Heathrow v Northolt

[thwock]

Is there a reason why Heathrow can give you a crossing clearance imbetween two large commercial aircraft 3 miles apart yet Northolt require you to hold outside for a small business jet on a 12 mile final.

Professionalism of the controllers at heathrow or, protection given to Northolt inbounds ?????

[JimBall]

Different ATZ, different rules. Mil manual vs. NATS manual.

You should be at Denham when Northolt-bound aircraft are mistakenly on a final for Denham, thinking it's Northolt. 12 miles separation from mil sometimes isn't enough!

[Helinut]

thwock,

That difference has been noted before. It has been raised in liaison meetings but the real difference is a cultural one.

It is also a function of which sort of controllers can give visual clearances. When you talk to Heathrow tower for a Heathrow crossing, they give you a clearance/crossing based on visual separation. A radar controller in Class A airspace has to provide standard IFR separation (whether civil or military).

[tu154]

A wrong un on approach to Denham is a sight to behold, once the realisation kicks in. :)

[[email protected]]

A sad reflection on how poorly rotary traffic is perceived by RAF ATC. For so many years I have seen FW (and especially FJ) allowed priority over RW despite the fact that the controllers are all trained at RAF Shawbury which is a RW Base - though I don't think they do live tower duties there as part of the course any more.

[chevvron]

I had to spend a day at Northolt when we were training for the opening of Farnborough LARS North sector.
A helicopter wanted to carry out some visual circuits at Northolt remaining inside the airfield boundary. The Northolt Approach Radar controller refused permission because there was a police helicopter operating at Hayes only 4.5nm away, and the requirement was 5nm minimum.