When it first opened in 1946, Heathrow Airport had just a single runway, and passengers had to while away the time in terminal tents. There were no heaters, no power points, and certainly no Wi-Fi.
My how things have changed over in London!
Today we’re stepping inside the KarryOn time machine (which may or may not look like a toilet cubicle) and setting our target decade to the 1940s and our destination to Heathrow – the major gateway to the UK and one of the major European hubs.
The 40s – which falls nicely within the Golden Age of Travel – was a time when spotting planes could literally pay the bills (and when flight attendants wore these sexy vintage uniforms).
Imagine that – getting paid to sit on a fold out chair and watch as these giant metal birds blasted off into the sky and swooped down onto the runway?
Plane spotters circa 1949. That’s a Trans-Canada Airlines Canadair North Star in the background.
Okay, these guys actually had to do work too, reporting the arrival and departures of flights to other airport staff who would then scribble this information on a retro blackboard.
The 40s were also a time when airport terminals were nothing more than giant tents furnished with comfy chairs and flowers, populated by eager passengers killing time reading the lasted issue of TIME magazine whilst sipping on a martini – and smoking, of course (it was the 40s).
A decade later, in the 1950s, terminals were built at Heathrow Airport for a more comfortable pre-flight experience.
Airport restaurants were even built, which had views to die for – and you didn’t even have to be a plane spotter.
But this was Heathrow, so it was the UK, so the food probably wasn’t that good (although the food served in First Class during this time was definitely spectacular!).
But who couldn’t enjoy a cuppa whilst staring out the window at these sexy machines?
1955 aerial shot of Heathrow Airport showing two SAS DC-6Bs and a BEA Ambassador aircraft in the foreground.
Getting back into our time machine, now we’re shooting for the swinging 60s, which was the decade when our homegrown Qantas set up shop and has since stayed (Qantas pilots and cabin crew probably wore uniforms very similar to this).
Check-in desks for BOAC and Qantas airlines in Terminal 3 in 1969.
The 60s were also a time of minimal queues and relatively empty airport terminals. Passengers could actually move about freely without having to mutter “excuse me,” “I’m sorry,” “get out of my way!”
Terminal 2 in 1957. Notice how quiet it is…
Before it became the aviation hub that it is today, Heathrow Airport was little more than a hamlet known as Heath Row.
The area where it now resides was cleared for construction in 1944, and the original airport – which included a single runway – was opened in 1946 by the minister of Civil Aviation at the time, Lord Winster.
At the end of its first operational year in 1946, 63,000 passengers had travelled through the airport, steadily rising to 796,000 in 1951.
Today, the hub has grown into one of the world’s busiest international airports, handling over 67 million passengers flying to over 180 destinations in over 90 countries, each year.
Terminal 5 which opened in 2008 is used exclusively by BA and now IAG (Iberia). It cost £4billion to build and took almost 20 years from conception to completion.
Yet, despite being busy, Heathrow continues to extend a warm welcome to visitors from all over the world.
Check out this hilarious video of British icon, Stephen Fry, welcoming arriving passengers to the UK!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7cFXSDN_5k&sns=em
