On a recent trip to London,Vancouver Airport Authority employee Shari Sinclair discovered the spirit of the 2010 Winter Games  and sent us a few photos:

Recently, my daughter Asia and I took a trip to Europe visiting Paris, Nice, Venice, Florence, Rome and finally London. On our first day in London we decided to take a three-hour double decker bus tour around the city. Much to my surprise (and delight!) we discovered a Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralymic Winter Games banner at Canada House – right in the middle of Trafalgar Square. Very Cool!We arrived too late to go inside, but got some nice shots of the outside.Trafalgar Square was like the Canadian intersection of London – foreign buildings with Canadian titles; It felt a little like home….

 

Recently, we asked a few Airport Authority employees to be the eyes and ears here at YVR and share their stories. Our roving reporters will give us different insights on what’s happening at the airport in the lead up to the 2010 Winter Games. For our first installment, reporters Barb Brown and Ivan Tse write about the new Public Observation Area:

You can feel the energy of the Olympics approaching as the media seem to be an ever present sighting at Vancouver International Airport. Why?  Well, it seems that new facility openings are becoming a weekly occurrence here at YVR. July 9 saw the launch of our new C Pier expansion in the Domestic Terminal, July 16 was the official opening of the Public Observation Area on level 4 of the Domestic Terminal.

This new area with windows spanning 7 metres high and 42 metres long offers the public a fantastic view of the airfield and the surrounding landscape. With its bright and airy feel, this space has seating for 150 visitors to take in the view while enjoying a bite to eat. The best part – it’s in the public area - you don’t need to be a passenger to see activity on the airfield.

If the excitement of the view and architecture weren’t enough to get you revved up to visit YVR, the space offers telescopes, information panels, an interactive scale model of Sea Island, touch-screen kiosks and the BC Explorer.

The BC Explorer gives visitors an opportunity to navigate a virtual fly-through of BC, using satellite mapping. You can touch down into BC communities to watch videos on your selected area. I asked Australian born and Airport Authority employee, Martin York, what he thought of his test drive of the BC Explorer.  Laughing, he said “I can’t even find the airport. Hey, can I get to Sydney on this thing?”

Dean Koyanagi, a plumber with the Airport Authority maintenance team, was asked how he felt about his newly acquired star status as he is featured in one of the touch-screen kiosk videos about some of the unique jobs at YVR. He replied, “No press please – contact my agent” as he grinned and moved to view another kiosk.

One of the great things about these interactive displays is that they are smaller in size and can be used by kids, noted Tom Phipps, an Airport Authority employee.

A common theme voiced by the large crowd at the opening was that the Observation Area brought back fond childhood memories of watching planes at YVR. It reminded many of times when they watched their loved ones’ planes take off or land. It has been more than 30 years since YVR has had a space where the public can view the airfield.

A big hit at the grand opening was a demonstration by YVR’s Airfield Emergency Services team. Fire trucks and sweepers were presented by Chane Thomas, Manager, Airfield and Emergency Services, while his team orchestrated maneuvers on the airfield. The finale had two fire trucks facing each other blasting water creating an high arch, usually reserved as a salute to retiring pilots. This spectacular display with the combination of the water and sunshine produced a beautiful rainbow which was the perfect ending to the grand opening.

 As we walked away, the space was in full swing as the public began filtering in for their first look. It seemed like this space has always been here.

Barbara Brown & Ivan Tse, YVR Roving Reporters

Aircraft noise is an unavoidable product of an airport and we recognize that not everyone loves the sound of aircraft.  

To help those affected by noise, last week we launched a new and interactive tool that tracks and monitors flights in and around YVR. WebTrak allows members of the public to view real-time and historical flight tracking and noise data.

People can log on and check out how much noise aircraft is emitting as well as monitor its flight path. There are 20 noise monitoring terminals throughout Metro Vancouver; each terminal assesses the contribution of aircraft to overall community noise levels.

Balancing safe, convenient 24-hour air travel with enjoyable urban living is just one of the Airport Authority’s environmental management goals. I think this tool arms people with more information about what’s happening in the sky. It’s also the result of our strong partnerships with community groups, NAV Canada (the agency responsible for flight paths and the safe movement of aircraft in our airspace), and airlines