day.:cool:

[flower]

Thanks Mike for organising a great day out.
As well as being really enjoyable I got a great deal out of it and as always its great meeting new people.
It must have taken a great deal of organising to make the event so sucessful and thanks must go to you for that, also a big thankyou to all the people in AIS and DAP who gave there time to us today as well as hosting us extremely well

As for me holding forth , absolutley nothing new with that !!!



:ok:

[Kolibear]

I'd like to say Thank You to Mike for organising the day - it was fantastic.

And another Thank You to Phil Bate and all his team for providing such an interesting and informative presentation, NATS certainly pushed the boat out for us.

Visiting Thames Radar and seeing the number of unidentified blips on the screen in the area where I fly made me realise that a call to them probably would not go amiss.

We couldn't have wished for better weather either, from the roof we could see the Nat. West Tower and Canary Wharf and to the west, Stokenchurch Mast. The controllers up in the top of the control tower have the best office windows in the world!

It was a strange feeling strolling into Terminal 2 without any luggage instead of rushing in looking for a check-in desk. I'll never be able to fly from Heathrow again with looking at it in a completely different light.

Finally, thanks to all the pilots who performed landing and take-offs so flawlessly all day. The Seneca that came in looked a little out of place though.

[phil_ukga]

Andrew Sinclair has very kindly written a report of his visit:

Click here to view the link on ukga.com (http://ukga.com/article/view.cfm?contentId=574)

[MikeSamuel]

What a great way to spend such a beautiful summer's day!

Thanks to everyone who made this day possible, it was a really unique experience. I've already put my freebies to work doing my flight planning for later :D

It's fantastic to get together with people who share a common interest, and it's really re-assuring to know that there are people out there working for the safety and enjoyment of us all.

I think the aviation community is unique in this way, and yesterday was an example of how helpful and entertaining seeing the "behind the scenes" part of flying is, and all involved deserve the highest praise for their efforts.

I can only recommend that those of you who haven't give your local ATC unit a call and see what goes on! They have great gadgets!

[Mike Cross]

A few more photos

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/CNV00014.JPG
Start of the visit in the Main Conference Room in the Tower at LHR

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/Pubs.JPG
The Foreign AIP Library, just ring AIS if you want to use it.

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/aip.JPG
Today I think I'll go to ...........

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/CNV00002.JPG
Visitors to the Foreign AIP Library

http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/images/CNV00001.JPG
ADIMS (AIS Dynamic Information Management System) Entry point for all NOTAM in to the UK NOTAM system

Mike