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Heathrow Airport, arrivals (Terminal 2). Quite ‘busy’ this morning with flights coming in from China, India and the Middle East. Good job by the “COVID Marshalls” whose job is to remind people how to properly wear a facemask (you would think that is common sense!).  Planes at the holding point for runway 27R at Heathrow- during the rush hour you can have at least ten planes waiting: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  The mornings arrivals at Terminal 3: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Can never get tired of this view on approach to Heathrow: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  BA's Business Class offering on the Bologna-Heathrow route: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Dress made by paper award-winning British artist and designer by Zoe Bradley on display in the Club Lounge at Heathrow's Terminal 5. For 2017's Milan Fashion Week, Bradley’s latest creation was a full-scale ball gown and headpiece. The commission, from British Airways, furnished Bradley with carte blanche to interpret the brief of “travel, fashion and style”. From first sketch to finishing touches, Bradley’s gown took less than a month to complete. About 700 individual royal-blue ruffles made up the skirt of the dress, while a corset of white petals was accented with a sash of crimson, hand-curled roses. Worth a look. Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Canadian affair: An Air Canada Boeing 767 is parked while a company Boeing 787 is heading towards the active runway for her flight to Toronto: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Every morning is busy with flights arriving from the States and Canada, while the afternoons are busy with them preparing to head back across the Atlantic. The three main US carriers that operate into Heathrow these days are United, American and Delta. Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  QANTAS A380-842 "David Warren", seen arriving from Singapore and on the way to the parking gate at Heathrow. David Warren (20 March 1925 – 19 July 2010) was an Australian scientist, best known for inventing and developing the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder (also known as FDR, CVR, and "the black box").  Aircraft on final approach at Heathrow Airport: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Spectacular sunset in West London: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Elephant and Castle seen from East Dulwich: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Busy dramatic London sky earlier today. An Airbus A300B4 of DHL on approach to Heathrow's runway 27L (at around 3,000 feet and descending on the ILS glideslope), while a BA Embraer E190 crosses paths at around 2,000 feet on approach to City Airport (they are using runway 09 today). Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Westminster as seen from East Dulwich: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh When your fiancée is flying from London back to her hometown in China for Chinese New Year and in order to prepare for our wedding (which is on Chinese New Year itself!), you want to do something to make her trip extra special. Unfortunately because of logistical and personal reasons, I could not go on the same flight as her, and will be joining her a week later in Yangzhou. So, I passed a kind request to the lovely team in the PR department at British Airways to see if they could do something. I was hoping that the Captain would make an announcement, but the wonderful crew of flight BA169 from London to Shanghai exceeded all expectations. Not only did they upgrade her to Business Class (known as Club World at BA), but she was given a surprise congratulatory announcement in-flight. I could only wish I was there, but what a flight she had. Great stuff. Massive thanks to the Senior Purser, Captain and the whole operating crew of BA169, and of course, the ground staff at BA's head office in London. You guys are amazing. The perfect customer service that one can ever hope for.  Photo Copyright Vicky Kong Time to go back to Shanghai (via Hong Kong)...def will beat DHL to get my parcel to the British Embassy- as that would have taken 3 days...quickest turnaround...12 hours of running around London getting errands done (including a quickfire shopping trip to Harrods) and 8 hours of bliss sleep thanks to a great book by James (read his book...perfect for long-haul flights and short stopovers!). Ciao London...   Heathrow Terminal 3 arrivals at 4.45am...Photo Copyright Navjot Singh   Whilst flying from London Heathrow to Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific Airways (Boeing 777-300ER): Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Carefully approaching Heathrow Airport on the M4: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh Caught while landing on Heathrow's runway 27L....not easy to get a shot while coming into a windy touchdown at 145knots! BA's Concorde, reg G-BOAB, first flew on 18 May 1976 from Bristol Filton. Her last flight was a positioning ride on 15 August 2000 as "Speedbird Concorde Bravo Papa 002" from New York JFK to London Heathrow after flying 22,296 hours. Ever since then she has sat quietly at Heathrow, admiring all the new boys and girls on 27L in front of her. Beautiful bird!   Croydon in South London, as seen from around 5,000 feet on approach into London Heathrow after leaving the Biggin Hill holding point: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  ...and within a minute we are over Elephant & Castle, and decending to around 3,000 feet before turning left 280 degrees to establish approach towards London Heathrow's runway 27 Left: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh During busy period, when planes are waiting to land at London Heathrow Airport, they are usually placed by London Air Traffic Control to hold and circle around any one of four main points around London- Lambourne (North-East London), Ockham (South-West London), Bovingdon (North-West London), and Biggin Hill in South-East London. Aircraft are separated by a height of 1,000 feet. We circled around Biggin Hill for around four times on this occasion...providing me with spectacular views (like below)...and frustration for the other passengers who just wanted to go home!  