Captured as part of a school and personal project, Manchester Airport is captured on early home video equipment and edited using only a VCR, titles on a Commodore 64.
It's truly amazing how things change, the airfield looks so quiet compared to now, I think in 1985 the airport handled around 8-10 million passengers, now it's around 29million.
I remember flying from Manchester in 1986 to Majorca. It was with Britannia Airways. Terminal 1 seemed much more relaxed back then. It's a nostalgic place because it reminds me of all the flights I've been on since the 80s
This a treasure. I went there as a lad in the 70’s to watch the planes and then worked there in the mid 90’s I’ve forgotten how much the airport has changed! Thank you for sharing this video.
So strange seeing T2 not being there and the surrounding buildings, it just shows how much has changed in 35 years... Thank you for sharing, makes me wonder what it was like...
@6:18 - I used to work at the airport a couple of years ago, cleaning the planes -this is where our base was. The various trucks/vans were used for replenishing the plane's water tanks for sinks/toilets, delivering fresh blankets/cushions and taking away the used ones, disposing of rubbish, etc. The transit van was probably used for transporting the cleaning crew and equipment to the plane.
Superb! I was a regular visitor to the airport in the early 80s as a young lad. Lost all my photos, didn't think I'd ever find such good images of the old spectators' viewing area. Wonderful stuff...thanks for posting!
+Simon Jones Top marks for making the video in the first place, and keeping hold of it so it could be digitized. I just did not think ahead and wish I'd recorded so much of the recent past that we've lost. Watching that video I can almost smell the jet fuel, and taste the chips in a paper cone we used to buy on the terrace. Great stuff!
+Ian Bond There is an online archive, the guys contacted me (below) to ask if they could use this video there - there are some great shots/videos there: www.ringwaypublications.com/
+marni1971 Hey, thanks for commenting. Damn that old school VHS quality though. It was shot on early portable VHS (Separate camera and shoulder strapped recorder) neither a patch on even a cheap mobile phone's capabilities these days!
I miss that too! Back when you could take a 400 Trans-Lancs Express to Manchester Airport. Good use of a sunny Sunday afternoon instead of going to the pub. You could also watch the aeroplanes from The Airport Hotel, but it lacks the same joy as the spectators' paddocks. Plus the model shop underneath the control tower and refreshment points.
