RAF Mount Pleasant, Falkland Islands
Customer: Tilbury Douglas/Interserve
There are natural concerns surrounding the security of our forces establishments across the world which limit the information we may communicate responsibly. Some of the images have therefore been withheld voluntarily by John Porter Doors in support of increased security.
RAF Mount Pleasant, also known as Mount Pleasant Airport, is a military base for the Royal Air Force in the British Overseas Territory of the Falkland Islands. The facility is part of the British Forces South Atlantic Islands. The station, home to between 1,000 and 2,000 British military personnel, is located about 30 miles (48 km) miles southwest of Stanley, the capital of the Falklands, on the island of East Falkland.
Mount Pleasant was constructed to supersede airstrip facilities at Stanley Airport, following the end of the Falklands War, in order to reduce the dependency upon carrier based air defences.
John Porter provided performance doorsets, into the demanding environment of a defence establishment many thousands of miles away, as part of an extension and redeployment project. It is gratifying to note that our advanced technical and certification standards are employed overseas.
The technical challenges of supporting such a project are clearly logistical. RAF Mount Pleasant also acts as the Falkland Islands' only international airport, along with its military role, and it is through this channel that doorsets have to be shipped. Flights are usually to and from RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, with a refuelling stop at RAF Ascension Island in the south-central Atlantic Ocean.
Packaging must be efficient and effective in order that products arrive fit for purpose, and that the weight of packaging does not contribute to excessive transport costs. Multiple drops for small loads to complete the scheme are also unattractive, so loads must be consolidated, and verified in extreme detail, and then air shipped in accordance with MOD freight rules.
