Glasgow Airport Movements 2017
November
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November 2017
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November is traditionally a comparatively quiet month for unscheduled aircraft visiting and this year was no exception, although there were a few standout appearances, the most notable being two factory-fresh Flydubai Boeing 737-8 MAX, which called in on their respective delivery flights, making them the first of the latest generation of this iconic airliner to visit here.
Last month’s school holiday break helped Glasgow Airport record its busiest-ever October after more than 928,000 people travelled through its doors, representing yet another impressive increase in passenger figures compared to 2016’s, in this case a rise of 5%. International traffic was up 9.5%. overall with EU-scheduled services up 16% compared to the same period last year. City breaks continued to prove popular and October saw Ryanair introduce two new destinations from Glasgow to its network, namely Madrid and Krakow.
Germany`s national carrier Lufthansa announced plans to launch a new daily flight to Frankfurt from March 2018 and, next summer, the airline will start a four-times weekly service to Munich. Celtic’s Champions League home and away double header against Bayern Munich also boosted October’s footfall with a significant number of fans travelling through the airport to the games in the Bavarian capital and Glasgow.
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With this year`s figure for passengers transiting the airport now approaching the 10-million mark, an announcement was made in late November that Glasgow Airport’s Central Search facility will be upgraded at a cost of £1.4 million. The work, which is already underway, aims to increase capacity through Security in the main terminal by 20%.
The current Central Search area will be reconfigured to increase the number of security lanes from 10 to 12. Existing self-service boarding pass scanners will be relocated to a pre-search preparation area on the first floor at the top of the escalators with capacity doubled from 5 to 10. Plus, two wider gates will be installed to more readily accommodate passengers with restricted mobility. The project should be completed by March 2018 in time for the busy Easter holiday season. |
I was driving past the airport mid-morning on Thursday 23rd, when I saw no less than six airliners lined-up on Taxiway Alpha waiting to depart and heard on the scanner that there were five other aircraft on approach - numbers more akin to a summer`s day than one in late November. It turned out that the large number of movements were due to ATC clearing a backlog after they had to suspend flights in and out of Glasgow airport for about 30 minutes due to an unforseen staff shortage in the control tower. Ten outgoing flights had been delayed with a number of incoming flights landing early, before the closure began just after 09:00. Staffing has been an ongoing issue for the last 18 months, and not only at Glasgow but at many airports throughout the UK.
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November`s weather was mostly mild and very wet but a substantial amount of snow had covered the higher tops to the north of the central belt by the last week of the month. A sudden drop in temperature on the evening of Friday 24 November may have contributed to an incident late on when a tug reportedly skidded on ice and collided with a Gatwick-bound British Airways plane which was being pushed back from its stand at the time.
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No one was injured and the flight was cancelled pending an inspection of the aircraft. No doubt the de-icing crew on night shift were kept busy. Although a few cold nights followed, mild conditions returned by the end of the month leaving the Kilpatrick Hills and Campsie Fells in their usual snow and frost-free state.
As mentioned last month, work is well underway to upgrade a 1 kilometre-long section of dilapidated path at the west end of the airfield. The efforts are part of a £210,000 project to improve access for cyclists and pedestrians with a fully-tarred route from the Paisley Moss Nature Reserve, through the Glasgow Airport campus ending at Abbotsinch Road, enabling easy access to Renfrew and the centre of Paisley.
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The work is scheduled for completion in early 2018, and it`s hoped that the western, Paisley Moss end will eventually connect with a proposed cycle route to Bishopton and the wider cycle network. A large number of Glasgow Airport`s 5,000 employees live within an easy cycle commute and it`s hoped the enhanced track will encourage more of them to `Get on their bike`. Renfrewshire Council and Sustrans Scotland are providing much of the funding.
