Fly4Pay
New Member
Well, there we were, pulling off the runway at Stewart Field in Newburgh, NY. I looked on the ramp to see a Boeing 707. As a former 707 driver, things like that tend to catch my eye. But what REALLY caught my eye was that this jet was painted up in Qantas livery. Since I was pretty sure that Qantas hadn't opened up transoceanic 707 service, that could only mean one thing--that this beautiful jet belonged to none other than Mr. John Travolta. I pointed it out to the captain as we taxiied by, and I joked that I should go over and say hi since I'm a 707 pilot too! We parked two slots away, and the captain asked, "do you REALLY want to go over there?" So we did!
After we got our jet ready to go for our flight, we walked over to the aircraft. A security guy for the airport was at the base of the stairs. We asked if we could look around, and he informed us that we weren't even supposed to have walked over, because we didn't have the right badges ("Badges? We don't need no steenkin' badges!"). About that time, one of the pilots appeared at the top of the stairs and waved us up. At that point the security guy stepped aside and we went up to look around.
We were met by Juan Serrano, JT's chief pilot, and a couple of other crewmembers. They were all very nice and I think they get a kick out of showing off their ride! The flight deck was much like the 707 cockpit I was used to, with a few extra toys. JT has modified the plane to be RVSM-capable, a rare thing for 707s. He even had to pay for all the testing himself, since no one else is sinking that kind of money in to 707s these days! The flight engineer panel was more crowded than I was used to on our model, as well.
From there, we went through the cabin. The lav was at the front and includes a full shower! Very nicely appointed, as you would probably guess. Aft of this was the "kids' room." There were a couple of first-class type airline seats (but nicer!) and a sofa that folds out into a bed.
Aft of this was the main cabin, or what in a jet like this would more accurately called "the salon." There were several very comfy seats, tables, TVs on the walls, and so on.
Next was the galley. A FULL galley. Apparently, there's no shortage of food on those long flights with Travolta!
All in all, it was a really neat experience, and (if they're reading this), special thanks to the crew of Jett Clipper Ella for letting some airline guys have a look around!
After we got our jet ready to go for our flight, we walked over to the aircraft. A security guy for the airport was at the base of the stairs. We asked if we could look around, and he informed us that we weren't even supposed to have walked over, because we didn't have the right badges ("Badges? We don't need no steenkin' badges!"). About that time, one of the pilots appeared at the top of the stairs and waved us up. At that point the security guy stepped aside and we went up to look around.
We were met by Juan Serrano, JT's chief pilot, and a couple of other crewmembers. They were all very nice and I think they get a kick out of showing off their ride! The flight deck was much like the 707 cockpit I was used to, with a few extra toys. JT has modified the plane to be RVSM-capable, a rare thing for 707s. He even had to pay for all the testing himself, since no one else is sinking that kind of money in to 707s these days! The flight engineer panel was more crowded than I was used to on our model, as well.
From there, we went through the cabin. The lav was at the front and includes a full shower! Very nicely appointed, as you would probably guess. Aft of this was the "kids' room." There were a couple of first-class type airline seats (but nicer!) and a sofa that folds out into a bed.
Aft of this was the main cabin, or what in a jet like this would more accurately called "the salon." There were several very comfy seats, tables, TVs on the walls, and so on.
Next was the galley. A FULL galley. Apparently, there's no shortage of food on those long flights with Travolta!
All in all, it was a really neat experience, and (if they're reading this), special thanks to the crew of Jett Clipper Ella for letting some airline guys have a look around!
