Daytona Beach: American Airlines A319/321, CRJ-700/900 & E145
Posted: Mon Nov 01, 2021 11:02 pm
I have a class date to start training as a pilot with an airline coming up. I still need to do some night flying for my ATP. There are not many options for renting planes near where I live. So, I went down to Florida to do some flying, while I had a few days off from my job. When I was looking at flights, I booked a flight that was leaving as late in the day as possible in case I had to work. The day of the flight there ended up being low ceilings and wind. So I did not end up working. I didn’t do much during the day, and got to the airport around 5:45pm
N839AW taxiing into the gate
American has always had an evening flight to Charlotte. It is usually mainline, either an A319 or A320. I have taken this flight several times in the past. But it has been a while. The last time I flew it was 3 years ago in January 2018, flying back to college after winter break. The plane had come in a little late from Charlotte, so you could tell they were trying to speed up boarding as much as they could. A few weeks before I had flown the same flight into SYR from CLT. Now I was flying it the other way
American 404
Syracuse, NY (SYR) – Charlotte, NC (CLT)
Airbus A319
N839AW
Seat 11A
Scheduled Departure Time – 7:15pm
Actual Departure Time- 7:30pm
Scheduled Arrival Time – 9:25pm
Actual Arrival Time- 9:05pm
1 hour 35 minutes
11A, next to N651AE getting ready to depart at the same time as us to Boston. This is the flight I took back to Syracuse, a few days later
The door was closed exactly at our departure time of 7:15pm. We started to pushback at 7:19pm. Runway 28 was the active, and the ground controller gave us taxi instructions. We were supposed to come out on taxiway echo, and then alpha down to the full length. It would have required a left turn. The pilots made a right turn, and then came to a stop. They called back and told the controller they had taxied incorrectly. They gave us a different taxi route. We had to hold short for an Air Wisconsin CRJ-200 from IAD that was on final. Once they landed and had cleared the runway, we were cleared for takeoff. The cabin lights were never turned down, until we were at cruise and the service was done
The departure controller gave us a 250 heading to intercept the V35 airway
There was an overcast layer at about 10,000ft. It was a smooth ride through the clouds, and it wasn’t long until we were on top. Just like how the cabin lights were not turned off for a while, the pilots did not turn off the landing lights until almost a half hour into the flight
Cruising
We started descending into CLT, about 35 minutes before landing. It was a pretty steep descent. At one point we were coming down at 4300 fpm. We joined a left downwind, and flew quite for a while. We flew a 25 mile downwind, before finally turning back towards the airport and joining the final
On a left base, with several planes following us on the arrival
It was a smooth touchdown
It was about a 10 minute taxi to the gate
Pulling into the gate next to N821AW, that was delayed about an hour going to DCA
N839AW had one more flight to do to Memphis, before it was done for the night
The airport in CLT was packed. There were people everywhere, and every flight seemed like it was completely full. I walked over to the E gates, and it wasn’t too long until boarding was starting
American Eagle “PSA” 5351
Charlotte, NC (CLT) – Daytona Beach, FL (DAB)
Bombardier CRJ-900
N565NN
Seat 20A
Scheduled Departure Time – 10:25pm
Actual Departure Time- 10:38pm
Scheduled Arrival Time – 11:58pm
Actual Arrival Time- 11:39pm
1 hour 1 minute
N565NN at gate E17. It had flown into Charlotte, from Destin, FL
Boarding
20A, next to another PSA CRJ N710PS going to Erie, PA
The door was closed a few minutes early, and the flight attendants did a safety demo. After this the lights were turned down. A few minutes after this, we started to push back. After a few CRJs taxied in front of us, we joined the line heading towards 36R
Cleared for takeoff
Climbing out of CLT via the ICONS4 departure
We climbed up to 28,000ft where we stayed for the entire flight. The flight attendants came through with drinks and pretzels
Cruising over the water
Shortly after the service was done, we were starting our descent
The pilots checked in with the tower, on a left base for 7L
It was a smooth touchdown. We were the last arrival of the evening. One of the engines were shut down, as we taxied into the gate
N565NN spent the night at gate 3, before flying right back to Charlotte early in the morning
Some pictures from the flying I did
After spending a few days in Florida, it was time to go home. For the flight back I had the option of a long layover in CLT, or have a second connection in BOS. I decided to do the BOS option since I’m not the biggest fan of CLT airport, and I hadn’t flown on an E-145 in a while. I got to the airport about an hour before my flight. From the time I walked into the airport, checking in and dropping my bag, and going through security. I was at the gate within 6 minutes. I stopped at the only little shop that was open. I got a bottle of water and a granola bar, and it was $14. The cashier said “You’ll have to take out a small loan to pay for that”. Just as I was walking up to the gate, my plane was pulling in.
