NoPolitics: Airplanes you like that no one else does

[Pilot Fighter]

CVG-LEX sounds like it'd be an old Comair route too back when they had the Bros.

Yeah, I remember those. The USAir partner flew Jetstreams and/or Brasilias, CVG-LEX. I can't recall them flying Bro's.

 

[deadstick]

I don't know - never had the chance to fly in one. Beech 1900s had three seats abreast on the rear bulkhead.

9B — the only seat that wasn’t an aisle or window seat or both. But it had the most leg room. When there was a BIA, never put them there to prevent the “meat missile” scenario.

 

[MikeD]

Woah, I'll have to stop by.

Sooner would be better than later. These storage yards, where they used to have planes parked and languishing for some time, have been expediting scrapping operations of the older planes in order to make ramp space for the tons of airliners that the airlines have been parking for temporary storage. MZJ, for example, has had to grade-out more acres of desert for more airliner parking, as well as used the employee car parking lot in one area in order to store Spirit planes. The north and south scrapping areas, have had the northwest side scrapping area added, just to expedite scrapping operations and get rid of the older planes that will likely not fly again. Sadly, that means history disappearing for good too.

 

[pwttogfk]

Sooner would be better than later. These storage yards, where they used to have planes parked and languishing for some time, have been expediting scrapping operations of the older planes in order to make ramp space for the tons of airliners that the airlines have been parking for temporary storage. MZJ, for example, has had to grade-out more acres of desert for more airliner parking, as well as used the employee car parking lot in one area in order to store Spirit planes. The north and south scrapping areas, have had the northwest side scrapping area added, just to expedite scrapping operations and get rid of the older planes that will likely not fly again. Sadly, that means history disappearing for good too.

I miss living in Wichita and Tucson. I went from seeing planes take their first flight, to seeing planes take their last flight, to...well there’s another CRJ.

 

[JordanD]

Yeah, I remember those. The USAir partner flew Jetstreams and/or Brasilias, CVG-LEX. I can't recall them flying Bro's.

Ah, Jetstream/AKA the modern PSA.
I forget back in the day how much random point to point stuff there was. Nowadays it's pretty easy to basically pinpoint that the only flights are going to be each airline to their hub, but I think even back in the late 90s Delta would do weird round robins like ATL-SDF-LEX with 727s.

 

[Pilot Fighter]

... back in the late 90s Delta would do weird round robins like ATL-SDF-LEX with 727s.

Yeah, I remember all those dog-leg flights. They often could be gamed by skipping the final leg.

Come to think of it, I can't think of having stayed on-board as a pax waiting for the next leg on a US domestic flight in ages, maybe twenty years. Is this still a thing?

 

[Autothrust Blue]

Yeah, I remember all those dog-leg flights. They often could be gamed by skipping the final leg.

Come to think of it, I can't think of having stayed on-board as a pax waiting for the next leg on a US domestic flight in ages, maybe twenty years. Is this still a thing?

It is. I flew a bunch of through flights (MSP HIB INL, MSP RHI IMT and the reverse) actually. Southwest does some of that sort of through-flight stuff too.

 

[Pilot Fighter]

It is. I flew a bunch of through flights (MSP HIB INL, MSP RHI IMT and the reverse) actually. Southwest does some of that sort of through-flight stuff too.

I guess my travel patterns have grown pretty repetitive in the last decade or more and I just haven't seen it.

 

[JordanD]

Yeah, I remember all those dog-leg flights. They often could be gamed by skipping the final leg.

Come to think of it, I can't think of having stayed on-board as a pax waiting for the next leg on a US domestic flight in ages, maybe twenty years. Is this still a thing?

Fairly common on Southwest. Last time I did it was the partial milk run as a jump seater in Alaska, that was kind of funny. “You guys going all the way up? Uhh, do you want me to check in with you guys every leg?”

 

[Autothrust Blue]

I guess my travel patterns have grown pretty repetitive in the last decade or more and I just haven't seen it.

I always thought they were kind of neat because you got to go someplace other than the hub.

 

[Autothrust Blue]

I always thought they were kind of neat because you got to go someplace other than the hub.

To add to this, I can think of a handful of number of through flights I did on the Brasilia too. ACV SMF ACV CEC SFO was a common morning, with passengers booked through frequently on the SMF-ACV-CEC and ACV-CEC-SFO portion.

