Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road • Hacker News Board

Re: Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road

#41

Post by Veen » Wed, Jul 07, 2021, 9:41 PM UTC

adamcstephens wrote: post #35

miohtama wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It severely limits traffic, both air and land. There will be a tunnel for cars opening later this year. It is another kind of road rage sitting 45 minutes in a car in a queue when some dick decides to land with his private jet.

Almost as bad as a different country claim stealing a portion of your country and claiming it as theirs?

Spain ceded Gibraltar in the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. It wasn't stolen. Besides which, Spain isn't exactly innocent when it comes to "stealing a portion of a country and claiming it as theirs".

Re: Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road

#42

Post by philjohn » Wed, Jul 07, 2021, 9:44 PM UTC

axiosgunnar wrote: post #23

duiker101 wrote: post #7

I lived next to the runway for about an year. I can actually seem the apartment from some of the photos. It was an interesting place. It's really just after the border with Spain so if you stay in the country you don't need to cross it every day, but more people work in Gib than live so there is quite a good amount of traffic. As with most things, you get used to it and it just becomes normal very quickly. The best t…

Was it not super loud?

Not OP but there are only a handful of scheduled flights per day.

I used to fly into there fairly regularly as it was easier to get to my parent's place half an hour up the coast than if I flew to Malaga.

Re: Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road

#43

Post by philjohn » Wed, Jul 07, 2021, 9:45 PM UTC

agurk wrote: post #40

jaywalk wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Pretty sure it's a 757, but that's not a jumbo jet either.

That's an A320-200 [0]. Look at the cockpit windows, they're often a good way to tell similar aircraft apart. It also has two overwing exits, so it can't be an A319 (single) or A321 (none). The engine size gives it away that it's a 200 and not a neo. BA did operate 757s in their shorthaul fleet but only on busy routes like ARN - LHR, I don't think there would be enough traffic to have justified it on any Gibraltar -…

The flights are usually pretty full as there are only a handful a day.

But I've only ever been on an A320 or a 737 when flying there, not sure if a 757 would be able to take off and land safely - it's a pretty short runway.

Re: Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road

#44

Post by adamcstephens » Wed, Jul 07, 2021, 9:45 PM UTC

Veen wrote: post #41

adamcstephens wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Almost as bad as a different country claim stealing a portion of your country and claiming it as theirs?

Spain ceded Gibraltar in the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. It wasn't stolen. Besides which, Spain isn't exactly innocent when it comes to "stealing a portion of a country and claiming it as theirs".

Fair enough, I was wrong so deserve the downvotes.

Very few European countries are innocent when it comes to taking land that wasn’t theirs.

Re: Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road

#45

Post by philjohn » Wed, Jul 07, 2021, 9:46 PM UTC

It's also in the top 5 most dangerous airports to land at - lots of sudden crosswinds from the rock.

You also have the fun of the Levante, which is a sea mist that can come in very quickly and hang around for hours. I've been delayed multiple hours on more than one occasion waiting for it to clear.

Re: Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road

#46

Post by dtparr » Wed, Jul 07, 2021, 9:50 PM UTC

miohtama wrote: post #16

Gibraltar airport is one of the toughest (civilian?) to land. Only Captains are allowed to land. Flights often get diverded to Malaga due to winds. https://www.express.co.uk/travel/articles/696566/high-winds-...

The captain-only requirement is an interesting one. While it makes sense that you'd want the more experienced pilot doing the landing, how do you get more captains? I.e. if a First officer can't land there with a more senior pilot ready to advise/supervise/take over, it would mean each person's first time landing there is when there's no one else more experienced to advise.

Re: Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road

#47

Post by yccs27 » Wed, Jul 07, 2021, 9:51 PM UTC

A similarly strange runway is located at Barra Airport in scotland: it's made of sand, and tide covers it up twice a day.

Here's a Tom Scott video about it:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=g_2SlqF0kA0

Re: Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road

#48

Post by will_walker » Wed, Jul 07, 2021, 9:56 PM UTC

Placencia Airport in Belize (PLJ) terminates exactly at a road. The short runway takes up the entire width of the isthmus it occupies, so the road takes a dog-leg to pass it. There's a single arm gate on each road to stop traffic during takeoffs and landings.

[0] https://www.google.com/maps/search/placencia+belize+airport/...

Re: Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road

#49

Post by zizee » Wed, Jul 07, 2021, 10:04 PM UTC

dtparr wrote: post #46

miohtama wrote: post #16

Gibraltar airport is one of the toughest (civilian?) to land. Only Captains are allowed to land. Flights often get diverded to Malaga due to winds. https://www.express.co.uk/travel/articles/696566/high-winds-...

The captain-only requirement is an interesting one. While it makes sense that you'd want the more experienced pilot doing the landing, how do you get more captains? I.e. if a First officer can't land there with a more senior pilot ready to advise/supervise/take over, it would mean each person's first time landing there is when there's no one else more experienced to advise.

Someone said elsewhere thst it id not a heavily used airport. If there are inly a handful of flights a day I imagine that means there are only a select number of airlines arriving. If you were one of the select few airlines landing here, i could imagine you'd br able to schedule an experienced captain to be with a first timer when landing.

note: i am only speculating, and have no ideas of rules that prohibit two captain level pilots flying at once.

Re: Gibraltar, world’s only airport runway intersecting a road

#50

Post by sunshineforever » Wed, Jul 07, 2021, 10:04 PM UTC

Ericson2314 wrote: post #2

Surely this gem hasn't gone unfilmed in some sort of James Bond type action sequence?

Totally almost off subject but if you want some cool Gibraltar movie action check out Das Boot. And I watched Dunkirk right after if you really want to sob about the meaninglessness of war. The ending of Das Boot transitions well into the story of Dunkirk, in my opinion. And the ending of Dunkirk is one of the nobly beautiful things I've seen.