Nostalgia at BHX

[Aviador]

A great picture of the ramp has been emailed to me. The photo was taken by a Will Blunt who is apparently deceased.

 

[Brum X]

Yes a great photo indeed, it looks like a LHR diversion day.

It also reminds us what the Terminal and international pier looked like back in the 80s and 90s.

Its great what we have now but I do miss the old control tower and pier sometimes, pure nostalgia

 

[Ray Finkle]

Cracking picture, how times have changed eh?

Brings back some happy memories.

 

[BSL-2km]

nice pair of one elevens.... the small details matter sometimes

 

[JENNYJET]

What tweaks my memory is seeing a BAC1-11 sitting next to B747.....was that really Birmingham Airport? Not what I recall from the time when I was well enough to be a regular visitor!!
I witnessed 1-11 sitting next to BA 747-200 from the cafeteria in the Elmdon terminal during a snowy evening way back in the days before the current terminal was dreamt of!!

 

[wolfheze]

What tweaks my memory is seeing a BAC1-11 sitting next to B747.....was that really Birmingham Airport? Not what I recall from the time when I was well enough to be a regular visitor!!
I witnessed 1-11 sitting next to BA 747-200 from the cafeteria in the Elmdon terminal during a snowy evening way back in the days before the current terminal was dreamt of!!

I to remember going there on a snowy morning, must have been late 78 or early 79 to find the short runway stuffed with BA 747s , Tristars and maybe the odd 707 and VC10. Happy days!

 

[thunderchild]

Great picture! Going off topic I know but I wish BA would do a retro jet and put the Landor livery on the A380!

 

[wolfheze]

Great picture! Going off topic I know but I wish BA would do a retro jet and put the Landor livery on the A380!

That's a great idea. Think it was somewhere on this site that someone said the landor scheme was the worst ever livery. Personally I think it was easily the best BA colour scheme and they should bring it back!

 

[JENNYJET]

That's a great idea. Think it was somewhere on this site that someone said the landor scheme was the worst ever livery. Personally I think it was easily the best BA colour scheme and they should bring it back!

I agree about the Landor livery, it had class!

The current scheme has something of the 'Disney's' about it.

 

[wolfheze]

Yes.classy and instantly recognisable with a certain 'Britishness' about it, funny as Landor was an American company.

 

[Derwent Dale]

With regard to the excellent Will Blunt pic, by trawling the "from logs to blogs - Elmdon over the years" site - it was taken on 20th March 1990 - BA 747s G-AWNG/G-AWNO and the Virgins were G-VGIN/G-VOYG. I was working for TEA (UK) at the time and nice to see a couple of ours in the background. I thoroughly recommend Mr F's "bhxovertheyears.blogspot.co.uk" certainly full of reminders of my misspent youth.
Cheers DD

 

[wolfheze]

Picked up a copy of an aircraft illustrated from 1970 with a Birmingham feature. Can't scan photos and download them in the right format so these are just taken from the phone View attachment 3343 View attachment 3344 View attachment 3345 View attachment 3346 View attachment 3347

 

[JENNYJET]

Yep!! The smoke trails from the Spantax Coronado, just as remembered it

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Thanks wolfheze. Fascinating nostalgia and I was still in my 20s then - it was that long ago. Four aircraft and it's a 'busy apron scene'. How things have changed.

 

[wolfheze]

I would have considered that to be busy when I was going around 6 years later, unfortunately by then Vanguards and super one elevens weren't being used on scheduled services and the only chance you had of seeing one was on a diversion day, even then I never managed to see a Vanguard at Birmingham. The aerial photo shows how close the airfield boundary was to the runway on the Marston green side, I believe it's on that land where the Beech Baron crashed in the fog in November 75

 

[Vile8er]

Loved the Spantax Coronado. Used to watch it fly over our garden in Castle Bromwich on approach

 

[wolfheze]

Loved the Spantax Coronado. Used to watch it fly over our garden in Castle Bromwich on approach

The Coranados were something else I managed to not see although I do remember my Dad mentioning them to me around that time.He worked for a company in Sheldon so probably saw them regularly.

 

[wolfheze]

]Loved the Spantax Coronado. Used to watch it fly over our garden in Castle Bromwich on approach[/QUOTE]
You don't by any chance remember Zodiac toyshop in Chelmsley Wood?

 

[Vile8er]

]Loved the Spantax Coronado. Used to watch it fly over our garden in Castle Bromwich on approach

You don't by any chance remember Zodiac toyshop in Chelmsley Wood?[/QUOTE]
Cant say I do to be honest

 

[Elmdon80slad]

A great picture of the ramp has been emailed to me. The photo was taken by a Will Blunt who is apparently deceased.

That was quite an accomplishment for the airport - remember the distance being so narrow for a 747 - that in the pic above a departing Jumbo would have to be marshalled with a watcher on both sides near the wing tips, walking with the plane and tug till it cleared all obstructions, often being further over the centre line taxi way (I did this a few times when i worked at BHX).

E.