Airport Life - August

august 2017
Inside
LCY
EMPLOYEE
BENEFITS
60 SECONDS WITH
RICHARD HILL
SWISS CS100 LANDS
AT LCY
ANNUAL
CHARITY BIKE
RIDE PHOTOS ON
PagES 9 & 10

IAF World Athletics
Championships 2017
Monday 4th - Sunday 13th
Hosted at the London Stadium in Stratford
In the first half of 2017, London City
Airport welcomed 2.19 million passengers,
that’s 1% more than this time last year.
Movements are slightly down on 2016 and,
although we are seeing fuller aircraft, the
rest of the year will remain challenging.
Following the rapid growth that the airport has experienced in the last few years, and
with constrained capacity, it was inevitable that there would be a levelling out. This
has combined with political and economic factors to make it difficult for airlines
to achieve further growth this year, but recent new route announcements from BA
CityFlyer are showing the first green shoots for a more favourable 2018.
Despite passenger numbers being below our targets, retail at the airport is really strong. Thanks to
our Non Aero Revenue Team, spend per passenger is at its highest level which has been uplifted
by new concessions including Aspinal of London and Laduree to the Departure Lounge, Jo
Malone within Aelia Duty Free, and Brick Lane Brews and Pret to the West Pier. Aero Spa have
had temporary spaces in the airport but will soon take up a permanent unit on the West Pier and
we can now announce that WHSmith will soon open a third airside store at the end of the pier.
In July we took a great step forward for the future of London City Airport; The Bombardier
CS100 arrived for pilot testing and parking trials, and performed well. SWISS will
start operating the new 125-seat jet on their Zurich route from 8 August, creating a
step change in passenger experience as well as reducing emissions and noise.
British Airways has announced three new routes to start in October; Paris-Orly,
Prague and Reykjavik. Meaning that this winter, they will fly to a total of 30
destinations from the airport. The Prague and Reykjavik routes will be the first
time British Airways has flown to the Czech Republic or Iceland from LCY.
I’d like to say happy birthday from everyone at the airport to Flybe who celebrated
their 15th anniversary in July. For three of those years they’ve flown from London City
Airport with routes spanning the UK, The Channel Islands, France and Germany.
In my first six months at London City Airport, one thing has really stood out for me –
the people and the passion among the teams. It’s been a pleasure meeting departments
across the airport and I have a real admiration for the work and attitude of everyone
at LCY. An incredible amount has been achieved at the airport in recent years. We
have huge potential to accomplish even more and a great team to get us there.
Edinburgh
Festival Fringe
Monday 4th – Thursday 28th
The world’s largest arts festival
SWISS first CSeries flight
Tuesday 8th
LCY to Zurich
17/18 Premier League
Season Starts
Friday 11th
This season kicks off with Arsenal vs Leicester
Under The Stars
Thursday 17th – Sunday 20th
Newham Council’s free outdoor music
Notting Hill Carnival
Sunday 27th – Monday 28th
London’s biggest street party with reggae,
socca and dancehall music
Bank Holiday
Monday 28th
The last Monday of the month
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Richard Hill
Chief Commercial Officer
Editor - Kimberley Hayden
Cover Photography - Andrew Baker
Magazine design - MRDEETEE.co.uk
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inside News
Sign up to all our latest news by emailing
kimberley.hayden@londoncityairport.com
LCY named 2nd Best
Airport in Britain
BA Announce New Routes
British Airways is to launch new
routes from London City Airport
to three European capitals, Paris,
Prague and Reykjavik, in October.
The new services to the three
popular cities will mean British
Airways will fly to 30 destinations
from London City this winter.
Orly flights are being transferred
to LCY from Heathrow, and will
be the fifth French route served
by British Airways from the
Docklands airport. There will be
three flights a day during the week
and one a day at weekends.
The Prague and Reykjavik
routes will be the first time
British Airways has flown to the
Czech Republic or Iceland from
London City. Reykjavik will be
a winter-only service, replacing
flights to Granada, Spain which
will continue as a summer-only
service resuming next year.
BA will fly to Reykjavik
two times a week and six
times a week to Prague.
Flights will operate on modern
Embraer jets with a choice of
Club Europe and Euro Traveller
cabins and two-abreast seating
so that every customer can have
either a window or aisle seat.
