A Ramp’s Eye View From London Heathrow

I spent a few hours at London's Heathrow Airport last week. I always enjoy seeing how things work on the ramp in other parts of the globe. I was on my way to and from a conference on PMA parts (parts produced by holders of parts manufacturing approval, not the original parts manufacturers). PMA holders are producing more and more parts at substantial reductions over OEM parts. As a result, pressure mounts to demonstrate that PMA parts are just as good as OEM parts.

I was invited to speak on the safety implications of replacement parts, regardless of who manufacturers them. While this conference concerned aircraft parts, the same issues apply to equipment replacement parts, where many parts are produced by companies other than the original equipment manufacturers.

But back to Heathrow's ramp. I was most impressed with how orderly and controlled the ramp was. In particular, I noticed that jersey barriers were used to separate movement from non-movement areas. I guess someone recognized that markings only go so far in preventing incursions – voluntary or otherwise – into non-movement areas. The barriers appeared to reduce the confusion often seen on ramps where equipment comes and goes in all different directions.

I was also impressed with the attention to safety on the personnel working the ramp – everyone I saw was wearing a safety vest and other protective equipment.

Of course, the view from the terminal can be misleading. It would be interesting to see if these measures pay off in reduced incidents and accidents on the ramp – both in terms of equipment and personnel.