Heathrow - August 1990

[graham]

A very good quality video from 32 years ago, well worth a watch...

[billsamuels]

What a treasure… Great movie Graham.

Only thing I’d have like the cameraman to do was to zoom into the Biz area on the South side, that was always my first place to examine when I went to LAP…. 

So glad I’m of the generation that was able lived through the life of The Queen’s Building… 

Thanks mate.

Bill

[alfred]

Gracious, that is good to see.Like many other spotters i spent many a happy hour on the Queens Building from mid 80s.

However, thinking about it i think i just prefered Gatwick.There was always a chance of a 707 or DC 8.

I remember spending over 12 hours there just to see an Affretair DC 8 take off.
Out it trundled and then promptly went back, it had gone tech.Happy days.

[graham]

I preferred Gatwick too for the chance to see something unexpected as well as the DC-8's from various US carriers but it was a pain to get there from Reading so Heathrow was the first choice 95% of the time. Who didn't enjoy all day Saturday atop the QB on a warm summer's day? Great memories that will alas never be repeated.

[howardlgw]

Thanks Graham for posting, any memory jerker concerning the old QB is always welcome. I agree with Bill always upon arrival on the QB I spent ages trying to read off the Biz. My first visit would have been in 1970

when the early 747's were planes to see, N735PA and N749PA were my first on 27th June 1970. I have good memories of the old Enthusiast shop which was near the top shelf , I seem to remember they had plane shaped enamel

badges with London Airport written on them, Sweet memories.

[lordevanelpuss]

It was the second half of the 1970s when I started regularly visiting Heathrow. I had my first job and made use of one of the London bound coach services that used to route through LHR on it's way to Victoria coach station. What a great facility the Queen's Building was and how I missed it when it was taken away from us. It was always well used, especially when a Concorde flight was due to blast off with people asking those of us armed with radios when one was about to come out and depart. On my early visits there was a comentator who told the public what was about to land and depart. It was at Heathrow & Gatwick that I first came upon trail spotting, another thing for those with an airband radio, where you took down the flight number then, at the end of the day, troop down to terminal 2 where you asked the desk attendant what aircraft was on (e.g) LH 404 and they would put it into the computer and come back with the scheduled aircraft for that flight. LH404 was a very regular trail overflight and the most frequent aircraft noted on that flight at that time was D-ABYN, YP & YQ when they were B747-200s. Thankfully most of the European airlines co-operated when asked to tie up trails. I don't know about terminal 3 airlines, I never tried those ones, but then you could see Air Canada, Pan Am & TWA aircraft on the ground at LHR, whereas it was the smaller aircraft from the likes of Lufthansa 99% of the time, to see a European 'Heavy' on the ground at LHR or even LGW was a real treat. On the subject of the latter airport, how many remember the time in the 1980s when Sabena routed SN561 through Gatwick en route from Brussels to the USA? It was a B747 flight at the time. I suppose my favourite time for LHR visits was early 1979, particularly for Air France and the variety of types operating their flights. The default type on the Paris flights was the Airbus A300, but some of the flights were upgraded to Boeing 747. The commentator was still in situ and I remember her telling us that the Boeing 707 that I was pleased to see arrive had come in from Nice. You could still see Caravelles & Boeing 727s And from other operators (on AF flights) came TAT F27 (some were FH227s) & F28 and even Air Inter Mercures. Good times indeed.

[Trevor B]

great video and good memories.

When i was a kid living in Slough i would spend very weekend at Heathrow staring in 1969 ( what an old fart i am )

[Deleted]

Jan 5, 2022 11:14:06 GMT Trevor B said:

great video and good memories.

When i was a kid living in Slough i would spend very weekend at Heathrow staring in 1969 ( what an old fart i am )

Not as old as me Trevor first visit to LAP and the Queens building 1966   But no doubt that will be beaten.

Happy Days

Bob

[Deleted]

Jan 4, 2022 14:08:27 GMT graham said:

I preferred Gatwick too for the chance to see something unexpected as well as the DC-8's from various US carriers but it was a pain to get there from Reading so Heathrow was the first choice 95% of the time. Who didn't enjoy all day Saturday atop the QB on a warm summer's day? Great memories that will alas never be repeated.

