Originally Posted by
A30yoyo
BEA set up it's own ramp facilities on Heathrow runway 28R which had been closed for tunnelling since 1952 and operated from there until the Central Area terminal opened in April 1955,( passengers were processed in the Northside terminal and bussed to 28R)
An article in, I think, Propliner magazine, by someone who was staff there in this era, described the operation. BEA used the buses they owned for Central London transfers to operate out to the aircraft. Unlike BOAC or other carriers, these were provided and crewed by London Transport under contract, using their more senior and therefore elderly drivers. They were somewhat lost working in an airside environment, and there were more than a few near misses, especially in the dark and/or rain.