It's good we're thinking about this NOW, not when it's too late and there's no internet!
Hmm, valid points on the airport - but it
is a long term plan. Hopefully by the time I'm organised enough to check it out, the infected crowds will have dispersed sufficiently. I'm fairly confident that, given the current climate, the airport will have a well maintained and secure perimiter. There's always a danger of, for example, someone crashing into the fence whilst swerving to avoid a Zed, so you'd need to check regularly - a tricky job with only a handful of you and such a large area... still, there's good visability, so in theory you should see 'em coming.
Military locations? Alas, my local RSG (Regional Seat of Government) bunker was demolished and filled in a few years ago. There's apparently a large and sophisticated government bunker complex under Birmingham, connected to the BT Tower and a secure exchange - that would be a good place to check out for survivors with facilities.
If there's no active presence there, it might be difficult to find and use as my own as it's still pretty hush-hush, unlike many of the decomissioned 50's cold war sites which tend to be uninhabitable.
Subterranea Britannica is a good resource for these, but there's not many close to me.
There's always the question of whether any military presence will be benign - remember 28 Days Later?
There was also a "country sports" specialist in the city centre who may keep shotguns & cartridges... but getting into the secure store may be tricky. Maybe I ought to pay them a visit now, just in case? "Can I help you, Sir?" "No - Just casing the joint in case there's a Zombie apocalypse, thanks!"
And there's also the West Midlands Police HQ, where the firearms boys are based... but I bet that's very secure (remember, you Former Colonials, firearms in the UK are comparatively rare).
...the city centre is probably a place to avoid, though: Note to self - make sure to make a list of potential local shotgun retailers outside city!
It's all in the preparation...
Melée Weapons - check.
Armour - check.
Food - I've usually got a few weeks worth of tinned stuff in - check.
Water - must stock up on filters - the apartments all have a large hot water tank... potable? Probably, after boiling/filtering. Check.
Nails, basic tools, screws etc. for boarding - check.
Things I don't have at home that would be useful things to loot early on:
Vitamins - supplements whilst fresh veg is in short supply.
Medicine - local pharmacy? I'd probably need to read up on what's best to scavenge in an emergency to make looting the place more efficient.
Communications - the local Maplin (sort of like Radio Shack) would provide some sort of comms gear: A CB (does anyone still use those?), 2M/70cm amateur-radio rig, scanner... all of which I'm fairly confident with. Linear amp for power boost... depends what's in stock!
Ladder (for exiting the building from 1st floor)
Generator
Butane heater (if winter) & cooker of some description
I suppose I could start by researching how to hotwire Land Rovers, and get into petrol- (gas-) station tanks (or can you "hotwire" the pump motors?). There's also an ex-military vehicle specialist down the A38 somewhere - I bet a Stalwart would be a secure, if thirsty, survival vehicle. Or a Ferret - I know how to drive one of those!
PS: Petrol powered strimmers? Those shoulder-mounted, long shafted things with propellers on the end used by the council for clearing undergrowth - I wonder if one of those would be good for "crowd control"?