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Work also began just inside the perimeter fence at the east end of Walkinshaw Road. It looks as though a long stretch of underground piping is being laid and I`d guess that it may be to improve drainage as large pools often form here after prolonged spells of rain. The above example featuring an Emirates Triple-Seven was taken earlier this year and almost gives the impression that the runway is situated on the edge of a loch.
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As mentioned last month, the access road to West Walkinshaw Farm now has `No Parking` signs and `Keep Clear` road markings which is unfortunate for people who like to watch the planes as it was a good spot to sit at when Runway 05 was in use. Lets hope the farmer in Abbotsinch Road doesn`t follow suit.
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Although lots of winter migrants and other birds are in the area, even the country`s most aggressive seagulls don`t mess with Airside Ops at Glasgow!
"Uh uh. I know what you're thinking. "Did he fire six shots or only five?" Well to tell you the truth in all this excitement I kinda lost track myself. But being this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world and would blow your head clean off, you've gotta ask yourself one question: "Do I feel lucky?" Well, do ya, punk?"
Jet Airliners
As previously mentioned, the highlight airliner-wise this month was a pair of Boeing 737-8 MAX which stopped-off to refuel on delivery from Boeing Field to FlyDubai in the United Arab Emirates. The first was A6-FMD on Wednesday 22 November with A6-FMC (pictured) appearing exactly a week later on the morning of the 29th. These two are the first ever MAX variants of this airliner to visit Glasgow Airport.
The fourth generation of the Boeing 737, succeeds the Boeing 737 Next Generation (NG) and has been re-engined with more efficient powerplants. Split-tip winglets and airframe modifications also boost performance. The new variant is offered in four lengths, namely the 737 MAX 7, MAX 8 and MAX 9 replacing the 737-700, -800 and -900, plus a further stretched MAX 10, typically offering 138 to 230 seats and a 3,215 to 3,825 nmi (5,954 to 7,084 km) range. As of October 2017, the Boeing 737 MAX has received almost 4,000 firm orders.
Airbus A320-211 D-AIPF (f/v) was Bayern Munich FC`s taxi home on 1 November after their Champions League 1-2 victory over Celtic at Parkhead.
Following the Celtic v Bayern Munich Champions League football match on 31 October the following aircraft headed back to Germany with Bayern supporters between 02:00-03:20 hrs on 1 November: Condor Boeing 757 D-ABOK, Germania A319-112 D-ASTA plus Enter Air 737s SP-ENL and SP-ENY. Lufthansa Airbus A320-211 D-AIPF (f/v) (above) called in just after 11:00 hrs to collect the Bayern team while Lufthansa A321-231 D-AIDB (f/v) (below) uplifted the last batch of fans an hour later (1st); Boeing 737-8K5(WL) YR-BMH Blue Air (Liverpool - Music City livery) and BAe146-RJ85 EI-RJD Cityjet (2nd); Boeing 757-256(WL) TF-FIU Icelandair (Aurora Borealis colours) and Embraer ERJ-175STD PH-EXO KLM Cityhopper (f/v) (3rd)...
Lufthansa A321-231 D-AIDB (f/v) picked up the last batch of Bayern Munich fans on 1 November after the German team match against Celtic.
Lufthansa CityLine Embraer ERJ-195LR D-AEBC (f/v) (5th); Boeing 737-8K2-(WL) PH-BXA (Retro colours) and Embraer ERJ-175STD PH-EXN (f/v) both KLM) (6th); Embraer ERJ-175STD PH-EXL (f/v) KLM (7th); Embraer ERJ-175STD PH-EXH KLM Cityhopper (f/v) and Boeing 737-8AS(WL) EI-GDI Ryanair (f/v) (8th); Embraer ERJ-175STD PH-EXM KLM Cityhopper (f/v) (9th); A319-112 D-AIBF Lufthansa (f/v) (10th); Boeing 757-256(WL) TF-FIR Icelandair (80 Years of Aviation colour scheme) (11th); Embraer ERJ-175STD PH-EXK KLM Cityhopper (f/v) (13th); ERJ-175STD PH-EXJ KLM Cityhopper (f/v) (14th); Airbus A319-112 LZ-AOA Germania Express, plus Ryanair Boeing 737-8AS(WL)s EI-GDN (f/v), EI-FIJ (Katowice Airport titles) and EI-DPI (Gerona, Catalonia titles) (15th)...