 

[Fixtur]

An old TV show filmed in Apple Valley CA. Sky King chased bad guys in a Bamboo Bomber, an aircraft the lead actor owned. In the second season Cessna gave the show a sexy Cessna 310.

I actually knew that, because I spend a night in the Apple Valley airport "pilot lounge" trying to get a few winks on the World's Most Uncomfortable Couch. They had several poster boards around the "terminal building" showcasing the history of Sky King.

Back to on-topic.

The BeechJet. My first type rating. At first I hated it, then I accepted it, then I realized how much the old girl had taught me, and I developed quite an affection for her. Not my first choice to get inside but I always enjoy it when I do, from the absurdly loud annunciators to the ridiculously poor ergonomics and lack of cupholders. Still, there's some je ne sais quoi about her. I call her "Mrs. Robinson".

The A340 - Obviously never flew one, but reminds me of a newer-skool B707. Not goofy looking like the A-380, but sleek and sexy and with the correct number of engines for an airliner.

 

[ahw01]

Yeah, I remember all those dog-leg flights. They often could be gamed by skipping the final leg.

Come to think of it, I can't think of having stayed on-board as a pax waiting for the next leg on a US domestic flight in ages, maybe twenty years. Is this still a thing?

It was on Go Mokulele. Stayed on the CRJ when flying OGG-HNL-LIH in 2012.

 

[Pilot Fighter]

It was on Go Mokulele. Stayed on the CRJ when flying OGG-HNL-LIH in 2012.

Yeah, I figured was still a thing in Alaska and Hawaii. I can't recall the last one I was on in the contiguous US.

 

[Richman]

I miss living in Wichita and Tucson. I went from seeing planes take their first flight, to seeing planes take their last flight, to...well there’s another CRJ.

I talked with a guy who used to ferry new Cessnas from the factory in the 60’s. He said you’d show up to the “dispatch office”, which was always packed with people, to do the paperwork, which was actually very minimal.

You get the docs and keys and an “approximate” location. You’d head out into a field with 500-1000 airplanes....rows and rows of them...to find “your airplane”. It would hopefully have fuel and start. You’d make a call to the tower, and he said that 9 times out of 10 that was last time you spoke to ATC for the whole trip.

Must have been quite a sight/experience.

 

[Autothrust Blue]

The A340 - Obviously never flew one, but reminds me of a newer-skool B707. Not goofy looking like the A-380, but sleek and sexy and with the correct number of engines for an airliner.

Quite a beautiful airplane, especially the -500 and -600 series, in my view. A ridiculously capable one in its bigger forms.

And, IMS, something of an endangered species now. What a pity.

 

[Skåning]

Quite a beautiful airplane, especially the -500 and -600 series, in my view. A ridiculously capable one in its bigger forms.

And, IMS, something of an endangered species now. What a pity.

It’d be nice if they had a second life as freighters.

 

[JordanD]

The A340 - Obviously never flew one, but reminds me of a newer-skool B707. Not goofy looking like the A-380, but sleek and sexy and with the correct number of engines for an airliner.

They're definitely fun to watch take off out of SFO. Either trying to out climb the hills, turn around it, or just get off 01R before it runs out.

 

[MikeD]

Quite a beautiful airplane, especially the -500 and -600 series, in my view. A ridiculously capable one in its bigger forms.

And, IMS, something of an endangered species now. What a pity.

there are three SAS A340s outside my hangar here at MZJ over in south scrapping, beginning the scrapping process. They took the place of the Lufthansa A340s that have completed scrapping there. I’ll snap a few pics today or tomorrow.

The last of the Delta 747-400s are being cut apart on the other side of the airfield in north scrapping.

 

[deadstick]

there are three SAS A340s outside my hangar here at MZJ over in south scrapping, beginning the scrapping process. They took the place of the Lufthansa A340s that have completed scrapping there. I’ll snap a few pics today or tomorrow.

The last of the Delta 747-400s are being cut apart on the other side of the airfield in north scrapping.

Speaking of planes around your ramp...it’s been awhile.

Around the ramp at the home field, MZJ

As much as I love the old days, TWA's fate was sealed with with the infamous Karabu agreement. TWA had enough problems without that. You also need a hub that puts money into your pocket, not just a connecting point. STL definitely wasn't that.

jetcareers.com

Just sayin’...