 Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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At geneva, awaiting flight to Gatwick , fingers crossed.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Why is it that it's mainly the southern airports which just erupt Into chaos when it snows? The north west had massive snowfalls on Friday night yet the runway was closed for only 45 minutes for snow clearing in manchester. we had between 5-10" in parts, the same for Liverpool and Blackpool, closed while runways were cleared but then fully reopened and returned to normal. In london at gatwick they decided to cancel flights nearly 24 hours before the snowfall actually hits. A serious review of how the south east handles snowfalls is in need of being looked at. There will be tens if thousands of people who will be making alternative arrangments for Christmas due to snow falling, yet 200 miles north where the same, if not more fell it has all returned to normal,'and that's with temps last night of -13c. I really feel for those people who have been disrupted, simply not on!
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| Ricklovesthepowder wrote: |
| ... at gatwick they decided to cancel flights nearly 24 hours before the snowfall actually hits. |
Wasn't that a sensible plan? The airport did shut from what I understand, but passengers and crew had a day's notice of the disruption, and maybe planes were not caught out of place? I once had a 3-day delay with a flight to Florida because of a hurricane. The airline cancelled the flight a day before we were due to travel, so rather than bunking down in the airport I spent the delay sunbathing in my garden (and then claimed back £700 on our travel insurance) waiting for them to phone me to confirm the rescheduled flight.
Heathrow is apparently shut because of ice. Temperature rose yesterday enough to have a bit of a melt, which has subsequently frozen. Maybe the airport at Manchester is facing a different situation on the ground?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Road, air and rail travel are widely disrupted throughout Europe. And I don't think things are exactly "normal" in Scotland either. I suppose the sheer volume of flights in and out of Gatwick and LHR make things extra difficult. A spokeswoman for Bournemouth airport said yesterday that they would be "closed" till after mid-day but as the first flight out wasn't scheduled till 2 pm it would probably be OK.
In hindsight EZY must be very glad they cancelled those early flights in good time - and I'd prefer to have had that disappointment the day before than tried to struggle through the snow only to find them cancelled at the last minute. Then everyone would be moaning about only getting info at the last minute when the snow had been forecast so strongly.
Sometimes, preparedness must mean making early decisions - very annoying for HGV drivers in France to be told they have to go to holding areas when the roads are still pretty well OK, then sitting there for hours and hours, only to find the expected blizzard melts away, as they sometimes do. I wonder whether the practicality of having a similar regime here will be examined? Trouble is, there's nowhere to put them - traffic density is so much lower in France. Our "Operation Stack" sees the M20 fill up pretty quickly, doesn't it?
Manchester airport was closed for some days last winter - I remember it well, as I had family flying out from there at Christmas.
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We're on the early morning EJ flight from Liverpool to GVA on Monday so interested in any more info. From the websites though it looks like we should be OK, particularly as there's no snow forecast for the NW between now and departure.
From EasyJet...
Last Updated at 07:45 on December 19th 2010
Aberdeen - Airport currently open, disruption possible
Belfast Int - Airport currently open, disruption possible
Belfast City - Airport currently open, disruption possible
Birmingham - Airport currently open, disruption possible
Bristol - Airport currently open, disruption possible
Bournemouth - Airport open, disruption possible E
dinburgh - airport currently open, disruption possible
Liverpool - Airport open, disruption possible
London Gatwick - Airport open, disruption possible
London Luton - Airport currently open, disruption possible
London Stansted - Airport currently open, disruption possible
Manchester - Airport open, disruption possible
Newcastle - Airport open, disruption possible
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Looking at the scenes from LHR, I can only say that GVA looked after us a lot better than British airports are looking after their customers. I feel for everyone stuck in an airport, I've been there. 
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| Spyderman wrote: |
| Looking at the scenes from LHR, I can only say that GVA looked after us a lot better than British airports are looking after their customers. I feel for everyone stuck in an airport, I've been there. |
I've been delayed/stuck in airports all over the world (I think 24hrs in Suva airport, Fiji is my record) and will never travel through Heathrow again as long as I live. Hateful, hateful, nasty place.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Actually I forgot about my 'ash-cloud' weekend in Stockholm Arlanda - probably because a few extra days in Stockholm with the company credit card isn't too horrific!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I agree with Ricklovesthepowder, during the last lot of snow which hit this side of the country, East Midlands airport managed to stay open throughout, Leeds Bradford and Doncaster airports were shut for less than a day each and this was with significantly more snowfall than the south has had this time. Yesterday Birmingham and Manchester airports were only shut for a matter of hours. What are the northern airports doing right that the southern ones are doing wrong?
What has the situation been like with the Scottish airports, anybody know?
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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queen bodecia, I wonder if the question could also be phrased along the lines of why did the smaller airports deal with the snow better than the larger ones?
Heathrow 31% of UK passengers
Gatwick 15% of UK passengers
Manchester 8% of UK passengers
Edinburgh 4% of UK passengers
Liverpool 2.5% of UK passengers
Doncaster 0.5% of UK passengers
Just a thought. But geography may not have been the only factor.