One of the BA `Olympic Doves`, painted in a special livery for the 2012 London Games, has now reverted to the airlines` standard colour scheme.
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Embraer ERJ-195LR D-AEME Lufthansa (f/v) and Airbus A320-214(WL) OE-IVF easyJet Europe (f/v) (17th); Airbus A321-231(WL) HA-LXS Wizz Air (f/v) and Boeing 737-8MG(WL) G-JZHR Jet2 (f/v) (18th); Boeing 737-8 MAX A6-FMD FlyDubai (f/v) on delivery from Boeing Field, Boeing 737-8K5(WL) G-TAWF TUI left for Paris with Celtic Fans, Embraer ERJ-175STD PH-EXP KLM Cityhopper (f/v) and Boeing 737-8AS(WL) EI-GDK Ryanair (f/v). Boeing 757-23A(WL) G-LSAC Jet2 night-stopped and left on a Xmas shopping charter to Newark the next morning (22nd)...
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Boeing 737-8K5(WL) G-GDFD Jet2 arrived with Celtic FC after their Champions League defeat against Paris St Germain. Boeing 737-8K5(WL) G-TAWF TUI and Boeing 737-8MG(WL) G-JZHR Jet2 returned with Celtic supporters. Embraer ERJ-190STD PH-EZX KLM Cityhopper (Skyteam colours) (23rd); Airbus A320-214(WL) OE-IVB easyjet Europe (f/v) and Embraer ERJ-145EP G-RJXD bmi Regional (24th); Airbus A320-214(WL) OE-IVL easyJet Europe (25th)...
Jet2 757s operated a couple of charters to Newark, New Jersey, this month for Christmas shoppers heading for the Big Apple. This is G-LSAC on the 30th.
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Airbus A319-112 LZ-AOA Germania and and A320-214(WL) OE-IVL easyjet Europe plus other dates (27th); A320-214(WL) OE-IVN easyjet Europe (f/v) (28th); Boeing 757-23A(WL) G-LSAC Jet2 (Xmas shopping charter from Newark), Boeing 737-8 MAX A6-FMC Flydubai on delivery from Boeing Field, Seattle, and Embraer ERJ-190STD PH-EZX KLM Cityhopper (Skyteam colours) (29th); Boeing 737-8FHW YR-BMN Blue Air (f/v), A320-214 G-TCAE Thomas Cook (f/v), Embraer ERJ-175STD PH-EXR KLM Cityhopper (f/v) and BAe 146-RJ100 G-JOTS Jota Aviation (30th).
Virgin Atlantic 747-443 G-VROY `Pretty Woman` arrives from Florida on Friday 17 November.
Icelandair`s special-liveried jets always turn heads when they appear. Boeing 757-256(WL) Hekla Aurora TF-FIU is seen here on Friday 3 November and TF-FIR in an `80 Years of Aviation in Iceland` colour scheme visited on Saturday 11 November.
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Ryanair Boeing 737-8AS(WL)s EI-DPI (Gerona, Catalonia titles) and EI-FIJ (Katowice Airport titles) took-off one after another on the 15th.
Many aircraft, especially the larger airliners can generate a bit of smoke on landing depending on the weather conditions, especially the heavies, but burst tyres are fairly uncommon. I saw my first such occurrence on Thursday 16 November when Triple-Seven A6-EPC suffered a blowout as it touched down from Dubai. As far as I`m aware there was no significant delay before the plane set off on its return trip later that afternoon.
