Read this with interest, I wasnt a spotter as a kid, just another annoying little urchin drawn to the aiport for a mooch around, used to charge around the car parks on our bikes, up the travellator things, scrounge baggage tags and watch the planes from the top of the multi story, I rememeber the rubber tiles and their distinctive odour ! I remember taking bikes up in the T1 car park lift and getting in the way of travellers, I remember the doors to said lifts having loads of baggage tag residue, mainly due to them coming off luggage but also kids sticking them on the doors to see them rip when the doors opened, remember there were no Xboxes then in 1983 or therabouts when I was 12/13.
I remember buying, randomly a travel toothbrush, dont know why, wasnt that keen on cleaning my teetch back them, seem to remember being asked nicely to move on by an airport employee, it seemed a big adventure.
I didnt fly on a plane until I was 15 on a school holiday, it had rear stairs, Bac 1-11 I think, I noticed rust as we entered up the stairs, right old heap, very noisy !
A few years later I got a job with a small freight company called M and W, would be early 1987, based in building 217, largely left to my own devices as it was me and an airport freight bloke called Peter "Biffa" Powell who was out selling, I used to have to take the post to the post office in T1 arrivals each night, a short walk away, used to get some sweets from the shop there as well, was always envious of all the people travelling on planes and would walk back and get the Bus home.
Moved to another freight company, still had to do the post run, but in a borrowed car, much more fun !
Worked on the cargo centre for a while as well, then got out of freight entirely to go to college and learn IT, over the holidays I got offered a job by a bloke in the pub i was workign in with SAS working on the bar in T1 deaprtures, serving food and drinks, cleaning up, skiving, pinching food and getting lashed on Carlsberg Elephant Beer ! excellent fun, the bosses were called Borge Ruby and his sidekick Abbas, when they went it was party time if it was quiet, or bedlam if full of holiday flight, girls grabbing innapropriate parts when collecting empties, a few lads were a bit unpleasant so I chatted to a copper I knew and pointed in their direction but not at them (they didnt know that) and as he had a machine gun the shut right up ! use to do a waiter/tray service, the tips were fantastic, used to get to go airside to change barrells and Post Mix drinks. Remember the influx of Asian People when the PIA was leaving, ancient smoking 747 packed to the gunnels, one person leaving 20 to see them go, many wailing ladies !
Used to have a large, slightly unhinged woman come in and sit for hours, as if having a conversation with someone who wasnt there, is this the Bess that was mentioned, I remember her as being Big Bertha ?
I was in T1 the other day and its barely recognisable, there is a duty free shop where the bar was I worked on, the Ice cream kiosk is long gone as is the bar down to the left, everything is now through passport control, only recognisable bits are the sock shop and that side, WHSmith has moved, used to love killing an hour reading the magazines in there back then.
Funny, now I look on those times fondly and miss them, despite having got my wish and now fly fairly often, its lost its charm though now, the airport that is.