All aircraft undergo routine maintenance checks at specific life cycle intervals, these checks range from a light A-Check through a heavy D-Check. An A-Check for a commercial aircraft is typically performed around 800 flight hour cycle and often conducted during an overnight layover at an airport, requiring 20 man-hours maintenance. The B-Check is conducted…
Today’s reader mail comes from James O’Connor, in Glasgow, Scotland. James asks, ” I have just realized that I always board my flights from the front left door. Do all planes board from the left side? If so, is there a rationale for this?” James, the answer is “mostly yes.” Today all commercial airliners…
Having grown up watching planes fly over my house, all day and night, and having spent the last 27 years (of my 37 years on this Earth) generally found with a camera in my hand, it is only natural that I can at times be found shooting photos of airplanes. Over the years I’ve shot…
Iran’s national flag carrier Iran Air has masterfully skirted U.S. economic sanctions since they were first implemented in 1979. Since 1979, when the United States implemented its first economic sanctions against Iran, in response to the Iranian Revolution overthrowing the Shah of Iran, Iran Air has operated significant American made Boeing fleet. Currently Iran…
Yesterday at 7:08am PST, a Boeing a 747-8KZF/SCD (RC523), flying as Flight BOE 523, lifted off from Runway 16R/34L at Paine Field, in Everett, Washington, for a 17-hour function and reliability test flight. After flying 8,119 miles over the continental United States, Flight BOE523 touched back down at Paine Field at 12:08am PST having made…
This week’s Reader Mail comes from Jessica in Phoenix, AZ. Jessica asks “I just watched the United Airlines Twitter link from KTLA in the cockpit of a Boeing 747 and with the pilots sitting in their seats I can’t get a sense for all the screens and controls a pilot has in front of them….
Yesterday morning an incident involving a Qantas Boeing 747-438 flying from San Francisco to Sydney caused Julie Johnsson, the Chicago Tribune’s aviation reporter, to Tweet “3 words you never want to hear: “uncontained engine failure” from her Twitter account. While the incident involving Qantas Flight 47 left the flight crew a number of options, including…
Today’s guest blog post comes from Leighton Matthews … Leighton was a natural choice to ask to be a guest blogger, as Leighton is a professional photographer, airplane junkie and a huge Rush fan (pretty much sounds like I just described myself). You can follow Leighton on Twitter at @PacificAirPhoto and check out his photos…
This week’s reader mail comes from Joyce, in Oregon, and it’s a favourite topic of mine. Joyce asks “With the popularity of the Boeing 747, why had no one made a full double-decker before the A380?” Well Joyce … first off the design of the Boeing 747 was actually designed for cargo and cargo conversion…
8/2/2010 – The 747-8 : The Next Generation 747 Takes Its First Flight Today, at 12:39pm PST Boeing’s newest 747, the 747-8, roared down runway 34L and headed into the sky from Paine Field, just one day shy of the 41st anniversary of the first ever Boeing 747 flying. The new 747-8 is not only…