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Blue Air Boeing 737-8K5(WL) YR-BMH, seen here lining up for take-off on Thursday 2 November, has been painted in a special livery featuring `Liverpool: Cool City - Warm Welcome` on one side and `Music City` with a silhouette of a guitar and drum kit painted on the other. In October of last year, the Romanian carrier announced that, as part of its European expansion, Liverpool John Lennon Airport (LJLA) would become their newest and eighth European base with one 737-800 working from there over the peak 2017 summer season. These special markings mark the occasion.
Turboprop-liners
US-registered Saab 340B N457XJ arrived on Thursday 16 November and night-stopped, taking-off at 12:50 hrs the following afternoon.
ATR 72-202(F) EI-SLG ATR72 Air Contractors (2nd); ATR 72-600 G-IACY Eastern Airways plus De Havilland Canada DHC-8-402Q Dash 8s D-ABQF (f/v) and D-ABQB Air Berlin both operating Eurowings flights (f/v) (5th); Bombardier DHC-402Q Dash 8 D-ABQI Air Berlin (f/v) (6th); Fairchild SA227-DC Metro 23 OY-NPF North Flying (8th); DHC-8-402Q Dash 8 D-ABQH Air Berlin (f/v) and Britten-Norman BN-2B Islander G-HEBO Hebridean Airways (10th); DHC-8-402Q Dash 8 D-ABQD Air Berlin (f/v) (13th); DHC-8-402Q Dash 8 D-ABQP Eurowings (All white colours) (f/v) and ATR42-500 G-HUET Aurigny (f/v) working a Loganair flight (15th)...
Loganair Saab 2000 G-LGNP passes Emirates Triple-seven A6-ENS after landing on 1 November.
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Fairchild Dornier SA.227DC Metro 23 OY-NPE of North Flying made a brief visit on Thursday 23rd November.
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Eastern`s Jetstream 41s are now a regular feature at Glasgow. This is G-MAJD departing in the afternoon sunshine on Thursday 23rd November 2017.
Eastern Airways ATR 72-600 G-IACY on finals for `23` on Friday 10 November.
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November saw the introduction of ex-Air Berlin Dash 8 turboprops on most Eurowings flights from / to Dusseldorf, with many of these aircraft making their first appearance here as a result.
Pictured above is DHC8-402Q D-ABQR (f/v) about to touch-down on Runway 23 on Monday 27 November. DHC8-402Q D-ABQS (f/v) (right) operated `EWG9360/9361` on the 20th. |
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Saab 340B N457XJ (16th); DHC8-402Q D-ABQQ Air Berlin (f/v) (17th); DHC-8-402Q D-ABQS Air Berlin (f/v) (20th); Aurigny Air Services ATR 42-500 G-HUET worked a Loganair teatime flight (21st); DHC8-402Q D-ABQT Air Berlin (f/v) (22nd); ATR 72-201(F) EI-SLJ ASL Airlines and Fairchild Dornier SA.227DC-Metro 23 OY-NPE North Flying (23rd); Swiftair Embraer 120 Brasilia EC-GQA went into the Gama Hangar for much of the day (24th); DHC8-402 D-ABQR Air Berlin (f/v) (27th); DHC8-402 D-ABQK Air Berlin (f/v) (29th); Embraer EMB-120FC Brasilia EC-GQA Swiftair (30th).
This is Flybe Dash 8 G-ECOI which appeared on the afternoon of Sunday 19 November. Judging by the current state of the paint scheme I take it that the aircraft`s long-term lease to Brussels Airlines has come to an end and it`s due to revert to its original colours in the near future.
Biz-Jets
Biz-jets stopping over from October were Legacy 650 OE-IBM, Falcon 7X OY-EKC (above), Cessna 680 Sovereign N742AW and Learjet 36A C-FEMT.
VIP Boeing BBJ B737-500 9H-AHA, call-sign `Legend 0202`, took-off at 09:50 hrs on Thursday 2 November after night-stopping on Stand 6.
