Airfield Snow Clearing

[WJT]

Ted - yes, albeit the Friday before the show at the weekend. Shots taken from the "Arrivals Day Viewing Area" just off the A15. It was open again on the Monday for departures.

[canberra]

Earliest Ive seen the snow plan tested was the beginning of October at Leuchars. And of course when we did it for real it was a cock up!

[ted angus]

Ted - yes, albeit the Friday before the show at the weekend. Shots taken from the "Arrivals Day Viewing Area" just off the A15. It was open again on the Monday for departures.

It will be full of water as part of the spill plan, day to day the fire section do wash downs if there is a fuel spill, obviously during an airshow they try and keep the crash combines at their dispersed locations. so it is often the practise to use other means to take water to a spill. contain with sorbsil, absorb with sorsil or similar then do a wash . Not very eco but if the eareth from excavations they did at Leuchars for the uniter comms system is anything to go bey the earth under a lot of our airfields is minging !!i

[kebecker]

Earliest Ive seen the snow plan tested was the beginning of October at Leuchars. And of course when we did it for real it was a cock up!

if its any consolation, Canadains think they are good at coping with snow on the roads, come the first storm of the winter what happens, yup, crashes, traffic jams, general mayhem as drivers forget that you cannot keep barrreling down the Trans Canada at 130 kph, even with your new winter tyres!

[welkin]

While serving at 16MU Stafford 72-76 I saw quite a few of the Derwent snow clearing units. It was believed that prohibitive cost of fuel was the reason for their withdrawal. Never saw one in full flow. That would have been interesting.

[ted angus]

THey used to lift the blacktop surface, when they were designed they were ok on concrete but they used to eat tarmac. In addition to the MRD there was a sideways blower must try and unearth a picture before winter. Haven't heard the Sicards running up yet I can hear them in my hooooose music to my ears. especially when I am tucked up in the warm !!
TED

[mawganmad]

Some older RAF (though still used here at Saints!) type snow clearence vehicles,



Volvo Rolba R400 snow blower, these date from early to late 1970s





Sicard snow clearer with brush and blower, designed to be pulled by a tug



Sicards in use towed behind Bedfords at Cardiff airport



Urea spreader/sprayer, used for deicing it is designed to be pulled by a tug, like the one behind



Snow blade attached to the front of Scammell S26 bowser, standard snow plough combo for a long period

[ted angus]

great shots mate thanks for posting them

TED

[PETERTHEEATER]

Seeing the pix of the Sicard snow brush reminded me of my early days with a foreign airforce in the Middle East. In our MT, we had a couple of Sicards that had been shipped up from the most southerly air base where, in winter, they did get snow. Snow where we were was rare so the plant 'lay unused in the corner of the yard.

On day, the logistics wing commander, a full colonel, announced that not enough was being done to counteract FOD (Foreign Object Damage) the term given to damage caused to aircraft engines by ingesting debris laying on the aprons, taxiways and runways. He demanded to know why we were not sweeping the aircraft areas using the Sicards. It was pointed out that they were intended for light snow and that due to lack of a debris collection system were unsuitable for sweeping. He was unconvinced and said so expressing his opinion that we were lazy contractors.

Next day, our General Fitters (yes, not the MT which was staffed by nationals) were tasked to get the Sicards working. After a few hours work and some swopping of parts one was coaxed into noisy life (big gasoline V. At which point, the colonel arrived and commandeered a diesel engined Bedford RL, hitched up and proceeded to tow the plant up and down the flight line at a rate which caused the in-contact brush to overspeed which in turn over-revved the V8. He worked back and forth with too tight 'U' turns at the end of each run but worse, he was sweeping into a blowing shamal wind which blew all the sweep debris back onto the track that had just been cleared. After twenty minutes he stopped and got out to check the results which was debris everywhere. He got back into his staff car and drove off and Sicards were never mentioned again!

[Smoggieboy]

At MPA in January many years ago, the C130 took off on a sunday task, but then the sleet and snow fell. When we asked MT were was blacktop they said ' err in the UK, they are'nt due til March(South Atlantic summer !) why ? Try looking out the window sez us, bugger was the reply. Luckily it had melted by the time the C130 returned as Stanley airport was snowed in as well and the QRA tanker could'nt launch either ! As the mu-meter was broken(shame !) to check the braking action I had to drive down the runway at 40mph, brake hard and hope we stayed upright ! Luckily I did and the V8 LWB did as well !
The blacktop equipment is at MPA but the dedicated operators were'nt !