Planes and Pandemics

 It's amazing how a pandemic can destroy an industry, but aviation has certainly been hit hard.  Over the past 5 months since I started teleworking, I have watched planes go into storage, planes get discontinued, and planes get dropped from fleets.  

Worst of all, the 747 leaving the ranks of passenger carrying aircraft.

No regrets at all, the A380 losing out.  NAWWWWW.....it was a monstrous big aircraft and it deserved to win just as much as the 747.  I only wish I had had the opportunity to fly on it before it got discontinued.  That said, it's still flying with Lufthansa and Emirates for the time being.....so maybe there's a chance.

Dulles Jet Center

So much fun to prowl around Dulles Airport and watch planes.  I use the apps FlightAware and FlightRadar24 to see what may be on the runways.  I also use liveatc.net and put the airport code KIAD in...

787 Ride from Osaka to San Francisco

My first ride in a Boeing 787 was on November 3, from Osaka, Japan to San Francisco.  The 787 is a nice wide body jet.  Probably the most striking thing about the flight was the mood lighting in the jet cabin and lavs.  Also, the windows were tintable since there were no manual shades to pull down.  I was in the very back of the plane on an aisle seat sitting with Dr. Bert Kimura of University of Hawaii.

Food was good.  Choice of videos was good and you could track the flight too.  Pretty smooth flight.

Favorite Airplane Websites

I gotta say it, the following are my favorite airplane websites:

http://www.flightaware.com (where I'm currently tracking AFR93, the flight featuring the Airbus A380 coming to and from Dulles)

http://www.airliners.net (need I say more?!?!)

Rare(?) 747

The air traffic around Dulles Airport has gone down considerably, or so it seems. Most of the jets going out internationally seem to leave in the evening. Tonight, for the first time in a long time, I saw the Lufthansa Airlines 747 take off due north, and watched it until it made it's eastbound course change over the Potomac River.

I usually see it outbound on the Maryland side, as it climbs toward the clouds. Oh to be on that jet...or to go someplace!!!

Metal Bird Names

I enjoy seeing these airlines take off/land at IAD (Dulles):

• Aer Lingus
• United
• British Airways
• Lufthansa
• South African Airways
• Qatar Airlines
• Saudi Arabian Airlines
• Austrian Airlines
• KLM
• Delta
• Southwest

It's also fun to track them on http://flightaware.com

Hudson River Water Landing

I must say that I'm impressed with the landing last week on the Hudson River. The US Airways jet whose engines were knocked out by a flight of birds on take-off, landed with nose up in the river, with a nice splash. What amazed me was seeing all of the passengers either standing or sitting on the wings....and the ferries (locally called water taxis) coming to their aid, plucking the people off of the plane.

I've often wondered what it would be like to be in a plane that crashed, and to survive. I'm sure somebody will write a book about it....