Always liked to visit Gatwick Graham- usually would try and do both LAP and Gatwick utilizing the 727 bus - which used to do Luton-LAP- Gatwick- Luton was not the Luton of today though- so only ventured out that way on trips with the Merseyside Society of Aviation Enthusiasts (MSAE) Later Air Britain Merseyside.

Remember when trains were cheap- going down to London to see my beloved Blues in December 1969 against Spurs  - getting the early train to Euston then out to Gatwick- always sticks in my mind that match- went to LGW and when you say about something unusual I saw an Israel Air Force Boeing 377 Stratocruiser  4X-FPX. Which I think visited on a few occasions.

Remember getting back into London and having a couple of pints -then it started to snow, and snow and the game got called off. Went again in the March 1970 I think and the floodlights failed. Missed the third game but we did win that one, and it was happy days in the end because we won the league.

I knew a lad from Watford George Haney- who I met at LAP and we were good friends- travelling around the London area - then lost touch with him when I married the first Mrs Bob- always wondered what happened too him. Getting a bit melancholy now- so end this piece- and yes I liked Gatwick.

Happy Days

Bob

[lordevanelpuss]

I did Gatwick too. Some of my LGW tales have been told in the On This Day thread. I used the Reading - LGW train (picking it up at Ash) after a more local train at first, until I became mobile with my first motorbike.  I won't try & list highlights as they are really personal to the individual, but I do remember enjoying the opportunity to bag some Pan Am B707s. They had disappeared from LHR, having been replaced by the B747. So I enjoyed seeing them come in to LGW at the end of the 1970s -turn of the 1980s, though I don't know where they came in from. I also remember the excitement when Interflug (the East German airline) had flights to LGW. This was pre 1989 when Germany became unified and the Berlin wall came tumbling down. East Germany was the 'commie' half with Interflug being their national airline. Lufthansa was, of course the national airline of West Germany, as it was at the time. Most Interflug flights were flown on Tupolev TU134 aircraft, at first with DM- registrations, later changing to DDR-. I did get particular pleasure in seeing IL62 DDR-SEF.

[davebasing]

My first spotting trip to the Queens Building was even further back on 26 June 1960 before the Dead Sea even called in sick. There was a commentary box on the roof gardens which were then among the most visited attractions in London, getting more visitors than the Tower of London and Madame Tussauds. Stan Little was one of the usual commentators. Really nice guy and a fellow enthusiast. Growing up in Chiswick I used to take the 91 RT bus (child fare) to the airport most weekends and Stan used to get on at, I think, Hounslow West and we’d have a chat about what was due etc. There was also a lady commentator (Flo Kingdon or Kingdom?) who was equally happy to help with questions etc. Glen Miller seemed to be the favoured tunes played over the tannoy. Pennsylvania 6500 still sticks in the mind and hearing it always takes me straight back to those long-ago days. Stan and Flo would give a commentary on each landing and departure, where it was going to or coming from etc. I was clearly so impressed with one commentary that I actually wrote it’s route down in my notebook on an Eagle DC6 going to the Woomera Test Area in Australia via numerous stops in what were then exotic places one could only dream about. Little did I know that I’d be lucky enough to visit most of them later in life. Going there so often I’d sit up there all day and make 1 or 2 if I was lucky (none if I wasn’t) but spent the day chatting to fellow enthusiasts and eating sandwiches my mum had prepared for me. No mobiles, e-mails or websites then so it was all pot luck as to what one might see.
Biz jets hardly existed so the then new and rare Gulfstream 1s were the aircraft of choice for the rich and famous, though some used Convair props etc. Saw my first JetStar there in 1962.

By the later sixties the ‘bizjet area’ (still unfenced) was always a worthwhile port of call but perhaps still my favourite from that time was this Cessna 310P which I graphed there on 11 June 1969 on delivery to the Indonesian Army. Later transferred to the Air Force it was last noted derelict at Pekenbaru in 1996.

Good days.

69-ad by dave tompkins, on Flickr

[Deleted]

Getting back to the sixties at LAP- lots of 707's and DC8's were present- later replaced by lumps- 707's- BOAC, Pan-Am, TWA, PIA, Varig, Air India, Qantas, El-Al etc  DC8's- JAL, Pan Am, Air Canada etc it was a great time- always gazing over at Fields for the biz jets- some of the local's always knew what they were.

Remember going down to LAP to see Hugh Heffners Bunny Nine N950PB- the Queens Building was rammed for that one- think it was in 1970 or 1971- happy times.

