LUTON -8

[LTNman]

Weekly redevelopment update

The photo shows the start of the removal of the airport sign from the front of the terminal, the start of the steelwork for the pier B link building and the terminal after it has had its old canopy cut away.




The car park has now reached its final length with just enough room reserved for an entrance and exit after the fence was moved.


Steelwork is still being erected in the corner overlooking the fire station but at the terminal end concrete has started to be poured on the floors.


The drop off zone is receiving its final layer of tarmac today with the new road to follow. As can be seen the new road is going to have to be temporary accessed via a route through the short term car park. Signage has gone up specifying a 10 minute maximum stay but with the short term car park in chaos today arriving drivers would do well to avoid this car park.


The left hand lane has a pavement that meets the road at the same height for wheelchair access while the lane on the right has a stepped kerb. This photo doesn't show it but there is still one hell of an angle to the pavement as it narrows at this end.


Work has started on the drop off exit barriers by the multistory car park.

More hoardings have gone up in the terminal. The terminal is feeling rather small at the moment.

[LTNman]

I mentioned in my last post about chaos in the short term car park today. This was caused by a meet and greet company called Swift who operate from a small section of the short term car park. With a lack of drivers and a lack of space they were directing cars to block in other car park users.

Despite this desperate measure often the traffic queues to Swift would not move for minutes. This stopped all other traffic from entering the short term car park and the drop off area, which at times was almost empty. With the traffic jammed up through the tunnel all the Airport Duty Manager could do was watch in horror.

Photo shows some of the lines of cars that had blocked in cars that had parked properly.

[AvGeek1]

Progress seems to be going well as always, especially with the multi-story and the drop off zone. Also with the start of steelworks being put into place for the new pier.

However, the car park issue to quite a serious matter and it has to happen on a Bank Holiday weekend, one of the busiest times!

[LTNman]

There were 5 cranes operating in the CTA on Tuesday with the CTA looking every bit like a construction site which it is but whenever there is a bank holiday work slows down either side of it. Today there was only 1 crane in operation and many workers have disappeared for a 5 day weekend.

[Falcon666]

Easyjet 2021 to Faro just returned to Luton after reaching the French north coast ---
Reason on Easyjet website -Passenger discrepancy ???
What happened there?

[LTNman]

Shared gate with wrong people on wrong flight? What happened to the head count?

[planedrive]

easyJet got rid of head counts when they went to allocated seating. All saves a couple of seconds on the turnaround.. or so we're told! Only time it happens now is when the numbers don't add up.

[LTNman]

I bet those thought they were on their way. Now they are stuck at Luton.

[Falcon666]

Chances are the flight was full or near as damn it due to it being Bank holiday weekend.
Think there might be some serious questions asked !!

[LTNman]

The flight and its return leg have been delayed for 24 hours and will now depart tonight on a different flight number. Sounds like a larger aircraft might have been chartered and that easyjet will combine both todays and yesterdays flights. I wonder how much this is costing the airline when you add up compensation, hotel accommodation and maybe an aircraft charter?

Changing the subject, at the moment the tailback is exactly the same length as this time last week so the bank holiday weekend is not adding to the problem.

[FRatSTN]

Looks like this winter also could really put LTN up to the test. Below is part of how the departure schedule currently looks on a Monday morning during Winter 2016/17...

EZY2365 07:40 Lisbon
W63302 07:40 Cluj-Napoca
W68002 07:40 Vilnius
EZY2295 07:45 Reykjavik-Keflavik
VY7971 07:45 Zurich
VY8405 07:45 Amsterdam
EZY2263 07:50 Barcelona
W61802 07:55 Wroclaw
W64302 07:55 Sofia
EZY2155 08:00 Amsterdam
TO3641 08:00 Paris-Orly
W63652 08:05 Iasi
W61302 08:15 Warsaw-Chopin
W62202 08:15 Budapest
W64552 08:20 Bourgas
W67692 08:30 Poprad/Tatry
W61602 08:35 Gdansk
EZY063 08:40 Glasgow-International
EZY2403 08:40 Malaga
FR7404 08:40 Copenhagen
W61002 08:40 Katowice
W62066 08:40 Lublin
W63002 08:40 Bucharest
0B2932 08:45 Bacau
EZY011 08:45 Edinburgh
VY7965 08:50 Barcelona
FR3256 09:00 Nimes
ZB1026 09:15 Tel Aviv
FR8142 09:55 Knock
EZY2157 10:10 Amsterdam
EZY153 10:45 Inverness

