Aviation Discussion

[BananaRepublic]

According to the CAA stats just under 30,000 people flew the route in 2014. I didn't think it would be that huge a market

That works out at very good loadings for a cross country regional flight.
The aircraft normally used is a 30 to 33 seat Dornier 328, so it would appear to be full or nearly full a lot of the time, based on those figures.

 

[Busaholic]

That works out at very good loadings for a cross country regional flight.
The aircraft normally used is a 30 to 33 seat Dornier 328, so it would appear to be full or nearly full a lot of the time, based on those figures.

As a previous poster said, it's a gruelling drive and the train is long-winded direct - via London might be quicker but very expensive!

 

[pompeyfan]

An album star 737 has just flown from LPL to SOU, seems like a rare and odd flight, and ideas on what/why?

 

[BananaRepublic]

An album star 737 has just flown from LPL to SOU, seems like a rare and odd flight, and ideas on what/why?

Arrived at LPL from Tarbes (Lourdes pilgrim charter flight?) and positioned to SOU.

Later left for Tarbes (Lourdes).

This aircraft has been flying out Tarbes for the last few days (Rome, Milan etc) so must be on charter to a tour company who carry pilgrims to Lourdes.

 

[pompeyfan]

Thanks for the answer, I was mainly shocked to see a 737 at SOU, they only usually fly to/from with a light load.

 

[BananaRepublic]

Thanks for the answer, I was mainly shocked to see a 737 at SOU, they only usually fly to/from with a light load.

Not exactly a "light load"; more weight restricted (fuel and/or passengers) for longer flights, due to the short runway.
Air Europa used to fly from SOU to Spain with commercially viable loads (almost if not full), but were weight restricted.
The Canary Island flights refuelled at Santiago on the outbound leg.

As you say, it is uncommon to see a 737 at SOU these days.

 

[crispy1978]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-33750811

MH370 search: 'Second plane part' found on Reunion


A second piece of suspected plane debris has washed ashore on the Indian Ocean island of Reunion, after a wing part suspected to come from the missing flight MH370 was found on Wednesday.

The object, believed to be the door of an aircraft, was discovered just south of the city of St Denis.

It is said to have writing on it and possibly some illustration.
The Malaysia Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing disappeared last March with 239 people on board.

Malaysia's transport ministry says it now wants to expand the search for more debris around Reunion.

Boeing 777

An Australian-led search effort for the plane has so far focused on a vast area of the southern Indian Ocean about 4,000km (2,500 miles) to the east of Reunion.
No physical trace of the aircraft has been found.

However, Malaysia's transport minister has confirmed that the object found on a beach at St Andre on Wednesday is a wing flap from a Boeing 777 - the same type of aircraft as the one that vanished.

"This has been verified by French authorities together with aircraft manufacturer Boeing," Liow Tiong Lai said on Sunday.

The piece has gone to France, where investigators in the city of Toulouse will seek to establish if it came from MH370. They will begin their work this Wednesday.

Fragments of a suitcase found on the same beach are also to be examined.

The centre in Toulouse was also involved in analysing debris from the Air France flight AF447, which crashed on the way to Paris from Brazil in 2009, killing 228 people.

Investigators believe MH370 veered off course on the way to Beijing and crashed into the sea - but they do not know why.

In January Malaysian authorities declared that all on board were presumed dead.

Its estimated last location was based on "pings" sent from the aircraft that were detected by satellite.

 

[WatcherZero]

Apparently just a domestic ladder, how you confuse a ladder for an aircraft door I have no idea.

 

[pompeyfan]

I know this isn't the place for conspiracy theories, but something here doesn't add up, why are these bits only starting to show up now? Seems odd to me, although I'm sure there will probably be a logical explanation.

 

[WatcherZero]

Its the time it takes for the ocean currents to carry them from the suspected crash site near Australia across the Indian Ocean to the coast of Reunion (Madegascar). The timing of the flaperon being found was near spot on with the modelling predictions.

 

[pompeyfan]

thank you for that, I did assume there would be a reasonable explanation.

