Originally Posted by
VickersVicount
Wonder if you asked general public if MAN invested in more and better snow clearing infrastructure and diverted limited funds from eg security queues what they might complain of next?
Perhaps a visit to Innsbruck or Salzburg how to manage (very well predicted) short lived 1-2” of snow ?
I'll keep this brief because most users of this site will be familiar with the following. The temperature at MAN this morning was in the region of 0 to -3C. When snow falls in this temperature range, it is
wet snow which rapidly turns slushy and can then freeze. If it is projected upwards onto metal surfaces by aircraft undercarriage it tends to freeze instantly. This is THE most dangerous snow state from an aviation perspective, and airports including MAN are absolutely correct to not 'wing it' under such conditions (excuse the pun) - it has to be 'safety first' every time. They actually did a very good job getting the airport reopened in the timescale they did this morning.
As for citing airports such as Innsbruck and Salzburg, two factors come into play. Much of their snowfall is dry ('powder') snow which is less dangerous to aviation and much easier to deal with. You can get rid of alot of it with blowers, as it doesn't adhere to surfaces in the way wet snow does. Powder snow can also be compacted into a decent braking surface under certain circumstances. Finally, at airports which receive frequent and substantial snowfall - both of those airports you mention serve popular winter sports regions - it is more viable financially to invest in additional expensive snow clearing equipment. How many days over an average Winter see such equipment required at MAN? And even then, is it for afew hours like today, or for the whole H24?