A modern airport

Flying is one of the safest forms of transport known to man.

This is not mere chance, but because flight regulations and procedures are thorough and safer. But one of the most important factors is the design of the plane itself.

Airliners are extremely tough and made to the highest engineering standard. Most of them have a flying life of at least 15 years.

In years to come the number of flights will rise more steadily. To cater for the ever-increasing numbers of passengers, bigger and better airports are constantly being built.

These airports must be fitted out with longer and wider runways and the most up-to-date aids to safety. Radar equipment, enabling air traffic controllers to “see” the planes when they are miles away; blind-landing systems for use in thick fog: there are just some of the technological advances by which flying is being made safer.

A modern airport is just like a small city. Many workers are constantly doing hundreds of different jobs to keep it going day and night, all through the year.

 19 Exercise 3.

A Variety of Airport jobs

Their jobs are vital to the smooth and safe running of the airports and the airliners which use them. All companies with aviation business maintain fleets of ground vehicles. Job opportunities for drivers at airports are therefore many and varied, ranging from heavy goods vehicles to the cars of the executives.

Every plane gets a thorough cleaning between each flight. The standard of cleanliness of a plane’s cabin makes an immediate impression on an airline’s passengers. The cleaner must be prepared to work quickly and efficiently as a plane must spend as short a time as possible on the tarmac between flights.

The aircraft refuellers have a highly responsible job on the airport. They drive the enormous fuel tankers to the planes and connect them up with the fuel tanks of the aircraft so that the precise amount of the fuel asked for by the pilots is piped on board.

Loaders are employed by the airline to load and unload passengers’ baggage and cargo in the holds of their planes. Although more mechanized equipment is being introduced by the airlines, this is a tough and demanding job, requiring strength and physical fitness.

Training is given to the ground engineers in the use of the mechanical handling equipment. At the terminals the engineers are engaged in routine checks to make sure the planes are fit to fly their next service, and also in trouble shooting – putting right minor faults which have been reported by the pilots or flight engineer during the flight that has just finished. In each of these main areas of work the ground engineers will be specialists in different fields – airframes, engines, electronics, radio and radar, and so on. Like almost all other airport personnel they have to work shifts, often at nights and weekends. The work can be demanding and can require great concentration and attention to detail. A careless mistake could endanger the lives of hundreds of passengers.

 20 Exercise 4.