When I was asked a couple of weeks ago if I'd like to spend a day 'behind the scenes' at Heathrow Airport before taking part in a roundtable discussion with the powers that be I jumped at the chance.
I use the airport a few times each year and like most parents travelling with children I have an ongoing list of things that I think could make my experience less stressful. Because travelling through an airport with children is stressful.
Not today though - today was about seeing a different side to the world's busiest airport.
Security checked and VIP badged we drove out along the runway to take a tour of the colssal Airbus A380 the worlds biggest passenger plane.
The best bit?
We got to sit in the cockpit and pretend to fly the plane!
I'm not really sure who was most excited, the adults - or the kids? I suspect it was the adults but having such a great bunch of children with us we managed to escape the camera ourselves.
Next stop was the end of the runway, where (with ear plugs firmly in place) we stood and watched the planes come in over our heads.
That was pretty cool!
After a relaxing lunch the children went off to have an exclusive ride on Heathrow's new futuristic transportation pods whist we got down to the discussion that the day was really about.
We passed around some great ideas and I can't wait to see which of them will be implemented the next time I attempt to travel stress free through the airport.
If you have any bad airport experiences, or ideas to make moving through an airport easier, I'd love to hear them.