November`s corporate movements kicked-off with Boeing BBJ B737-500 VIP 9H-AHA which called in twice before parking up for the night, plus Gulfstream 650 M-JCBB (f/v) and Israel Aircraft Industries IAI-1125A Astra SPX OE-GBD of Tyrol Air Ambulance (1st); Gulfstream IV-SP N74GG (f/v), Embraer Phenom 100 D-IAAW, Phenom 300 OE-GDF (f/v) and Citation Bravo G-IPLY (2nd); Gulfstream V-SP N551TG, Bombardier BD-700 Global Express N2012C (f/v), Gulfstream 100 OE-GBD returned, Citation Mustang G-FFFC (plus other dates) and Emirates Flight Training Academy Embraer 500 Phenom 100EV A6-DWC (f/v) (3rd); Falcon 2000LX OY-GFS (f/v) (4th); VistaJet Challenger 350s 9H-VCF and 9H-VCN, plus Citation Bravo G-IPLY (5th)...
While driving in Abbotsinch Road, I saw Gulfstream V-SP N551TG land on Friday 3 November but rather than the aircraft head directly to the executive ramp or old runway it dropped off passengers from Dublin on Stand 36 at the terminal side before parking on Area R later. Bombardier BD-700 Global Express N2012C (f/v) (below) also arrived on the 3rd. It had flown in from Westchester, New York.
Falcon 50 N156AW made its first visit here on Friday 17 November 2017 having flown in from Bangor, Maine. It was en route to Cairo.
Bombardier Global 6000 9H-VJF, Cessna 650 Citation VII 9H-WII, Dassault Falcon 10 M-ECJI and Hawker Beechcraft 750 G-TWIY of SaxonAir (6th); Embraer EMB-135BJ Legacy 600 9H-WFC, Falcon 2000LX OY-GFS returned on its second visit, plus NetJets` Cessna 680A Citation Latitudes CS-LTA and CS-LTD (f/v) (7th); Gulfstream G450 N918E, Falcon 2000LX OY-GFS, Global 6000 9H-VJI (f/v) and Challenger 350 9H-VCN both VistaJet, plus Hawker Beechcraft 750 9H-BSA and Citation Mustang D-ISRM (8th); Bombardier Global 6000 EC-LTF of TAG Aviation (9th); Falcon 2000LX OY-GFS again (10th)...
Beechcraft 400XP Beechjet OK-PPP Time Air (11th); Citation Mustang OE-FZC (12th); Gulfstream 650 VP-CYL (f/v), Hawker Beechcraft 750 9H-BSA and Cessna Citation Excel G-SIRS (13th); Bombardier Challenger 350 9H-VCF VistaJet and Learjet 45 G-UJET (15th); Raytheon Premier I N891UT (f/v) (16th); Falcon 50 N156AW (f/v) and Hawker Beechcraft 750 9H-BSA (17th); Cessna 680 Citation Sovereign N339ES Textron Aviation, Challenger 350 9H-VCJ VistaJet and Citation XLS CS-DXF NetJets Europe (19th); Challenger 604 D-AFAD (f/v), Challenger 605 9H-VFB VistaJet and Cessna 560 Citation Encore+ D-CAPB (20th)...
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Embraer EMB-135BJ Legacy 650 G-WIRG, Cessna 680 Citation Sovereign G-SHUI (f/v) and Citation Excel CS-DXF NetJets Europe (21st); Dornier Do-328JET-310 OY-JJG Sun Air (f/v) and Challenger 604 N900UC (f/v) (22nd); Challenger 605 EI-WFI (24th); Cessna Citation Encore+ D-CAPB and Learjet 45 M-ABEU (25th); Citation XLS CS-DXS NetJets Europe and Citation Mustang OE-FHK (26th); Gulfstream GV-SP N276A and Embraer Legacy 500 G-HARG (f/v) (27th); Legacy 500 G-HARG returned, plus Cessna Citation Bravo G-CGEI, Citation Excel G-SIRS, Citation XLS+ G-JALS and Learjet 40XR N65TP (28th); Bombardier Global 5000 N1DG (f/v) (29th); Gulfstream G550 V-SP N83CW, Beech Nextant 400XTi G-FXKR FlairJet, Citation XLS OE-GKM and Embraer Phenom 100 G-SVRN (f/v) (30th). Cessna 680 Citation Sovereign G-SHUI (f/v) is pictured left.
