16th December: Heathrow Airport

On this date in 1955, London Heathrow opened its first terminal buildings. Here are ten things you might not know about Heathrow Airport:

1. Heathrow was originally the Great West Aerodome, established in 1929. It was designated for handling long-distance military flights in 1944, but the war ended before the expansion was completed, so it began to be used for commercial flights. It became known as London Airport, only taking the name Heathrow in 1966.
2. The original two terminals were called ‘Europa’ and ‘Oceanic’ but these names were later changed to the much less romantic Terminals 2 and 3. There are now six terminals. It's unlikely you will ever fly from terminal six unless you become a member of the royal family, a head of state or a megastar.
3. Terminal 5 is the largest free-standing structure in the UK. At more than 1,312ft (400m) long, 574ft (175m) wide and 131ft (40m) high, the roof area is the size of five Football pitches.
4. The first flight out of Heathrow was on New Year's Eve 1949, bound for Buenos Aires.
5. Heathrow’s area is 1,227 hectares (4.6 square miles/12 square kilometres). 560,000 square feet (52,000 square metres) of this is dedicated to the 340 retail outlets. The runways stretch for 4.7 miles and could accommodate more than 30 football pitches each.
6. It's the busiest airport in the UK and the third busiest in the world (only airports in Atlanta, Georgia and Beijing are busier). In 2014, over 73 million people flew in and out of Heathrow - more than the population of the UK. That's around 201,000 passengers every day. 1.5 million metric tonnes of cargo move through it, too, not to mention about 53 million pieces of luggage. 30% of passengers are travelling for business and 70% for leisure.
7. To keep all this running takes about 76,000 people, the equivalent of a large town, and £975 million a year. That's without the £660 million needed for annual upgrades. The airport’s annual income is £2.3 billion, which comes from landing charges, departure fees and services such as shops, property rental and parking.
8. The control tower, which opened in 2007, is the tallest tower in the UK at 285ft (87m) tall, twice the height of Nelson's Column. Should this tower ever become inoperable there is a backup tower, at an undisclosed location nearby. The backup tower could be up and running within a couple of hours in the event of a disaster.
9. 70% of incoming flights approach from the east and 30% from the west.
10. To keep birds away from the runways, there are safety vehicles fitted with a sound system that blasts out the distress calls of various bird species to scare them away.

And now...

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A Very Variant Christmas

Last year, Jade and Gloria were embroiled in a bitter conflict to win back their throne and their ancestral home. This year, Queen Jade and Princess Gloria want to host the biggest and best Christmas party ever in their palace. They invite all their friends to come and bring guests. Not even the birth of Jade's heir just before Christmas will stop them.

The guest list includes most of Britain's complement of super-powered crime-fighters, their families and friends. What could possibly go wrong?

Gatecrashers, unexpected arrivals, exploding Christmas crackers and a kidnapping, for starters.

Far away in space, the Constellations, a cosmic peacekeeping force, have suffered a tragic loss. They need to recruit a new member to replace their dead colleague. The two top candidates are both at Jade and Gloria's party. The arrival of the recruitment delegation on Christmas Eve is a surprise for everyone; but their visit means one guest now faces a life-changing decision.

Meanwhile, an alliance of the enemies of various guests at the party has infiltrated the palace; they hide in the dungeon, plotting how best to get rid of the crime-fighters and the royal family once and for all. Problem is, they all have their own agendas and differences of opinion on how to achieve their aims.

Not to mention that this year, the ghosts who walk the corridors of the palace on Christmas Eve will be as surprised by the living as the living are by them.

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