Flights are now on sale with each
way hand baggage only fares
to Orly available from £49, to
Prague from £49 and to Reykjavik
from £59 are available to book
on www.ba.com/londoncity
600 Greenwich students fly high on “Runway to Success”
On 12th July, London City Airport hosted
a celebration of Runway to Success, an
education programme designed to give
young people in Royal Greenwich the best
possible start to their future beyond school.
Since its start in February, Runway to Success
has benefited approximately 600 Greenwich
students aged between 12 and 18 and involved
around 140 business volunteers. Runway to
Success was delivered by Tower Hamlets
Education Business Partnership (THEBP)
in partnership with London City Airport
and the Royal Borough of Greenwich.
Students from John Roan School, Woolwich
Polytechnic School, Plumstead Manor School,
Thomas Tallis School, and Corelli College took
part in the one-day conferences delivered by
THEBP, which covered employability skills,
enterprise and financial literacy, and interview
skills. As well as increasing confidence,
knowledge and skills, the programme aimed to
encourage students to continue their education
and secure sustainable employment.
London City Airport ranked number
2 for the best airports in the country
(second only to Newcastle) according
to a survey by Cheapflights.co.uk.
Of all the London airports, only City
made the top 10, with Stansted ranking
15th, Gatwick 13th and Heathrow 11th.
We were also recognised for WiFi,
baggage wait times and security.
World Para
Athletics
Championships
London 2017
London City Airport was the Official
Airport of the World Para Athletics
Championships London 2017.
Athletes, trainers and spectators were
welcomed upon arrival to the airport with
special transportation arranged to and
from the London Stadium in Stratford.
100 tickets were given away to LCY staff via
who requested them via our weekly eBulletin and
one member of staff even got to take centre stage!
Andy Thomas, Finance Director, attended
the championships to represent London
City Airport on Tuesday 18 July and
presented medals for Men’s Long Jump,
Men’s Javelin and Men’s 1500m events.
Future Prospects - Work Experience Programme
Future Prospects is the airport’s pre-16
work experience programme delivered in
partnership with 15billion-ebp. It’s designed
to raise the aspirations of students across
East London and give them the experience
needed to prepare for the world of work.
Students from Rush Croft Foundation
School in Chingford, The Sydney Russell
School in Dagenham, Buxton School in
Leytonstone and Eastbury Community School
in Barking took part in 2017’s programme.
They were tasked with identifying a new
route from London City Airport and each
school seriously wowed the judges with
detailed research and professional-sounding
pitches. But only one school could win…
Sydney Russell came up top trumps with their
professional and confident pitch for a new route
to Budapest. Judges were handed mock boarding
passes and a shiny leaflet advertising the new route
and their presentation skills were second to none.
Each student who made it to the final has been
offered a week’s work experience at the airport,
and the winners also get a £50 Westfield voucher.
Above left to right: Liam McKay, Head of Public Affairs, Patricia Thomas, Sir Philip Beck, Roger Sainsbury and Nicholas Hopkins
VIPs visit LCY
In July a group of very important
people visited London City Airport.
Over 30 years ago, they came up with an
idea to build an airport in the Docklands.
Three decades later, they came back to meet
Declan and have a tour of the airport.
We took the chance to interview them
about the origins of LCY and later this
year we’ll share the video with you.
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department updates
Happy retirement AJ
New FID Designs
Adrian Leung from the Continuous Improvement Team, together with
Winston Robinson and Ellie Papworth from IT, have been working on a
new project to further improve the LCY passenger experience.
You’re hired!
David Grant
Head of Enterprise
Architecture and Strategy
James Waller
Business Intelligence Analyst
Andrei Margineanu
Security Officer
Anthony Cairns
Security Officer
Jason Teixeira
Security Officer
Jubed Ahmed
Security Officer
Shane Ramcharan
Security Officer
Tomasz Czerwoniak
Security Officer
Tina Angus
Security Officer
Taranjit Singh
Security Officer
Viktorija Kiseliova
Security Officer
Ruben Oliveira
Engineering Shift Leader
Richard Hart
Engineering Shift Support
Connecting with the community
Many of you will know Aaron Uthman from
his days on the ramp. He’s now a part of the
Corporate Social Responsibility team and he’s
been making an impact for Newham residents.
He’s building relationships with members
of our local community to help them
feel connected to the airport.
Legal Team win Huddle award
Huddle is a cloud-based file sharing
and collaboration tool that has been
rolled out across the airport.
