It is important for the safe operation of aircraft that they both land and take-off into wind. On take-off, this will reduce the ground speed required to produce the lift to get airborne. On landing, it will again result in a lower groundspeed which significantly improves the safety margins in this critical phase of flight.
When the wind is from west to east, the airport will operate “westerly operations”. Aircraft will approach London Gatwick from the east and depart towards the west. The opposite, “easterly operations”, are used when the wind blows east to west. In recent years, on average around 70% of aircraft operations have been in a westerly direction and around 30% in an easterly direction. However this ratio does fluctuate, and weather conditions may mean prolonged periods of one operation or another.
The direction of operation is something which is considered carefully by Air Traffic Control in the interests of safe operations, giving consideration to wind on the runway and at 1,000ft and 2,000ft, the initial stages of take-off and the final stages of approach along with the forecast for the next four to six hours. The position is kept under review and any changes made in the light of all relevant factors at the time. The local weather forecast is not always a reliable indicator for what is happening at London Gatwick since it only reports the conditions at ground level.
The westerly and easterly operational directions are schematically outlined below:
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