Heart-stopping moment for a gasping crowd at Wentworth as they watch two planes on 'collision course' on approach to Heathrow - But Air Traffic Control say it was perfectly safe5.39.217.76% i7 F5 t& T" m) v6 J/ O
By Eddie Wrenn
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* ^" C `. N& f: g. @: T( Itvb now,tvbnow,bttvbAt first, everyone was rooted to the golf.
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But then a murmur went around the crowd at Wentworth golf course, which is under Heathrow's flight path and the scene of the 2012 BMW PGA Championships, and attention turned away from the game and towards a drama unfolding in the skies above.TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。! x# f2 q- c, ~, _* Y
2 }5 K$ g: g+ h# o. f5.39.217.76Two planes were flying overhead - and they seemed to be on a fatal collision course.- I' A4 X( y* c1 l
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A gasp went round the stands as the hundreds of spectators watched the larger plane catch up with the smaller one, and the observers took a collective breath as they watched the seemingly inevitable events unfold.
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) k8 ~6 o8 c. H2 N* Q+ PBut the only victims here were the golf spectators, who by chance happened to be perfectly placed for a unique optical illusion.. [% i$ t: p9 n' S) l8 x- a
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: m& w7 ?" ?% w$ z: G公仔箱論壇Those planes look close: As the Wentworth golf spectators look up, tension begins to mount as the 'larger' plane begins to catch up with the smaller one+ h. I) P8 j7 g* ]1 Z
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As the planes came together, the crowd diverted their attention and watched nervously for catastrophe
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There were gasps from the galleries as the planes approached each other and a crash seemed imminent: `& |. K* ^; @6 h6 R4 B; ]
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Moment of 'impact': As the crowd squeezed their collective eyes shut, the planes hit - and the illusion is brokenTVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。4 `: W) X9 `4 u! C- I) l" Z( j
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7 p4 K! |5 L# @, B2 q, MTVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。...And the planes separate, perfectly safe all along, and the crowds realise they had been fooled by an optical illusion - and the golf can continue
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Suddenly, the planes merged - and the penny dropped. For what the crowd was taking part in was a unique mass-optical illusion.
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# B1 p: ?& b# j- f) \6 AThe planes - despite seeming to touch for the ground-based observers - were in fact thousands of feet apart, taking part in a process named as 'stacking' as they waited in line to descend into Heathrow.
. h, p F8 e( ~0 x# B, D公仔箱論壇The London airport is one of the world's busiest, with more than 1,300 flights arriving or leaving each day, and air traffic controllers organise the planes into the stacking procedure.0 H5 Z/ | `7 D4 y- Q4 n% ~; V
0 ?& o |; C/ [% ATVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。Naturally, the 'bigger plane' is much closer to the camera, and likely to be a mile or two away from the the 'smaller' plane up above.; R8 o2 l2 u, b; Y. r1 r$ t
1 w5 @5 T3 t/ I( d( ?5 s4 k公仔箱論壇A spokesman for the Air Traffic Control at Heathrow said: 'We do hear reports of these from time to time - especially in the summer when it is a perfectly clear day and there are no visual reference points, making it appear that two planes are close.
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'However at all times, planes are are kept five horizontal miles apart and a least 1,000 feet vertically, and this is monitored by both pilots and radar, so even when it looks like the planes are close, there is no danger.'
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% q5 ]5 g8 X5 T8 K/ _. |4 A* ySo this can be a common enough optical illusion if you live under a flight-path.
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4 {; N* v/ [: p' J$ b公仔箱論壇But for a group of spectators on a sunny Saturday, it was a heart-stopping few seconds which they are sure to never forget.
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1 w2 d/ ^# h( C6 U0 STVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。Stacking explained: Planes join a queue, always at least 1,000 feet apart vertically-wise and with a five-mile gap horizontally, when waiting for a runway
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+ w$ g4 M0 X7 F( c& ]$ PPerfectly placed: The crowd were in prime position for the action - unfurling at both ground level and in the skies above |
發表於 2012-5-30 04:39 AM
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發表於 2012-5-30 01:45 PM
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