brain, you ask why the threshold elevation is put on the ATIS. Well, here goes my take on it again. BRS IS ON TOP OF A 600ft HILL. If a pilot gets something wrong there's every possibility that the aeroplane will make a dent in the side of the hill before the pilot gets a chance to spot his error.........
Pilots are very aware of what the airfield/threshold elevation is and these days the transmission of this information is no longer of any benefit.
If a pilot is making an instrument approach, they will make a missed approach at the DA/MDA. The airfield elevation or the passing of that information makes little difference because;
a) The most likey reason for hitting the hill is going below minima
b) The next most likely is not setting the correct QNH or QFE or worse still setting QNH and using an D/MDH i.e. flying into Bristol and trying to descend to 200ft AMSL on an ILS with QNH set.
In those cases knowing that the hill is 600ft high makes no difference because the pilot thinks they are above it.
It is ironic that the field elevation is not passed on departure when QNH is always used and things like 1000ft checks are made at 1000ft ASFC not AMSL.
We have a bug on our altimeter set to the airfield elevation prior to approach and prior to departure not to mention the fact that it is on every chart we have.
I can imaging the guy at Innsbruck saying in a very camp voice.....the runway elevation is xxxx and we have 6000ft hills here here and here and 10000ft hills there there and there now don't go catching your little bottom on any.
On the ILS protection - don't assume that just cause the pilot is visual that protection is no longer required - the aircraft may still be completing an autoland for training or currency or equipment check.
Regards,
DFC
PS British Midland sims in Stockley Park have had lots of guys over from West Drayton in the past and made return visits. I think that the only problem controllers had with it was that they had to do it on their own time.