Hello, A.netters! I started a topic a while back called Things for an Airliner Geek to do in Los Angeles and got some great ideas from you, which made this a wonderful trip.

I got the idea to go to LAX a while back, when I was telling my girlfriend, Ruby, about my strong desire to fly somewhere again. I checked Delta.com and found I had enough miles to fly on either the PHX-SLC or PHX-LAX non-stops for free, and we figured that LAX would probably be the better spotting place. Turns out I was right.

Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Delta Connection operated by SkyWest Airlines
Flight: DL4578
From: Phoenix Sky Harbor Int'l. (PHX)
To: Los Angeles Int'l. (LAX)
Departure: 6:30 a.m. MST (scheduled)/6:32 a.m. MST (actual)
Arrival: 7:54 a.m. PDT (scheduled)/7:40 a.m. PDT (actual)
Equipment: Bombardier CRJ-700

Ruby's mom dropped us off at Sky Harbor's Terminal 3 around 4:45 a.m. and after a quick trip through security, the plane spotting began. PHX isn't a busy place at that time of day, but DL has plenty of aircraft RON'ing, including multiple 757s, an A320, an MD-90, a 737-800, and our CRJ-700.

Here's some of what we saw:



We were the first economy pax to board and made our way back to our assigned seats, in the second-to-last row of the CR7. After everyone was seated, a friendly FA told us that it was a fairly empty flight and we could move up if we wanted. I asked her if anyone was seated in the exit row and she said 'no,' so that's where we went. This was already going to be my first time in a CR7 and on SkyWest Airlines -- now it would be my first time in an exit row too!



We taxied to Runway 8 and the captain announced we were number one for departure. After a short wait for a landing aircraft, we rolled down the runway and rotated quickly.

Drink and snack service began shortly thereafter, and rather than roll the cart all the way through the cabin, the F/As took everyone's drink orders and brought them out individually on a small tray. It made the service more personal (first class-like, even), while at the same time, saving her some unnecessary work. Good move!


Ruby and I.

Due to the short duration of the flight, the fasten seatbelt sign remained on throughout. The captain came on and informed us that we were beginning our descent and soon we could see the sprawling city of Los Angeles, and best of all, the Pacific Ocean!

The landing in LAX was smooth. We waited to be the last to deplane, and as we were walking by the flight deck, we asked the Captain if we could take a look at the flight deck. He even let us take a seat and snapped a photo of us!



I talked to him about the differences between the CRJ-200 and the CRJ-700/900 and he explained that the overhead panel in the -700/900 is much simpler and reduces the pilots' workload. We thanked him and walked into the gorgeous Terminal 5 at LAX.




I immediately perked up when I looked out the window and saw this... the first A380 I've seen in person! (Sorry for the bad quality. This was as close as I could get.)


Some of the other highlights included 773s from Air France, El Al, and Emirates, an Air Tahiti Nui A343, and an Asiana 744.

We had a couple of hours to kill before it was time to pick up our rental car, so we took DocLightning's recommendation and had lunch at the Encounter Restaurant. My phone was dying so I didn't get too many pics, but the view, as he said, is amazing!



After lunch, it was time to pick up the rental car, so we walked back to Terminal 5 and hopped on the Fox Rent-A-Car shuttle to their off-site facility. It was there that we ran into some troubling news -- they would not accept a prepaid credit card to rent a car (even though it was a Visa) and that was the only card I had on me. We also checked with Thrifty and their policy is the same, so we were now stuck using public transportation to get around the LA area.

Even though Boeing does not offer tours of their Long Beach plant, I still had to see it in person -- even from the outside. Some of my favorite aircraft of all time were built at this airport, including the DC-8, DC-9, and DC-10. Today, the C-17 is built there and it is among my favorites.

After getting some advice from locals on how to get there, we got on an LA Metro bus and headed to the 130th Street station, where we would take the train to Long Beach. What they failed to mention is where the 130th Street station is -- Compton.

Now, I'm not usually too frightened by bad neighborhoods, but this is a little more than I'm used to in Phoenix. At the train depot, we saw an altercation between two women. It went something like this:

"Excuse me."

"What? You can't see that I'm smokin' my blunt? You can't go around me?"

An argument ensued afterwards. Ruby and I walked away from the "bitch fight" and kept to ourselves until the train came.

We took the train to Wardlow Rd., where we would end up walking all the way to LGB. Ten miles and a couple of sore legs later, we finally arrived. Two C-17s could be seen on the Boeing ramp at the time.

