Farnborough International Closed Down Early (Monday)

[Warmtoast]

Farnborough Air Show closed down early Monday afternoon because of heavy rain.
See here: https://twitter.com/FIAFarnborough


WT

[DaveReidUK]

I loved that retweet from the dopey councillor recalling how much better the show was when it was held annually (last happened in 1961-62). :ugh:

https://twitter.com/CllrVosper/status/752215605537824768

She must be older than she looks. :O

[Warmtoast]

.. and in one of her tweets calls it an "Airshoe"! If the shoe fits etc!!

[Tech Guy]

Surely they must expect rain in the UK.

Poor planning and engineering if the marquees and temporary power supplies cant handle a spot a water.

[Alan Baker]

Couldn't they have carried on behind the safety car? (One for the F1 fans!)

[philbky]

Poor planning and engineering if the marquees and temporary power supplies cant handle a spot a water.

You obviously know nothing of event planning, operation and the health and safety regulations. This was more than a spot of rain. A storm with lashing rain and lightning pushing at the design tolerances of the temporary structures, which have worked well and been upgraded over decades, and use of 3 phase power does not bode well for anyone's safety

[chevvron]

It's happened before as recently as 1974, my first Farnborough show as a controller out of 17.

[Mr Angry from Purley]

No power cut. It was turned off for elf n safety er on the side of caution. You know us Brits better safe than sorry

[pax britanica]

As a nearby resident it certainly did come down hard for a few minutes and a lot of thick dark cloud around so unlikely to see much flying let alone eelctrical hazards. Doesnt really help the image of the show though with our much (self publicised ) wrong kind of snow, leaves on the line, failure to maintain things stories. Probably they are regretting the decision to bring the show forward because of poor September weather as they look at this years summer.

[philbky]

The first day of the 2012 show was dry almost all day but the cloud was thick and dark, at periods in the flying display the light was more like winter twilight than a summer afternoon.

[Tech Guy]

You obviously know nothing of event planning, operation and the health and safety regulations. This was more than a spot of rain. A storm with lashing rain and lightning pushing at the design tolerances of the temporary structures, which have worked well and been upgraded over decades, and use of 3 phase power does not bode well for anyone's safety

Ummmmm..... actually, I do.

I worked in the entertainment industry for 15 years. Takes more than a spot of rain to shut down a festival stage. But then again, we planned for a "British Summer", i.e. torrential rain, gusty winds and lots of mud. Anything else, was a bonus. :)

[philbky]

Operating a festival is a great deal different to operating an air display accompanied by an exhibition in temporary accommodation. Whilst a festival stage may have an amount of electrical power and equipment exposed to the elements, Farnborough has a power demand equivalent to that of a small town and its many powered exhibits are susceptible to any electrical malfunction.

The exhibit halls are ranked on terraces with steep steps from some exits to ground level which, in a torrential downpour, have been known to take on the appearance of cataracts. They are also the highest points on the airfield.

Farnborough is not a gig where people are prepared to put up with rain, mud and faltering equipment. It is one of the world's premier airshows with everyone from heads of state to the interested enthusiast visiting and the major aerospace companies exhibiting and competing.

In my view, as a retired CEO of an international events company with 30 years experience of organising trade events around the world, some on airfields, I can tell you that the facilities at Farnborough are state of the art. The decision to abandon will have been taken by the organisers bearing in mind risk, loss of face and any monetary loss. As for curtailing the flying display, the flight crews, ATC and the CAA will all have had an input.

Safety is paramount, be it in the air and on the ground. If you think you can do better, I suggest you apply to the organiser, either for a position or a consultancy. I won't hold my breath.

[Dockwell]

to actually appreciate how much rain fell on the airfield you had to be there in all honesty, the band of rain was about 50 mile long but only about 5 mile wide, Farnborough, the airfield anyway, copped the lot, all 50 mile of if, blue skies could be seen to the North and South throughout the downpour, I heard Odiham got 0.1 mm of rain, Aldershot was dry, Farnborough got a months worth in an Hour

[DaveReidUK]

For those of us with long memories, Farnborough had mud long before Glastonbury was even thought of. :O