Run! It's the Spotter Police
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It's easy to take the pi55 but if you have a regular group of unpaid people hanging around your airport, why not utilise their local knowledge?
I know how many police officers are on duty at LHR on a normal day, and I am not going to post it here for obvious reasons. More pairs of eyes can only help. Terrorism makes us all auxiliary security people doesn't it?
And what's wrong with spotters anyway? I was a London Airport spotter from the age of about 11 to about 13. I learnt a lot, and I developed a lifelong interest in aviation.
What's wrong with that?
I know how many police officers are on duty at LHR on a normal day, and I am not going to post it here for obvious reasons. More pairs of eyes can only help. Terrorism makes us all auxiliary security people doesn't it?
And what's wrong with spotters anyway? I was a London Airport spotter from the age of about 11 to about 13. I learnt a lot, and I developed a lifelong interest in aviation.
What's wrong with that?
Helicopter Pilots Get It Up Quicker
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Well I could never be classed as a spotter as I can just about tell a 747 from the others but not much else... Also could record numbers as being a helo pilot I struggle with letters and numbers! 
BUT, I have to say it is nice to be able to sit alongside the threshold and watch them take off and land, especially when its a bit windy!
Or take a drive around the perimeter track at LGW and watch the spotters struggle to see over the fence!
And get PAID for it! Hey thats the wnd perk Ive found working for the NHS in the last few days...
Also this sounds rather like the new inititive at LGW to encourage airport workers to be more observant to suspicious things...
PW
BUT, I have to say it is nice to be able to sit alongside the threshold and watch them take off and land, especially when its a bit windy!
Or take a drive around the perimeter track at LGW and watch the spotters struggle to see over the fence!
And get PAID for it! Hey thats the wnd perk Ive found working for the NHS in the last few days...
Also this sounds rather like the new inititive at LGW to encourage airport workers to be more observant to suspicious things...
PW
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AerBabe
That is the spotter equivalent of the female cat shoving her bum in the male cats face to get his attention
They'll stalk you for it
That is the spotter equivalent of the female cat shoving her bum in the male cats face to get his attention
They'll stalk you for it
Avoid imitations
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I was manning a static green heli at a military open day in about 1979.
A spotter came up, notebook in hand and asked in a loud voice: "Ah - is this the aircraft that was on exercise ****** in Germany in February 1974?"
"I don't know" I replied, "It might be".
"But surely you know the history of your aircraft!" came the belittling reply.
"Look mate, there are 15 more on the squadron. If you think I've got the past history of all of them from the last 7 or 8 years in my head, then think again!"
"But why not? It's very important" he retorted.
I replied "Look. I just fly them and to be honest I've got better things to think about".
He stormed off, most disgruntled, tucking his shirt in his underpants.
A spotter came up, notebook in hand and asked in a loud voice: "Ah - is this the aircraft that was on exercise ****** in Germany in February 1974?"
"I don't know" I replied, "It might be".
"But surely you know the history of your aircraft!" came the belittling reply.
"Look mate, there are 15 more on the squadron. If you think I've got the past history of all of them from the last 7 or 8 years in my head, then think again!"
"But why not? It's very important" he retorted.
I replied "Look. I just fly them and to be honest I've got better things to think about".
He stormed off, most disgruntled, tucking his shirt in his underpants.
On one of our Vulcans (can't remember which one - possibly XH538?) there was a prominent dayglo stripe around the defunct AAR probe. It was a legacy of some bombing competition, positioned to be co-incident with the SFOM sight solution and used as a last resort visual bombsight.
Up came an airshow spotter - "What is the significance of the day glo marking on the probe?"
Crew chief looked him up and down and merely replied "Lipstick. But you probably won't understand that!"
First time I ever did a static with the VC10K, first question asked by first spotter - "I collect aircraft safety instruction leaflets. Can I have one of yours?"
The beggars will poke their cameras through any available window to get some inside information if the aerodrome is open to the genpub at a Battle of Britain At Home Day. But I once heard tell that a bunch of groundies concocted a spoof 'Modification Schedule' board with lots of a/c details, dates etc for a mythical Sidewinder mod programme for the Hunter. They then carefully positioned it in an office which would be an obvious spotter magnet and listened with glee to the excited jabberings going on outside!
Up came an airshow spotter - "What is the significance of the day glo marking on the probe?"
Crew chief looked him up and down and merely replied "Lipstick. But you probably won't understand that!"
First time I ever did a static with the VC10K, first question asked by first spotter - "I collect aircraft safety instruction leaflets. Can I have one of yours?"
The beggars will poke their cameras through any available window to get some inside information if the aerodrome is open to the genpub at a Battle of Britain At Home Day. But I once heard tell that a bunch of groundies concocted a spoof 'Modification Schedule' board with lots of a/c details, dates etc for a mythical Sidewinder mod programme for the Hunter. They then carefully positioned it in an office which would be an obvious spotter magnet and listened with glee to the excited jabberings going on outside!
Carbonfibre-based lifeform
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I took my daughter up to Cromer in September last year. She is 14 and very "with it" like most of her age.
It was quite busy but there were only a few aircraft there. She was strutting around for ages wearing her flying suit and the sun was burning down, so I suggested she take it off.
She said "Well I kept it on for a while so that people didn't think I was a spotter's kid, but we've been here a while so I guess I could take it off now".
I shudder to think what her future holds for me.
I must confess though. I did go and "spot" the three Concordes come into LHR on that sad day. I was surrounded by professional spotters and it was quite some experience to watch them. Between a group of four that were close to me, they had all the frequencies on scanner and worked like a military operation. As one said something about a particular Concorde, another spouted a fact about that specific one. All most strange.