Empty check in
American Eagle “PSA” 5221
Daytona Beach, FL (DAB) – Charlotte, NC (CLT)
Bombardier CRJ-700
N510AE
Seat 17A
Scheduled Departure Time – 10:03am
Actual Departure Time- 10:11am
Scheduled Arrival Time – 11:52am
Actual Arrival Time- 11:20am
1 hour 9 minutes
N510AE pulling into the gate from Charlotte
17A
Taxiing out to 7L
“Bluestreak 5221 fly runway heading, 7L cleared for takeoff”
Climbing out of DAB on the ROYES7 departure
Cruising at flight level 310
CLT
Final 18L
Taxiing into the gate past N790AN, that had arrived earlier in the morning from Honolulu
The next flight for N510AE was to Fayetteville, NC
I had about 2 hours until my next flight was departing
American 471
Charlotte, NC (CLT) – Boston, MA (BOS)
Airbus A321
N978UY
Seat 30A
Scheduled Departure Time – 1:34pm
Actual Departure Time- 1:54pm
Scheduled Arrival Time – 3:48pm
Actual Arrival Time- 3:34pm
1 hour 40 minutes
N978UY pulling into the gate after a flight from Chicago
This plane had newer seats, and overhead bins
30A
We pushed off the gate a few minutes early. There was a decent line of planes ahead of us for takeoff
After about a 20 minute taxi, it was our turn
Climbing out CLT
Once we leveled off at 35,000ft, the flight attendants came through for the service. It was a beautiful day for flying. It got a little bumpy over southern Jersey, and we went down to 33,000ft. We flew over PHL, and then EWR, LGA and JFK where we joined the arrival into BOS
PHL
EWR
LGA
Descending on the ROBUC3 arrival
We landed on 22L, and an Alaska 737 from San Diego was on final for runway 27
An Air France 787 from Paris landed behind us
N978UY flew right back to Charlotte
N48127 a 757 was getting ready for a flight to Newark
N27511 was going to Chicago
N373JB taxiing to the gate, after a flight from Sarasota. I flew N373JB in 2013 from JFK-SYR
N778AN arriving from Miami, and it departed a few hours later to London
My next flight to Syracuse was on an E145. I have flown a few times from BOS-SYR on AA/US. But it has been a while. The last time was on a US Airways Express CRJ-200 in May 2015. This would be my first time flying the route on the 145
American Eagle “Piedmont” 6104
Boston, MA (BOS) – Syracuse, NY (SYR)
Embraer E-145
N626AE
Seat 15A
Scheduled Departure Time – 5:35pm
Actual Departure Time- 6:03pm
Scheduled Arrival Time – 6:56pm
Actual Arrival Time- 6:54pm
51 minutes
N626AE landing from Rochester
15A, N134HQ next to us was going to DCA
The door was closed at 5:25pm, We started to pushback at 5:32pm, and the engines were started shortly after. We ended up having to sit for a few minutes. There were two planes ahead of us. After a few minutes of sitting, one of the planes let the ground controller know they were waiting on ballast and would be a few more minutes. The ground controller had us taxi first, and we exited the ramp from the other end
N823NW taking off to Rome
The Air France 787 I saw earlier, departing back to CDG
Cactus getting ready for a flight to Dallas. I’ve flew this plane from PHX-DEN before
Joining the line for 22R
After a 30 minute taxi, we were cleared for takeoff
Climbing out of BOS on the HYLND5 departure
We climbed up to 24,000ft. The flight attendant said that he would be able to get drinks on request, but would not be doing a service. It was a pretty sunset as we flew over to Syracuse
Cruising
Starting the descent into Syracuse
On the GPS runway 28 approach
Tower told the pilots that they may see a helicopter that was landing on a ramp, south of the runway
Touchdown
N626AE flew right back to Boston
All the flights on American were decent, nothing special. Lately it seems like I have been flying a lot on American. But I have some other flights coming up on Delta, United and Southwest. Tomorrow I’m flying on a Delta 757-300.
