Heathrow before the Europa terminal and Queens building

[scotbill]

When I moved to Viscounts at London in 1960 the staff carpark for the Queens Building was a green field next door - which subsequently became the site of Terminal 1
O5 L may have been shorter than the others but I remember landing a Comet on it mid-60s. No problem with a strong north easterly

[DaveReidUK]

Originally Posted by scotbill

When I moved to Viscounts at London in 1960 the staff carpark for the Queens Building was a green field next door - which subsequently became the site of Terminal 1
O5 L may have been shorter than the others but I remember landing a Comet on it mid-60s. No problem with a strong north easterly

In the 60s, BEA supplemented the Vanguards between LHR and EDI, with its then 6000' runway (shorter than LHR 05L) and frequent crosswinds, substituting Comets on some services to compete with BUA and its 1-11s.

[scotbill]

Actually the Trident 3b was more challenging than either the Comet or Vanguard on EDI 31.

[pax britanica]

Wasn't the short runway at EDI ,one of the reasons the Trident 3 had its 'extra engine . In fact as I now recall my landing on 05 was a T3 with some of the internal decor having the word Shuttle on it

[treadigraph]

Originally Posted by SimonPaddo

Anyone else willing to admit to buying JP World Airline Fleets from VHF supplies for spotting?

I certainly bought at least one copy when I was about 13 or 14 - Civil Aircraft Markings was a bit limited in what was included.

Great thread, please keep the memories flowing!

[DaveReidUK]

Originally Posted by pax britanica

Wasn't the short runway at EDI, one of the reasons the Trident 3 had its 'extra engine.

I'm not so sure that EDI performance in particular was a design driver, but there's no doubt it helped.

Of course the real reason was that, with the curvature of the Earth being less up north, that couldn't be relied upon to get the aircraft airborne.

[eckhard]

Gravity's stronger up there too, and you're further from the helpful pull of the moon .......

[Kiltrash]

My first flight I can just remember was early '60's and would be 7or. 8. Edinburgh to London in the Vanguard. Looking at the Aircraft I thought it was a space rocket and in flight it sounded like one....
Now although I cannot remember the incident I was taken to the cockpit for the ctuise and possibly not strapped for the landing and there is / was a photo long lost of the event.😐
Later experienced a couple of Trident flights to EDI and I remember landing and stopping just before the fence and was pushed back to turn to the terminal. ..

[mcdhu]

Witnessed quite a few Vanguard, Trident and 1-11 (BUA) 'arrivals' onto RW 13 at EDI while on the UAS and AEF. This was in the late 60s before Edinburgh had radar; the routing was 'OE' and 'TRH' NDBs, procedure turn followed by ILS 13. I don't think there was an instrument approach onto RW 31 and so with a strong westerly, there was a tailwind and a crosswind. Great spectator sport!!
mcdhu

[ExBa]

Originally Posted by WHBM

Yes, I think Heathrow House (still there) had worked through a few tenants, including BA, as I recall a continuing problem with telephone crossed lines with a BA back office elsewhere (in passing an aspect of telecoms that has gone completely away). The company took over the whole building some time in the late 1970s, and moved out 10 years later. The building had a substantial "refacing" of the glazed front A4 elevation, including much more rigorous double glazing. Phone number 01-759-6522 I recall (which appears thus to have been circulating uselessly in my brain these last 35 years ...).

Worked in BOAC purchasing department for a while 1970, we moved from TBA into temporary accommodation at Heathrow House before the final move to the offices top of TBC. Now that provided fantastic views for the approach for 28R. Including a birds eye view of the 707 engine fire whilst performing engine runs.

[WHBM]

Edinburgh : I seem to have been everywhere that gets discussed, and I was at university there early-mid 1970s, from the first discussions about the "new" runway (with its approach directly over our professor's house in Cramond, so we heard it all) through to its opening and the new terminal. For some reason three of the four major airports in Scotland in that era, Prestwick, Aberdeen and Edinburgh, all had their main runways at right angles to the prevailing wind. Only Glasgow was the "right way round". There was extensive coverage that because of the short runway BA had to continue using Vanguards, not jets, but when BUA started One-Eleven ops to Gatwick there were Comets, and then Tridents, slipped in at competitive times, and by the time the new runway was complete it was an all-Trident operation anyway.

Bits of the old terminal, on the opposite side of the airport, were still there when I last looked some years ago, a set which would have given Heathrow Northside a good run in the ramshackle stakes. It faced the ramp and didn't even have double glazing - Vanguards manoeuvring directly in front of the windows made any communication impossible. As these doing so were audible from up at Edinburgh Castle, 6 miles away, it must have been ear splitting for the staff.