 

[Kentish Paul]

An album star 737 has just flown from LPL to SOU, seems like a rare and odd flight, and ideas on what/why?

I am probably thick but can you explain " Album Star" , LPL and SOU.

 

[Tim R-T-C]

Unfortunately, even if they confirm it is from MH370 (which is quite likely if they can confirm it is from a 777 since Boeing have already confirmed no flaperons have gone missing from a 777 in flight) all it will do is confirm that the plane probably crashed where the satellite data already said it probably had. It won't help to narrow down the search area.

I do hope they find the black boxes/main wreckage eventually to bring closure to the families.

 

[ian959]

Given it is a 777 flaperon they have found, it is 99% certain this is from MH370. However that much more substantial wreckage will be found is unlikely and the chances of locating the black boxes in what may be anything up to 5000 metre deep water in a very vast area is still highly unlikely. I fear that odd pieces of wreckage like this are the best that the families will get as far as closure is concerned.

 

[pompeyfan]

I am probably thick but can you explain " Album Star" , LPL and SOU.

I didn't realise my phone had auto corrected from Alba to Album.

I had noticed on flightradar that a 737 had flown from Liverpool airport to Southampton airport, which is unusual so I asked for an explanation

 

[BananaRepublic]

I am probably thick but can you explain " Album Star" , LPL and SOU.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipe...7-4K5C_Alba_Star_MAN_08MAR12_(6818598912).jpg

AlbaStar is a small Spanish based charter airline, with 4x B737-400.
They also have a limited number of scheduled flights, mostly between Lourdes and Italian destinations.

LPL or EGGP = Liverpool (IATA & ICAO codes)
SOU or EGHI = Southampton

 

[Tim R-T-C]

Thought I would finally get around to digging my aviation photos out of my photo library - uploading some here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/r-t-c/collections/72157658801722354/

A few interesting pics:


Ukranian 737 UR-AAL at Bucharest by Timothy Young, on Flickr


MD-11 PH-KCK at Schipol by Timothy Young, on Flickr


China Southern A319 for Guangzhou by Timothy Young, on Flickr


Aeroflot A330 VQ-BNS by Timothy Young, on Flickr


Royal Air Maroc 737 at Marrakesh by Timothy Young, on Flickr

 

[Strathclyder]

Bump....

The Supermarine Spitfire prototype (K5054) undertook it's first flight 80 years ago today (5th March 1936).

This prototype went on to spawn countless variations, evolving into one of the most iconic aircraft of all time. Without it (and the Hurricane), the world would be a very, very different place today. We owe these two aircraft (and their crews) a tremendous debt.

 

[Butts]

Has Easyjet got a different seat configuration from BA on Airbus 319/20 ?

The reason I ask is that I went to Geneva and back from Birmingham for the Motorshow this weekend. Normally we go on BA from Gatwick.

We had Exit Seats both ways row 10/11 but not only did the extra legroom seem negligible the "cloth seats" didnt seem as comfortable as the leather type ones on BA.

Even the Embraer I came down from Edinburgh on had more comfortable seats than the Easyjet Airbus. I wouldn't fancy doing a 4 or 5 hour flight on an easyjet Airbus - 90 mins was bad enough !!

 

[Stompehh]

Has Easyjet got a different seat configuration from BA on Airbus 319/20 ?

The reason I ask is that I went to Geneva and back from Birmingham for the Motorshow this weekend. Normally we go on BA from Gatwick.

We had Exit Seats both ways row 10/11 but not only did the extra legroom seem negligible the "cloth seats" didnt seem as comfortable as the leather type ones on BA.

Even the Embraer I came down from Edinburgh on had more comfortable seats than the Easyjet Airbus. I wouldn't fancy doing a 4 or 5 hour flight on an easyjet Airbus - 90 mins was bad enough !!

Yes, the EasyJet A319s have an extra couple of seat rows, and because of this they have a double overwing exit design (designed specifically for them by Airbus).

 

[fowler9]

BA Airbus A320's I flew from Manchester to Heathrow and back on were both pretty scabby.

 

[Butts]

BA Airbus A320's I flew from Manchester to Heathrow and back on were both pretty scabby.