Folders are uploaded to workspaces within
Huddle and can be accessed by you or
members of your workspace from anywhere
Different community groups including from
North Woolwich, Custom House, Tower
Hamlet and Canning Town have been invited
to hold their coffee mornings at the airport,
which is then followed by a tour. More
visits are being planned for the National
Trust for Scotland London members.
in the world. This means no old-fashioned
shared drives or over-crowded desktops! Here
are our legal team who won a Huddle award
for being the first team to upload all their
files and work completely from Huddle.
Congrats!
Take a look at this LCY legend! AJ started
at London City Airport in September 2006
as a Security Officer. His background was
in computers, so when a position came up
in the ID Unit he was the first to apply.
Almost 11 years later, he is ready to retire
and will soon be travelling to Canada
and also then on to The Philippines!
He told us, “One of my best memories here was
holding the World Cup when it came through
security – even David Beckham hasn’t done that!
“Another is when Jill Pearman brought
Declan (who was the new CEO) to the ID
Unit for a permanent airside pass. I had
to reject his application as it was missing
the overseas criminal record certification!
Apologies to Declan! He did understand
though and said I was only doing my job!
“Everybody comes to the ID Unit at some point
so I’ve met an awful lot of people. I want to say
thank you to everyone for the great memories!”
Making up our ID Unit now are Chloe
Richardson, Lisa Jones and Kristina Aladyseva.
Business Continuity
Programme
The Business Continuity Project continues
to gather pace with workshops held
and templates given to all BC Leads to
assist them in writing their plans.
Now the plans are being discussed, written
and checked then stored on Huddle and hard
copies kept at home or off site. The next stage
will be to test these plans to ensure that they
are fit for purpose. Assistance on testing will
be given. Once this is complete amendments
will need to be made to improve the plans.
This is a continuous process with annual
testing and regular amendments. These plans,
staff awareness, regular testing and continual
improvement will enable LCY to recover
quickly and effectively in times of disruption.
FID screens are soon to get a refreshed
design to improve passenger communication
with relevant messages such as Bag
Drop close times, ‘gate shown at’ times,
and boarding times for each flight.
Adopting a simplified look, the designs
FREE tickets
to London
Homebuilding
& Renovating
Show at ExCel
2 FREE TICKETS for you, friends and
family – London Homebuilding & Renovating
Show, ExCeL, 22-24 September 2017
Was it your goal this year to finally do that
extension? Maybe you’ve been dreaming
of building a secure, sustainable house from
scratch? Whatever stage your project is at,
you’ll find more inspiration, hands-on advice
and innovative products in one day at the
are clear and easy-to-read meeting
standard visibility principles.
Here’s an example of the new design,
although this may change slightly before
they’re rolled out in the airport.
London Homebuilding & Renovating Show,
than months of researching online. Find all
the inspiration, ideas and products you need to
create the home you want under one roof!
As a friend of the show, London City
Airport employees, friends and family are
entitled to 2 free tickets worth £36*.
Simply register your details at www.
homebuildingshow.co.uk/londoncity and
download and print your tickets.
*Saving based on 2 standard door price tickets.
Tickets valid on any one day from 22-24
September 2017. 2 tickets available per household.
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cseries
“It’s designed for airports
of short runways, or steep
and complex approaches;
perfect for LCY’s runway”
Introducing the CSeries
by special guest writer Millie Andersson-Gylden
On 17th July, London City Airport
welcomed The Bombardier CS100
test flights, operated by SWISS. The
CSeries is ‘the future of aviation’,
which SWISS were proud to showcase
as one of the most modern short and
medium-haul aircraft’s in the LCY fleet.
SWISS has embodied Switzerland’s
traditional values, committing to deliver
the highest product and service quality
into the CS100 jet. The Bombardier is
acknowledged as the ‘ideal aircraft’,
to be used on short- and medium-haul
routes. It’s designed for airports with
short runways, or steep and complex
approaches; perfect for LCY’s runway.
The CS100 assures the optimum
operational flexibility, including all
the latest up to date technology, a
lower noise level, a cautious use
of resources and most importantly
an innovative design providing
maximum comfort for passengers.
London City Airport is constantly
enhancing the passenger experience.
Adopting the CS100 will create
a new passenger-friendly cabin
environment by restructuring the
fuselage and introducing spacious cabin
functionalities with larger windows
and improved cabin pressurisation,
among many other innovations.
