Visitors & Personalities Passing Through LBA

[White Heather]

Leeds Rhinos passed through the airport this morning en route to Perpignan in France.

.....and they came back again this lunchtime on their Jet2 charter. Meanwhile, I believe Leeds United flew down to Bristol and back again on Air Southwest this weekend for their match at Yeovil and they chartered Air Southwest flights for matches at both Exeter and Southampton earlier this season. Not quite the heady days of Privatair 757's but its a start!

 

[Aviador]

Photo: digyorkshire.com

Local personality and BBC Look North presenter Harry Gration passed through the airport over the Christmas period. He maybe know nationally as a BBC Sport presenter.

 

[wawkrk]

Harry who? Is he the second half of those 2 plonkers who constantly criticise LBA on Look North?

 

[Aviador]

I've never heard him criticise LBA.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Harry Gration is a long-standing BBC sports reporter. Usually reports on football and rugby.

He's well know in the West Country.

 

[White Heather]

I am not sure Harry has criticised LBA, but the BBC certainly seem to have a policy of promoting DSA at every opportunity whilst often ignoring anything happening at LBA unless it is negative. Perhaps it is just that they want both airports to be a success and DSA needs a bit of a push, but of course the reality is that DSA being successful will almost inevitably have a negative affect on LBA. It already has in some respects since we lost out based TOM aircraft to DSA when it opened. The BBC should be impartial, but somehow I get the feeling they are often anything but.

I saw Harry on TV today, and he seemed rather tanned, so it would seem that he flew somewhere warmer than the UK. At least he chose to fly from LBA - living in York he could just as easily have headed down the A19.

 

[lbia]

He flew to Faro (Portugal) with Jet2 the week before Christmas, with his wife and three children. I believe he was staying at his 'duos' place in Portugal who also flies out fairly regularly, and is actually a very nice chatty lady. She came over and had a chat with us last time she flew out, and the time before she was delayed and came and asked if she could have a sneaky ciggy in departures. Obviously she couldn't! But yes, very Orange.

 

[Seasider]

I can't comment on the treatment LBA gets from Look North as we get the "Lincolnshire" version on the coast as we are nearer to the Belmont transmitter, but.... Contributors on the now defunct DSA forum always posted the opposite, saying that Look North supported LBA and were anti DSA.
You can't win with some folk!

 

[wawkrk]

Look North always seems to jump with glee regarding LBA damaging the environment and they milk it to death.
Both ITV and the BBC have produced very negative LBA bashing documentaries in the past. The most damaging one being Allan Wicker which had a big influence in stopping the runway extension at the time.

 

[White Heather]

That is very true wawkrk, I remember that documentary very well. To say that the then MD at LBA was unhappy would be an very big understatement. That documentary did a lot to set the airport back years, and to be honest we still haven't fully caught up with where we could have been. How on Earth the DSA fans can claim the BBC Look North is anti DSA I wouldn't know. Virtually everything 'positive', including new routes or new airlines is highlighted, whereas LBA gets mentioned only with something really big, such as the new Ryanair base, and even then I always get the feeling it is grudging, as they always manage to get some twit to stand in front of a camera complaining that this is terrible news for the environment and LBA should be closed down altogether. It is the same with BBC Radio Leeds - they do programmes about LBA from time to time, but so many of the contributers are seriously negative, and anyone representing the airport are generally put to the sword by the BBC interviewers. Many is the time during the 24 hour campaign and runway campaign that I ended up throwing things at the TV or Radio in anger and frustration as the reporting was so blatantly biased.

 

[rmac]

I too remember that Alan Whicker 'documentary' and being very disappointed with it. It was very negative and questioned whether it should even exist as an airport, being too small and built on a hilltop!
With regard to more recent BBC news reports I have noticed a tendency to being negative especially towards LBA. Here in Scotland the news reports for both Edinburgh and Glasgow come over as much more positive and reflecting a genuine pride in both airports.

 

[White Heather]

I think that 'pride' is a word that has rarely come in the same sentence as Leeds Bradford Airport. For years, this is an airport that everyone in the press and media seemed to want to have a go at, and many in the community did likewise. I think that the pendulum has swung the other way a few years ago, when people realised what an asset it is, and how good it is to be able to fly from your local airport. However, the 'honeymoon period' is over, and there is now an increasing amount of negativity around, mainly due to the increasingly poor facilities offered in comparison with newer airports. I feel sure that once the current owners sort out the terminal and its problems, we may see the word 'pride' used more often in the same sentence as LBA.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Heather

It's not just LBA. I think that whinging is a national characteristic.

