Originally Posted by
treadigraph
G-FLYI is indeed at Biggin these days. Recall Bryan Wolfe doing the spotting way back and I believe Spencer Flack did the flying on occasion.
Anyone know why/when it stopped? Economics, traffic (increasing LCY ops must have had some effect?), or simply overtaken by the march of technology?
I believe competitor radio LBC had a helicopter for a short while, operated from Stapleford (the Capital aircraft came, I seem to recall, from Elstree).
Bryan Wolfe, for all that he seems to have come from an acting/entertaining background, certainly seemed to know his stuff about aviation, some of it came out on the radio programme, and he was also a choice for commentator at a few weekend airshows I recall. Either he was a closet aviation buff or very well briefed.
For some sort of "event" years ago Capital allowed the SVFR Director at Heathrow to talk "on-air" for a minute during the traffic session.
I also recall Bryan Wolfe having just taken part in some charity race which ended up flying from Singapore to Heathrow, the next day he referred to others taking BA or QF, but he said he had won by flying SQ and having some "good friends" in ATC looking out for the flight, and giving them a straight in - but not the others
.
Regarding light aircraft over London, there was a Cessna 172 operating out of Blackbushe doing multiple loops between LCY and Central London at about 1900 today (Sat 28/5), above the Heathrow inbounds, climbing slowly under full power (so it sounded from the ground) at about 9,000 feet. Was there a skydiving drop somewhere around Hyde Park ? Is a single OK for that ? (Land Clear Rule ? Yeah, engine failure, stick it in the Thames).