Heathrow Airport 1973

A 1970s colour photo of the bustling cargo and service ramp at Heathrow Airport in 1973. The foreground is filled with a variety of period ground support equipment, including white Pan Am liveried tugs, mobile staircases, and cargo loaders. Several classic service vehicles, such as Land Rovers and Commer vans, are parked along the side of the terminal buildings. In the background, a Singapore Airlines Boeing 707 with its iconic tropical bird tail fin is parked on the apron near the passenger piers. The wet tarmac and overcast sky capture a typical busy day at London’s primary international gateway during the early wide-body jet era.

Today, Heathrow’s ground operations have been completely transformed with the introduction of electric and hybrid tugs and highly automated baggage handling systems. While Terminal 3 and its surrounding piers have seen massive structural changes, the site remains the heart of Heathrow’s long-haul operations. Pan American World Airways (Pan Am) famously ceased operations in 1991, but Singapore Airlines remains a major presence at the airport today. Most of the vintage service vehicles seen here, such as the original Land Rovers and specialized Pan Am tugs, have long since been retired and replaced by modern ground handling fleets.

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