N839AW taxiing into the gate
American has always had an evening flight to Charlotte. It is usually mainline, either an A319 or A320. I have taken this flight several times in the past. But it has been a while. The last time I flew it was 3 years ago in January 2018, flying back to college after winter break. The plane had come in a little late from Charlotte, so you could tell they were trying to speed up boarding as much as they could. A few weeks before I had flown the same flight into SYR from CLT. Now I was flying it the other way
American 404
Syracuse, NY (SYR) – Charlotte, NC (CLT)
Airbus A319
N839AW
Seat 11A
Scheduled Departure Time – 7:15pm
Actual Departure Time- 7:30pm
Scheduled Arrival Time – 9:25pm
Actual Arrival Time- 9:05pm
1 hour 35 minutes
11A, next to N651AE getting ready to depart at the same time as us to Boston. This is the flight I took back to Syracuse, a few days later
The door was closed exactly at our departure time of 7:15pm. We started to pushback at 7:19pm. Runway 28 was the active, and the ground controller gave us taxi instructions. We were supposed to come out on taxiway echo, and then alpha down to the full length. It would have required a left turn. The pilots made a right turn, and then came to a stop. They called back and told the controller they had taxied incorrectly. They gave us a different taxi route. We had to hold short for an Air Wisconsin CRJ-200 from IAD that was on final. Once they landed and had cleared the runway, we were cleared for takeoff. The cabin lights were never turned down, until we were at cruise and the service was done
The departure controller gave us a 250 heading to intercept the V35 airway
There was an overcast layer at about 10,000ft. It was a smooth ride through the clouds, and it wasn’t long until we were on top. Just like how the cabin lights were not turned off for a while, the pilots did not turn off the landing lights until almost a half hour into the flight
Cruising
We started descending into CLT, about 35 minutes before landing. It was a pretty steep descent. At one point we were coming down at 4300 fpm. We joined a left downwind, and flew quite for a while. We flew a 25 mile downwind, before finally turning back towards the airport and joining the final
On a left base, with several planes following us on the arrival
It was a smooth touchdown
It was about a 10 minute taxi to the gate
Pulling into the gate next to N821AW, that was delayed about an hour going to DCA
N839AW had one more flight to do to Memphis, before it was done for the night
The airport in CLT was packed. There were people everywhere, and every flight seemed like it was completely full. I walked over to the E gates, and it wasn’t too long until boarding was starting
American Eagle “PSA” 5351
Charlotte, NC (CLT) – Daytona Beach, FL (DAB)
Bombardier CRJ-900
N565NN
Seat 20A
Scheduled Departure Time – 10:25pm
Actual Departure Time- 10:38pm
Scheduled Arrival Time – 11:58pm
Actual Arrival Time- 11:39pm
1 hour 1 minute
N565NN at gate E17. It had flown into Charlotte, from Destin, FL
Boarding
20A, next to another PSA CRJ N710PS going to Erie, PA
The door was closed a few minutes early, and the flight attendants did a safety demo. After this the lights were turned down. A few minutes after this, we started to push back. After a few CRJs taxied in front of us, we joined the line heading towards 36R
Cleared for takeoff
Climbing out of CLT via the ICONS4 departure
We climbed up to 28,000ft where we stayed for the entire flight. The flight attendants came through with drinks and pretzels
Cruising over the water
Shortly after the service was done, we were starting our descent
The pilots checked in with the tower, on a left base for 7L
It was a smooth touchdown. We were the last arrival of the evening. One of the engines were shut down, as we taxied into the gate
N565NN spent the night at gate 3, before flying right back to Charlotte early in the morning
Some pictures from the flying I did
After spending a few days in Florida, it was time to go home. For the flight back I had the option of a long layover in CLT, or have a second connection in BOS. I decided to do the BOS option since I’m not the biggest fan of CLT airport, and I hadn’t flown on an E-145 in a while. I got to the airport about an hour before my flight. From the time I walked into the airport, checking in and dropping my bag, and going through security. I was at the gate within 6 minutes. I stopped at the only little shop that was open. I got a bottle of water and a granola bar, and it was $14. The cashier said “You’ll have to take out a small loan to pay for that”. Just as I was walking up to the gate, my plane was pulling in.
