Shortest flight I've ever had!

[Bodiddly]

Bit of a weird one today, my jet 2 flight from Majorca was stacked at Glasgow due to bad weather when the captain announced we were burning a little too much fuel and decided he would land at Prestwick. After a two hour delay for re-fuelling, we took off for Glasgow! Our route took us out towards Arran, banking 180 degrees back over the Clyde windfarm, and up past Motherwell and Eastern Glasgow and landed at the airport from the North. The journey took around 15 minutes with some great views! It did get me thinking that if the approach was from the South, the journey would have taken about 5 minutes! You could probably drive the distance in well short of an hour as it's around 40 road miles. Has anyone else had such a small journey on a big jet? (Not returning to the same airport)!

 

[Moonshot]

Bit of a weird one today, my jet 2 flight from Majorca was stacked at Glasgow due to bad weather when the captain announced we were burning a little too much fuel and decided he would land at Prestwick. After a two hour delay for re-fuelling, we took off for Glasgow! Our route took us out towards Arran, banking 180 degrees back over the Clyde windfarm, and up past Motherwell and Eastern Glasgow and landed at the airport from the North. The journey took around 15 minutes with some great views! It did get me thinking that if the approach was from the South, the journey would have taken about 5 minutes! You could probably drive the distance in well short of an hour as it's around 40 road miles. Has anyone else had such a small journey on a big jet? (Not returning to the same airport)!

Yes......Virgin Atlantic 747 from Birmingham to Manchester....after an abortive landing on the original flight from Orlando to Manchester forced a diversion to Birmingham. 2 hours on the tarmac as well for a re fuel.

 

[Bodiddly]

Yes......Virgin Atlantic 747 from Birmingham to Manchester....after an abortive landing on the original flight from Orlando to Manchester forced a diversion to Birmingham. 2 hours on the tarmac as well for a re fuel.

That's a pretty small leap for a jumbo!

 

[andythebrave]

RAF VC10 Brize Norton to Lyneham; around 24 miles I believe.
Air Columbus 727 Porto Santo to Funchal; 36 miles.
Northwest Orient DC10 Philadelphia to Newark; 80 miles.
Danair 727 Manchester to Birmingham; 65 miles.
Air Columbus 727 Guernsey to Jersey; 24 miles.

All quite a while ago though....
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
And Iberia 727 Las Palmas to Tenerife Los Rodeos; 69 miles.

 

[EssexGonzo]

Mumbai to Pune was about 100 miles by road but as it was an arduous journey we were flown.

I seem to recall that it was about 20 minutes and we were either ascending or descending, no level cruise as such.

 

[edwin_m]

Venice to Verona in a BAC-111 around 1999 - charter (I think) that served both airports from Gatwick.

 

[CallySleeper]

Done Edinburgh - Glasgow I once.

 

[Moonshot]

IIRC there is a scheduled flight between 2 of the remoter scottish islands which takes about 2 minutes and involves landing on a beach? I cant remember where the exact locations are though....

 

[starrymarkb]

I've been tempted to do one of the Island hopping Milk runs in the Highlands

One route I was tempted by (but never did) was Cardiff->Bristol->Zurich with Helvectic - but the fares were very expensive. The route's now been cut back to Bristol-Zurich only - the Trip Report on Airliners had a single digit load for the Cardiff to Bristol leg, with the aircraft filling up at Bristol.

 

[Ash Bridge]

Couple of years back at Manchester Airport waiting to meet wife & daughter who we're arriving on an Easyjet service from Sofia.Landing was aborted and aircraft (A319) diverted to Liverpool. Refuelled there then departed back for Manchester, my wife said journey took 20mins, cost me a fortune in car parking at short stay rates waiting for them

 

[starrymarkb]

IIRC there is a scheduled flight between 2 of the remoter scottish islands which takes about 2 minutes and involves landing on a beach? I cant remember where the exact locations are though....

Papa Westray in the Orkney Island is the shortest flight. Run by Loganair using Islanders, doesn't land on the beach though and is part of a much longer 'Milk run' from Wick

The Beach landing is Barra in the Hebridies, also run by Loganair (as a Flybe route) from Glasgow using DeHaviland Twin Otters

 

[richard1976]

10 minutes flight
Guernsey to Alderney with Aurigny Air Services on one of there Trislanders

 

[Hornet]

St Kitts to Antigua Scheduled flight on a British Airways Boeing 777 November 2010. Flight time 12 minutes from start of take off roll to rolling onto the taxiway at Antigua.

 

[Firesprite]

IIRC there is a scheduled flight between 2 of the remoter scottish islands which takes about 2 minutes and involves landing on a beach? I cant remember where the exact locations are though....

Between Westray and Papa Westray (1.7miles)in the Orkney Islands. Has been done in 47 seconds in the right wind conditions.

The beach runway is on Barra in the Outer Hebrides.

