DataJunkie

I only got to fly through Terminal 1 once as a connecting passenger (sadly, on the return flight we were ushered from the plane to a bus to T3), and I wish I would have had more time to walk around. I am fascinated by how complicated this terminal was. I remember that to get into UK/Ireland departures area (Gate 2, 8, 77-90) there was a photo or iris scan. After this photo scan we made a turn to to gate 8, and I believe the corridor continued to gates 77-90 for Irish flights

Flight Connections: I remember seeing the purple Flight Connections signs in the Gate 8 area, but as far as I could tell, there was no Flight Connections Center in that part of the terminal. If connecting to an international flight, wouldn't passengers just enter the departures lounge (since it seems UK->International didn't require security)? Was there some way back into the FCC from the departures lounge for those transferring to another terminal?

Looking at an old copy of the T1 map, it looks like the Irish arrivals corridor ended at the Irish baggage claim. Does this mean that connecting to another flight required going back through security or making a landside transfer?

Gates 5 and 74-76: Apparently these gates were used for international flights. How on Earth did one get to these gates from the departure lounge? I only remember signs and an entrance for Gates 2, 8, 77-90 the domestic area, which had the security photo/iris scan. I've seen some photos on Foursquare of this area, and it seems that arrivals are segregated at concourse level, but how did passengers get to immigration and the FCC? I imagine due to their distance that these gates were originally domestic?

The Round Building in the Irish Area: What was it used for?

Thanks for reading, and I hope there are some that still remember this terminal!

scottishpoet

I don't remember gates 5, or 74-76 ever having international flights while BA were based there. Maybe after BA left and they were no longer domestic

For a long time there was a "domestic security" to the left and an "international security" in the middle of of the checking area.

Laterly that changed and there was only one security, the "international" one in the middle of the terminal and a long walk to the domestic "wing". When there were 2 for sure there was no photo taken, it was exclusively domestic/common travel area. gate 5 was BA, gate 8 was BMI.

at Gate 5 there was A B C and D. I think D was a bus gate. A B and C were jetties


I do not recall the domestic "wing" every separating arrivals and departures.

If I recall correctly there was a "flight connections" from the domestic / CTA as you came onto the corridor around gate 5, but on the left side as you were facing the exit to the the terminal.

Swanhunter

Gate 5 was used by BD for international flights - I just found a photo of a departure board showing RAK from Gate 5C. You just came through security as normal but no eye scan...just like the mixed international/domestic in T2 and T5 of today. There was a nice BD lounge in the former domestic area too - The Great British Lounge IIRC - which sounds far too Brexity for current times 😉

T1 was pretty horrid to use, TBH. When the arriving/departing segregation of passengers was implemented the international Gate area became a grim maze of little winding corridors and blockages whenever a flight landed and passengers needs to cross. Badly ventilated, some long walks (off to Europier with you).

zone R for BA was rather nice though. The T1 lounge wasn’t bad, if a bit warm. It then became the rightly maligned Star Alliance lounge.

DataJunkie

I flew thru T1 in May 2014, about a year before the terminal closed, but about a month before Terminal 2 was opened. It was still bustling with activity, but the UK Domestic area was fairly deserted. BD was gone, and BA had moved to T5. Only Virgin Atlantic Little Red (who we were flying on and would only last another year) was there to the end (and Aer Lingus in the Republic of Ireland section). It seems my first time at Heathrow was a pretty big transition period.

I was able to find a photo that shows signs pointing to 7-8, 77-90, to 5, 74-76 and another for Gate 2. This area may have been reconfigured after BD stopped using these gates. Because I remember there was only one entrance and it was for UK/Ireland departures, and then past the security photo area there were signs to Gate 2, followed by Gates 7 and 8 (and I am guessing 77-90 if we had followed the corridor further). The area with Gates 5 and 72-76 may have been sealed off from the passenger flow if they were not being used anymore. Yet, somehow, another FTer was able to get into this area after this time, so it's a mystery to me.

One thing I learned from looking at these photos is that this whole section of the terminal went through several gate renumberings!

sigma421

This is a thread for me! This map gives a good idea of the layout

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ifly-airpor...-Terminal1.jpg

I'll split this answer in 2.

Pre-2009(ish): When BA was still in the terminal, UK & Ireland departures was a separate (and fairly small) area. it was entered on the main departures level. On entering you were in a long corridor with Gates 2, 7 and 8 ahead of you and Gate 5 and gates 74-90 to the left. Gate 5 was British Airways, Gate 2 was Belfast back in the days where Belfast flights needed dedicated gates and Gate 7 and 8 were British Midland (Gate 8 was split into several sub-gate (A-F I think). Aer Lingus and bmi Dublin flights went from Gates 74-90, these were also used as overflow for BA and bmi when required. The BA lounge was directly opposite security and was split over two floors. The bmi lounge was between gates 2 and 7, again over two floors.

Domestic arrivals exited into the departure lounge and walked straight up the corridor into baggage reclaim (left coming out of the security point). Irish arrivals were funnelled through Irish reclaim then walked down into Domestic reclaim and out into the main terminal at check-in.

Post-2009ish: All passengers enter through the main departure lounge. Security is converted into a domestic photo check point. Gate 5 remains international so the 'up and over' staircase arrangement to this gate that can be seen in the photo remains. The BA lounge obviously closed when BA went. bmi turned the top floor into their international lounge (accessed from the up and over escalator seen in the photo and the bottom floor became a Heathrow Airport facility (still accessed via some fairly grand doors. The top floor of the bmi lounge eventually shut as the airline shrank its domestic operations.

Hope that all makes sense!