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Challenger 605 EI-WFI of Westair Aviation was snapped on the 25th after night-stopping.
First-time visitor Gulfstream 650 VP-CYL parked on Taxiway Y, Tuesday 14 November 2017. The aircraft was bound for Hong Kong.
General Aviation
Not much of interest on the GA front this month with three individual US-registered SOCATA TBMs on delivery being the most noteworthy visitors.
US-registered Agusta A109C N109TK put in an appearance on the morning of Thursday 30 November 2017.
Flight-Cal`s Navajo Chieftain G-FNAV arrived on the 3rd and subsequently went tech. The aircraft was still here at the end of the month.
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Grob G-115E Tutor T.1 G-BYXL RAF UAS (f/v) and AgustaWestland AW189 G-MCGT HM Coastguard (2nd); Piper PA-31 Navajo Chieftain G-FNAV which went tech and AW189 G-MCGT returned (3rd); King Air 200 G-ZVIP (4th); Diamond DA42 Twin Star G-DGPS (5th); SOCATA TBM-930 N226AT (f/v) and Beech King Air 200 G-FLYK (f/v) (9th); Piper PA-31 Navajo G-FCSL (10th); King Air 200 G-WVIP and Piper PA-32-300 Cherokee Six N112WM (11th); Pilatus PC-12 M-YBLS and Piaggio P-180 Avanti M-ONTE plus other dates (14th); King Air 200 G-DXTR, PA-28R-200 Cherokee Arrow II G-BAMY and AW189 G-MCGR HM Coastguard (15th); King Air 350 G-SRBM (19th); King Air 90GTx G-MOSJ (20th); SOCATA TBM-930 N917BT (f/v) (left) (21st); Pilatus PC-12 LX-JFU (f/v), Cirrus SR22 G-GCVV and Eurocopter EC135T2+ G-WASS (f/v) of Wales Air Ambulance (24th); SOCATA TBM-910 N910AY (f/v) and King Air 200GT M-WATJ (27th); Agusta A109C N109TK (30th).
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King Air 350 G-SRBM (19th); King Air 90GTx G-MOSJ (20th); SOCATA TBM-930 N917BT (f/v) (21st); Pilatus PC-12 LX-JFU (f/v), Cirrus SR22 G-GCVV and Eurocopter EC135T2+ G-WASS (f/v) of Wales Air Ambulance (24th); SOCATA TBM-910 N910AY (f/v) and King Air 200GT M-WATJ (27th); Agusta A109C N109TK (30th).
Military
Two RAF HS-146s were on the ground together for a short time on Thursday 2 November. First to appear was ZE707 (call-sign `Ascot 1902`) which landed at 11:05 hrs after aborting its initial attempt at landing when a runway inspection was required following a bird-strike involving a BA aircraft. The pilot of the Shuttle departing immediately ahead of the RAF transport reported that he had struck a bird on take-off and Airside Ops subsequently recovered the carcass of a Black-headed Gull from the runway. ZE707 remained on Taxiway `Y` until just before its departure at 12:45 hrs.
The second aircraft, ZE700 `Ascot 1345` landed at 12:23 hrs and also headed for the disused runway, not taking-off until 21:05 hrs that evening. ZE700 returned on the morning of Tuesday 14 November and was on the ground for 90 minutes.