Well remember when BUA became B Cal they introduced a 10pm departure "Moonjet" to Gatwick. I think the fare was £6.60 each way. In more recent times I went up to Edinburgh when a 146 was operating some of the Scot Airways flights from London City, otherwise a Dornier turboprop run. Left the terminal one evening, maybe 15 years ago, turned an unusual way, and actually did a runway 13 takeoff to the south-east. Just like a generation beforehand.

[DaveReidUK]

Originally Posted by WHBM

Well remember when BUA became B Cal they introduced a 10pm departure "Moonjet" to Gatwick. I think the fare was £6.60 each way.

It was indeed £6.60. I used it just the once, while I was waiting for my BEA concessions to kick in, from which point onwards it cost me £2.20 return to go back and visit my folks, who lived in Cramond and were strong supporters of the new runway.

With admirable foresight, they had built a ground-floor extension in the early 1970s which included a skylight.

[chevvron]

When I was at Glasow doing my tower training, we had a Vanguard come in on a 3 engine ferry with about a 60 deg crosswind.
All looked 'normal' until at about 100ft, I think he must have dropped full flap and the aircraft's attitude became VERY steep nose down just before flaring.
Prior to this, my instructor had asked me what 'standby' I would put on and I replied 'Local Standby' but he said 'no, Full Emergency; you'll see why'.
And I did!!

[chevvron]

Originally Posted by DaveReidUK

It was indeed £6.60. I used it just the once, while I was waiting for my BEA concessions to kick in, from which point onwards it cost me £2.20 return to go back and visit my folks, who lived in Cramond and were strong supporters of the new runway.

Explains why in mid 1972, BEA introduced a '£13.20p return' offer from Glasgow (maybe Edinburgh too?); you had to travel out and return weekends only a week apart to take advantage so I booked to go to Heathrow one saturday, hiring a car at Heathrow to visit my parents in Chesham, returning the following sunday.
No concessions for ATCOs those days; we were still Civil Servants and a concession, in the eyes of our bosses at the DoTI, could have been interpreted as being a 'bribe' to get preferential treatment for whichever airline we travelled on. (At least that was the 'official' reason)

[WHBM]

A bit more on 1970s Moonjet experience here : Old Timer's Airline Quiz and Discussion. - Page 92 - FlyerTalk Forums

[PAXboy]

chevvron

... could have been interpreted as being a 'bribe' to get preferential treatment for whichever airline we travelled on.

Pal of mine who works a tower in the UK says that the only priority is if one of their colleagues is on board waiting for a departure. They try to make sure their holidays get off to a good start! They later report that the flight deck said: "Well, ladies and gentlemen, I'm glad to say that our slot has been brought forward. Cabin Crew please take your seats."

[allegedly]

[treadigraph]

Originally Posted by Jhieminga

Feels a bit like I'm peddling books here... my apologies... but I too can recommend Sky Talk vol.1, see here: https://amzn.to/38ghgv4, also available from the publisher here: Sky Talk | Sunrise Publishing

My copy is arriving later today .

I was also reminded of another excellent and relevant book when moving a pile of recently read tomes last night:

Flight From the Croft by Bill Innes

Flight From the Croft by Bill Innes

This is an account of his flying career which encompasses most of the types operated by BEA/BA, plus more besides. My copy has now been recycled - to the "waiting to be read" pile, and hopefully by the time I've read it again, my bookshelves will be back up to provide a more fitting home than the top of a chest of drawers...

Recommended.

[Dave Gittins]

My recollection from visiting VHF Supplies (regularly by bicycle in the 1960s on a Saturday from home in Isleworth) was that one Brian Stainer also inhabited VHF Supplies shop, from where he sold his photos and slides as APN; Aviation Photo News.

And on the subject of pubs in the area, my favourite was always the Green Man, from where, sitting in the garden with a pint of Watneys you could reach up and touch the tyres of planes landing on 28L and later on 27 L

[treadigraph]

There used to be a shop on Selsdon Road in South Croydon which did mail order aircraft slides and prints - think it might have been Brian Stainer? I never went there as I bought postcards as a lad (or raided airline offices) but wasn't much interested in other people's pics.

Edit: quick research suggests definitely not Brian Stainer, does anyone else recall it? Sure they used to advertise in Air Pictorial, etc...

[pax britanica]

The Green Man at Hatton cross was indeed a good place for inbounds but you couldn't see the departures from the other side of the airport and Iwas too young to be on 'licensed premises' so it was the Cains lane A 30 junction for me. Another pub with good views on the right day (ie wind in right direction) was the Rising Sun at the end of Oaks Raod in Stanwell , cross the bridge over the two rivers and you are in the airport but the Cargo centre damaged the views when it came along

Brian Stainer I do remember , I think he had a bad leg and limp IIRC but he would stop by that junction for a chat with some of the more veteran spotters of that group. For some reason I think he had a red Del Boy style vehicle but that was an awfully long time ago. I know he was a keen and commercial photographer though and a good source of info on what might be around on the airfields local to LHR like Denham, Northolt, Fairoaks etc