I've posted before how the local Bristol paper had articles every month in 2009 that monthly BRS passenger figures dropped (which was the majority in that year). The paper had rarely drawn attention to the previous quarter of a century of almost unbroken growth and in 2010 when nine out of the first eleven months saw growth (would have been ten out of eleven but for the volcano in April) there were no more monthly articles.

Just before Christmas the airport was in the local news for something (forget what now) and the local paper's web response section contained several posts running the place down: such things as 'a joke airport in a muddy field';'why can't we have a proper airport?'; 'might as well close it down, you can't fly anywhere from it'.

Occasionally my alter ego tells them they should be grateful they've got the third busiest English regional airport with only Manchester and Birmingham airports ahead of Bristol, but they only hear, and believe, what they want to hear.

Incidentally, I once saw Peter Ridsdale (I know he's a much loved part of Leeds United history :whiteflag: ) in the BRS departure lounge when he was involved with Cardiff City. I understand he's now gone further west and thrown in his lot with the gasping-for-breath Plymouth Argyle. Cometh the hour, cometh the man? Or the undertaker?

 

[Aviador]

Those were the days. I remember when "Peter Ridsdale" used to pass through LBA when he was at Leeds United. He always seem a polite and pleasant guy at first. You could almost see what was coming as his personality seemed to change towards his final months at the club.

 

[wawkrk]

I often saw Ridsdale in the business lounge reading the sports pages in the morning papers.

 

[wawkrk]

Heather, you may also remember the 30min programme on Yorkshire TV about LBA. I seem to remember this was promted by the application for 24H operations.Intasun and or Air Aurope were interviewed at the time and other interested parties,especilly those opposing the application.I seem to remember this programme was also very negative and also a setback for the airport.

 

[White Heather]

wawkrk, I do indeed, and for many years after I kept a video copy of it, which made me angry every time I watched it. Fortunately the video machine broke so now I don't get angry any more! If it is the programme I am thinking of, it included (on the positive side) Jim French, then boss of Air UK, the boss of Britannia Airways, and the MD of LBA's own Capital Airlines, but then we had to endure the rants of the then 'leader' of LACAN (Leeds Association for the Control of Aircraft Noise) and various idiot councillors who seemed to think they were winning votes by denying us an airport and the jobs that go with it.

 

[The Pole]

I am not sure Harry has criticised LBA, but the BBC certainly seem to have a policy of promoting DSA at every opportunity whilst often ignoring anything happening at LBA unless it is negative. Perhaps it is just that they want both airports to be a success and DSA needs a bit of a push, but of course the reality is that DSA being successful will almost inevitably have a negative affect on LBA. It already has in some respects since we lost out based TOM aircraft to DSA when it opened. The BBC should be impartial, but somehow I get the feeling they are often anything but.

I saw Harry on TV today, and he seemed rather tanned, so it would seem that he flew somewhere warmer than the UK. At least he chose to fly from LBA - living in York he could just as easily have headed down the A19.

Look North although based in Leeds, think South Yorkshire and Sheffield in particular is the centre of the universe!

 

[Seasider]

I'm glad I don't get the Leeds version!

 

[lbaspotter]

I am not sure Harry has criticised LBA, but the BBC certainly seem to have a policy of promoting DSA at every opportunity whilst often ignoring anything happening at LBA unless it is negative. Perhaps it is just that they want both airports to be a success and DSA needs a bit of a push, but of course the reality is that DSA being successful will almost inevitably have a negative affect on LBA. It already has in some respects since we lost out based TOM aircraft to DSA when it opened. The BBC should be impartial, but somehow I get the feeling they are often anything but.

I saw Harry on TV today, and he seemed rather tanned, so it would seem that he flew somewhere warmer than the UK. At least he chose to fly from LBA - living in York he could just as easily have headed down the A19.

Look North although based in Leeds, think South Yorkshire and Sheffield in particular is the centre of the universe!

Can I just say that i think you’ll find that the BBC has to be impartial on stuff like reporting the news. They will know what to and what not to report. They have been in trouble in the not so distance past along with other companies.

I myself personally think BBC News don’t do too bad of a job reporting local news in and throughout Yorkshire. I would rather watch BBC’s Look North programme as its a lot better than what comes out of ITV’s regional news programme Calendar. Its also miles better than anything Sky News reports from around this neck of the woods which is every now and again.

Now before anyone says owt, I know thats not been impartial by me. Also yes I maybe taking this thread off subject which if wrong I know the mods (Not myself of couse) will do what they have to do.