[FRatSTN]

and arrivals...

W62501 06:55 Riga
VY7970 07:05 Zurich
VY8404 07:05 Amsterdam
W63301 07:10 Cluj-Napoca
W68001 07:10 Vilnius
TO3640 07:25 Paris-Orly
W61801 07:25 Wroclaw
W64301 07:25 Sofia
W63651 07:35 Iasi
W61301 07:40 Warsaw-Chopin
W62201 07:40 Budapest
W61601 07:50 Gdansk
W61901 07:50 Poznan
W62065 07:50 Lublin
0B2931 07:55 Bacau
W61001 07:55 Katowice
W67673 08:00 Kosice
VY7964 08:05 Barcelona
W63001 08:05 Bucharest
EZY182 08:10 Belfast-International
EZY062 08:15 Glasgow-International
FR7403 08:15 Copenhagen
EZY012 08:20 Edinburgh
FR332 09:30 Dublin
EZY2152 09:35 Amsterdam
EZY184 09:55 Belfast-International
EZY2432 10:15 Paris-Charles de Gaulle
EZY2050 10:25 Geneva

[Boeing737-8]

Good to see Vueling carrying on Zurich for the winter period with a daily service. I believe it's gonna be a lot worst that your lists this next couple of weeks.

[Buster the Bear]

Luton must be getting close to the record daily movement rate set a few years ago which was about 500 in 24 hours?

[pabely]

Still can't believe how much VVIP traffic comes and goes even in the AM and PM crush!

[LTNman]

Five or six aircraft queuing along Alpha for a 26 takeoff is happening not only first thing in the morning. At the other end the queue splits at the intersection with aircraft often waiting on the bridge and by the south stands. At that point aircraft are kept on stands.

The tendering for the taxiway extension at the 08 end is finished so work should start soon on that and other apron extensions. They need to get cracking while the soil is summer dry rather than start in the wet winter months.

[wallp]

I see there was a FLR flight yesterday - is there a chance this route might become permanent for Vueling?

[musicmike]

Ezy Faro

Originally Posted by LTNman

The flight and its return leg have been delayed for 24 hours and will now depart tonight on a different flight number. Sounds like a larger aircraft might have been chartered and that easyjet will combine both todays and yesterdays flights. I wonder how much this is costing the airline when you add up compensation, hotel accommodation and maybe an aircraft charter?

Changing the subject, at the moment the tailback is exactly the same length as this time last week so the bank holiday weekend is not adding to the problem.

The gate staff neglected to scan a boarding pass so told crew there 175 pax. The flight had left already when the discrepancy was discovered. Captain radioed back to base for confirmation but ground staff and others did not respond. He had to make the decision to return to Luton as this was a security issue. Once back the ground crew knew exactly which pass it was they had missed. Captain tried to get the plane refuelled so they could still do the flight. However the tanker that came didn't have enough fuel for the flight and by the time they found another one it was too late as Faro has a curfew which they had already extended. Massive failure by handling company on the ground.
Ezy did not charter a larger plane. They used one of their own to do the rescheduled flights 24 hours later.

[LTNman]

So someone decided to do head count on board after it was airborne. I wonder what made them do that?

[musicmike]

Originally Posted by LTNman

So someone decided to do head count on board after it was airborne. I wonder what made them do that?

Member of crew noticed not enough empty seats I think so it was double checked. Unfortunately ground handling team did not respond to captains radio requests