Using words and photos to describe something as amazing as taking a flight on a Beechcraft Starship is not enough. On October 16th I had the opportunity to take a ride on NC-51 Starship owned by Robert Scherer from Aspen, CO (ASE) to Page, AZ (PGA) and finally Orange County, CA (SNA). Above is the video of the adventure — enjoy!
My Quest to Ride on a Beechcraft Starship:
IDEA | CONNECT | TOUR | FLIGHT-PLAN | FAIL | FLIGHT | PHOTOS | VIDEO
F-GZCP, the Airbus A330 involved in Air France flight 447, taken in March 2007. Photo by Pawel Kierzkowski / Wikipedia.
I have read quite a bit about Air France flight 447 that crashed on June 1, 2009. I think a recent story from Popular Mechanics is the best and really paints a picture about what really happened in the cockpit of that Airbus A330 the day of the accident.
The story shows what was said on the voice recorder and explains what it all means, very interesting and worth the time to read it.
Thanks to Drew for pointing this out.
Connect with the blog, in the way you want to. Photo from Japan before flying on the 787 Dreamliner.
I haven’t done one of these self-promotion blogs in a while, so I might as well. If you like what you see on the blog (or on the Reuters or Seattle PI syndication you might be reading) there are a number of different ways to connect a bit better:
* TWITTER: I have a pretty good following of over 11,000 people, so that must mean I am not too annoying on there. I will share stories that I find of interest and when I am at an airline function, give a play by play and share photos.
* FACEBOOK: Yea, so I am supposed to have a blog fan page on Facebook I am told?! Well, I don’t want to and I am allowed to do what I want. I have a personal Facebook page that you are welcome to add me as a friend. I share a bit more behind the scenes sort of things with my Facebook and I always want to get more active on it.
* RSS FEED: If you use an RSS reader, please add my site to your list. If you have no idea what an RSS reader is, either do not worry about it, or read this.
* FEEDBURNER: If you want to be emailed each day with my stories (normally one story per day), then sign up for the feedburner.
* BUY A STICKER / DONATE: Even though I have already given plenty of stickers away for free, if you like what you see here and you want to help support.
* SHARE: I really do not have a link for this, but if you have a story idea or work in the business and want to help me with a story send me an email: da***@*************er.com.
Or just keep doing what you are doing and read. Just on the blog itself (not counting the syndications and free lance stories), I am up to over 90,000 visitors per month and that is amazing. Trying to get content out on a daily (most times) basis is not easy. Outside of the blog, I work another 40 hours per week job (not related to aviation) and it is my passion and support from readers that keeps the content rolling (well the awesome trips to different parts of the world aren’t too shabby of a motivator either).
Thanks again and keep on flying (I know cheesy, but that is all I got right now).
Things got a little busy in 2011 and we did not have an official Aviation Geek Fest of 2011, but that is not going to stop us from having one soon. It has been decided that the next Aviation Geek Fest will be on Sunday February 19, 2012. Currently I am working with the Future of Flight and Boeing to do some cool things this year.
Nothing is locked down yet, so I can’t share, but you are not going to want to miss out on this one.
What is Aviation Geek Fest you ask? It is an opportunity for those who love aviation and airlines to come together in Seattle and celebrate and experience some pretty cool aviation related things. Check out Aviation Geek Fest from 2009 and 2010.
We aren’t even sure of the time, if it will cost money, how many people we can have come (it has been about 50 in the past) or any other details you will want to know. I can say that we like to make it better each year and that is the goal this year.
For now, mark you calendars and stay tuned.
Photo on the left shows the new painted bottom. The one on the right shows the old aluminum bottom.CLICK FOR LARGER.
You might be an airline nerd if this interests you. Warning: I am an airline nerd.
On the Twitterverse and Airliners.net, there were some questions around why American Airlines has started to paint the bottom of their new Boeing 737s. There was some speculation (and questioning if American is even really painting the bottoms), but officially from American:
“All 737’s have fluid discharge ports along the bottom Aft fuselage. AA has decided to paint the underbelly of the aircraft for aesthetic purposes and to prevent any contact of these fluids with the bare aluminum skin.”
Nothing too shocking, the bottoms have been painted to slow corrosion. I only hope that this is not a sign that American plans to keep this dated livery over the long-term. As I am sure you remember, the airline recently went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which would give them a perfect reason to get a new livery (even though I know there are a lot of American livery lovers out there).
Both photos taken by Drewski2112 at Boeing Field