Bristol Airport Tower Tour Visit

The creator and founder of www.bristol-airfield.co.uk was taken on a guided tour of Bristol International Airport's modern Air Traffic Control Tower facility. A fantastic experience.

Mike Littleton along with Sid the Air Traffic Control Watch Manager (who acted as my tour guide) took me around the tower's facilities; the VCR (Visual Control Room) and the Approach / Radar room. I spent time in the VCR taking photos of aircraft landing and taking off as well as the apron, runway and the magnificent views which can be seen from there.

The Watch Manager explained some of the ATC procedures used at the airport and topics such as runway markings and their meanings to the aircraft and the tower; as well as the different types of hardware used all over the airfield. I was privileged to be able to watch the controllers at work, giving aircraft clearance to land and providing them with flight plan clearances. Sid also gave me an overview of the flight strips used to coordinate flights' which was very interesting.

There are many perceptions of the scene in a tower; Hollywood movies promote scenes of chaos and pandemonium. What I observed could not be further from the truth; after the lift door opened I walked up a flight of stairs and was greeted by a beautiful view of the Bristol Channel and near silence.

There were two Controllers at work, Chris was clearing Aircraft to land and providing departing aircraft with their flight plan clearance, providing pilots with constant live up to date information, using the modern systems with which the tower is equipped. As the Watch Manager pointed out, one of the most effective tools is the good old Mark 1 Eyeball - your own eyes!

The only noise you can hear in the VCR was the almost silent hum of the air conditioning system and you have to listen hard to hear that.

I was then taken down to the Approach / Radar room to watch the Radar Controllers at work. The radar screen showed me exactly what the Approach / Radar controllers see and it was in one word. Amazing!!

The Radar screen provides an image of the Bristol Channel, the South Coast of Wales, Brecon and the North Coast of Devon. The 3 upper airways known as N862 & N864 and Lima 9 are clearly identified on the screen and these airways are 10 Miles wide.

The radar display can be zoomed out to enable a view of aircraft over the Isle of Wight and all across the South of England. This showed aircraft which were routing to and from Heathrow, Gatwick, and Stansted as well as through UK Airspace.

The Air Traffic Control Watch Manager also explained about the ways in which Approach coordinates with London Control to control Aircraft from Bristol joining the airways and leaving the airways to land at Bristol.

I would like to take the opportunity to thank Sid the Air Traffic Control Watch Manager and my tour guide for giving me such a fantastic tour of Bristol International Airports Control Tower. I would also like to express my thanks to Mike Littleton (Bristol International Airports Community Liaison Manager) for taking the time to organise tower tour.

Below you will see a selection of photos that I took whilst on my tour. You can view larger versions of the photos shown below along with other photos in the Photo Library.