Dangerous Ground

I’ve been following recent events regarding runway safety at Bristol Airport with a keen interest over the past weekend. My primary interest for following the issue is because my parents are due to fly from Bristol Airport later this week.

What initially started as a local issue, for the airport, soon escalated into a national issue, as more and more airlines, including Easyjet, decided to withdraw planes over concerns that planes were skidding when landing in wet weather.

The airport initially rejected claims that the runway was unsafe but eventually responded to pressure from airlines to close the runway and, over the last 24 hours, has carried out work on drainage systems.

According to the, Guardian, Bristol's problems were first highlighted on an internet forum, www.pprune.org, where pilots posted messages such as: "the middle point of the runway definitely seems dodgy.”

Although the runway has now been reopened, the issue demonstrates power and influence of new media and the need for PR practitioners to monitor new media as part of the issues management process.