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| queen bodecia wrote: |
| IWhat has the situation been like with the Scottish airports, anybody know? |
Bars open, pizza slice fryers going full-pelt, I'll bet.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Quote: |
why did the smaller airports deal with the snow better than the larger ones?
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Because they're smaller? Less snow to shift?
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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I think the snowfall down South was more intense - it came down over a much shorter period, makes it much harder to keep up with the clearing process. Also Southerners are softies.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Shimmy Alcott wrote: |
| I think the snowfall down South was more intense - it came down over a much shorter period, makes it much harder to keep up with the clearing process. Also Southerners are softies. |
The last sentence sums it up beautifully!!!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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There is also the point that southern airports have more than four flights a day to cope with.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Ok latest update 16.5 hrs to get from north west to Gatwick. 8 hrs on m40 between Cherwell and Oxford services arrived at 4.30 in morning having spent most of that sleeping in the car in a jam on m40. Gatwick flights are delayed most ejet cancelled. Our flight 14.40 be9729 not showing on boards but we think the plane has left Geneva Sirport is mad. They have opened another 'holding' area for those going late tonight.
Thanks for info on France it made us decide to risk the airport rather than spend another night in the car. Not ideal with a 6 year old.
Any info you have on flight appreciated Internet is not great so may not be able to reply!
Thanks in advance.
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Ryanair hassles continue. After my wife's flight was cancelled yesterday due to a snowflake landing at stansted i got online and rebooked her to monday and the mil (was on a different booking ref) for a wed flight. No email confirmations sent out but at the time on rebooking I did get confirmation page for both bookings. On trying to do online checkin today the mil booking has come up as yesterday still! 30 minute call to ryanair (god knows what that cost) they of course blame user error (like f**k it was) probably their amstrad 386 server getting overloaded. So the mil is now booked for friday. I of course am getting the blame, lucky i'm tucked up in the alps already having just enjoyed 7 days of powder. I now know air berlin fly stansted - salzburg - try them next time. Hope everyone gets to where they hope over the next few days. The ultimate solution is once in the alps is to never return to blighty. A plan i'm seriously working on and hope to have in place within a couple of months.Fingers crossed my oh and boy land on time tomorrow, i want to go skiing in the afternoon.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| Shimmy Alcott wrote: |
| K8T, what is your flight number? Want to pm me your mobile number and I will keep you updated if you want, if your mobile internet access is not great? |
Can't seem to pm maybe not enough posts. I would be grateful for anything you know and will check
Thanks every one for the news updates
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LHR still screwed - more human misery on display at T5 today. BA staff doing their best and very visible but no rebooking allowed in terminal and a general message over the tannoy of "F off out of here if you haven't got a confirmed seat on a plane which is definitely flying." No short haul or domestic and majority of pm long haul all cancelled - meanwhile check out BAA's proud boasts here:
| Quote: |
Heathrow's army of snow ploughs stretch their wings as snow bites
29 November 2010
The cold snap may have only just bitten but Heathrow's snow team has been working for months to ensure the UK's hub airport will once again be prepared for the onset of winter.
With an extra half a million pounds invested in equipment this year, Heathrow’s airside department run constant checks of runway and taxiway areas, applying de-icing and of course clearing any snow and debris away.
Heathrow's specialist teams - which includes 50 highly trained staff and more than 60 hi-tech vehicles - have been preparing since the end of last winter to do everything they can to minimise delays in the face of wintry conditions.
The airport employs a fleet of snow ploughs and de-icing vehicles to clear and prepare runways and taxiways at the airport's specialist snow base which sits in between the two runways. Heathrow's airside operations teams have spent the summer refreshing their training with plans being discussed with airlines, baggage handlers and air traffic control to ensure a coordinated response.
While London may have run out of grit last winter, Heathrow is determined that it doesn't run out of the highly concentrated de-icing fluid it uses on the runways (grit is not used as this could get into engines). That's why the airport now has an innovative computer system that remotely measures how much de-icer is left - to ensure restocking can take place when required. To minimise the impact on the surrounding greenery, the chemical bi-product - glycol - is also recovered by a host of new recovery vehicles, ensuring more waste de-icing liquid can be removed effectively from the airport.
To ensure it has the most up-to-date weather predictions, Heathrow uses the Met Office’s OpenRunway system which offers 24 hour access to measurements including air and runway temperatures, wind and visibility, all vital in determining the right time to apply anti or de-icer.
Key Heathrow snow facts:
Heathrow was the only major airport in the UK to not close last winter
There are over 60 vehicles and 50 staff keeping the runways clear
An extra £500,000 has been invested this year in snow-fighting technology
Heathrow has storage for 500,000 litres of de-icing fluid
Each de-icing vehicle can hold a massive 60,000 litres and it takes around 25 mins to de-ice each runway
Liquid de-icer used on the runway and taxiways is effective for longer and ensures that grit doesn't cause damage to engines.