 

[jopsuk]

Birmingham to Stansted, after sitting at Birmingham for three hours. Flight was originally from Newquay. Snow shut Stansted whilst we were in the air. At the time Birmingham didn't have any Ryanair flights (not sure if it does now), and we were parked up with six other Ryanair flights on remote stands. after parking the Captain was only able to communicate externally by disembarking and using phones on the ground. Cabin crew were desperately trying to get through to HQ on their own mobiles. We were told that leaving the plane would see us arrested. Fun times!

 

[jamesontheroad]

We were booked on Westray - Papa Westray in summer 2012 but the flight was cancelled due the poor weather. It was one of those once in a lifetime opportunities that passed me by.

However a year earlier, I did fly with Directflight on an Islander between Shetland and Foula, which is about fifteen minutes.

Prior to that, I regularly commuted between Glasgow and Belfast, and for the three short years it operated (under a subsidy from Belfast City Airport) I flew with Ryanair from Prestwick - Belfast. It was at the time the shortest Ryanair route anywhere. If we left PIK heading NW and landed toward the SW at BHD, it could be done in under 20 minutes tarmac to tarmac. No let off for the crew however, who had to do a full cabin service of drinks, snacks, scratch cards and in flight shop!

 

[flymo]

The beach runway is on Barra in the Outer Hebrides.

And it has more runways than Heathrow......

http://www.nats-uk.ead-it.com/publi...content&task=blogcategory&id=6&Itemid=13.html then choose the airport and then aerodrome chart for details.....

 

[Liam]

The shortest flight I have been on was Eastern Airways Norwich to Humberside, although I was continuing on the same aircraft to Aberdeen.

 

[Darandio]

We were told that leaving the plane would see us arrested. Fun times!

Surely this is more appealing than being on a Ryanair flight?

 

[Hadders]

Flying back from Treviso to Stansted as we approached Stansted the pilot announced that Stansted was closed for the runway to be de-iced and that we were diverting to Luton.

Upon arrival at Luton there was an announcement to say that Stansted was now open and we would be returning there! Problem was that we waited at Luton for over 2 hours before departing, not helped by a passenger having a panic attack on the approach to Luton necessitating an ambulance being called upon arrival at Luton.

It was a somewhat eventful flight, for other reasons too!

 

[harry42]

Birmingham to Cancun (Mexico) had to land at Manchester then take off again because Birmingham's runway wasn't big enough!!

 

[Clip]

Coming back from Majorca years ago the plane stopped off at Bristol(?) and then onto Manchester.. At least I think it was Bristol.

 

[Busaholic]

We were booked on Westray - Papa Westray in summer 2012 but the flight was cancelled due the poor weather. It was one of those once in a lifetime opportunities that passed me by.

However a year earlier, I did fly with Directflight on an Islander between Shetland and Foula, which is about fifteen minutes.

Prior to that, I regularly commuted between Glasgow and Belfast, and for the three short years it operated (under a subsidy from Belfast City Airport) I flew with Ryanair from Prestwick - Belfast. It was at the time the shortest Ryanair route anywhere. If we left PIK heading NW and landed toward the SW at BHD, it could be done in under 20 minutes tarmac to tarmac. No let off for the crew however, who had to do a full cabin service of drinks, snacks, scratch cards and in flight shop!

I only visited Shetland once, in 1971, stayed on the northernmost island, Unst, in the only hotel. The nearby beach was used as a landing strip by Loganair(?) and saw planes land on 2 occasions during my week there. Was told it was the shortest scheduled flight in the world, presumably to Yell, the next island, and taking 1-2 minutes.

 

[HSTEd]

This makes me think it would be worthwhile building bridges to all these places.
Would probably reduce living costs on all these islands if nothing else.

 

[Liam]

After the mess the proposed Bressay Bridge became I doubt there will be many concrete plans to build fixed links any time soon.

 

[edwin_m]

If there is one flight per day by a small aircraft and it's only a stopover on the way to somewhere else, then the number of passengers per day is likely to be in single digits and would never justify a major bridge structure..

 

[HSTEd]

They build tunnels for flows of that scale in Norway and the Faroe Islands

Also I believe many of these places also have ferry-type services as well - which apparently consume substantial subsidies.

Then there is the economic and social aspects of joining these places up, to each other and in many cases to the mainland.

 

[NotATrainspott]

They build tunnels for flows of that scale in Norway and the Faroe Islands

Also I believe many of these places also have ferry-type services as well - which apparently consume substantial subsidies.

Then there is the economic and social aspects of joining these places up, to each other and in many cases to the mainland.

If you had £400bn+ saved up I think the logic behind building bridges and tunnels changes somewhat. I have actually heard that in Norway their main problem is worrying that they approve schemes that aren't particularly good value.

 

[HSTEd]

The Faroes however does not have huge quantities of oil wealth - in fact it is reliant on subsidies from Denmark.

Bridges and tunnels almost never turn out as white elephants - and the social benefits of them are often incalculable.
For example the proposed Pentland Firth bridge would more than pay for itself over its life because it would permit the withdrawal of the incredibly heavily subsidised ferry.

 

[Bald Rick]

Fewer than 100 people live on Papa Westray, and a bridge to Westray (pop c 600) would be at least a mile long. I think we have at last found a project with a lower value for money than the borders re opening!