LBA 17th Jan

[NoelEvans]

Anyone know the real reason for the delays, cancellations and diverts from LBA this morning?
https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/traffic-and-travel/live-as-flights-diverted-or-cancelled-from-leeds-bradford-airport-due-to-snow-and-ice-4481933

From that article, a statement from Leeds Bradford Airport:We are open but experiencing delays and disruptions to flights due to the adverse weather. We’d recommend passengers check with their airlines and on our website for live updates.

ALL the Metars this morning for LBA were CAVOK!

[ShyTorque]

I make a guess at icy surfaces.

[Mr Mac]

It was around -7c around us in West Yorkshire so that would be my suggestion.

Cheers
Mr Mac

[NoelEvans]

"Passenger & SLF"?? (I thought if it was going to be moved it should have been "Airlines, Airports ..."!! However.

-7C and 'icy surfaces' in CAVOK and an International Airport is closed????

I can see guffaws of laughter from many places around the world where that would be quite a mild day with flights continuing as normal...

[davidjohnson6]

It's an age old debate. Should an airport in England (no, not Scotland) spend money like Helsinki airport does ?
Go look at arrivals/departures for Cologne, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich for today (17 Jan) on FR24 - and see how much red there is. Should Leeds have a higher level of preparation than Frankfurt ? Answers on a postcard...
Even Oslo airport got caught short today and had to close briefly
https://www.aviation24.be/airports/oslo-osl/oslo-gardermoen-airport-closed-due-to-heavy-snowfall/

[Asturias56]

If its only a day every 3+ years its just not worth the investment - and remember it also involves maintenance training and extra people - who most of the time are not used for years

[SpringHeeledJack]

Yes, very hard to justify spending considerable capital and ongoing costs to keep a facility that statistically would be needed on only a few times a year. Crap for the in/outbound passengers, but really a blip over a year period. The location of LBA wasn't the wisest choice back in the day.

I was at BCN waiting to catch an internal flight some years back and it snowed, reasonably heavily. I looked out the windows from the gate to see two of the terminal cleaning staff on the wing of the aircraft(!) sweeping the snow off with a huge wide brush/flat mop. No H&S there, but they stood in the middle and managed to clear most of it off. Sadly, the ground was icy and played havoc with the ground vehicles and mine and many other flights were cancelled. No snow or deicing equipment evident, though maybe these days they have a token presence.

[Planemike]

If its only a day every 3+ years its just not worth the investment - and remember it also involves maintenance training and extra people - who most of the time are not used for years
Sure, most of the equipment is going to stand there when it is not needed but the "extra people" can be covered by multitasking....??

[redsnail]

SHJ - They may have been able to clear the wings of visible snow, but I would be cautious about ice in those conditions. Plus, the tail would not have been done.

I would guess in LBA that the icy roads etc made many workers late or unable to get into work.

[PAXboy]

Multi-tasking is difficult when you are running on (overall) minimum permanent headcount and lots of contract people. Typically, contractors are not given training as there is no long term benefit to the comnpany. If you train permanent staff in specialised vehicle usuage, that might encourage them to seek other jobs? In the last 40 years, the attitude of people to their employer has changed radically - I lived and worked through that change. Taking permanent staff away from their jobs to help out? I don't see that happening in these circumstances.

[NoelEvans]

It's an age old debate. Should an airport in England (no, not Scotland) spend money like Helsinki airport does ?
Go look at arrivals/departures for Cologne, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich for today (17 Jan) on FR24 - and see how much red there is. Should Leeds have a higher level of preparation than Frankfurt ? Answers on a postcard...
Even Oslo airport got caught short today and had to close briefly
https://www.aviation24.be/airports/oslo-osl/oslo-gardermoen-airport-closed-due-to-heavy-snowfall/

If its only a day every 3+ years its just not worth the investment - and remember it also involves maintenance training and extra people - who most of the time are not used for years

Yes, very hard to justify spending considerable capital and ongoing costs to keep a facility that statistically would be needed on only a few times a year. Crap for the in/outbound passengers, but really a blip over a year period. The location of LBA wasn't the wisest choice back in the day.

...
There appears to some idea that LBA is not at all equipped to deal with snow. LBA is equipped to deal with snow and I have seen it doing so very well on many occasions. But it was CAVOK all day. No snow.
Also:I would guess in LBA that the icy roads etc made many workers late or unable to get into work.It was dry and all the roads were well gritted by the local councils, so it is very unlikely that anyone was "unable to get into work" -- after all, the passengers managed to get to the airport...!

[Planemike]

PAXboy See what you say. Comes down to today's work attitude; "too difficult, lets not bother !!". Yes, I am a little cynical!!