Many people have mentioned about the closure of A9W, on the night before we autolanded and then rolled as fast as we could on a flooded 09L to try to make A8 ASAP. We started turning off at 30kts, and that’s as fast as we could safely achieve. Planning on anything west of that was unacceptable due to the runway state, and the fact that if you miss your turn, it’s a long way down to the next useable exit.
Even so the unfortunate chap behind us was sent around. That was particularly embarrassing
, but we genuinely couldn’t do it any faster. With so many aircraft hurting for fuel, it seemed to us that about one in six were going around, which must’ve made for a lot of grey hair.
May I suggest that Heathrow gets A9W back in service as soon as possible? It can’t be as urgent as resurfacing taxiway Alpha round the north east corner with its gum wrenching potholes.
