EGLL has grass runways and gooseknecks.. It's amazing how they land half a dozen in each hour!!
<<A bit insulting really to ask someone who may have been doing the job for 10 years plus to go back to school and do a basic approach or area course. >>
It always was like that but I have a vague idea that I was the first ATCO to get into the UK "Ministry" without doing all the stuff at Bournemouth and I was certainly the first at Heathrow who had never attended a UK Primary Course. I was an experienced controller and held an ICAO ATC Certificate for TWR, APC and Area and a UK Licence with validated TWR and APC ratings. When I got through the entry interview I was told I'd have to do a course at Hurn - but I told them I already had a valid UK Licence so they dropped the requirement. Then they said I needed an Initial Mediacl - same response... got a letter telling me I'd passed the medical!! I was then posted to Heathrow but had to do the APC RAD Course at Hurn first. I met some ATCOs there who were on an Adult Primary Course which I would have been on - all were expereinced, either ex-Mil or overseas - but none had protested as I had. I know that my arrival at Heathrow caused a great deal of rest-room discussion and a lot of people were miffed. However, it all worked out OK and I seem to convince them I wasn't entirely stupid by validating the TWR in record time. Radar took somewhat longer due to my inexperience!