Biggin Hill: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  London Olympic Park: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Queen Elizabeth II Bridge: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Buckingham Palace and Victoria Station: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  The City of London: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Best view in town? Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Hyde Park: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  The City: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh Special thanks to Oman Air.  As close as you can get...only while it is on the ground...and even with a Media Pass and full security clearance I could not go in-flight (even crew are not allowed to take photos on Oman Air while in-flight)...change of the times I'm afraid....: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Largest Business Class seat in the world: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Airbus A330-200 belonging to Oman Air: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Walk around the Airbus A330-200 in the extreme Oman heat: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Heathrow's Terminal 5: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Heathrow's Terminal 5 - ready to go back to China (Shenzhen): Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  British Airways A380 parked at Heathrow Airport, Terminal 5- ready to go to Hong Kong: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh The last 10 minutes of any flight into London's Heathrow Airport are the best moments to capture photos...unless you're lucky enough to be a Captain and sit on the left-hand side, then ALWAYS try to get a right-hand side window seat...that way no matter whichever way you are landing from, you get to see Central London (provided its not cloudy!)  London, taken with an iPhone 6. Turning right heading 180 degrees with speed back to 180 knots...going to establish on the glideslope for Heathrow's runway 27R: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  River Thames shines in the evening sunlight: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Canary Wharf: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  View from South London: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Waterloo and the City: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  West End: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Buckingham Palace: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh 
Sunset at London Heathrow Airport: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
Sun sets over the skies of England...seen after our take-off from London Heathrow Airport: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh
Arriving home is, and will always be, a captivating experience.  Waiting to land at Heathrow, the Airbus A340-300 belonging to Virgin Atlantic Airways proudly flies the Union Jack over the English countryside: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  East London, the Olympic Park, the Greenwich O2 Arena and Canary Wharf as seen while in the Lambourne holding pattern: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Oh, there IS a game being played...hmm: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh  Windsor Castle as seen on final approach to Heathrow's Runway 09L: Photo Copyright Navjot Singh My latest feature article for the Shanghai Daily is a travel report on how to spend 72 hours in London.  Having ruled the skies for over three decades, Concorde stands quietly by the side of the BA Maintenance hangers at Heathrow opposite runway 27L and admires all the new 'kids on the block' who land and take-off in front of her. I miss the daily thundery noise that she used to make (everyday at 4pm) over south London coming in from JFK.
With an ever fast growing world...aircraft manufacturers need to build faster and more fuel efficient aircraft. The faster the world uses up all the oil, the faster they discover the Next Big Sustainable Energy product. We're (passengers) only dong our bit for the planet by putting the bets down for that! Photo taken from a BA A321 as we landed on the southern runway at Heathrow. |
Get in Touch:LIFE MATTERSHere I share my thoughts
and experiences during my travels, and how some things have affected my life as an expat and world traveller. Travelling is about capturing that moment in life. Every word, view and opinion on this page is that of Navjot Singh - except where indicated. The most recent is at the top. Scroll down to read the archive. Or search using CTRL+F (COMMAND + F) and enter a keyword to search the page. Just some of the stories you never heard before. The NAVJOT-SINGH.COM web blog is separate to this web site....Click blog, which may not be visible in some countries due to local firewall restrictions, so in those cases this weblog may be read. The weblog also includes some of my press trip reports- most of which are not published on the official blog because of copyright issues. The weblog also contains articles that may be associated directly with a PR trip for a country, airline or a hotel. These are PR reviews done in relations with various companies. If you are an investor or a trend watcher then you may find this website useful as investing has a lot to do with personal observations and finding the ideal trend or next big thing. The average human on the street frequently knows far more about the state of the economy than politicians, university professors, subject matter experts, and financial analysts who seldom travel, or if they do so, only from one hotel to another hotel! The pulse and vibrancy of an economy is nowhere more visible than on a country's streets. 
All photos and words are © Navjot Singh unless stated. Photos taken by others or by agencies are appropriately copyrighted under the respective name. No photo or word/s may be taken without the prior written permission by the author (i.e. Navjot Singh). All Rights Reserved. 
Navjot being interviewed by Cecila Lu at GDTV.
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