A TWA, featuring the Boeing 707, ad seen in The Saturday Event Post in 1959 – Image: Jeremy’s Collection
I love looking back at old airline advertisements that promote a new type of aircraft that will soon become the flagship of the fleet. We are talking about the iconic birds of yesteryear; like the Lockheed Constellation, Boeing 707, Douglas DC-8, McDonnell Douglas DC-10, and Lockheed L1011. However, there was one aircraft that let the world know that your airline has arrived (literally and figuratively): the 747 Jumbo Jet.
Before I continue, let’s make sure we are on the same page about the definition of ’œflagship.’ I really hate it when people just say ’œwell, Merriam-Webber defines <insert word here> as’¦’ because it is just a super lazy way to get your point across. Whatever, it is really easy to do it that way…
flagship
noun
flag·’‹ship | \ ˈflag-ËŒship \
1: the ship that carries the commander of a fleet or subdivision of a fleet and flies the commander’s flag
2: the finest, largest, or most important one of a group of things (such as products, stores, etc.) often used before another noun
In AvGeek terms, the flagship is often the coolest airplane that they have that will make passengers think “golly gee, that is a swell plane and I want to fly on it, I am going to take that airline” (I actually tried to make that sound sarcastic, but that is how I legit feel when I am looking for flights).
With so many airlines moving to smaller aircraft (B737, A320, E-Jet, and A220) and operating aging fleets (B767,B 757, A330ceo, etc), what aircraft do they see as their flagship today? I found some that were pretty obvious, and others that had me scratching my head. I am making my best guesses based on the information that airlines put out there to the public, so I might be wrong. With one or two, I am pretty sure that I am wrong. Let me break it down by airline, let you know what I found, and you tell me if you disagree.
ZB-001 (N789EX) the First Boeing 787-9, takes to the sky – Photo: Bernie Leighton
March was a big month for Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner. The largest member of the family — the 787-10 — saw its first delivery. We also learned about two new Dreamliner routes delivering on the plane’s promise to make ultra-long-haul routes feasible. With its direct flight from Perth to London, Qantas became the first airline to run a scheduled service nonstop from Australia to Europe. And later this year, Air New Zealand will inaugurate a new nonstop route to Chicago O’Hare.
Go long! – GCMap.com
Read on for more details on these exciting Dreamliner updates!
The final RAM 787 sits at the Everett Delivery Center – Photo: Jason Rabinowitz
Years before the first iPhone went on sale, before Facebook knew everything about everyone, and even before this very blog, Royal Air Maroc placed an order for four Boeing 787 Dreamliners, with an option for an one more. The year was 2005, and the recently revealed 787 was picking up orders left and right.
Two RAM 787s seen at Paine Field in Oct 2010 with no plans to be delivered any time soon
I won’t get into a history lesson about the 787 program delays since you can find that elsewhere, but let’s just say that RAM didn’t receive its first 787 from Boeing in late 2008 as originally planned. It wasn’t until 2014 that RAM would see its first 787, a full nine years after originally placing the order. Finally in late 2016, over a decade after the initial order was placed, Boeing completed delivery of all five of its 787s.
A Xiamen 787-8 glides in for a landing at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on the airline’s inaugural U.S. revenue flight
Xiamen Airlines launched its Xiamen-Shenzhen-Seattle service on Sept. 26, creating both the first long-haul route from Xiamen to the United States and the first direct service to the States from the Chinese city of Shenzhen. We were there to welcome the inaugural flight.
United employees get excited for their newest Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner
What makes the 27th delivery of a Boeing 787 to an airline special? Its employees.
Recently, United took delivery of a 787-9 Dreamliner and invited 200 employees along, to celebrate their dedication and hard work. Team leaders, around the world, were asked to select top performers and they were invited to fly to Seattle, attend a VIP dinner, and take a Dreamliner delivery flight back to home-base in Chicago.
The United 787, sitting at Boeing Field
The road to… well… unite United has not been easy and there is still a lot of work ahead. With new leadership, there is renewed hope for bringing everyone together for the purpose of making the airline stronger. From what I saw during the delivery flight, the airline seems to be on the right path. I have become optimistic about their future.
