Ask nicely guys!
 

Scenario - last Saturday at our gliding club (Weston on the Green). Steady rain, so no flying & the aircraft hangar was shut.

One of our members encountered an unknown person trying to open the hangar door.

Stranger: "The door's locked, I want to see inside"

Member: "Can I help you?"

Stranger:"I want to see the gliders, the door's locked"

Member: "Why do you want to see them"?

Stranger: "I'm a spotter, why is the door locked?"

Member: "Because it's raining and we're not flying. Come back when we're flying if you want to see the gliders"

We have been happy enough to accommodate polite spotters since EASA inflicted G-REG gliders on us but believe me in this particular case there was no way that the door was going to be opened for such a rude :mad:.

So if you're reading this matey, please say please next time! :ok:

Ummmm. Another example of ignorance in its widest sense. There are NO rights for spotters and this must be understood.

If you are friendly and polite it can work wonders.

If you are friendly and polite it can work wonders....sadly manners are missing in todays world. Please and Thank You are becoming rare. It costs nothing to be polite.

Blimey, some people are unbelievable. When I woz a spotter, I usually asked before even going airside at airfields let alone entering a hangar.

Strange that now UK gliders exhibit G-REGS, spotters are taking more of an interest in them.

The odd one or two might even start jemmying open trailers...

Of all the stupid people I have met on this earth, some spotters rank high on the list. I've been a spotter, lifelong, but would never behave in such a manner. My wife and I went to Lasham last year and were peering though our binocs to see a German registered aircraft in one of the hangars. One of the gliding-types asked what we were looking for and when we explained he took us on a walk around inside the hangar. On another occasion at White Waltham, Ruth was trying to read off something in a hangar... and one of the pilots took her by the hand and showed her around. Politeness works wonders, as ericlday rightly suggests.

Respectfully HD, you are of the age (and me too) when manners were part of the upbringing. Dad used to clobber me if I didn't call someone of his age Sir!

Reminds me of a time around 1968-9 when I wanted to visit Elstree aerodrome as a change from Heathrow and Gatwick. Not being too familiar with the location I got off train at wrong stop and had a very long walk to the airfield. I was rather disappointed to find very few aircraft on the field, but I asked a man VERY nicely if there might be any in the hangars?

He took me in a large hangar and it was an absolute wonderland, if I recall about 70 light aircraft and I was allowed to wander about them for ages, I had never been so close to so many aircraft before.

Amother time at Gatwick, using politeness and good manners, I was let onto a Lear Jet and sat in the pilots seat! That was awesome for a 14 year old!

Sad to say in these days of (rightly) enhanced security this is unlikely to be the norm...

Yep... things have changed. However, there is one place where there is a more-enlightened attitude - New Zealand. Having been there a good few times but never done any serious spotting, on our last trip we did just that. Everywhere we went we were treated with friendship and hospitality, including cups of coffee. At one place we saw a new helicopter through a hangar window... then saw an engineer to explain what we were at. His reaction: "Pop inside and climb in"! I can just imagine that happening at that dreadful Fairoaks place.

History!!
 

The mention of Gatwick, circa 1957, brings back the memory of being stopped by the police on the peri track whilst spotting, having all details taken, subseqently charged in court with 'Trespassing under the military lands act - 1871', fined £5.

Now thats just one of those things, except - from 1972 onwards I was employed in the computer industry, subsequently with my own company, working on army and navy projects designing equipment - every single time that I had to renew my security clearance, average 2 yrs, down on the form had to go details of this criminal conviction, initially not too much of a problem, but looking rather silly after I reached 60 - such are the joys & legacies of youth.

On the subject of manners, I always asked for permission to go around the hangers, don't think I was ever refused, but it was a more polite society in those days (apart from the east end of London). :ok:

astir 8:

Sorry if this is rude/lazy/stupid....

I pass Weston about once a month on a Sunday and have noticed a Skyvan (?) probably used by those insane people who jump out of aircraft deliberately!

Do you happen to know the reg? Not sure where to look it up....

Thanx.

LGW
 

Remember as a youg lad in the mid sixties spotting at LGW. No problem entering the hangar on the South Side but quite a long walk from the terminal. I remember a hangar full of Morton Air Services Herons and an Ace Freighters Connie. Those were the days. LGW in the 60's was a lot quieter than now but so much more interesting.
Lots of GA, RCAF Hercs and Yukons, CP Air DC8s , SAM and Sterling DC-6s and Spantax CV990s to name just a few.
The world is now boring in comparison.

I too have fond memories of Gatwick from my younger days, eg seeing a Jetstar like a little VC10 (did it really need 4 engines?) and many exotic visitors.

I recall a TU-104 having trouble taking off, it aborted a couple of times, and it appeared to taxi back beyond the runway threshold and started its roll before the runway proper (from grass??). Is that likely or is my memory playing tricks? I don't know what the problem would have been - maybe weight? Were procedures a bit more lax in those days?

Also saw my first close-up of a go-around, a BUA VC10, due to another aircraft (a small prop job I recall) being rather sluggish to exit the runway about half way down. Spectacular for me at the time, rather mundane I suspect for most of you. It seemed to go SO close to the ground before powering up and away...

Goldox

I have not looked lately but it's probably the appropriately (for a Skyvan) registered G-PIGY

Many thanx astir 8 appreciated!
Like the reg!

Good for you astir

I would have told him not to even bother coming back - rain, hail, snow or sun.

I'm involved with the organisation of a fly-in at a local airfield. We were contacted last year by one spotter virtally demanding that a private hanger was opened for photography purposes

It wasn't!

I have this vague recollection of a Connie at Gatwick about the time of the Biafran crisis. It had one reg one side (Cypriot?) some else the other (US?) and was using a different US callsign. Life was interesting in those days.

That surely was one of Hank Wharton's Connies, Hartington! From memory they were "registered" in Mauritania?

5T-TAF perchance?

Wouldn't have found many aeroplanes in a hanger anyway :}