Singapore A380, Zurich

Singapore A380, Zurich, a photo by Mikebert4 on Flickr.

So another Split duty this week - this time to Zurich. This A380 was on approach to Runway 34 as we taxied out.

This is interesting, because Runways 34 and 28 cross. They were landing aircraft on 34 and in the gaps were getting aircraft airborne from 28, with the aircraft crossing paths where the two runways cross. Don't panic, this is both perfectly safe and perfectly legal - the separation required for this kind of operation is clearly defined in ICAO legislation, as well as all the usual requirements and regulations for an active runway still applying.

The photo I wished I could've got would've been the Swiss RJ85 rotating just at the point where the two runways cross, with the A380 on approach. Unfortunately I couldn't grab my camera quite in time, that and y'know, having to operate the aircraft we were in.

Speaking of which, we managed to rather jump the Queue for departure this morning - we were taxiing out on the north side of Runway 28, and on the south taxiway there were three other aircraft (two Swiss, one bizjet). Usually departures would be metered out on a first-come-first-served basis, but occasionally they make exceptions. For example, our little E170 is rather faster and has significantly better climb performance than the old RJ's so Tower let us skip ahead rather than be held up by the preceding traffic - which was very nice of them.

All that was left was to watch an Airbus land across our runway, then clearance, and then go.

Another morning at work begins...