Sunday 31 May 2009 - Saga Airlines Boeing 737-86J TC-SGH operates IT flight from Dalaman

Saga Airlines Boeing 737-86J TC-SGH arrived from Dalaman on

the return sector of an extra IT flight for the Bank Holiday before

positioning to Glasgow. It wears additional "Scottravel Holidays"

titles on the lower rear fuselage
.

Emirates Airbus A330-243 A6-EAK arrived from Dubai operating

the final Airbus evening service before it is upgraded to a Boeing 777

operation effective from Monday 1 June 2009
.

Ryanair Boeing 737-8AS EI-EFF operated their evening service from

Dublin - its second visit of the day having "first visited" at lunchtime
.

Gulfstream 550 EI-GDL was an early evening arrival parking

on the Elmdon apron

BHX - 25 years ago today!! - on Wednesday 30 May 1984 the Queen officially opened the "new" terminal

Twenty five years ago today - on Wednesday 30 May 1984 -

the Queen officially opened the "new" terminal building....

.... after arriving on RAF Queens Flight Andover XS790 which had

parked next to British Airways Concorde G-BOAA - the tail of a
Wardair Boeing 747 can be see parked behind the Pier

. .

Over the previous Bank Holiday weekend an Air Show had been held

at the Airport to mark the opening of the new site
.

The Malboro Pitts Specials taxy for departure with the old

Elmdon terminal in the background....
. .... while Concorde G-BOAA performed a number of "supersonic"
flights out over the English Channel seen here landing back at BHX

with Air Atlantique Dakota GAMPO in the foreground
.

The new terminal had opened of Wednesday 4 April 1984 and some

more photos and a video of the first day of operation can be seen at -

http://bhxflightguide.blogspot.com/2009/04/bhx-1984.html

.

Friday 29 May 2009 - Thomas Cook Belgium Airbus A320-214 OO-TCH operates charter from Lourdes

Thomas Cook Belgium Airbus A320-214 OO-TCH operated the return

pilgrimage charter flight from Lourdes before positioning to Brussels

.

flybe Embraer 145 G-ERJC departs to Exeter and retirement....
.

.... it had earlier positioned in from Manchester to operate the

BE7059/7062 to/from Edinburgh which looks to have been

the final flybe Embraer 145 passenger service

Emirates Boeing 777 A6-EGT is the first wide bodied aircraft to depart on BHX's extended runway after it was declared operational on Tuesday 27 May 2014

Emirates Boeing 777-31HER A6-EGT operating their lunchtime flight "EK 040" to Dubai
was the first wide bodied aircraft to depart on Birmingham Airport's "extended" runway
after it was declared operational at 0600 on Tuesday 27 May 2014 - this sequence of
images illustrates the "extended" runway and taxiway layout in operation....

.... after proceeding along Taxiway Echo the aircraft turns onto new Taxiway Sierra
- due to work in progress at the fuel farm an Ops vehicle escort is required here

.... the aircraft then proceeds along the new parallel Taxiway Sierra with the newly

extended and refurbished Long Stay Park Car and new Radar in the background

.... a general view of the aircraft on Taxiway Sierra with the 400 metre extension

to Runway 15/33 in the foreground

.... as the aircraft approaches the Sierra 1 holding point it passes the new Jet Blast Deflector

which is designed to protect vehicles using the new airside perimeter road from the jet blast

of aircraft (up to Airbus A380 size) using Taxiway Sierra as the wait to line up on Runway 33

Emirates Boeing 777-31HER A6-EGT holds for departure at Sierra 1 waiting for....

.... Thomson Boeing 757-236 G-CPEV to land on Runway 33

.... the aircraft then lines up on Runway 33 - the street lights of the A45 Coventry Road

which now runs in a cutting can be seen in the background - not much traffic today!

The bigger picture! - the aircraft lined up on the extended Runway 33 with the view

all the way back to the new ILS - foreground - and the terminal in the background

.... Emirates Boeing 777-31HER A6-EGT starts its take off roll

.... along the extended Runway 33 which is now 3,003 metres long

.... rotating/becoming airborne shortly after the aircraft passes Taxiway Lima

- the former cross Runway 06/24 - next stop Dubai!

