Strike threatens to cause 'gridlock' at British airports

David Sapsted

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LONDON // Airline passengers heading to Britain face delays of up to 12 hours due to a strike.

The day-long industrial action by immigration and passport staff begins on Wednesday.

The strike is part of a nationwide protest by government workers about proposed pension changes.

There could also be "mass cancellations of departing aircraft" due to gridlock at terminals, according to Norman Boivin, the chief operating officer at London's Heathrow Airport.

He said it might become necessary to advise passengers not to travel on November 30 unless their journeys were essential.

The British government has been training volunteers from the civil service to fill the posts of striking members of the UK Border Agency, but lengthy delays for arriving passengers are considered inevitable. This is likely to result in passengers being held on arriving aircraft. "This in turn would quickly create gridlock at the airport with no available aircraft parking stands, mass cancellations of departing aircraft and diversions outside the UK for arriving aircraft," said Mr Boivin.

He added that the airport operators were asking airlines to reduce by 30 to 50 per cent the normal number of inbound passengers on the day of the strike to help "reduce the risk of being diverted to an airport outside the UK".

Airlines serving the Gulf plan to run services as normal at present but Etihad, which operates flights into both Heathrow and Manchester airports in England, yesterday warned its passengers that the strike "has the potential to cause disruption at all UK airports".

A statement from the airline added: "Any guests wishing to change their itinerary are advised to call an Etihad office or their travel agent."

dsapsted@thenational.ae

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Airline passengers heading to Britain face delays of up to 12 hours due to a strike by immigration and passport staff that is scheduled to begin on Wednesday.

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Time Frame: British Petroleum's 'wild duck'

James Langton

Its engines shattering the ancient tranquillity of the desert, a helicopter thunders over the coast of Abu Dhabi. It is the early 1960s, and the oil rush that will make the emirate one of the richest countries in the world is in full swing.

Taken from the archives of British Petroleum, the machine in the photograph is almost certainly a Westland Widgeon, based on a design licensed from the US company Sikorsky, which could carry a pilot and up to four passengers.

It was operated for BP by Bristow Helicopters, a British company that would become one of the world's largest suppliers of aviation services to the oil industry. The company was founded by Alan Bristow, a picaresque figure whose exploits included helicopter spotting for a pirate whaling fleet in the Antarctic, winning the Croix de Guerre for evacuating wounded French soldiers in Indochina, and riding with the Duke of Edinburgh while representing Great Britain at four-in-hand carriage driving.

Bristow brought two Widgeons - named after a wild duck - to the Gulf in the late 1950s, and stationed them on Das Island, the centre for offshore oil exploration in Abu Dhabi.

The helicopters were originally intended to be used to fly out essential spare parts and key staff, but proved so reliable that they provided what was effectively a ferry service between the island and the mainland.

Time Frame is a series that opens a window into the nation's past. Readers are invited to make contributions to yourpics@thenational.ae" target="_blank">yourpics@thenational.ae

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Taken from the archives of British Petroleum, the photograph shows a British Petroleum helicopter, a Westland Widgeon, over the coast of Abu Dhabi in the early 1960s.

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