As mentioned earlier this month, I flew 119 times for business and pleasure last year with 20 airlines in 2016. Big highlights of the year were my first five flights on the 787 Dreamliner, my first flights with Sri Lankan, my 380th flight with Qantas, my 350th flight on a Boeing 737 and flying into the Maldives. Here are the year’s ten Trip Reports (oops I need to post more Trip Reports!): 2016’s Best flight: My 380th Qantas flight in A380 FIRST – My Flight Rating: 96% (4.8 out of 5) My 2nd 787: Thai Business Brisbane…
Boeing 787 Dreamliner
Tag Archives for Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
United builds 787 routes
While a lot has been going wrong for United recently, on the positive side is the steady roll out of their 787 Dreamliners and their future planned destinations which have been steadily announced. The airline now has 22 of the 55 Dreamliners they have ordered. The Dreamliner’s ten destinations from San Francisco International are now: Auckland -July 2016 (787-8 increasing to a daily 787-9 from October) Chengdu -Commenced Houston Osaka -Commenced Shanghai Sydney -March, 2016 Taipei Tel Aviv – March 2016 (787-9) Tokyo Haneda Xi’an The airline is deploying the 787 on its longest flights which means they have a massive fuel…
And the best airline is… Ethiopian?
There are few airline success stories from the continent of Africa. The wreckage of national carrier after carrier is strewn across the landscape. For example, Nigeria where I lived, has had a revolving door of carriers. South African Airways, once the strongest African carrier is bleeding cash as it limps along with an ageing fleet. Kenya Airlines announced a massive deficit and is facing an uncertain future. I have been following closely 70 year old Ethiopian Airlines. I noted their joining of the Star Alliance in 2011 and their status as one the 787 launch customers in 2013. The airline has…
Royal Jordanian Welcomes First 787
Middle Eastern carrier Royal Jordanian received their first Boeing 787 last Wednesday evening. Named “Crown Prince Hussein Bin Abdullah II“, the plane flew non stop from Seattle to Amman, a 13 hour flight. It is pictured below at Queen Alia International Airport in Amman. Royal Jordanian is the second Middle Eastern airline to operate the 787, after Qatar. RJ will receive four more of the Dreamliners thus year giving them five by the end of the year. They will replace the airline’s currently A340 and A330 planes. With 24 business class seats and 246 seats in economy, the carrier will introduce the plane into regular service…
Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner and A380 at Farnborough
The Farnborugh airshow is held in mid-July in even-numbered years at Farnborough Airport, England. The airport is 35 kilometres (22 miles) from Londom. This year’s show celebrated 100 years of commercial Aviation. One impressive display was the 787-9, shown here practising for its routine: The other show stopper was the acrobatic antics of the 380. In this vidoe, you can catch a glimpse of the new A350 taking off at five minutes 45seconds just before the A380 lands at six minutes 12 seconds Related Posts 110 years today– wright brothers take off Trip Review: Emirates- comparing the…
Air Astana delays 787s until 2019
Air Astana, the flag carrier of Kazakhstan will delay the arrival of its three 787s with the first coming in 2019 instead of 2017. The airline revised this year’s 14 percent growth target to zero percent due to deteriorating economic conditions in the country and devaluation of the currency in February. Launched in 2002, Air Astana operates 63 scheduled domestic and international routes from its main hub, Almaty International Airport, and from two secondary hubs. The airline connects Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Like all Kazakhstan carriers it had been banned from operating in the European Union but that ban…
Air New Zealand’s new 787-9 takes flight
Wishing desperately I was in Seattle this week when Air New Zealand’s first Boeing 787-9 took off from Paine Field airport north of Seattle for a three hour and ten minute flight. It reached an altitude of 11,800 metres (39,000 feet) and an airspeed of 360 knots during its B1 test flight during which the two pilots throughly checked all systems to ensure performance while simultaneously checking full cabin functionality of every aspect of the cabin is tested in-flight. Air New Zealand is the launch customer for the Boeing 787-9 and this aircraft (tail registration ZK-NZE) is the first of…
Lion cancels 787s
Last Monday, Indonesian budget airline Lion Air cancelled its order for five Boeing 787s and ordered 737s in their stead. The carrier said it needed widebody aircraft to accommodate more than the capacity of the 787-8 for domestic high demand routes and will place a new order for aircraft in 2015. The dreamliners had been ordered in June 2012. They had been intended for Lion Air’s full service subsidiary Batik Air, launched in March 2013. The list price for the package was $US 967.5 million. Batik provides a personal TV (in-flight entertainment system) at every seat, snacks and meal, plus more generous…
Norwegian 787 unhappier and unhappier
Budget carrier, Norwegian Air Shuttle is Europe’s fourth largest low cost carrier (after Ryanair, Easyjet and Air Berlin).It has pinned its long haul expansion hopes on the 787 and the plane keeps letting them down. The airline has endured a number of maintenance issues with its three 787s from brakes to cockpit sensors to grounding to hydraulic pumps. The latest was a fuel gushing from a valve on the plane’s wing at Bangkok airport. The situation was photographed by a passenger and went viral. Passengers had a lengthy delay and the plane flew back to Stockholm for…
787 fire update- is the plane troubled?
The jury seems divided between those who see Boeing’s 787 as a plane experiencing teething problems or an aircraft that is “doomed”. The media headlines have described the plane as “plagued”, and even “troubled”. This week, US aviation regulator, The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) published an airworthiness directive advising all carriers to remove Honeywell emergency locator transmitters (ELT) from their 787s. Last week, the FAA suggested airlines should inspect the units on their 787s for pinched wires in the casing and/or evidence of heat or moisture. United Airlines is the only US carrier currently flying…
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