LVP's required when vis drops below 600m and cloud base is 200 feet or less, or when the airport deems that LVP's are necessary, or when the limits are approaching! So MAN didn't need LVP's yesterday, but they did need something to help them out of the hole, unfortunately the line to God was out of order!!
I was unfortunate to be working yesterday at early o'clock to do a "quick" Geneva, when the place ground to a halt
. It was a nightmare, the stands were very icy, so fuel trucks wouldn't approach, and the one's that did couldn't open the hatch in the ground to connect up due to the ice. Most aircraft had de-iced in preparation for departure
, unfortunately it then snowed and the place closed, causing all those that had been de-iced to need doing again
. Trying to co-ordinate this with ATC who did their level best to keep everyone informed as to when the runway would be open again was nigh on impossible, particularly with the frequency of the showers! I consider myself to be fortunate to have juggled the balls and not to have dropped one, as I got us away with 2hrs 20 mins delay
.
Getting back mid/late afternoon was another shocker. London advised that MAN was closed and that we should slow down, that MAN was estimating to open at 15:00. This pushed back to 15:20, just as we joined the hold at Dayne
. 15 mins later, and now with unhealthy looking fuel gauges we were still holding, with a distinct lack of info from ATC
. After another 5 mins ATC kindly put us out of our misery and advised they'd report again in another 15 mins
, straight to Leeds for us, Liverpool for the rest amongst us.
The taxi back over the Pennines was unbelievable, but we did eventually make it, and our day was over, my "quick" Geneva had taken us 15 hours
.
What a day for my poor SFO who I was running a command assessment on
.
I'd say to those that keep on knocking the place from their homes without even having looked at the place to shut up and get a grip, MAN ATC did their best, MAN Airport did their best with the equipment that they have at their disposal, and I really don't think that many places would have done very much better, and I have spent almost 2 years working for a Swedish operator in the frozen north of Scandinavia!