3rd runway at Heathrow....oh, and a fourth....

[RRconway]

Afternoon all,

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politic ... throw.html

Discuss....

....and there's a forfeit for the first person to use the words Northolt or Boris!!!!

Cheers,
Jeff.

[sinisterpictures]

Isn't there a need for a new thames barrier further out in the estuary with rising sea levels? Why not combine that with the proposed Tracey island airport?

[neilos]

BAA can't even run LHR effectively at present....

I'd be more inclined to spend the money improving getting passengers off a plane, through the laughing joke that is customs and out into arrivals...

[ArabJazzie]

Oh dear! Not again!!!

Just spent a night in the T5 Travelodge and can see why there are reports of Heathrow running at 99% capacity. I did though think it was recently reported at 95% but i suppose that doesnt help the new argument for the (2)new runway(s). However i cant see immediately how the aircraft would get to rw09/27LL and RR as im sure as soon as the new runways were opened, capacity would return to 95%! Oh yes! More terminals and more infrastructure to link them!!! And more of the populous to re-house!

Then there is all the chaos with the M4 problems. I didnt see much traffic on the M25 c/w as we made our escape just after 9 on Monday, but a broken down vehicle made it nose to tail in the other direction. Lets face it, this is probably busiest part of the UK road network and when something happens, it all falls apart! Then you have to think if they will order enough aircraft de-ice fluid!!!

What to do? Lets forget about placing everything down in London and share the love! Why cant the airlines use other airports around the UK? Does everyone on an international destination have to have their flight routed through London/Amsterdam/Paris/Frankfurt/Dublin? Surely Manchester, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen(maybe not yet?) could support at least one long distance flight each. Emirates have done it and are even increasing capacity on most routes! This would free up the slots to attract new routes to LHR and maybe keep some of the other international bound business in this country.

Now i see RW No2 at Birmingham has been mentioned but what would that take to come to fruition? Stansted had plans quite rightly defeated by the locals but is there another way? What happened to Gatwicks second runway? Can it be done at Luton? Can more be made of Southend? Can they all be linked by a decent fast rail system?
Arabest,
Geoff.

[neilos]

Can it be done at Luton? Can more be made of Southend? Can they all be linked by a decent fast rail system?

I wouldn't waste my money, oh wait, someone is wasting money in upgrading Luton. IMHO, that airport is the biggest crap hole for an airport. I dread it each and everytime I have to enter that place...

Southend is a prime example, again, IMHO, in how an operator has extended, and is forseeing the future in allowing future upgrades to Southend.

BAA (I know they don't own it) are missing the point here in Southend. Its dead easy to get to, and IMHO (again, sorry ) a fantastic airport.

[DamienB]

There are widespread fears that London’s position as one of the world’s economic hubs will suffer unless air capacity is expanded.

Oh god forbid some Spanish company should suffer any profit loss. Let's go ahead and bulldoze families out of their homes to keep some Spaniards happy!

[ArabJazzie]

Can it be done at Luton? Can more be made of Southend? Can they all be linked by a decent fast rail system?

I wouldn't waste my money, oh wait, someone is wasting money in upgrading Luton. IMHO, that airport is the biggest crap hole for an airport. I dread it each and everytime I have to enter that place...

Southend is a prime example, again, IMHO, in how an operator has extended, and is forseeing the future in allowing future upgrades to Southend.

BAA (I know they don't own it) are missing the point here in Southend. Its dead easy to get to, and IMHO (again, sorry ) a fantastic airport.

neilos,
Agree about Southend. Hope it gets its chance and fulfil its obvious potential.
Arabest,
Geoff.

[grant_w]

I picked someone up from Southend who came over from Dublin for RIAT last week. The plane parked at 4:58 and we were driving away from the car park at 5:09. That included him waiting for baggage too

I overheard another lady exiting the terminal building saying "well, that was so much better than Stansted"

[ArabJazzie]

I picked someone up from Southend who came over from Dublin for RIAT last week. The plane parked at 4:58 and we were driving away from the car park at 5:09. That included him waiting for baggage too

I overheard another lady exiting the terminal building saying "well, that was so much better than Stansted"

Only thing there is the bigger/busier they get, the less chance that experience will repeat itself. As long as they find a balance, they will do fine though.
Arabest,
Geoff.

[stu_h]

It's interesting that in all this talk of new runways here or there in the newspapers, once again there's a lack of detail as to what happens once the aircraft gets airborne; as if they magically leave terra firma and arrive at destination without any further thought.

You only have to look at the original Olympic planning to see this in action -- ask the airports what extra capacity they can take, base that in your Olympic proposal, and only after winning decide to see whether the airspace could take those numbers

As a nation, UK Plc doesn't have the political backbone to make the decisions required to give us a 21st Century aviation system. As long as they keep applying patches to a system designed for much lower traffic volumes, then we'll always be lagging behind our European and world neighbours.