Afterwards, we walked a ways back to a Long Beach Bus stop, and took one to Downtown Long Beach, where we got a room at the Rodeway Inn on Atlantic Ave. We walked around the downtown area, and spent some time at the harbor, before returning to our room for some much-needed rest.

Day two started with some good luck. Just as we were walking down to the Long Beach Transit Mall, we spotted a Metro bus going directly to LAX. This would mean we wouldn't have to go through Compton!   We ran across a red light and some train tracks to make it.

This bus traveled along the Pacific Coast Highway (California Highway 1), giving us a view of some nicer neighborhoods, like Redondo Beach and Manhattan Beach.

Once we arrived at the LAX bus station, we walked over to the In-N-Out Burger at the end of Runway 24R (based on Signol's and Braniff747SP's recommendations).



We both ordered the Double-Double "animal style." For some reason it tasted even better than usual. Maybe it was just the scenery.  

After lunch we walked over to a nearby park for some more plane spotting. Looks like we made it there just in the nick of time to catch the highlight of the day - an SQ A380.




Soon, it was time to walk back to the airport to catch our flight home. On our way we saw billboards for JetBlue and the new United.



We got in line at the Terminal 5 security checkpoint and I franticly searched for my ID. Where could it have gone? I remembered that I had to take it out at the hotel to make my reservation and that's probably where it still was. Luckily, I still have my Wisconsin driver's license and used that to pass through security.

After a quick trip through the "naked body scanner," the spotting continued. Since we had a couple of hours until our flight, we took the tunnel over to Terminal 6. It was completely deserted, so we got a good photo op out of it.  

Terminal 6 is currently being renovated and there aren't that many windows to spot out of (most of them are covered with "pardon our dust"-type signs), but we did find a few gems there.

The captain of this CO 757 waved to us as we were snapping photos of his aircraft.


The last remnant of ATA at LAX.


We walked back to Terminal 5 and checked with a Delta agent to see if the flight was overbooked and if we could take the bump. It wasn't, but she did thank us for volunteering.

We walked around a little more and checked out the action around our gate.


I love the widget seats DL has in T5 -- I wish this was my couch at home!


Ruby asked a Delta captain who was also waiting at the gate if we could try on his hat. To my amazement, he said yes!


Thursday, August 4, 2011
Delta Connection operated by SkyWest Airlines
Flight: DL4796
From: Los Angeles Int'l. (LAX)
To: Phoenix Sky Harbor Int'l. (PHX)
Departure: 5:35 p.m. PDT (scheduled)/6:06 p.m. PDT (actual)
Arrival: 6:42 p.m. MST (scheduled)/7:14 p.m. MST (actual)
Equipment: Bombardier CRJ-900

Delta does zone boarding on the CRJ-900 and we were in Zone 3, so we were second-to-last to board. As we were walking through the jet bridge, we saw the massive pile of bags that were being valet checked. The captain later announced that because of this, we would be a little late pushing back from the gate.

We weren't in any hurry, so I didn't care, but I still do think that the lack of overhead space in the CRJs is a major flaw. How many flights get delayed, because of all of the gate-checked bags?

Anyways, I just sat-back and enjoyed the view out of the window.


The obligatory leg room shot:


Taxi to the runway was short and we didn't have to wait long before takeoff. We rolled past a few taxiing aircraft, including an AirBerlin A330 and an AA 738.

We flew over the ocean for a while before making landfall again. I guess it was technically a transpacific flight!


Since it was a full flight, the F/As brought out the cart for their service this time. It was beverages and peanuts. I was very excited when I saw in Sky Magazine that Delta offers Fresca, so that's what I ordered.

We asked for the full can and they gave it to us, but it may have not been the best call. Less than 30 seconds after getting our drinks, the Captain made the "20 minutes until arrival" announcement. I wolfed down the soda and peanuts and got my tray table into its full-and-upright position.  

We approached PHX from the east, and flew over ASU on our way to Runway 26.
The landing was smooth, and we taxied to Gate 16.

As we were deplaning, we peeked into the flight deck to snap another photo.


We waited in the jet bridge for our valet checked luggage. An off duty AA employee who was on the flight helped people get their bags. I thought this was a very nice gesture.



Overall, I would say Delta and SkyWest deserve some major kudos for the service on this trip. Their employees granted us every request that we had and did it with a smile. I also owe many Airliners.net members thanks for the great advice they gave me. This will go down as one of my favorite trips of all time.