The CSeries provides maximum
passenger comfort, with 25% more
hand baggage capacity to meet
passenger requirements. Through
the large windows, positioned closer
together than in earlier aircraft, the
cabin welcomes additional daylight
which complements the spacious
and airy feel. The innovative seat
design is more comfortable, thinner
and lighter for more space with the
same seat pitch. With seats for 125
passengers, a maximum speed of
817 km/h and a maximum range 3650
miles with a full load, the CS100 is
far beyond capable of providing a
superior service to our passengers.
Often called the “Whisperjet”, 50%
less noise is picked up by the human
ear. Bombardier claims it to be
between 10 and 15 decibels quieter.
A great addition to LCY fleet, the new
aircraft takes on an environmental
initiative by using 20% less fuel
compared to others. CO2 emissions
will also be reduced by around 90,000
tonnes per year which surprisingly
is the equivalent 7,000 fights
between Zurich and London City!
Swiss will fly the CS100 on 8
August for its first departure from
LCY to ZRH, keep an eye out, as
your ears might just miss it.
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Charity Bike Ride to
Amsterdam 2017
On 7th July our 30th anniversary annual
charity bike ride took place. Samantha
Hicks who organised the challenge tells us
more about our flagship fundraising event.
“We were a mix of the young and old, the
experienced and the complete novices. The
invite was extended to our partners, with
representatives from BPI, Dassault SSP,
Arcadis, Company 85, NATS and Stephen
Timms, MP for East Ham accepting and
joining us for the challenge. The rest of the
group came from all around the airport with
over 10 different departments taking part.
Pam Kaur from Customer Services learnt to
ride a bike especially for the challenge and
Peter Mumford from Outbound Bags had
the oldest bike ever to come on a challenge!
It was our most diverse group ever.
“Who knew Essex was so hilly! As we
cycled through it, we saw gorgeous villages
and pubs – which made it quite difficult to
continue. We headed north east to the coast,
but only forty nine of us made it to Harwich.
Unfortunately Rikki Pluck and a pot hole
got into a fight and the pot hole won.
“We gathered sponsorship on our way round,
thanks to our cycling jerseys. 2 little girls at
Harwich gave us £1.50 of their pocket money
and a passenger on the ferry gave us £100.
“We boarded the overnight ferry and got
some much-needed rest before disembarking
at the Hook of Holland. The weather stayed
on our side as we followed the coastal path
through the sand dunes and a few hours
later we passed Schiphol Airport. Not long
after, we finished up in Dam Square with
champagne and a celebratory dinner. Later,
anyone with any energy left hit the town hard!
“The challenge has a purpose, raising
money for our nominated charity. We’ve
raised £30,000 for Richard House
Children’s Hospice to coincide with our
30th anniversary - including money raised
from the raffle earlier in the year.”
A message from Declan Collier:
Thank you to all our partners for supporting the
2017 London City Airport charity bike ride to
Amsterdam whether in the form of money for the
organisation of the trip or well needed supplies.
Your contribution helped to make the trip
possible, and I’m delighted to announce that
we have raised a fantastic £30,000 for Richard
House Children’s Hospice, supporting children
and families in East London with life-limiting
illnesses. Richard House remains close to the
hearts of everyone at London City. This event
was the biggest and most successful yet and we
hope to take to two wheels again next year to
raise even more money for this excellent cause.
If you haven’t joined us yet, it’s never too early
to start training…
If you are planning next year’s budgets and feel
this year you would like to have been personally
involved with the team then think of us and look
out for the notifications. More information on
next year’s plans will be available in early 2018.
In the meantime, thanks again.
A special thanks from London City Airport
For sponsoring the event
SSP, BPI, NATS, Dassault, Ayonc, Norton
Rose, Atkins, PLMR, Travelex, LMG,
Uniled, Wildstone Media, GSF, Quod,
ASIG, GLS Doors, Company 85,
For donating food and supplies
Pret A Manger, Aelia Duty Free, Boots,
Costa, Platinum vending, Café Nero,
Newrest, WHSmiths, CFE, Ambigraph
For donating raffle prizes
British Airways, CityJet, Flybe,
Aero Spa, Dixons, Hertz, Truman’s,
Pilots, SSP, Tumi, Boisdales
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10

LCY
Employee
Benefits
Did you know that as a London City Airport employee
you are entitled to a whole range of benefits?
