MAN777 -
"there has never been any incidents ... apart from the Viscount"
Well that is alright then. That Viscount crash killed all 15 passengers, all 5 crew and two local residents on the ground (Mrs Wilding and her son). Don't you think it is rather tasteless to glibly dismiss this tragedy? And the densely populated suburbs of Stockport which you refer to have an even larger tragedy of their own to reminisce about (the BMA crash).
Absolutely minimal risk? Come and say that face-to-face with some of the older residents who experienced the Shadow Moss crash first hand. A little more sensitivity, please.
And let's not accept complacency just because those two crashes occurred many years ago. In more recent times we have seen serious accidents close to the runways of at least three major UK airports: BMA B734 at EMA, Korean Cargo B747 at STN, BAW B772 at LHR. Plenty more examples of less serious incidents too. Accidents can and do happen; we must not be dismissive of the possibility. [I have not referenced the British Airtours MAN crash here because its circumstances render it unsuitable for the purposes of this comparison].
By the way, there is no row of houses between the end of 05L and the proposed car park site. There used to be, but they were demolished some years ago to comply with ICAO requirements. They had been built before the airport as we recognise it today was a consideration. Meanwhile, approach lighting supports are specifically designed to be frangible. They do not constitute a meaningful physical barrier to an aircraft in motion.
Last edited by Shed-on-a-Pole; 26th Oct 2013 at 19:33.