I’m always one to enjoy a good prank or trolling, as long as no one gets hurt in the process. So I was thrilled to see that a man in England has managed to fool thousands of airline passengers who were on their way to London Gatwick Airport.
In what’s being hailed as a “brilliant prank” on social media, YouTuber Max Fosh has been leaving passengers arriving at Gatwick airport in the U.K. pretty confused after constructing a huge “Welcome to Luton” sign outside the airport (Luton is, of course, another airport in London, about 70 miles from Gatwick). The 200-foot sign is pretty close to the runway, and is visible to passengers sitting on the left side of the aircraft while landing.
Guilty… https://t.co/4qDYYT17ur
— Max Fosh (@max_fosh) May 21, 2022
Fosh apparently got permission from a local landowner to take over a 250-foot patch of land that’s about 90 seconds from Gatwick’s runways.
“Each letter is eight meters (about 26 feet) by three meters (roughly 10 feet); it probably spans about 60 to 70 meters (200 to 225 feet),” said Fosh.
“I got an artist to make it look good because I knew if I did it, it would look terrible. We’ve got an agreement with the landowners that it will be there for the next six weeks at least. It’s out your left-hand window if you’re flying into Gatwick. The point is, for two or three seconds, I want to get people to think they’ve landed at the wrong place.”
Fosh says that as a YouTuber, it’s all part of a day’s wages.
“It’s my job to make videos and my videos are all about doing silly things, to put a smile on people’s faces but just to be silly, I’m glad this stunt has gone down well.”
And yep, it’s similar to this prank that’s been going on in the U.S. for four decades.
For the most part, people have found Fosh’s little joke funny, if slightly confusing. As one person said, “Nothing makes for a stress-free arrival in the UK quite like the words WELCOME TO LUTON currently spelled out in giant white letters in a field under the final approach to Gatwick Airport.”
Another person added, “Simply genius.”
Fosh was on the BBC’s Justin Dealey show not long ago, to discuss the matter; you can listen to it here.
Feature Photo (cropped): Craig Cochrane / flickr / Creative Commons license
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