Stephanie Powell, Reward Manager at LCY gives us a refresh
of everything from savings and loans to privATe medical
insurance, with a little taster of Lifeworks, the new app
being rolled out to all depARTMents at the airport.
London City Airport was celebrating a record
1,161,121 passengers and the airport’s iconic
backdrop was still very much in the making
(construction had just started on the then-called
Millennium Dome and the only skyscraper over in
the wharf was One Canada Square), the year was
1998 and a twenty-year-old Stephanie Powell had
just arrived in the Docklands to start her new job.
Where Central Search is now is where The Brasserie
restaurant used to be. It was quite posh with the
uniform incorporating waistcoats and dickie bows,
and it’s where I first started, however, not being in
the slightest bit posh myself I decided it wasn’t for
me, and after just a few weeks I applied for a role
that I saw in the Newham Recorder for a Customer
Service Agent role working directly for London
City Airport. Back then, customer service was really
just the information desk and the switchboard but
I have to say, it was amazing and I loved it.
“Almost 20 years later, I’m part of LCY’s HR Team
and I’m responsible for processing payroll (my number
one priority!) and overseeing all the employee benefits
at the airport. Benefits on offer have really grown and
been enhanced in recent years and it’s important that
you’re up to date so you can make the most of them.”
“Take a look at just some of the benefits you
have access to. Remember that you can get more
information on all of these on LCY Central or
you can talk to your HR rep or myself.”
“It’s a work-provided benefit and it’s
about loans and financial wellbeing. LCY
employees who have passed probation
can apply for loans, and their chances
of being approved are higher than with
high street banks. Even if you aren’t
approved for the amount you ask for,
Neyber can often make a counter offer.”
• Applications are quick and simple
• Loans can go up to £25,000
spread over 5 years
• Payments are made directly
from your salary
• Interest rates vary from 4.9% - 9.9%
• Those that aren’t approved
are often counter-offered
• Accessible via LCY Central
“Employees from all different departments
are already using Neyber. They’re a flexible
and straight-forward option that makes
things easier for you. If you want more
info on debt or loans in general, I’d advise
looking through their website as it’s full of
great information and advice on budgeting
and improving your credit score.”
*COMING SOON*
“This is the new app that you may have heard
about already. It provides 24/7 wellness and
clinical support with live chat support and
coaching. It’s 100% confidential and also
has a range of instant discounts and deals.
“The other feature is the employee
social networking tool, you can post
comments, interact with colleagues
from all areas of the airport and keep
up to date with the latest at LCY”
LCY Central
“This is our benefits portal. Somewhere
that you can access all your employee
benefits plus save money on numerous
retailers by claiming cashback,
downloading vouchers and using topups
for a variety of high street shops.
Everything you need to find in terms of all
our benefits is located on LCY Central.”
Savings
“Squirrel is a tool that helps you
with budgeting and saving. You can
“squirrel” your money away into a
savings account. You set a savings
goal and it goes straight into your
Squirrel savings account from your
monthly salary. It’s still accessible,
you can request money from your
savings and it will hit your account
the next day. It’s purposefully not
instant, as the goal is to save!
I’m saving for a holiday and
needed £1000. Squirrel calculated
how much I need to save each
month and set that up for me.”
• Achieve your saving goals
• Set amounts paid straight
from your salary to your
Squirrel Savings Account
• Money is still accessible, withdrawals
will hit your account within 24 hours
• If you need to withdraw money from
your savings, Squirrel recalculates
your payments to encourage you
to still meet your goals within
the designated time frame
• Accessible via LCY Central
Budgeting
“It’s not always easy to manage
your money month to month. With
this aspect of Squirrel, you are able
to set an amount to be released into
your current account each week.
As an example if you have £200
left after bills each month, you can
have £50 sent to your account each
week so that you don’t spend it all
in the first week of being paid.”
Medicash
“Medicash allows you to reclaim
costs such as annual eye tests,
vaccinations, private medical excess,
Indian head massage, physiotherapy,
non cosmetic dentistry, prescriptions
etc. You’ll get a set amount for the
year for each category. There is an
upgrade option if you would like
to increase the amounts you can
reclaim, this is a self- funded option.
“After probation, you’ll be
automatically enrolled. It’s a
company-funded benefit. (Bar
the tax which you’ll see on your
payslip – it’s just a small amount).