It's not the ambience with the EJ plane, just the comfort of the seats and the configuration.

 

[Tetchytyke]

Has Easyjet got a different seat configuration from BA on Airbus 319/20 ?

Yep, the EasyJet A319 has an extra row compared to BA and the A320 has three extra rows compared to BA. They also seem to be taking out the recline on the seats.

You get what you pay for.

BA Airbus A320's I flew from Manchester to Heathrow and back on were both pretty scabby.

Been down to London this weekend with BA, both the A320 down and the A321 back were absolutely fine. Or maybe the G&T meant I didn't notice.

 

[Western Lord]

Yes, the EasyJet A319s have an extra couple of seat rows, and because of this they have a double overwing exit design (designed specifically for them by Airbus).

The double overwing exit layout is not specific to EasyJet. It is required in any aircraft with more than 149 seats and is a standard feature of any narrow bodied airliner with more than 149 seats. With two overwing exits on each side the maximum allowed goes up to 189 seats. More than that would require extra exit provision as with the A321. This is the reason that the Boeing 737-900 can carry no more passengers than the -800, the fuselage stretch allows more flexibility in multi-class layouts, but with the same exit arrangement as the -800 the limit is still 189.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Quite a bit of a security fail at Heathrow...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukn...hrow-after-man-locks-self-in-jet-cockpit.html

A major security alert was declared at Heathrow Airport after an intruder boarded an empty airliner and locked himself in the bomb-proof cockpit.
A 38-year-old man is to appear at court this week in connection with the incident, which took place on Saturday morning.
The intruder managed to breach security on the airport perimeter, broke through a cordon and climbed aboard the parked British Airways 747.

...and also a Telegraph fail for using a picture of a 320 instead of a 747 to illustrate it!l

 

[WestCoast]

Yep, the EasyJet A319 has an extra row compared to BA and the A320 has three extra rows compared to BA. They also seem to be taking out the recline on the seats.

You get what you pay for.

Or not. Some of BA's second-hand Gatwick based A320s seat 174, one row less than easyJet non-flex space equivalents. Quite a few of these aircraft came from budget carrier Wizz Air.

Further details: http://www.airportspotting.com/british-airways-hand-a320-fleet-details/

 

[Stompehh]

The double overwing exit layout is not specific to EasyJet. It is required in any aircraft with more than 149 seats and is a standard feature of any narrow bodied airliner with more than 149 seats. With two overwing exits on each side the maximum allowed goes up to 189 seats. More than that would require extra exit provision as with the A321.

I'm well aware of this (I work in the industry ), what I was saying is that this design hadn't been used before on the A319 and was introduced specifically for the EasyJet order.

 

[fowler9]

I have seat 1A from Liverpool to Budapest and back with Wizzair next month. Looking forward to it.

 

[AndyW33]

Or not. Some of BA's second-hand Gatwick based A320s seat 174, one row less than easyJet non-flex space equivalents. Quite a few of these aircraft came from budget carrier Wizz Air.

Further details: http://www.airportspotting.com/british-airways-hand-a320-fleet-details/

The article linked to is sadly out of date, aircraft G-GATO never arrived at all as BA's engineers rejected it due to condition, and the into-service dates turned out to be much later than stated.

The second hand planes were delivered to BA with 171 seats, (as against BA's other A320s which seat 168), and are now being reseated to 177 with the removal of storage cupboards.
A tenth second hand A320 is expected by May as the replacement for the one that was rejected.

All the A320s and A321s (and all but 3 A319s) new to BA had a cabin refit and new seats in 2014 or 2015 so should be in reasonable condition at the moment. The A319s and A320s acquired when BA took over British Midland had just been reseated by them at the time of the takeover, and may be looking a bit scruffy by now as BA hasn't done anything to them internally since, and the three unrefitted BA A319s certainly will as they should have been dealt with last year, but weren't.

 

[Busaholic]

Business press speculation that the smart money is now on using an existing Heathrow runway for simultaneous take-offs and landings, rather than a new runway either there or at Gatwick.