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Textron AirLand's production-standard Cessna E530 Scorpion military demonstrator N532TX landed at 09:30 hrs on Sunday 19 November accompanied by Textron`s Citation Sovereign N339ES. I believe both aircraft had stopped off to refuel en route to the USA after appearing at the Dubai Airshow. The Scorpion departed at 11:15 but was forced to return to Glasgow 10 minutes later due a technical issue. It set off again at 13:00 hrs, with the company Sovereign not too far behind. I missed them this time round but have included these shots which were taken last month when the aircraft were outbound for Dubai.
and Finally....
On Saturday 4 November, I was driving up Loch Lomondside on the A82 between Ardlui and Inverarnan, heading to Oban for the Mull ferry, when I was surprised to see US-registered Bell 212 N362EH parked on a clearing beside a bungalow on the west side of the road. This veteran helicopter, now operated by Heli-lift Services, was built in 1977 and performs various roles including forestry operations assistance, heavy-load carriage, fire fighting and crop spraying.
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Oban Airport
Oban Airport is situated about 8.5 km (5 miles) north of the town at North Connell in a superbly scenic West Coast location. Although Hebridean Air Services is the only airline currently based at Oban the facility sees an interesting variety of movements each year including military traffic. Hebridean, with its BN-2A ISLANDER-2B-26 G-HEBS, one of two which comprise its fleet, operates scheduled flights on two routes. The first departs Oban to the Isles of Colonsay and Islay and the second leaves Oban bound for the Isles of Coll and Tiree. Many of the passengers on the latter service are school children who temporarily reside, and are educated on the mainland, returning home at weekends and during holidays.
The site that Oban Airport now occupies was originally a series of potato fields but an airfield was built on the run up to the outbreak of the Second World War. It became a forward operating base, primarily for attack aircraft such as the Hurricane. RAF Sunderland and Catalina flying boats flew from Oban bay itself and along with the fighters acted as a deterrent to any possible German invasion from the north and west.
Following the end of hostilities, the airfield was used to train ferry crews and became known as RAF Connel Ferry. The Connel bridge that is used by cars today, was a railway bridge then and the only way to get to North Connel was by ferry. The Royal Observer Corps had a hardened communication facility built beside to the airfield which was in use up until 1998. The airport passed to council control and was used by private aircraft for many years before being upgraded by a new operator, namely Argyll and Bute council. Remnants of some wartime structures and fixtures survive and can still be identified despite the expansion of facilities and extended runway.
Following the end of hostilities, the airfield was used to train ferry crews and became known as RAF Connel Ferry. The Connel bridge that is used by cars today, was a railway bridge then and the only way to get to North Connel was by ferry. The Royal Observer Corps had a hardened communication facility built beside to the airfield which was in use up until 1998. The airport passed to council control and was used by private aircraft for many years before being upgraded by a new operator, namely Argyll and Bute council. Remnants of some wartime structures and fixtures survive and can still be identified despite the expansion of facilities and extended runway.
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Islander G-HEBS had landed just before I arrived but the guys on duty informed me that a Heli-Med flight operated by Scottish Ambulance Service helicopter G-SASS, was en route to one of the outer Isles, and was due in shortly to refuel and invited me into the Tower to watch. The staff here are very approachable and will do their best to accommodate aircraft enthusiasts and photographers.
I also went onto the apron and got a couple of close-ups of G-HEBS, plus Mooney M20K-231 G-OPWS which dates from 1982 and an unidentified Cessna.
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Balado Airfield
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Towards the end of the month I was over on the east coast and passed Balado Airfield which lies 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Kinross. Previously an ex-military base known as RAF Balado Bridge, it opened in 1942 as a satellite airfield to RAF Grangemouth, and closed in 1957. It has since served as a NATO satellite station and later as one of the venues for the long-running `T in the Park` music festival (1994–2016).
The airfield is now used solely as a microlight flying strip and I saw one take-off as I pulled up to get a shot of the resident Jet Provost T.3A serial number XM412/60. While in RAF service, this aircraft spent time at various stations including North Weald, Binbrook and Halton.