PlasticPilot.net

On the 23rd of August, a Swiss Airbus 320 flying from Zurich to Malaga as LX 2114 made an emergency landing in Geneva, because of a bomb threat. Eventually, it revealed a false alert, but the airport was closed for 65 minutes, and the suspense lasted for quite a while. I landed one hour before, and when I left the clubhouse the passengers had already evacuated the plane using the slides, but the aircraft itself was still on the runway.

The resolution of this picture is rather low, as I took it from a position 1500 meters away, with a standard lens. At this moment, the fire brigade was waiting away from the runway. I have no information regarding where the inspection took place: on the runway, or later on.

A bit later, some ground staff climbed on board for inspection. Some of them also inspected the wings, probably to check the opened emergency exits. The small yellow dots on and below the right side wing (left on the picture) are the high visibility jackets of the ground staff. One of their role was also to remove the slides, before pulling the plane to a less critical place.

Given how close they are, I suppose (and hope) that the level of danger was already low. The tractor is already in place on this picture. No one there could tell me if the driver was from the fire brigade, or from the standard staff. This is anyway a high-risk job, just like getting on-board a potentially bombed plane.

The aircraft was finally pulled to an area close of threshold 05, passing in front of the main terminal, and other parking position. Because of this path, and of the long time spent on the runway, I suppose that at least a first inspection took place on the runway. I took better pictures while the planned passed-by.

The two black holes over the wings are the emergency exits - the ones that the passengers open by themselves and throw out of the plane, as shown on the safety procedures.

Zurich Airport is relatively large and complex. Taxi time after landing is usually short, but few delays can be induced by the crossing of the departure runway.

For years, the passengers of some flights were transferred by bus, but since the new “midfield” terminal is in service, this is over - except for some Jumbolinos. The new terminal is used for intercontinental flights, and the old terminal for european flights.

Plan about 15 minutes to commute from one terminal to the other, using an automatic underground called “SkyMetro”. Don’t ask. If you simply go out after arriving, expect a relatively long walk and a couple of stairs (all equipped with parallel lifts for disabled travellers).

Police control can be long, as there are only four desks. Waiting for more than 10 minutes for luggage delivery is not unusual. The good thing is that after that the train station is only 5 minutes away.

The good side when departing from Zuerich is the huge duty free shops area. It has been rebuild recently and is really luxurious. You will find cafés, watches, perfumes, chocolates, jewelery, anything you can dream of…

The bad (very bad indeed) part when departing from Zurich is that you will have to bring your shopping through extremely slow and nearly endless queues at passport control and security. If you depart from terminal A, there is a second set of passport control booths at first floor, but you won’t find any way to shorten the security checks. On bad days, this can last up to 30 minutes… don’t be late !

The waiting rooms of terminal A are not exactly top of comfort. Spending more than one hour there is not exactly a pleasure. You won’t find a power outlet for your laptop, and to only Wi-Fi network available is not for free. I prefer not mention the toilets which still have an old ’70s look (applies only to terminal A).

However these inconvenients are nothing compared to the delays that build-up in certain meteorological conditions. Zurich airport has been built on an old swamp, and fog is more than frequent in winter, but this is not the worse…

In case of strong easterly winds (hopefully not so frequent), the take-off runway direction crosses the landing runway extended path, making indenpendant operations impossible ! Needless to say, the impact on the traffic is quite dramatical !

Zurich will certainly not get my personal award of best european airport !