“You just need to keep your receipt
and you can claim the costs back
using the app – it’s really simple.”
• Receive your membership
pack in the post
• Download the Medicash app on
your smartphone or tablet
• Keep your receipts and use the app
to claim back medical expenses
• Set amount for each
category for the year
Dental
Optical
Diagnostic
Tests & PMI
Alternative
Therapies
Chiropody
Dental Accident
Consultations
Complementary
Therapies
Prescriptions
& Flu Jabs
Health Screening
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Cycle-to-work
“If you want to cycle to work and
need a new bike, the Cycle-to-work
scheme could be perfect for you.
This is a salary sacrifice scheme,
meaning the money is deducted
from your salary before it is taxed
so you save tax on this amount.”
• Price up the bike and accessories
you want in Halfords
• Access the Cycle to Work application
on LCY Central and apply for the
amount required (maximum £1000)
• Once approved by HR you will
receive a letter of collection
for the amount requested
• Use the letter of collection
at Halfords to pay for your
bike and accessories
• Payments are taken monthly
from your salary (before tax
and National Insurance)
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Life Assurance
Should an employee die in service,
their beneficiaries would be
paid a cash sum as follows:
• Non member of the pension
scheme– x1 basic salary
• Member of pension scheme up to 5
years’ service – x3 basic salary
• Member of pension scheme 5-10
years’ service – x4 basic salary
• Member of pension scheme over 10
years’ employment – x5 basic salary
• Please ensure your Death Benefit
form is up to date as this is
what we use to get details of the
beneficiaries we would pay out to.
Childcare Vouchers
“Parents have access to money towards
childcare. Things like after school
clubs, school holiday clubs etc are also
included. Entitlement, and benefits,
depend on your personal circumstances.
You can get the full details of the options
available to you via LCY Central. along
with details on the new government
tax free childcare scheme (TFC).
For more information on any of the LCY employee benefits,
go to LCY Central or speak to your HR representative]
Private Medical Insurance
“Once you hit 5-years’ service, you have
access to our Private Medical Insurance,
funded by the company, this is currently with
Bupa. You will receive a letter advising you
of this and you will need to enrol if you are
interested, it is not done automatically. If you
want to join before 5 years you can, but the
company doesn’t cover the costs. However
you will get a discounted price and this
will come straight from your pay. If you’re
interested, you can email me for a quote at
Stephanie.powell@londoncityairport.com”.
Pension
“I can help with lots of your questions on
pension. Queries like what your percentage
contributions are, the cost of your pension
or the cost of increasing / decreasing your
contributions. Just send me an email and
I can let you know. If I can’t answer your
question I can ensure you are on the waiting
list to see our Pensions adviser when he
next visits. You can always contact Aviva
directly about your pension scheme as
well, all you will need is your membership
number which will be on any of the
documentation you have received.”
30th Anniversary Special
Changing
Roles
Sharon Preston From Information Assistant in 1987
to Director of Safety and Airfield Operations in 2017.
Less than 200,000 passengers
travelled through London City Airport
in the 12 months after opening on
November 5th 1987, and the airport
employed just 150 members of staff!
A handful of those employees are still going
strong at the airport, which welcomed
4.5 million passengers last year and
now has a 621strong work force.
One of them is Sharon Preston who told
us about how she has changed roles over
her 30-year career at LCY from Information
Assistant to Director of Safety and Airfield
Operations, and all the roles in between.
“When I was younger there were a couple
of jobs I thought I might pursue. My earliest
dream was to become an air hostess (as
it was called in those days!). I applied for
British Caledonian but was too young at the
time, so then decided to go to college.
“Later on I thought perhaps a midwife or a nurse.
I was working for Ladbrokes betting office in my
spare time and I had already been promoted to
Supervisor, so when I left college I just continued
working for them and became an Area Manager
of the East London betting offices. It was quite a
tough job in an area renowned for criminals and
drugs at the time. I left to have my daughter in
86 and wanted to return to work after about 4
months, but I really fancied something different.
“It was in 1987 that I joined LCY (gosh it’s a long
time ago!). I was a new mum and looking for
part-time work. I spotted an ad in the local paper
and applied for the role of Information Assistant,
this was the equivalent of a CSC agent today,
but with the addition of flight briefing duties, as
we did not have an Ops department back then.
