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Post by dereks on Mar 23, 2014 22:45:17 GMT 1
Please forgive this thread but it strikes me having looked at the movements section for many months that inevitably the airport has changed substantially over the years -The benefit being that it is that it exists when economics dictate it could easily have become a housing estate or industrial complex -I would never want to see the demise of my old local.
I declare that I am a child of the sixties - Speke was my passion and the days of the balcony and tannoy announcing a potentially exciting arrival amongst the very limited scheduled flights made every visit special.
GA therefore made a greater impact - Mixed in with the more interesting visitors I include the Eli Lilly 707, the numerous Football specials -But even the BCAL tomato 707 flights and the USAF Burtonwood Iroquois were welcome.
My question is nowadays how does it feel as a local spotter - (I have been a southern softie for many years now -but hanker after the good old days -I know that is in the past) but often it seems that it is all simply about the fleet variation in the local budget airlines.
The airport is now, hopefully commercially successful but GA (For no doubt financial reasons)and the more interesting visitors seem to be lacking somewhat - Maybe it's me and my aspirations to see Speke ( Sorry it will only ever be this for me) achieving the status it has lived on the edge for for years.
As a local how do you feel now? And what of the future?
This is in no way meant to be derogatory Speke (LJL) will always be my spotting home even from afar - Just a question of how people see things with an eye on the future.
May I end by saying that the current contributors make it all worth while knowing whats going including the regional airpoets and strips - I still have some family in the area and make the road trip north during the year but not always to the airport.
Regards
Dereks
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Post by ronturner on Mar 24, 2014 8:56:04 GMT 1
I share some of your thoughts, also viewing from a distance, but I have a somehow different opinion. I get the impression that the commercial side is a bit boring, dominated by Ryanair and Easyjet, whereas I am very impressed with the number of business aircraft, especially jets, seen in the GA section.
In retrospect, the commercial side was the same in my day. A procession of BEA and Starways, (well actually not a procession...more of a saunter) with bursts of other stuff to make our day from time to time. Sorry to say it, but what made the difference: what filled our day; was the other paraphernalia and near proximity of it all.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 24, 2014 16:15:55 GMT 1
I share some of your thoughts, also viewing from a distance, but I have a somehow different opinion. I get the impression that the commercial side is a bit boring, dominated by Ryanair and Easyjet, whereas I am very impressed with the number of business aircraft, especially jets, seen in the GA section. In retrospect, the commercial side was the same in my day. A procession of BEA and Starways, (well actually not a procession...more of a saunter) with bursts of other stuff to make our day from time to time. Sorry to say it, but what made the difference: what filled our day; was the other paraphernalia and near proximity of it all. Ron - you forgot Aer Lingus, who were very prolific in those days, especially on Saturday nights I seem to recall  |
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Post by vanguard on Mar 24, 2014 16:57:43 GMT 1
Yes garstonboy,saturday nights 7 Aer Lingus Viscounts for Dublin papers and 5 Cambrian Viscounts with Belfast papers,
it was very busy from around 2130 to approx 0100 Sunday morn,never bought a sunday paper for ages!!
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Post by Deleted on Mar 24, 2014 18:14:39 GMT 1
Yes garstonboy,saturday nights 7 Aer Lingus Viscounts for Dublin papers and 5 Cambrian Viscounts with Belfast papers, it was very busy from around 2130 to approx 0100 Sunday morn,never bought a sunday paper for ages!! Ah yes, the 'vouchers'. You wouldn't want to take any out of those which were going to Eire because their versions were censored. If only I had £1 for every Saturday night paper shift I did, I could do a lot with it! |
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Post by johnoakes on Mar 25, 2014 8:09:17 GMT 1
Saturday night paper flights--Ron and I made a mint on those--never seemed like work somehow.Happy days.LOL
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Post by ronturner on Mar 25, 2014 8:36:27 GMT 1
Yes, how well I remember those Saturday nights. In fact it was the money earned on those tough but fun evenings which paid for my flying lessons in G-ARGO. (About £3.10s for the night's work and £4.10s an hour for the flying.) In my day it was Aer Lingus, Dc-3s, Viscounts, sometimes an F-27 or a Carvair.
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Post by vanguard on Mar 25, 2014 12:59:38 GMT 1
Did anybody ever remember getting into a/c holds when they had just been sprayed with disinfectant due to the foot & mouth
out break in the late sixties,i do wet knees for awhile afterwards and then upstairs to the pax cabin,whitch was wet aswell,
are yes hard graft sometimes but the money came in handy,paid for my driving lessons and a first time pass!!.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 25, 2014 16:40:42 GMT 1
Yes, how well I remember those Saturday nights. In fact it was the money earned on those tough but fun evenings which paid for my flying lessons in G-ARGO. (About £3.10s for the night's work and £4.10s an hour for the flying.) In my day it was Aer Lingus, Dc-3s, Viscounts, sometimes an F-27 or a Carvair. It allowed me to buy a cine camera (as they were called then), but more importantly it changed my whole life. It finally made me realise that instead of joining the merchant navy, I wanted to go into aviation. I heard there were jobs going at Cambrian, applied and was successful and the rest is now history! I'm preparing a post on the newspaper operation, for the benefit of the many on here who are wondering what the hell us silly old duffers are on about! Anyway, back to the OP's original question... |
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Post by johnoakes on Mar 26, 2014 9:41:01 GMT 1
My money went on psychology books to further my studies and care
er--WHAT A DOPE!!!! Still--- living comfortably in France does offer a glimmer of hope to what was once an idiot workaholic---it IS curable.LOL
As I remember it was £3 6 shillings and 8 pence--seemed a FORTUNE at the time.LOL and NO tax.+ free papers.Such great memories--carvairs and their hand pump opening doors. LOL
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