The NATC centre is pulled down before our eyes
My rented apartment in West Drayton is in a complex of nicely-designed and laid out apartments in a thriving part of Uxbridge minutes from Heathrow Airport and a short cycle ride from Stockley Park, where I work. The Parkwest development is on part of the site of the former National Air Traffic Control Centre.
The view from my window sets pulses racing, at least among the builders and construction project managers who have come to visit (so far, one of each). I overlook the destruction of the rest of the NATC. It’s an unfortunate view in some ways, as the Parkwest site is otherwise very attractive.
A relative who once visited the NATC in its heyday assures me that it goes down as far as it reached up, at least three floors, and doubts that all the rubble being created here would fill up the holes below. Have they filled them with cement? You can’t tell by looking, and it’s probably an arrestable offence to ask, as activities on the site were apparently covered by the Official Secrets Act.
My current plan is to try to take two or three photos a week, then build them up into a montage. Who knows, maybe the site developers would one day like to buy it as a record of their good work?