In the early days with London City Airport, I
never really considered carving out a career in
the organisation, at the time I just viewed it as
a job until I went back to full-time work. But as
things turned out, I loved the airport, and when
a full-time role came up a few years later as
Terminal Supervisor I had no hesitation in applying
– that was really the start of my LCY career.
Over the years I have held various roles in
many different functions, including Airfield
Operations, Security, Ramp and Terminal.
“I left my terminal role and was the Airfield
Operations Officer, which involved liaising with
ATC with regard to stand activity and stand
allocation; leading the ramp team which was quite
small then, probably about 20 staff, scheduling,
dealing with new operator approvals, noise
complaints and various “Ops stuff”. This later
led to me being given the role of Operations
Control Manager and the setting up of the Airfield
Operations department back in 1997. The Ops
team had three Ops Assistants and three Ops
Controllers. After a year I was asked to head up
Security, which was the largest airport department
at that time with approximately 35 staff.
“It’s so difficult to pick my favourite day here; I’ve
got so many memories of the airport. It could be
the day that the CEO called me in to his office
to offer me a director position, that was quite a
shock. At that time we didn’t have the Chiefs and
there was only a handful of Directors reporting
directly to the CEO, taking on the responsibility
of being a Director was quite daunting at the
time. Or if I think about incidents, it would be
the day that myself and Richard Batman got
stuck in a brand new de-icing rig at full height!
The hydraulic mechanism wouldn’t work to drop
the bucket so we spent a few hours in the air
on a pretty cold, wet and miserable day. There
will be a few people here that remember that!
“Two events took place at the airport that I will
never forget, the day I met Princess Diana for
the opening of the runway extension in 1992. I
have to say it didn’t feel like meeting a Princess,
as although she had the presence of one, she
spoke quite naturally and with ease with a few of
the LCY staff at the time. The Fire Service were
lined up in their formal uniform and a number of
staff had the opportunity to have introductions.
“The other event was the Royal International
Air Tattoo, when a Hercules aircraft landed and
parked at the airport! I recall it dropping the
rear cargo door and the military band coming
out, with the performing dogs. It became a
bit worrying when they decided to set light
to large hoops for the dogs to jump through,
which we had been given no prior warning of.
As for the future, well who knows, I would never
have anticipated I would have had the opportunity
to experience the many different facets of running
an airport. With CADP around the corner there
are indeed exciting and challenging times ahead,
but then that’s what my team and I thrive on,
dealing with the unexpected, the challenges that
arise on a daily basis and with my remit being so
varied no day is ever dull! I am excited to be able
to continue to shape the ongoing development
of the airport and the opportunities it will bring,
particularly now that I have a fantastic team
around me to share the next phase of the journey”.
14

60
seconds
with Richard Hill
Richard Hill joined as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at
London City Airport in January 2017. In this role he has
overall responsibility for commercial airline relationships
and all other commercial activity including retail, food
and beverage, parking, advertising, marketing, PR and ‘e’
commerce. Richard previously worked for over 8 years at
British Airways, most recently in the capacity of Finance
Director for both BA Gatwick and BA CityFlyer. During his time
at BA CityFlyer, which operates a network of UK domestic and
European routes, Richard oversaw the subsidiary through
a period of outstanding 80% growth over the course of 5
years. He joined us for this month’s 60 second interview.
What was your first ever job?
A bartender at a beach town in South Africa
Before working at London City Airport what was the
most unusual or interesting job you’ve ever had?
Ski Instructor and that was in Colorado, USA.
Tell us something that might surprise us about you
I actually have a pilot’s license. I used to
fly the planes for sky divers.
If you were able to switch positions with anyone else working at
LCY just for the day, who would it be?
A Ramp Services Agent, to be in the heart of the
operation and up close to all the aircraft.
We want to protect London City Airport
from harm no matter if the criminal
is petty, a protestor or a terrorist.
A new type of security operation
Unpredictable
Intelligence led
Highly Visible
Together, we’ve got it covered
Coming Soon to LCY
Having to describe working at LCY in 3 words,
what would they be?
Innovative, challenging & people-lead (although
I know that’s now four words!)
How would you describe your day job to a child?
To put it simply, my job is about getting more passengers and
airlines to use London City Airport. There are many ways that we
can achieve this such as marketing the airport to customers and
businesses globally, and building new and stronger relationships
with airlines to bolster our routes. Another big part of the
London City experience is retail and my team are responsible for
making sure we have the right options for the City passenger.
