Re: Longest passenger flights for 747 Classics

IKA-LAX was planned by IR, and would I believe had been the longest 747-SP flight. However the revolution in '79 put pay to these plans.

Re: How many flights on a Boeing 767 do you have ?

Around 25 in total B767-200ER - American Airlines - Continental - TUI B767-300 - Asiana B767-300ER - AeroSvit - Austrian Airlines - American Airlines - Azerbaijan Airways - British Airways - Delta Air Lines - EuroAtlantic - KLM - TAM - United Airlines Would love to fly Uzbekistan's 763, and Air Asta...

Re: Last day in the life of Air Malta

A sad end of an era - and quite poignant for me. Air Malta was the first carrier I flew, and until today they were by far the earliest carrier I'd flown that was still operating. Now it's Iberia.

Re: Widebodies with ‘human rated’ lower galley elevators flying today ?

TUGMASTER wrote:

So to summarise…
The only aircraft still in pax service with a human rated lift is the Cubana IL96.

Re: Japan to unveil next generation passenger plane

So long as the lessons learnt from the MRJ program are remembered, I don't see why this can't be a success - Japanese companies have the manufacturing experience

Re: What aircraft have you flown transactlatic?

A310-300 - Air Transat A330-200 - Alitalia, Aer Lingus A330-300 - Northwest Airlines, US Airways A340-300 - Lufthansa, SAS A340-600 - Lufthansa, Virgin A380-800 - British Airways B737-700 - WestJet, PrivatAir (BBJ) B747-400 - KLM, Virgin B757-200 - United Airlines B767-300ER - Austrian Airlines, Del...

Re: Trainhopping the Moffat Tunnel - Denver to Grand Junction

I'm aware of the legalities, but I've also always wanted to try this. Most likely I'll achieve it one day by riding the iron ore train across the Sahara. Some time ago I met a fascinating lady who had traveled coast to coast across Canada several times, riding the freight cars. Definitely didn't sou...

Re: Is it fair to operate a route with an a/c that may not make it?

Considering the GC Distance is only 67% of the A321-200 NEO's published range, I would be exceedingly surprised if purely endurance caused the tech stop.

Re: Your 2024 Booked/Flown Flights

Planned out the final part of an India / Africa trip next month, and added a few transatlantic sectors to go fly old warbirds :D In related news, my wallet hates me... Flown Jan ... LGW-FCO ... Vueling ... A320-200 Jan ... FCO-BEG ... WizzAir ... A320-200 Jan ... BEG-BER ... Air Serbia ... A319-100 ...

Re: How actually “frequent” are frequent fliers?

We've built up a large number of airmiles with BA, through renovating properties and putting everything on the miles card. But, I have no intention of using them to fly J or F - I'm quite happy down the back with a lower carbon footprint. Although half the time it's just as cheap to pay outright to ...

Re: AirSerbia E195 hits a pylon during take off from BEG

There is CCTV footage showing the overrun - https://www.facebook.com/groups/1172210226919478 . As they reach the end of the pavement, they try to rotate the nose up, and seem to become momentarily airborne as they 'jump' off the pavement for a few meters, and then it lands back on the ground, still ...

Re: Same Sex Marriage Legalized in Greece

Excellent news, and about time too! I mean the Greeks pretty much invented homosexuality... /satire Did they recognise homosexual marriage a couple of thousand years ago? I believe there were some divisions and social stigmas, but yes I think same sex relationships were recognised in much of ancien...

Re: AirSerbia E195 hits a pylon during take off from BEG

Yikes, that looks really nasty. Glad they made it back to the airport. Is the full length of BEG's (currently active) runway open? When I was there last month, sat in the adjacent terminal, it looked like a displaced threshold was in operation for landings on Runway 12R. Even in the best case scenar...

Re: Same Sex Marriage Legalized in Greece

Excellent news, and about time too!

I mean the Greeks pretty much invented homosexuality... /satire

Re: Who operated a flight from Nuernberg to South Africa in the 90s?

Some additional context would be useful, I'm not sure what you are asking?

Is this hypothetical - as in which airline was capable of operating such a flight at that time? Or are you asking for information about a specific (presumably charter) flight that occurred in the past?

Re: Who is airline start up with widebody only?

Norse and Norse UK launched with the 787-8 / -9 Silverjet launched with the 767-200ER MaxJet launched with the 767-200 / -200ER Oasis Hong Kong launched with the 747-400 Air Madrid launched with the A330-200, before adding other types Plus Ultra launched with the A340-300, added other widebodies lat...

Re: King Charles III diagnosed with cancer, Buckingham Palace says

My best wishes to him, and hope it's been caught early. Plus this particular male has good genetics, and might have had a slightly higher chance at proper medical attention, than average. I'd agree with the better medical care part. I'm not so sure about the genetics part... His Dad lived to 101, Mu...

