View Full Version : Why not Wisley?
No comment
23rd Jul 2002, 15:58
Hearing all these suggestions for "third" runways between the A4/M4 and a cliffe lap kok in the thames, my mind began to wander and I'm now wondering whether anyone has thought of losing the 146s/RJs, ATRs and all the other little stuff out to the redundant Wisley. Perfectly situated at the A3/M25 interchange and near to one of the main rail lines into London there are a couple of miles of concrete out there capable of taking (back in the 70's) a VC-10.
Ok so anyone whose driven round the M25 will know the jams that are possible down there but a monorail over the M25 (or Livingstone's idea of an orbital railway would connect it with
Heathrow etc.
Such a shame to see the airfield wasted. (someone wanted to build an incinerator on it once). The only current schedule is a day 7 rotation when someone walks their dog up there.
Any comments/suggestions/arguments?
NC
treadigraph
23rd Jul 2002, 16:33
Not sure that it's much more than a mile long; wasn't the VC-10 quite nippy in the short TO run stakes?
I suspect the problem would be plenty of affluent nimbies, plus the RHS Gardens. Can't see it somehow.
You're right though, perfect for RJs etc, and a damn shame it's wasted. Take it the runway IS still there?
HEATHROW DIRECTOR
23rd Jul 2002, 16:40
No thanks! It's a little too close to Heathrow to integrate the traffic patterns in my opinion.
Roobarb
23rd Jul 2002, 17:01
Not good for the begonias at Wisley Gardens, also might cause a bit of a hoo-hah from the burgers of St George's Hill who own the country. My choice would be a third parallel runway north of the A4. Of course such a development would require the demolition of Waterside. Hmmm
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Big Tudor
23rd Jul 2002, 17:01
Mmmm. Could prove a little sporting for the poor LHR boys if Wisley were launching Eastbound. As treadigraph says, can't see the WI being too chuffed about it either.
Seem to remember there was a problem with the approach into Farnborough as well!
ATCO Two
24th Jul 2002, 00:27
Waterside would make a wonderful Terminal 6. Many a true word etc., etc.
Engineer
24th Jul 2002, 06:59
No should expand Manston Good part about that is the project could be done cheap by using the immigrant labour force that resides in the garden of England.
canberra
24th Jul 2002, 17:44
on the subject of wisley why not use it and places such as biggin and blackbushe and all the other small airfields in the london area as biz jet airports? could they also be used for the bucket and spade charter traffic to take some of the work load off lgw, or even use dunsfold? i know that heathrow probably wouldnt like it, but having seen in the paper that they want 3 more runways at stansted, i wonder if heathrow could go the way of croydon?
atco-matic
25th Jul 2002, 01:07
Erm I think your memory is a bit blurred about the 70s here... not that I'm old enough to remember... but i have read in books... wasnt the VC10 only operated out of/ into Wisley empty??? I seem to remember them struggling to get it in when the VC10 went into Brooklands museum and also when the Vanguard went there ffor the museum too! But thats just what I've read in the books at work!
treadigraph
25th Jul 2002, 12:28
VC-10s and Wisley would have been the 60s - I think they built all the VC- 10s at Brooklands and flew them to Wisley for flight test...
Beautiful aeroplane, I flew on a BOAC aircraft out to Nairobi in 1969, and back in 1971 on one of EAA's. Sadly I was too damn young to appreciate it at the time!
I hope the RAF never retire them...