It’s not all plane sailing
HEATHROW DOCUMENTARY SERIES RETURNS TO ITV1
‘HEATHROW: Britain’s Busiest Airport’ returns to ITV for its fifth series giving viewers access all areas, guided by the voice of national treasure Dame Julie Walters.
The documentary sheds light on the many teams based at Heathrow; from passenger experience managers and airfield operatives to the emergency services and Border Force officers.
ITV’s long-standing documentary brings to life the herculean efforts that go into making the airport the most efficient in the world. The first two episodes of the series cover drones, airside antics and tension in the terminal.
The programme also covers a range of daily challenges – from combatting snow and the precision required to direct large aircraft around a busy airfield; to assisting international passengers navigate the terminals and bird strike prevention.
It’s all in a day’s work at Heathrow, where more than 1,300 flights take off and land per day, 140,000 tonnes of cargo are handled each month and 80 million passengers travel through in a year.
Filmed over 3,000 hours across the airport’s four terminals, two runways and 76,500 colleagues, the 12-part-series casts a light on what life’s really like at the UK’s only hub airport. This year, the crew spent most of their time filming in Terminal 2, voted fourth best terminal in the world, shadowing the show contributors as they go about their daily tasks and respond to unexpected calls to duty.
Heathrow Chief Executive John Holland-Kaye said: “‘Heathrow: Britain’s Busiest Airport’ is a project that perfectly encapsulates our dedicated network of excellent colleagues, working around the clock to deliver a world-class airport service. The documentary gives millions of people a glimpse into the operations of one of the world’s busiest airports – and I can tell you from experience, there is never a dull day.”
Heathrow Passenger Experience Manager and HBBA contributor, Demetrios Geniris said, “Filming the series has been fantastic – I built an excellent rapport with the crew and we had a lot of fun, capturing some of the great moments we share with passengers. I would do it again, 100 per cent, in a heartbeat.”
ITV welcomes back previous season favourites and debuts new faces of the operation, many of whom live locally to Heathrow. The series will star colleagues from Cippenham, Bracknell and Richmond upon Thames, to name a few.
Audiences can go behind the scenes on Heathrow’s dedicated HBBA website www.heathrow. com/hbba. There, viewers can find more information on Heathrow facts and figures, quizzes and competitions, the stars of the show and career opportunities available at the airport.
The next episode will be broadcast tonight (Wednesday) at 8.30pm on ITV1. Catch up with previous episodes on ITV hub.