Re: Old Concorde flight paths

I can confirm that it was possible to hear Concorde's boom, even over land. I actually have fond memories of this - growing up in the South West of the UK, Concorde's late evening 'Sonic Boom' was really easy to hear every day, as a kind of rumble and double boom, which vibrated partition walls. It ...

Re: Rental car mileage

A lot of rental car companies had to source used car auctions to renew their fleets. So instead of brand new cars, they may be getting one 1-2 years old with 30,000 rounds on the clock. Back in December I had an Avis Toyota Rav 4 with 73,000 rounds on the clock. Same - I picked up a Honda CRV from ...

Re: Will you limit travel in the future to help make the world more sustainable?

I monitor my emissions pretty closely, and chose travel options based on a holistic view, but I won't be limiting travel. I'm also in the process of renovating our home, which will reduce Co2 emissions substantially - more than my non business travel emits for a year. Plus we're about to plant a ne...

Re: Will you limit travel in the future to help make the world more sustainable?

I monitor my emissions pretty closely, and chose travel options based on a holistic view, but I won't be limiting travel. I'm also in the process of renovating our home, which will reduce Co2 emissions substantially - more than my non business travel emits for a year. Plus we're about to plant a new...

Re: Your 2024 Booked/Flown Flights

Well my first trip of the year has taken quite a beating - lots of changes. Now to add insult to injury, Thameslink are on strike so I can't even get home from Luton. My solution is to fly Ryanair via Dublin, which is actually cheaper than the train through London. Jan ... LGW-FCO ... Vueling ... A3...

Re: What diet do you follow?

I'm more interested in where my food comes from than what diet it is. I still ensure I eat a balanced diet, but more often than not I'll buy local and seasonal produce, and stick away from food that has been shipped from thousands of miles away. What diet to you follow? For many people going vegan o...

Re: Request: New Ukraine War Thread

I would err towards keeping it as a single thread and source of information. No issues loading, even on my often quite poor connection.

Re: India to build new airport in Lakshadweep's Minicoy Island

Mixed thoughts - good for the local economy, but sea level rise is a major threat to these islands. Balancing the evolving environmental needs to me would be a priority in somewhere with such a delicate ecosystem.

Re: MH 370 - Fisherman Comes Forward with Surprising Revelation

I don't know how long such a long a trip would take drifting on the currents, but the flaperon that was found on the coast of Reunion Island, 4000-5000km west of the search area, and nearly 8000km west of the location of the fishing encounter, was reported on July 29, 2015. That's 16 months later. ...

Re: Scheduled commercial helicopter flights

I think flights between Hartland and Lundy cannot be booked standalone... you need to book a few days accommodation as part of a package before you can buy a seat on the helicopter. It should be noted the helicopter runs only in winter and not summer - mainly because the winter weather near Lundy i...

Re: Russian Invasion of Ukraine - *Discussion* Thread

Initially as the now identified LST, when the news broke it was thought that another cargo vessel might have been hit; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhJYG1u6bzQ I think the confusion regarding LST/cargo ship is because the LST was carrying cargo (Irianian drones) according to CNN. Oleshchuk, the ...

Re: Scheduled commercial helicopter flights

I have flown on a number of those with most of them still operating to date. Just as they come off of my mind but without any geographical logic: . Great start to a list - thank you. Excuse me if I copy and add to keep building on it: North America: Canada: Helijet flies Vancouver-Victoria and Vanc...

Re: Farthest Airports from Namesake City?

The new airport in Eswatini is actually nearer to Mozambique than it is to the capital and largest city, Mbabane. It is 87km by road, and realistically that will take you 1.5-2h to travel. But, as an impoverished country you've got to have a shiny new airport large enough so the King can fly his pri...

Re: First Time Flying On A Widebody?

July / August 1996 - Caledonian L1011-100, flying from LGW-MAH.

Remarkably I kept a small paper coaster with the Caledonian logo on it, which I still have to this day.

Re: MH 370 - Fisherman Comes Forward with Surprising Revelation

You do not cut away a fishing net worth $20000 without some evidence of why you were forced too. An insurance claim would've required such evidence, nobody is going to discard something that valuable, without having recourse to get something back for it. He also claimed that in a previous emergency...

Re: MH 370 - Fisherman Comes Forward with Surprising Revelation

Interesting short read here. I have no idea if it's credible or not, but if you are the Australian government, why not check it out? If he can give you the coordinates, it would be fairly easy and quick to determine if it's true or not and it turns out not to be the case, move on. It bothers me whe...

Re: European Domestic Flying - Are Runway Lengths an Issue?

Yes bristol is probably one of the worst desgined airports. Big slope on top of a hill. Not near a railway or a motorway and you basically have to go through the city of Bristol to get there . However it is long enough for every narrowbody route and some widebodies In a hilly area, being on top of ...

Re: European Domestic Flying - Are Runway Lengths an Issue?

