Coventry - is this usual for GA traffic?
Last week I had a meeting in Coventry, and since it was a nice day elected to fly rather than drive.
Turned up, visual right base join, was asked to park on the grass next to Air Atlantique's fascinating collection of vintage aircraft (although gratified to note that my own taildragging steed was older and rarer than most of them). No problems so far.
Now what? No indication of where to go. Lacking guidance of any description walked to the tower. Waited 5 minutes for somebody to talk to me, eventually told "not here, somewhere the other side of your aeroplane". About ten minutes later, after several confused directions from passing airport staff who didn't seem to know either, eventually found my way to a place called "Anson House". Where, I must say everybody was very friendly and helpful - even got a free cup of Earl Grey tea, and a taxi ordered for me. However the £30 for landing + parking (from about 1100-1600!) was rather steep for a light single.
Went off to my meeting, got "stuff" done, returned to airport.
Sign out was easy enough - just phone the tower on a dedicated phone and pass my details. Five minute walk to my aircraft, start up, taxi to A1 hold, run-up, call ready for departure.
... and wait whilst they clear a couple of landing light aircraft
... and wait for several minutes whilst an A109 is hover-taxied across the runway for fuel.
This was about five minutes, fair enough.
... then wait (approx.) ten minutes whilst they decided to send various emergency services out on the runway to remove some "boards" (not entirely sure what).
... then remind tower I'm still waiting, told to wait for a 737 on the ILS.
... wait several minutes longer (plenty of time to get out), watch 737 land, told to line up and wait. This is 19 minutes after I originally called ready for departure.
... Now sit and watch 737 turning, backtracking half of the runway and turning off because it seemed to have landed long (I'm sure when I've been a pax in a full 737 it didn't need nearly all of 2km of dry into-wind runway to stop - brake saving measures possibly?).
... Finally, roughly 23-24 minutes after I'd called ready for departure (and after watching five aircraft movements) given take-off clearance. As a result, arrived back at my home airfield 5 minutes after closing time - not a habit I like to make.
I'm sure that every individual action that held me up was justifiable in some way (except for the lack of any clear signeage for visiting pilots to sign in), but it did appear that the general management was somewhat shambolic. Certainly inconsistent with the highest landing fee that I've paid in a couple of years, and irritating that it all made me late at both ends of my journey.
Or am I just turning into a grumpy old man?
G