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Melting tarmac halts flights at UK military base
Melting tarmac causes officials to suspended flights at a UK military installation as unusually hot temperatures melted the flight line.
The tarmac at Royal Air Force (RAF) Cranwell in Lincolnshire softened so much that tar began sticking to the boots of military officials and airplane and vehicle tires. This halted all flights in and out of the base on Monday and Tuesday.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The hot weather has melted the flight line at an RAF base, impacting flying training, a source said.<br>But an RAF spokesman said flying training hadn’t been affected.<br>The source said: “Obviously all the trainees are f***** off as it's just a s*** show.” ⬇️<a href="https://t.co/0cO5KW8koa">https://t.co/0cO5KW8koa</a></p>— Deborah Haynes (@haynesdeborah) <a href="https://twitter.com/haynesdeborah/status/1546747707435401216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 12, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
A source on post told reporters that training for RAF pilots could not continue as scheduled. “Our aircraft flight line has melted in the heat, so all flying at Cranwell has been stopped,” they said. “Obviously all the trainees are f—ing off as it’s just a sh-t show.”
When asked about the possibility that a melting tarmac has halted training on the military base, and RAF spokesperson said, “As a precautionary measure, the main aircraft service area at RAF Cranwell is currently unavailable for routine use.” The spokesperson also added that “flying training is not affected and will continue by using alternative service areas.”
The spokesperson did not specify the exact location at which the RAF would continue its training.
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According to the eastern UK county’s office of weather observation, temperatures on Monday reached highs of almost 90 degrees Fahrenheit. This triggered an extreme heat warning for the area.
Sky News reported that “since the beginning of summer, tar has got stuck to RAF officials’ boots and the wheels of two training aircraft.”
This week’s heat has impacted approximately 60 trainees who otherwise would have been conducting flight or engine training. According to the same source, trainees were frustrated.
The heat is not just affecting military flights. Increasing heat is also impacting the availability of airport workers and flight crew in the civilian sector as well. Heathrow Airport, one of the UK’s most important hubs, requested that airlines stop selling tickets to flights as so many are being canceled.