Another aspect many European airports suffer from is poor or very inconsistent physical infrastructure. As the B737/A320 families used by the Euro LCCs have grown steadily larger and heavier, the landing gear place more pressure on the airport pavements, requiring costly upgrade works. At many regio...

Re: Have you landed on the Alphabet - 2024!

A few more airports added in 2023 - marked in bold. A. AAR , ABQ, ACE, ACI, ACK, ADD, AEP, AGP, AGT, AKL, ALA, ALB, ALC, ALP, ALV , AMM, AMS, ARN, ARW, ASU, ATL, AUH B. BBS, BBU, BCN, BDO, BFS, BGO, BGY, BHD, BHE, BHK, BHX, BIM, BIO, BKK, BLK, BLL, BOD, BOH, BOJ, BOM, BOO, BOS, BRC, BRE, BRI, BRS, B...

Re: People who work in aviation or frequent flyers, what is the worst city you have visited and what made it so bad?

Syktyvkar, Russia. An industrial town in the Russian interior, whose only redeeming feature was the Tu-134 I flew out to St Petersberg. Mariuopol, Ukraine. Industrial port town, very little to see and ended up with really bad food poisoning. Harare, Zimbabwe. Dirty, desperately poor and felt very un...

Re: Defunct Carriers you have flown

Well over a hundred sadly, over a quarter of all airlines I've flown: Aer Arann (became Stobart Air) [snipped for brevity] XL Airways Good memories though Dan Blimey! a) Well done on recalling all of those b) Can you stick to flying on airlines I don't like, please? You appear to have a track recor...

Re: Your 2024 Booked/Flown Flights

January LTN-OPO easyJet A320 OPO-LBA Ryanair MAX8 easy cancelled my outbound and there were no alternatives. LTN-SZY Wizz A321 OZY-STN Ryanair 738 Nothing on easyJet from LGW? It's a direct train from LTN down to LGW, I have done it quite a few times. They did rebook me to a flight from LGW but I l...

Re: First Time You Flew on an A320?

Summer of 1993, Airworld from Bristol to Mahon and back.

Re: Your 2024 Booked/Flown Flights

A couple of trips planned for the beginning of the year, although the Austrian 772 has already been pulled from the BER flights, which is a shame. Still planning the outbound to South Africa in March, hoping to involve Air Uganda and the A330-800. Then I have a bunch more trips to book for sightseei...

Re: Your 2024 Booked/Flown Flights

Gfgdfgv wrote:

January
LTN-OPO easyJet A320
OPO-LBA Ryanair MAX8
easy cancelled my outbound and there were no alternatives.
LTN-SZY Wizz A321
OZY-STN Ryanair 738

Re: Absurd Schedule Changes you have experienced

Over the years I've had a lot of schedule changes, however some stand out more than others WizzAir gave me a 72 HOUR schedule change on a flight from Germany to Ukraine - so long it should have been measured in days. Completely blew out my itinerary, so I ended up cancelling and flew with Air Baltic...

Re: Farewell and tailwinds to Smithair747

Francis was a true inspiration, it was a pleasure be his friend and it's so sad that he's passed. Fly high - his legacy (and green violin!) will live on, that's for sure.

Re: What happened to the aircraft you had your first flight on?

Mine was a return flight from LHR to MLA on an Air Malta Boeing 720 in 1987. There were only two in service at the time, but I don't know which frame I flew (would be cool if I flew both frames, but who knows) One was scrapped in 1990, whilst the other was bought for parts to keep the USAF's KC-135s...

Re: BRS Weather and Crosswind limits

That really ins't too bad for BRS, especially if the flight is operating with a based crew - they will be used to much worse.

So your flight should be fine

Re: Helijet Helicopter Struck By Lightning in Flight

Yikes! They got really lucky, thankfully they had some altitude on their side to recover

I flew Nanaimo to Vancouver a week or two ago, and we were barely at 1,500ft the whole way.

Re: Luton airport closed due car park fire

I don’t understand how a modern car park can burn so fiercely and quickly. I understand vehicles are highly flammable but a fire started in one vehicle shouldn’t spread so quickly. A car park is made of steel and concrete. What material is there to burn to spread the fire? Is it the decorative exte...

Re: Last time you flew on a tri-/quad-jet

My last quad was Fifi, the preserved Boeing B29, back in June. My last quad jet was BA on SFO-LHR in May. My last tri-jet was a Motor Sich Yak 40 flying IEV-UDJ in 2019. Before that my last tri-prop was in 2008 on a Trislander flying ACI-GCI with Aurigny. It should have been the Ford Trimotor in Jun...

Re: Furthest you've ever been away from an airport?

Difficult to be sure of, there's a good chance I've driven somewhere more remote and not realised it.

That I know of for sure: Pyramiden, Svalbard - 50km from LYR. I was there on a tour - also a Russian Mil-8 landed whilst we were there, but there was no actual airport.