What has been the most important innovation you have
witnessed in your lifetime?
I think it has to be the smartphone – its completely changed
the way that friends, family and businesses interact with
each other. It gives people more choice than they’ve ever had
before with access to the world right at their fingertips.
If you were to win £10M on the lottery, what would you do first?
I would buy a stake in London City Airport!
15
16

Car Park Customer Service Advisors
London City Airport partnered with Empark UK Ltd earlier this year
in a bid to improve valet and car parking services available to our passengers.
London City Airport partnered with
Empark UK Ltd earlier this year in a
bid to improve valet and car parking
services available to our passengers.
Peter Wright, Commercial Manager for Empark
said, “Empark’s origins go back to the 1960s
in the Iberian Peninsula and we now look after
more than half a million car parking spaces in
several countries across Europe including half
of the airports in Spain, all airports in Portugal
together with Gatwick and Edinburgh in the UK.
We were established in the UK in 2008 after
being awarded the parking services contract at
Stansted Airport and have since added several
hospital trust contracts to our portfolio.”
Nick Maley Empark’s Head of Business
Development added “We are delighted
to be working in partnership with LCY,
especially during an exciting time of
growth and development for the airport and
its customers. As the airport’s landscape
continues to evolve over the coming years,
our aim is to deliver a superior service by
offering value, transparency and results.”
Marvin Jones and Arturis Petraska are the Car
Park Customer Service Advisors at LCY who
are employed by Empark. You’ll often see
them moving on drivers who stop in the yellow
hatched areas or wait in disabled bays. Their
main priority is running the valet parking service,
meeting and greeting passengers as they arrive.
Passengers book the valet service online at
www.londoncityairport.com. When they arrive
at the airport, they park where the valet signs
are and are greeted by Marvin or Arturis. After
filling out some paperwork and handing over
their keys, the passenger can walk over to the
terminal (it’s less than a minute’s walk!) and
check-in for their flight. Meanwhile, their
car is moved to the Long Stay Car Park and
then driven back to the space where they
dropped it off before their return journey.
Mark Heuchan, Commercial Car Park Manager
for London City Airport told us, “We know
exactly when passengers are arriving and
leaving and we know what vehicles we will
have. The guys have handled everything from a
Mini to a Bentley and heaps of Range Rovers.
“During CADP when there will be lots of change,
we are keen to work with experienced and
reliable companies who can help us manage
the change process, and Empark really fit the
bill. From a standing start, the service has
grown to around 10 customers a day. From the
middle of May to the end of July we had 400
customers and are currently taking around 220 a
month. We hope to enhance the product further,
with patrols of the surrounding areas and car
cleaning both possible additions in the future.”
‘MOST PROFESSIONAL’
SECURITY TEAM AT LCY
Regular traveller, Dr Victoria
Baines got in touch recently
with these kind words for
security. I gave feedback to
the ladies and gents at the
security scanners yesterday
morning that I thought they
were doing an amazing
job, and I wanted also to
make sure that I share that
officially in writing.
I travel every week for
business all over Europe,
the Middle East and Africa,
also to the US. Without
a doubt, the security
staff at LCY are the most
professional and efficient I
have ever seen. They also
have an enviable ability
to keep their cool when
faced with large numbers
of people, many of whom
appear unfamiliar with rules
A family flying to Milan
recently were extremely
delighted with Customer
Services after Jose made a
typically stressful journey,
a breeze. Jose went the
extra mile for a family
with an autistic son who
would usually find flying
too stressful.
about laptops, belts and
liquids, and some of whom
are pretty grumpy.
It’s no small feat to be able
to get hundreds of sleepy
people through luggage and
body scanners at 7am. It took
a maximum of 10 minutes for
me to get from DLR to the
lounge, and that’s a regular
occurrence at LCY.
I thanked two members of
staff working these queues
early yesterday morning.
Frankly, they seemed
somewhat surprised that
anyone would want to say
anything positive to them at
all! Customers like me need
to do more to remind them
that they are appreciated.
So please say a huge thank
you to the team.
Dr Victoria Baines
JOSE MAKES THE
JOURNEY A BREEZE
journey through security
was a smooth trip and then
went on to show them to a
quiet gate that they could
wait in. The family have
commended his kindness
and patience and are
extremely impressed with
how much of a difference
LCY staff make.
With Jose’s help their
Well done Jose!
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