Shortly afterwards I got totally w**kered with BRL
It was quite busy but there were only a few aircraft there. She was strutting around for ages wearing her flying suit and the sun was burning down, so I suggested she take it off.
She said "Well I kept it on for a while so that people didn't think I was a spotter's kid, but we've been here a while so I guess I could take it off now".
I shudder to think what her future holds for me.
I must confess though. I did go and "spot" the three Concordes come into LHR on that sad day. I was surrounded by professional spotters and it was quite some experience to watch them. Between a group of four that were close to me, they had all the frequencies on scanner and worked like a military operation. As one said something about a particular Concorde, another spouted a fact about that specific one. All most strange.
Shortly afterwards I got totally w**kered with BRL
Carbonfibre-based lifeform
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The last flight of the Concordes was a special case and a nationwide special exemption from accusations of spotterism was in force.
Practically everybody in the building I work in, most of whom otherwise had no known interest in aircraft, was lined up on the pavement or had made their way onto the (strictly out of bounds) roof to watch the three of them go past into Heathrow that day.
Practically everybody in the building I work in, most of whom otherwise had no known interest in aircraft, was lined up on the pavement or had made their way onto the (strictly out of bounds) roof to watch the three of them go past into Heathrow that day.
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A thumbs up from "The Lads" ....
http://nuespotter.free.fr/spaw/group/spaw02.jpg
And this girl got so pissed off with her man spending all his money on a new step-ladder and not enough on her ............
http://nuespotter.free.fr/spaw/group/spaw10.jpg
.....that she whipped it away just at the gravy click
http://nuespotter.free.fr/spaw/group/spaw02.jpg
And this girl got so pissed off with her man spending all his money on a new step-ladder and not enough on her ............
http://nuespotter.free.fr/spaw/group/spaw10.jpg
.....that she whipped it away just at the gravy click
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Confess to being a spotter in my teens........Best place ever, the main road than runs round Lakenheath. You can park at the end of the runway (practically) and watch the jets taking off and landing. Nothing like watch an F-111 take off with afterburner with the heat haze and such. If you timed it towards the end of the day when they were recovering the F-111s used to do lots of rollers and you were parked up right under the final if the wind was right - it was great. The Shermans used to send a Hummer round with a big camera on it to see who was spying on them
Anyway, past that now. Still can't understand why anyone would want to watch PA28s and such - sometimes theres the odd interesting plane, but on the whole, just PA28s, C172s etc....
Anyway, past that now. Still can't understand why anyone would want to watch PA28s and such - sometimes theres the odd interesting plane, but on the whole, just PA28s, C172s etc....
The anorak-wearing, know-it-all, number-crunching gimps who use dentists mirrors to see through gaps in hangar doors (I kid you not!) are well worthy of ridicule IMHO, but the spotting fraternity pervades the UK aviation industry at all-levels.
One of the UK spotting bulletin boards (membership by invitation only!) has many airline and aviation industry Management and Ops staff, Air Traffickers, and even pilots
amongst it's membership.
It's run by a guy who works for BA, who puts a lot of his personal time into it (bit like Danny and Pprune).
Less likely to be the sort of people who would be so open to such ridicule .... not a stereotypical anorak or stepladder in sight.
More likely to be the sort of people (ie, lots of them also work in and around Airports) that this initiative is aimed at.
One of the UK spotting bulletin boards (membership by invitation only!) has many airline and aviation industry Management and Ops staff, Air Traffickers, and even pilots
amongst it's membership.It's run by a guy who works for BA, who puts a lot of his personal time into it (bit like Danny and Pprune).
Less likely to be the sort of people who would be so open to such ridicule .... not a stereotypical anorak or stepladder in sight.
More likely to be the sort of people (ie, lots of them also work in and around Airports) that this initiative is aimed at.
Last edited by Wycombe; 4th May 2004 at 22:35.
Carbonfibre-based lifeform
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Just noticed something truly alarming on that planespotting.com site. Part of their mission is to "Connect plane spotters with each other."
Does this means they breed?
Does this means they breed?
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My dear wife has suggested that "spotting" might be a more healthier pastime than sitting in front of the PC spouting off with the rest of you bad sastards.
It might be time for a change. (the wife I mean)
It might be time for a change. (the wife I mean)
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Hmmm... I think I must join a few others in defending spotters. My revelation was the pointy nose bird. I followed like a true notepad & binos supporter in the last month.
They are wide and varied bunch. There's anoraks, there's people that still live with their mum, there's allsorts really. People that work the ramp, right through to ex pilots. And hey, as PPLs we're not exactly a uniform makup either. This forum's members are liquorice allsorts. But no liquorice consistency either.
In the end I've stayed in touch with the bunch I met. They are genuinely passionate about aviation. In the last six months I've seen about 30 grand raised to help preserve a couple of aircraft, from a bunch of 50 or so spotters. I've so far chucked a few hundred of philanthropic cash at stuff I'd never have dreamed about from reading dry articles in pilot or whatever.
In short, they love aeroplanes. I can't argue too much with that.
They are wide and varied bunch. There's anoraks, there's people that still live with their mum, there's allsorts really. People that work the ramp, right through to ex pilots. And hey, as PPLs we're not exactly a uniform makup either. This forum's members are liquorice allsorts. But no liquorice consistency either.
In the end I've stayed in touch with the bunch I met. They are genuinely passionate about aviation. In the last six months I've seen about 30 grand raised to help preserve a couple of aircraft, from a bunch of 50 or so spotters. I've so far chucked a few hundred of philanthropic cash at stuff I'd never have dreamed about from reading dry articles in pilot or whatever.
In short, they love aeroplanes. I can't argue too much with that.