Originally Posted by
SWBKCB
We'll have to agree to disagree - from my point of view it's better to have as much certainty in the system as early as possible. Better to say you can't take anything than to have 20 a/c plan you as alternate and then have to turn half of them away at the last minute. It's the last minute changes and re-planning which cause stress and uncertainty and needs to be reduced .
I accept the logic in your argument to a degree but it doesn't answer some basic questions: -
Why is it MAN, an international airport that claims it is capable of handling up to 50m passengers a year, that feels the need to do this so often - and it's not just something that's arisen because of covid?
Why is the blanket notam issued for extended periods? The one issued 20 December until today has now been renewed for another week. No surprise there!
With cat 3B available at many airports and with modern a/c and crew so validated, the mass diversions of the 70s and 80s are now a very rare occurrence in the UK. It takes heavy snow fall, storm force winds or a blocked runway to cause major problems. As ozzy points out, in today's dynamic age of technology and instant information, a few diversions from LBA or BHX occasionally shouldn't really be a big headache from a pilot or ATC perspective.
That doesn't solve the problems on the ground with GHAs, airport staff, T & Cs, attitudes etc, and as has been said, those issues can't simply be left to simmer. They have to be addressed and solutions found. To reiterate, the 'no diversions' policy is simply one example of what many perceive as a negative mentality prevailing at MAN.