Empty check in
American Eagle “PSA” 5221
Daytona Beach, FL (DAB) – Charlotte, NC (CLT)
Bombardier CRJ-700
N510AE
Seat 17A
Scheduled Departure Time – 10:03am
Actual Departure Time- 10:11am
Scheduled Arrival Time – 11:52am
Actual Arrival Time- 11:20am
1 hour 9 minutes
N510AE pulling into the gate from Charlotte
17A
Taxiing out to 7L
“Bluestreak 5221 fly runway heading, 7L cleared for takeoff”
Climbing out of DAB on the ROYES7 departure
Cruising at flight level 310
CLT
Final 18L
Taxiing into the gate past N790AN, that had arrived earlier in the morning from Honolulu
The next flight for N510AE was to Fayetteville, NC
I had about 2 hours until my next flight was departing
American 471
Charlotte, NC (CLT) – Boston, MA (BOS)
Airbus A321
N978UY
Seat 30A
Scheduled Departure Time – 1:34pm
Actual Departure Time- 1:54pm
Scheduled Arrival Time – 3:48pm
Actual Arrival Time- 3:34pm
1 hour 40 minutes
N978UY pulling into the gate after a flight from Chicago
This plane had newer seats, and overhead bins
30A
We pushed off the gate a few minutes early. There was a decent line of planes ahead of us for takeoff
After about a 20 minute taxi, it was our turn
Climbing out CLT
Once we leveled off at 35,000ft, the flight attendants came through for the service. It was a beautiful day for flying. It got a little bumpy over southern Jersey, and we went down to 33,000ft. We flew over PHL, and then EWR, LGA and JFK where we joined the arrival into BOS
PHL
EWR
LGA
Descending on the ROBUC3 arrival
We landed on 22L, and an Alaska 737 from San Diego was on final for runway 27
An Air France 787 from Paris landed behind us
N978UY flew right back to Charlotte
N48127 a 757 was getting ready for a flight to Newark
N27511 was going to Chicago
N373JB taxiing to the gate, after a flight from Sarasota. I flew N373JB in 2013 from JFK-SYR
N778AN arriving from Miami, and it departed a few hours later to London
My next flight to Syracuse was on an E145. I have flown a few times from BOS-SYR on AA/US. But it has been a while. The last time was on a US Airways Express CRJ-200 in May 2015. This would be my first time flying the route on the 145
American Eagle “Piedmont” 6104
Boston, MA (BOS) – Syracuse, NY (SYR)
Embraer E-145
N626AE
Seat 15A
Scheduled Departure Time – 5:35pm
Actual Departure Time- 6:03pm
Scheduled Arrival Time – 6:56pm
Actual Arrival Time- 6:54pm
51 minutes
N626AE landing from Rochester
15A, N134HQ next to us was going to DCA
The door was closed at 5:25pm, We started to pushback at 5:32pm, and the engines were started shortly after. We ended up having to sit for a few minutes. There were two planes ahead of us. After a few minutes of sitting, one of the planes let the ground controller know they were waiting on ballast and would be a few more minutes. The ground controller had us taxi first, and we exited the ramp from the other end
N823NW taking off to Rome
The Air France 787 I saw earlier, departing back to CDG
Cactus getting ready for a flight to Dallas. I’ve flew this plane from PHX-DEN before
Joining the line for 22R
After a 30 minute taxi, we were cleared for takeoff
Climbing out of BOS on the HYLND5 departure
We climbed up to 24,000ft. The flight attendant said that he would be able to get drinks on request, but would not be doing a service. It was a pretty sunset as we flew over to Syracuse
Cruising
Starting the descent into Syracuse
On the GPS runway 28 approach
Tower told the pilots that they may see a helicopter that was landing on a ramp, south of the runway
Touchdown
N626AE flew right back to Boston
All the flights on American were decent, nothing special. Lately it seems like I have been flying a lot on American. But I have some other flights coming up on Delta, United and Southwest. Tomorrow I’m flying on a Delta 757-300.