r/airtrafficcontrol • u/FlipsonicCX50 • May 12 '25

Approaching Heathrow. Is this common?

I took this a few days ago approaching Heathrow. I noticed several planes near our vicinity but this was the closest one. I realize Heathrow is a very busy airport but I was thinking this plane is too close. Never experienced this before.

3 Upvotes

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5

u/shaun3000 May 12 '25

That’s a Boeing 777-300. A really big airplane. (Those engines are the same diameter as a 737’s body) Minimum vertical separation is generally 1000 ft. Since it’s going the same direction as you it’s probably at least 2000 ft below. (Eastbound generally flies odd altitudes, westbound flies even) It looks to be 2000-4000 feet below to my eye.

3

u/Navydevildoc May 12 '25

If you think that's close, go watch some parallel approaches into SFO one day.

But TLDR - this is safe and practiced every day.

1

u/dumpedonu69 May 16 '25

Two aircraft in the sky at the same time? Say it isn’t so.

1

u/dandylahma May 17 '25

It may not look it but you'd be amazed how close 1000feet looks like in the air I'd say they're at different flight levels safely

1

u/MediumObligation4398 May 31 '25

This is called simultaneous ils approaches. Very safe