Heathrow Airport - London
On May 31, 1946 Heathrow Airport was opened to the general public, but plans for the airport as we know it today didn't begin until 1950. Its first jet service, between London and Johannesburg was a Comet operated by a Boac on May 2, 1952. In 1966 another BOAC Comet made the first scheduled jet flight over the Atlantic to New York. The earliest British Airways Concorde flight was made to Bahrain, and it took place in 1976. Ten years later, in 1986, a new fourth terminal, which included new roads, bridges, taxiways, aprons and car parks was built. Construction on yet another terminal began in 1995.
Heathrow Airport is the most important airport in Britain. It covers 2,958 acres and handles over 900,000 tons of cargo yearly. In 1993, a total of 47,601,753 passengers traveled through, and 394,104 airplanes took off and landed. Every year flights to over 220 destinations, both domestic and international, are handled. More than twenty hotels can be found close by. Recently a decision was made to invest in modern, state of the art noise and track keeping equipment to enhance the airport's monitoring methods. |
