MANSTON -3
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Indeed it was - take off and landings taken by a helicopter film/camera team. It then took off and was met by jet film/camera team to take shots of it going round and round clouds out in the English channel area.
New paint job looked good - got some great shots myself.
New paint job looked good - got some great shots myself.
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Edi -Manston routing
I was surprised when flying this route last week, that it didn't fly down the East coast. It actually overflew Heathrow and routed south of London.
Why does it take this strange route?
Why does it take this strange route?
There will be those more knowledgeable who can give a more detailed answer but believe it is to do with the amount of military, restricted airspace in the east of the country
niknak
Join Date: Dec 2001
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Edi -Manston route
I was surprised when flying this route last week, that it didn't fly down the East coast. It actually overflew Heathrow and routed south of London.
Why does it take this strange route?
I was surprised when flying this route last week, that it didn't fly down the East coast. It actually overflew Heathrow and routed south of London.
Why does it take this strange route?
1. The East Coast is indeed the uncontrolled playground of the military, G/A up to high level and much other commercial activity.
2. The East Coast route between East Anglia and Essex increasingly becomes incredibly complex controlled airspace for traffic from the east routing into Luton and Stansted as well as the rest of the TMA.
3. Flybe, like many other UK operators, prefer to remain within controlled airpsace (CAS) and, although the route North to South within CAS may add extra track miles, it is the safer and better service that the clients (you) pay for.
For years there has been a lobby for a direct North - South airway but it hasn't happened yet and won't until this Government kill off all of our miltary airborne Ops entirely.
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For years there has been a lobby for a direct North - South airway but it hasn't happened yet and won't until this Government kill off all of our miltary airborne Ops entirely.
Join Date: Apr 2001
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A proposal for a southbound-only route off Norfolk, available 0001-0830 hours only, was in NATS's TC North airspace proposal in 2008, but the whole TC North plan was ditched in 2009 and NATS now says the traffic levels which drove it won't return until "at least 2013-14".
NS
NS
Join Date: Feb 2006
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Manston Airport
KENT County Council is today (Friday) making a bid for £10 million Government investment into a train station to serve Manston airport.
Kent County Council to bid for £10 million grant for a parkway rail station near Manston Airport. It says Infratil have agreed in principle to making a £500,000 contribution towards the cost.
Lets hope there are some passengers soon then who can use this service
Kent County Council to bid for £10 million grant for a parkway rail station near Manston Airport. It says Infratil have agreed in principle to making a £500,000 contribution towards the cost.
Lets hope there are some passengers soon then who can use this service
Join Date: Jul 2009
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Actually CB, I think there could be a business case for this one (tell me if you think I'm being a class 1 idiot). Heathrow is full to overflowing; Gatwick only has a single runway and is utilised quite efficiently - therefore also nearly full up. Stansted and Luton don't have and aren't near high speed railway lines, and Luton's runway is only 2105m. Southend will only handle European traffic for the foreseeable future.
Manston, meanwhile, has one of the longest runways in the SE England and has on average just two schuduled flights each day.
Rather than chucking a massive airport in the Thames (where it will be very expensive and sea levels may rise...), it would probably be cheaper and wiser to use Manston.
You can link it to high speed railways into London and there you have competition with Heathrow, being able to take medium- and some long-haul flights which eases the strain on our already congested main London hub.
The only real issue would be noise and Ramsgate, which is a real problem.
Manston, meanwhile, has one of the longest runways in the SE England and has on average just two schuduled flights each day.
Rather than chucking a massive airport in the Thames (where it will be very expensive and sea levels may rise...), it would probably be cheaper and wiser to use Manston.
You can link it to high speed railways into London and there you have competition with Heathrow, being able to take medium- and some long-haul flights which eases the strain on our already congested main London hub.
The only real issue would be noise and Ramsgate, which is a real problem.
Yep - there *could* be a business case for using Manston to provide additional capacity in the South East, but that case would have to be made before spending £10m on a rail link to an airport which gets a couple of hundred passengers on a good day.
I'm all for investing in infrastructure but given the current constraints on govt spending I can't believe this a priority - somebodies having a laugh here.
I'm all for investing in infrastructure but given the current constraints on govt spending I can't believe this a priority - somebodies having a laugh here.
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Maybe more significant in the article is this line
The bid also includes potential funding for a new daily air service from Manston to an undisclosed European "hub airport".
