Pete Bish hangs up his electric hat

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Next Tuesday, 2nd May, sees the retirement of Pete Bish a very long-serving Heathrow ATCO. Tuesday morning will be his last duty as a Heathrow Director at Terminal Control West Drayton.

Very professional ATCO, part-time pilot (balloons and fixed-wing; he owns both) and lifelong aviation enthusiast, Pete has been a stalwart member of A/V Watch since 1971 when he arrived at Heathrow Tower as an ATCO cadet off #14 Course. He has spent the last 35 years as an operational ATCO; working Heathrow Tower/Ground/Approach/Approach Radar until 1993 when the ATC unit was split and the radar controllers were bundled across to West Drayton in padded vans. From 1993 he has worked solely as a Heathrow Director on 119.725, 134.975 and 120.400 so any pilots reading this who operate into Heathrow will undoubtedly have benefitted from Pete's skill and expertise over the years.

Pete is "one of the best" - totally reliable to sit next to and always good for a laugh. On many occasions over the years he organised the well-known Heathrow Nostalgia evenings which were so popular with ATC staff and aircrew.

In retirement Pete might be lost to ATC but not to aviation as he'll have much more time to pursue his flying interests.

I worked with Pete for over 30 years and enjoyed some great times with him. I suspect that Tuesday will be an emotional time for him. I wish him all the very best of good health for a long and happy retirement.

Brendan McCartney

[Jerricho]

Pete, as a controller who had the pleasure to be trained by and work with you, I wish you all the very best in retirement. There ain't many like you mate. Thank you for the memories, and keep those balloon the right way up :ok:

(Could somebody please be sure he gets this from me. Thanks you.)

Chris Rieken.

[Loki]

Blimey! I`ve only known him 35 years.....I went yesterday BTW

[RomeoTangoFoxtrotMike]

Pete B is the one on the left... :ok:
http://i.pbase.com/v3/87/331187/2/47579641._F3O6750.jpg
Picture credit AlanM

[Lon More]

Was Pete an ATCA at LATCC before getting class to class? memory ain't what it was, but seem to remember him from D watch.

BTW Jerricho, over 1 million posts - don't you ever go to work?

[Jerricho]

I am at work :p

[747-436]

On a side note, not in ATC myself, but enjoy the book he co wrote 'Heathrow ATC The first 50 years'

[White Hart]

A long and happy retirement, Peter!

It was a small yellow box of old aircraft photos you sent to me when I was just 8 years old that sowed the seeds for my interest in aviation, and for that I must say a big "thank you".:ok:

BTW, if I ever see you cutting your Mum and Dad's lawn, I'll bring you over a beer !!(that's assuming Tony doesn't beat you to it!)

[ex-EGLL]

Bren, please pass on best wishes from Lyn and myself at the "do" tomorrow. There are at least two of his trainees in the great white north, coincidence?:\

ex-egll

[UNDERTHEROSUN1F]

On a side note, not in ATC myself, but enjoy the book he co wrote 'Heathrow ATC The first 50 years'

any idea where i can buy this ?

[747-436]

I got mine from Amazon

[AlanM]

Good luck Mr B - sorry I can't make your drinks tomorrow. At FACT airport right now....!!

All the best.

[Runway 31]

I remeber Pete when he worked at Prestwick probably the best part of 35 years ago. I still have some of his pictures. Have a long and happy retirement Pete.

[cambioso]

Hey Ho! Another of the "Old School" trot off into the sunset.......
Too many memories of working with Pete in those super pre-CCF days at LL (when ATC LL really was the "Sport Of Kings"! - At least it seamed it to a newcomer back in 1981!!) Simultaneous 28L/23 approaches, the "over the top" 05 procedure, Concorde sliding under the stacks on another freq. etc. I sooooo missed it when we had to "split" and I stayed in the Tower of London.
You were a stalwart character always steady and calm, and so easy to work with (unlike me!!), there will be a huge gap left in V watch I'm sure.
Enjoy your retirement Pete, I know you will....
Very, very best wishes to you, and I hope to see you at the next LL Nostalgia Evening (when is it BTW??).

Jez

P.S. I wasn't really THAT close to you (was I?) when I barrel-rolled around you in my "Green Thing" all those years ago!!

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Ruth and I were in the land of the screaming MacRedhairy porridge-munchers so we missed the fun last Tuesday. Pete has asked me to post the following:
Many thanks for your comments which you put on PPrune – my attention was drawn to them on Monday …..
Yesterday went well with 3 final sessions on 119.725 and my last on 120.400 (of course!) A barrage of party balloons flanked the Heathrow positions. The ATIS had been doctored early in the morning, with several aircraft coming over – including a Finnair to wish me all the best ….
Selecting a final plane was not easy. Heathrow’s last surviving prop schedules (KLM Fokker 50s from Rotterdam & Eindoven) didn’t fit my schedule; there was a distinct lack of ‘Daks, Tridents or even Concordes around yesterday (!) and I was determined that it wouldn’t be a **** airbus. So just before midday the honour of the final ‘turn-on’ was left to the lady driving BAW282 (KLAX B74-4) which I now know was G-CIVZ. Having done a few quick calculations the day before I reckon that to be not far short of ¼ million ‘report establisheds’ in 34 years!
After handing in various passes and headset it was off to Brooklands for a few beers with a fair number of V watch, including all the Heathrow team. hey were joined by members of other TC watches and retirees Arthur Budd, John Crawford, Tom Singfield, Chris Herbert, Steve Robinson and Brian Lewis.
Dave Shawe said some kind words and presented me with watch fund cheque which will go towards a Vampire flight in a couple of weeks, an engraved bay slider (new school don’t use them!) and for me a very appropriate Conc HP fan blade mounted on a London Plane (of course) wooden base – all suitably labelled up – wow! Lynne baked a lovely balloon shaped cake, complete with Pete-the-pilot in the basket. I said a few words (probably too many!) eflecting on how LATCC has changed – I’d just walked out of the very door that I entered 38½ years earlier when starting as an ATCA. I had my ower/Approach training book with me – both validations crammed on to 35 ides of A5 with comments from Chris Barrows, Dick Smith, Dennis Berriman, Tony Hall Willis, Dennis Cliffe and (especially) the late, great Paddy Haycock. Our current u/t’s found this most revealing, especially as they get through 6 sides of A4 rain forest every day now …..
It was then time to get a lift home and think of the good bits, the frighteners, the laughs and that great bunch of people I have known and
worked with for all that time. My aeroplane, balloons and photography will certainly keep me busy in retirement and I’m sure I’ll see a lot of familiar people in the course of such pursuits ….
Thanks again – Pete.
P.S. Thanks to Chris Rieken for his comments and confirm to Lon More that yes I was an ATCA III, D watch LATCC Mediator stage ½! But who is Lon More?

PPS... Here's the Concorde turbine blade they gave Pete:

http://www.members.aol.com/heathrowdirector/pb.jpg

[Talkdownman]

T'was a privilege to be there, Pete (despite you jumping the queue!)
TDM