Happy Days

Bob

PS:- Knew someone would beat 1966- Dave in 1960 - great picture of the C310 by the way.

[lordevanelpuss]

Jan 6, 2022 17:27:28 GMT @mrbluesky said:

Getting back to the sixties at LAP- lots of 707's and DC8's were present- later replaced by lumps- 707's- BOAC, Pan-Am, TWA, PIA, Varig, Air India, Qantas, El-Al etc  DC8's- JAL, Pan Am, Air Canada etc it was a great time- always gazing over at Fields for the biz jets- some of the local's always knew what they were.

Remember going down to LAP to see Hugh Heffners Bunny Nine N950PB- the Queens Building was rammed for that one- think it was in 1970 or 1971- happy times.

Happy Days

Bob

PS:- Knew someone would beat 1966- Dave in 1960 - great picture of the C310 by the way.

There's a picture of N950PB in 1970 on abpic:  abpic.co.uk/pictures/search?registration=N950PB&date_taken=&information=&tag_fields=%5B%5D

[graham]

Indeed, I also remember seeing the Playboy DC-9 at LHR, I would've been 14 or 15 so as the family had moved to Wiltshire by then, I must've been staying at my Nan's house in Basingstoke which I often did, usually for a week during which time I'd pay three or four trips to LHR and one to LGW.

[Deleted]

Jan 7, 2022 7:32:43 GMT graham said:

Indeed, I also remember seeing the Playboy DC-9 at LHR, I would've been 14 or 15 so as the family had moved to Wiltshire by then, I must've been staying at my Nan's house in Basingstoke which I often did, usually for a week during which time I'd pay three or four trips to LHR and one to LGW.

It was July 1970 when it first visited Heathrow- I have a few slides of it which I took from the Queens Building.  Lord saw the pic on ABPic's as well thanks.

Happy Days

Bob

[graham]

Thanks Bob

[chrisj]

Oh dear ! Not wanting to start a competition .... BUT ... First visit to LAP ( London Airport) was during 1959 . I tend to say it was July but I think it may of been a little earlier . No Biz area but some parked over at Pan Am's . Not really any Biz as such in those days . I saw the last of BOAC's strat s . Some leased out to the likes of Nigerian A/L . Plenty of props of most sorts . I too remember the chap in the box on QB . very helpful especially as many spotters did not have much in the way of optics to help identify distant aircraft . I think the Green Line bus went from The Coach & Horses ( Harlington Corner - Aerial Hotel of late) to Biggin and one from the Uxbridge road went to Gatwick (or other way round ) Bit of long trip but the only way . During these dull dark days I am going over old logs and find very little information from those days . Probably like me , few kept detailed logs ! Oh well ... Thanks for memories . Chrisj

[Deleted]

That's great Chris- like you say great memories - some better than others - the 707 and DC8 days were great, but you couldn't beat the prop airliners- would have loved to have seen some of the BOAC Strats. Not a competition like you say- but I wonder if anyone can beat 1959.

Happy Days

Bob  

[lordevanelpuss]

Jan 8, 2022 8:15:53 GMT @mrbluesky said:

That's great Chris- like you say great memories - some better than others - the 707 and DC8 days were great, but you couldn't beat the prop airliners- would have loved to have seen some of the BOAC Strats. Not a competition like you say- but I wonder if anyone can beat 1959.

Happy Days

Bob  

Not me 'cos I was born in 1959! When I became an LHR regular, the B707 & DC8 were on the wane with the widebody types taking over, particularly on the trans atlantic routes. Prop types were of course mainly turbine powered. Anyone remember the Brymon DHC7s? If you saw a piston engined prop type it was probably a private light aircraft type (such as the Ce310 seen in a previous post) So imagine my delight when I bagged Kar Air DC6 OH-KDA at LHR and then some time later HB-IBS of Balair at LGW at the end of the 1970s or early 1980s. A very enjoyable sight in both cases.

[graham]

I certainly never kept detailed logs back then when I first started spotting aged 9 or 10. My Dad took me to several airshows, mainly military, the first one chronologically being Waddington in 1965 when I was 9. You could buy CAMs back then of course but the MAM was yet to be invented so all military reggies went into a hardback note book with a page for each type but no dates or where seen.

Same for the civvie stuff, it all went into that year's CAM with an underline but no dates or locations.