Colin Wood, Director of Airside, said: "As the world’s busiest international airport it's absolutely vital we are well prepared and our team do an excellent job often in quite severe conditions. While we stayed open last winter, we won’t rest on our laurels and promise that we'll be ready, waiting and doing everything we can to make every journey better for our passengers."
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Lucky I'm not in close proximity to Colin Wood at the moment  Nice of them to invest a whole £500k for the world's busiest airport bet that's not even the rent on a single WH Smith kiosk.
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| fatbob wrote: |
| Lucky I'm not in close proximity to Colin Wood at the moment Nice of them to invest a whole £500k for the world's busiest airport bet that's not even the rent on a single WH Smith kiosk. |
Exactly right, the gits. Heathrow, the world's worst run airport. Jane is due to fly out tomorrow, but the chances are looking very slim. If she can't rebook for another flight later this week I'm going to have to drive back to the UK so we can spend Christmas together.
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Even if the airports are open the flights aren't necessarily leaving, our 13.35 departure today from manchester to chambery is now at 5am tomorrow - having made the 6am run from manchester to chambery, the plane was apparently diverted elsewhere leaving a lot of very annoyed people. at least we live close enough to go home, but it does annoy me as we specifcally chose this trip due to the later flight times
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| rob@rar wrote: |
| fatbob wrote: |
| Lucky I'm not in close proximity to Colin Wood at the moment Nice of them to invest a whole £500k for the world's busiest airport bet that's not even the rent on a single WH Smith kiosk. |
Exactly right, the gits. Heathrow, the world's worst run airport. Jane is due to fly out tomorrow, but the chances are looking very slim. If she can't rebook for another flight later this week I'm going to have to drive back to the UK so we can spend Christmas together. |
Blimey - good luck with getting Jane on a flight, having had a quick look round squeezy jet there's norhing much of any use apart from early tomorrow LGW to grenoble and ditto friday... I guess that'll be pretty typical of all the others, and BA is probably even worse...
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| bertie bassett wrote: |
| Blimey - good luck with getting Jane on a flight, having had a quick look round squeezy jet there's norhing much of any use apart from early tomorrow LGW to grenoble and ditto friday... I guess that'll be pretty typical of all the others, and BA is probably even worse... |
Thanks. It's looking a bit grim. We have a backup plan of easyjet to GVA on Christmas Eve, which was the earliest flight we could get. Might just bag it all and drive home.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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rob@rar, My brother's driving out to Plan Peisey on the 24th - I'll ask if he has space if you like?
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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genepi, thanks for the offer. Please do ask, although that would be a Plan C as we now have an easyjet ticket booked and I'm sincerely hoping that there won't be even more disruption at the end of the week and Jane can fly out without too much hassle, albeit three days late.
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Heathrow is a disgrace. The fact the BAA is privately - owned does nothing to hide our national shame.
What do you expect of anything run by Colin Matthews? Long on rhetoric, short on investment, short on substance.
No .. Im not happy 
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You know it makes sense.
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| Agenterre wrote: |
| Heathrow is a disgrace. The fact the BAA is privately - owned does nothing to hide our national shame |
Agreed, although I have to say that BA should be forced to invest some resources in its website to make it a bit more resilient in times like this. It is completely failing to provide anything approaching a reasonable service. Slightly slow I could cope with, but it's just hopeless at the moment. For example, I'm trying to find info about departures tomorrow and keep getting served an "update" about the cabin crew dispute dated 15th December. Manage My Booking is not providing the re-booking options that it says it will. Infuriating comes nowhere near close...
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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rob@rar, I agree .. I've been trying to do the same having arrived back from Tampa in Stansted on Saturday ( another story in its own right). Absolutely no help to anyone but when I find out what went wrong with the website I'll post it.
At this rate I'll be in the UK for Xmas on my tod. Noone to blame for that other then an incompetent shopping mall (BAA ) and myself.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Agenterre, couldn't you spend it with rob's GF?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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pam w, 
Agenterre, thanks, I'd appreciate that info.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Agenterre,
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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rob@rar, Working now .... not that I can find a flight 
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Agenterre, poor dab!
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Agenterre, alas not for me. We haven't had any confirmation of the cancellation (no email, no SMS) but the online timetables for tomorrow that I've been able to access (only via my iPhone, not via BA's normal website) indicate all LHR-GVA flights cancelled except for the first and last of the day. MMB does not give us the option to re-book; in fact it specifically said that function is not available for our booking and we should contact BA directly. Trying to phone BA at the moment would be futile. All in all it's just rubbish.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Latest at Gatwick from EJ
"London Gatwick - currently closed due to snow until 06:00 AM. All remaining easyJet flights departing from the airport on Monday 20th December 2010 are cancelled. Multiple aircrafts arriving at London Gatwick are being diverted to other airports."
EJ don't have many departures scheduled after 2100, but I expect they were hoping to get some of the delayed ones away. The inbound diversions are not good news in terms of trying to get things settled down.
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FAQ