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Stansted and Luton don't have and aren't near high speed railway lines
Luton doesn't need a high speed rail line as some if its trains already arrive from London in only 22 minutes. Saying that there is then the 5 minute bus ride to the terminal.
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The report makes no mention of diverting, building a spur on to, the railway line, I read it that they plan a new station, at significant cost, on to the existing railway line, this would incur a bus shuttle to/from the airport, I'm not familiar with the local area but could the existing 'Minster' station not serve this purpose and save a bucket load of taxpayers money in the process ... or does this country, with VAT etc. prices rising, high unemployment levels etc, have such monies to waste to keep a minority of aviation enthusiasts satisfied?
As example CWL has a railway station, they nenamed Rhoose village station 'Airport' and, I think, a bus shuttle to/from is provided, if Manston is trying to copycat SEN then Manston doesn't have SEN's advantage of a railway line passing by the end of the runway!
And as for funding, subsidising, a route to/from a European hub, well to take CWL again as an example, CWL has a subsidised route to/from, of all places, RAF Valley and, for the next 4 years, every seat is taxpayer subsidised to the tune of £65.00, if a route needs to be subsidised to that tune to make it work then it's time to realise such a route isn't feasible ..... I hasten to add that, in Wales, a senior politician resides local to RAF Valley and has regular business in Cardiff ... go figure
STN might not be mainline but it has the Stansted Express in to London, and rail links to the north, I'm no fan of LTN, and it is mainly LoCo, but it is right on the M1 motorway for road connections to anywhere and STN remains with plenty of capacity and with an often required (for heavy long haul) longer runway than Manston.
As example CWL has a railway station, they nenamed Rhoose village station 'Airport' and, I think, a bus shuttle to/from is provided, if Manston is trying to copycat SEN then Manston doesn't have SEN's advantage of a railway line passing by the end of the runway!
And as for funding, subsidising, a route to/from a European hub, well to take CWL again as an example, CWL has a subsidised route to/from, of all places, RAF Valley and, for the next 4 years, every seat is taxpayer subsidised to the tune of £65.00, if a route needs to be subsidised to that tune to make it work then it's time to realise such a route isn't feasible ..... I hasten to add that, in Wales, a senior politician resides local to RAF Valley and has regular business in Cardiff ... go figure
STN might not be mainline but it has the Stansted Express in to London, and rail links to the north, I'm no fan of LTN, and it is mainly LoCo, but it is right on the M1 motorway for road connections to anywhere and STN remains with plenty of capacity and with an often required (for heavy long haul) longer runway than Manston.
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Agreed that Stansted is suitable, however the airlines appear suffer in Britain of Heathrow syndrome, where all the national flag carriers and other full service airlines all wish to fly to Heathrow. Gatwick now hosts easyJet mainly, BA to a lesser extent, some Eastern European flag carriers, a small Ryanair operation and of course all the package tour airlines.
They appear to have a similar situation in Paris where many major airlines will only fly to Charles de Gaulle, even though Orly is rather well positioned. Quite remarkable.
Anyway what I'm trying to say is that it will be a struggle to pull airlines away from Heathrow, but it is something that will have to be done in the near future.
If you can do it at Manston then all the better - because in 50 years time with a shortage of fossil fuels I should doubt very much that we will need asphalt runways in their present form and therefore concreteing up the Thames is demonstrating a considerable lack of foresight.
They appear to have a similar situation in Paris where many major airlines will only fly to Charles de Gaulle, even though Orly is rather well positioned. Quite remarkable.
Anyway what I'm trying to say is that it will be a struggle to pull airlines away from Heathrow, but it is something that will have to be done in the near future.
If you can do it at Manston then all the better - because in 50 years time with a shortage of fossil fuels I should doubt very much that we will need asphalt runways in their present form and therefore concreteing up the Thames is demonstrating a considerable lack of foresight.
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Aeromad:
It's clear that only people of your vintage 
have that foresight. Pleasing, then, to know that the number of 90-year-olds is steadily increasing. Maybe when the Transport Secretary is 90 we'll get some sense.
NS
in 50 years time with a shortage of fossil fuels I should doubt very much that we will need asphalt runways in their present form and therefore concreteing up the Thames is demonstrating a considerable lack of foresight
have that foresight. Pleasing, then, to know that the number of 90-year-olds is steadily increasing. Maybe when the Transport Secretary is 90 we'll get some sense. NS