Flights still going in lockdown - who and why?

Flights still going in lockdown - who and why?

Author
Discussion

sidekickdmr

Original Poster:

5,065 posts

205 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
Here I am sat at home working, wishing for some winter sun, but obviously not allowed.

Yet I look at flight radar app, or the heathrow departure board and its like BAU, flights leaving every minute to Dubai, New York, Shanghai etc and I just dont understand why?

https://www.heathrow.com/departures



Are they empty but have to fly anyway? Are they people traveling for business?

I can go on sky-scanner right now and book a flight for tomorrow to anywhere, Spain, Germany, UAE etc, but im not allowed to travel.

Anyone working at the airports able to confirm how busy they are, and why?

I'm not looking to travel by the way, It's a lockdown for a reason and im staying put, just confused as in here in rural devon in a little bubble and no idea how the outside world is working at the moment confused

vaud

50,288 posts

154 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
Freight, some business. Remember there are some exemptions :

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronav...

StevieBee

12,794 posts

254 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
That screen shot looks busy but someone recently posted a comparison to two years ago. The difference is stark!

A lot of passenger planes have been recommissioned for freight and there's still some passenger flights operating.

I live in mid Essex, right under one of the main paths into LHR for planes coming in from the East. Normally as afternoon turns to evening you'd see a plane every minute. Now, it's one an hour and barely that at times.

J4CKO

41,283 posts

199 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
Influencers going to Dubai ?

TwigtheWonderkid

43,248 posts

149 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
Plenty of other nationalities who are in the UK and who need to fly home.

alorotom

11,907 posts

186 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
its worth noting that what you are seeing is still considerably less air traffic than say this time last year before it all kicked off.

anonymous-user

53 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
Politicians with financial interests in airline companies?

StevieBee

12,794 posts

254 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
Also, not all countries have travel bans. Not all those planes will be coming or going to / from the UK.

CanAm

9,114 posts

271 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
StevieBee said:
That screen shot looks busy but someone recently posted a comparison to two years ago. The difference is stark!

A lot of passenger planes have been recommissioned for freight and there's still some passenger flights operating.

I live in mid Essex, right under one of the main paths into LHR for planes coming in from the East. Normally as afternoon turns to evening you'd see a plane every minute. Now, it's one an hour and barely that at times.
We live about 20 miles from Gatwick and as you say the number of flights is way down. And from London Bridge station you could often see 4 planes on the flight path to Heathrow.

anonymous-user

53 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
What's the blue plane coming from the left?

sherman

13,065 posts

214 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
There does seem to be alot of air freight going about. Probably due to massive uplift in online shopping this past year.

CharlieCrocodile

1,186 posts

152 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
flashbang said:
What's the blue plane coming from the left?
Tracked by satellite rather than ADS-B

gregs656

10,818 posts

180 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
Gatwick was totally empty in January. I've been through 4 airports in the last year (three major ones, one smaller) and on all of them the departure boards show the full day of flights.

Flying at the moment is a pleasure, never had such good experiences with airport security etc.

the tribester

2,340 posts

85 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
J4CKO said:
Influencers going to Dubai ?
it's essential.

sidekickdmr

Original Poster:

5,065 posts

205 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
I get the hold will have some fright, and i get that some essential travel still exists, i guess I'm asking 2 questions:

1. Why the airlines are even bothering if there is only 4 people on the place

2. I can book a flight to Dubai for tomorrow, what checks if any do they do on it being 'essential' or is it self policed?

sherman

13,065 posts

214 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
On your first point. If people are willing to pay so that it covers the cost of the flight it will go. First leg might not be full but there may be a full plane load on the next leg making the profit for that plane.

QuartzDad

2,230 posts

121 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
sidekickdmr said:
Yet I look at flight radar app, or the heathrow departure board and its like BAU, flights leaving every minute to Dubai, New York, Shanghai etc and I just dont understand why?

https://www.heathrow.com/departures
When you strip out all the codeshare flight numbers there are 12 departures in the next 4 hours - and that's across all terminals.

Heathrow passengers:
Nov 2019 6.2m
Nov 2020 0.7m

Dec 2019 6.7m
Dec 2020 1.1m

It's dead Jim.

leyorkie

1,634 posts

175 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
Some information from an article in the Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/25/why-...

anonymous-user

53 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
CharlieCrocodile said:
Tracked by satellite rather than ADS-B
Thanks.

Puggit

48,354 posts

247 months

Tuesday 26th January 2021
quotequote all
gregs656 said:
Gatwick was totally empty in January. I've been through 4 airports in the last year (three major ones, one smaller) and on all of them the departure boards show the full day of flights.

Flying at the moment is a pleasure, never had such good experiences with airport security etc.
Do you mind sharing why you were flying?