Tuesday 27 May 2014

Birmingham Airport's extended 3,003 metre runway operational from 0600 on Tuesday 27 May 2014

Birmingham Airport's 400 metre runway extension went into operation at 0600 on Tuesday 27 May 2014
with Privilege Style Boeing 757-256 EC-ISY operating for Monarch the first to depart using the "extended"
3,003 metre runway with flybe Embraer 195 G-FBEJ following it down Taxiway Sierra which has also opened

The runway had been closed during the early hours of Tuesday morning to enable the contractors to
complete the final commissioning of new parallel Taxiway Sierra similar work having been performed
on the "extended" runway layout in the early hours of the previous/Monday morning....

.... shortly before 0600 after the BHX Ops team had performed final checks the "extended" 3,003 metre
runway and new Taxiway Sierra was declared operational with all the safety barriers being removed

The first movement of a new era was the arrival of Emirates Boeing 777-31HER A6-EGT from Dubai....

.... there was some initial reluctance of the early morning departures to go "full length" - did they know what
they were missing!? - with the first departure of the day Monarch Airbus A321-231 G-ZBAF operating the
ZB 402 to Faro lining up on Runway 33 via Taxiway Echo/Echo 1 followed out by KLM Boeing 737-7K2 PH-BGN

Two further aircraft departed from Echo 1 so it fell upon Privilege Style Boeing 757-256 EC-ISY operating
Monarch flight ZB 958 to be the first aircraft to acknowledge "taxy via Sierra to holding point Sierra 1...."

.... and at 0632 on Tuesday 27 May 2014 Privilege Style Boeing 757-256 EC-ISY operating for Monarch to
depart "full length" off Birmingham Airport's extended 3,003 metre Runway 33 - a new era has started!

You know what its like once one has done it they all want to do it with flybe (top photo), Thomson and Monarch
all following it down Taxiway Sierra as did most of the rest of the movements during the morning peak period

Some different views of the new "extended" runway and taxiway layout - a Lufthansa Embraer 195
holds at Sierra 1 with the early morning Ryanair flight from Dublin on short final to Runway 33

The "bigger picture" of the completed runway extension site as the United Boeing 757 departs
to Newark off Runway 33 with the new ATC Tower in the background....

.... panning around the view down the extended runway as an Air France Airbus A319 lines up on Runway 33
via Taxiway Echo/Echo 1 - both the new ATC Tower and Monarch Hangar can be seen in the background

A view down new Taxiway Sierra with a flybe Dash 8 "#purpleplane" approaching holding point Sierra 1
while a Monarch Airbus A321 can be seen in the background on Taxiway Echo....

.... a Thomson Boeing 757 lines up on the extended Runway 33 via holding point Sierra 1

A view back along extended Runway 33 as a Monarch Airbus A321 touches down with in the background
a Brussels Airlines Dash approaching holding point Sierra 1 and Bickenhill Church in the distance

The view from a wet Bickenhill - as an aircraft touches down on Runway 33 a flybe Embraer 175 waits
at holding point Sierra 1 while a flybe Dash 8 and Ryanair Boeing 737 hold at Echo 1

Earlier in the day Emirates Boeing 777-31HER A6-EGT operating their lunchtime flight EK 040 to Dubai
was the first wide bodied aircraft to depart on Birmingham Airport's "extended" 3,003 metre runway - to
see a full sequence of images illustrating the "extended" runway and taxiway layout in operation click here

Tuesday 27 May 2014

Sunday 26 May 2013 - Air Berlin Airbus A330-223 D-ALPF operates a charter to Venice

Air Berlin Airbus A330-223 D-ALPF positioned in from Berlin Tegel....

.... on its first visit to BHX

.... parking on Stand 42C

.... and then operating a charter to Venice

Turkish Airbus A321-231 TC-JRU operated their morning service from Istanbul - its first visit to BHX

SAS Boeing 737-683 LN-RPU operated their service to Stockholm Arlanda
which has now moved to a morning departure time on Sundays

KLM cityhopper Embraer 190-100LR PH-EZX operated their morning service
to Amsterdam - the aircraft is in "Skyteam" colours

Alba Star Boeing 737-4K5 EC-LTG operated the Monarch service to Alicante

Falcon 900DX M-DADI which had arrived on Friday positioned back to Luton

Citation CJ2 YU-BUU made a brief afternoon visit to the Elmdon apron

Citation II EC-IMF was an evening arrival parking up to night stop at BHX