A Pilot’s Blog
A blog about aviation, aviation news, and space.

It looks like another Airbus customer has turned to the other side. TAM Airlines of Brazil has placed an order for four 777-300ERs worth nearly $1 billion. This is significant because up until now, TAM has had an Airbus-only fleet. The 777s will likely be used to expand TAM’s international service. Way to go, Boeing!

Speaking of Emirates 777s in the previous post, here’s a very comfortable shot from the first-class section of an Emirates 777-300. It has a lie-flat seat, personal bar, personal TV screen, and your own private screened off area. For the multiple thousands of dollars you have to shell out to reserve one of these babies, it better be nice. :-)

Picture courtesy of Airliners.net.

Emirates Airline, which operates out of Dubai, has canceled their order for 20 Airbus A340 airframes and may be looking at purchasing several new Boeing 777s instead, according to an unnamed company spokeswoman.

“Emirates confirms it will not be taking delivery of its order and option for 20 Airbus A340-600 aircraft,” an Emirates spokeswoman said.

Emirates will instead order 777 models from Boeing Co., Emirates Executive Vice Chairman Maurice Flanagan said, the Wall Street Journal reported.

777 airframes cost between $178 million and $264.5 million each, depending upon the model and options, according to Boeing’s price guide. An order of twenty or more of them would mean a huge boost for Boeing’s sales figures this year. Emirates also ordered ten 747 airframes from Boeing earlier this year, according to Boeing’s order sheet.

I believe this has everything to do with Airbus’ horrible management of the A380 program. If they aren’t careful, Emirates may be canceling that order too:

[Emirates President Tim Clark] also said Emirates will send engineers to check on A380 production plants in France and Germany. The engineers will examine how Airbus managers are resolving industrial problems that have pushed production of the world’s largest passenger plane two years behind schedule and more than one-third over its original $12 billion budget, the paper said.

Hat tip to the Airliners.net message boards for this story.

Here’s a neat little video of a race between a fighter, sports car, and motorcycle. I think we all know who wins. :-)

Currently, if you are a pilot for any commercial airline service you must retire upon reaching your 60th birthday. There have been ongoing debates for years as to whether or not this should be raised, or even done away with altogether. By next month the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the international body that helps to guide the aviation industry, is expected to approve new guidelines that urge all countries to raise mandatory retirement ages from the current 60 to 65, provided that:

…the second pilot in the crew is below 60 and all pilots over 60 undergo a medical assessment every six months.

I think this is a wonderful idea. All United States certified airline pilots must already undergo a “First Class” medical evaluation every six months no matter what their age. I firmly believe that if you are able to meet all the physical requirements, and you still have the passion for flying, that you should be allowed to work and fly for as long as you want. In the aviation profession age brings with it experience. I, for one, would have no qualms about boarding an aircraft with a 65+ year old pilot, because I would know just how much experience he had under that gold-brimmed cap. So come on Congress, tell the FAA to raise the retirement age!

This amazing picture comes to us courtesy of Airliners.net. It shows a Korean Air Cargo 747-400F freighter taking off from Seattle/Tacoma Airport (KSEA). There is probably a large saturation of moisture in the morning air here, so when the wings of the giant 747 come through bringing with them an area of low pressure (one of the components of lift) it changes the dew point in that airspace just enough to create small clouds over the wings. Quite a breathtaking sight.

As you may or may not have seen on TV, Microsoft has been advertising the release of Flight Simulator X, the latest version of their very popular flight simulation program. Though I haven’t seen this one on TV, it’s probably my favorite. Everything I have read about the new version points to one word: awesome. There will be over 21 new aircraft in “X”, from ultralights to the Boeing 747-400. It’s also apparent from the TV commercials that they’ve finally made realistic jet-bridges for the major airports. Thank you, Microsoft!

Here’s a snip from the GameSpy review:

There’s no denying that Flight Simulator X is going to be one of the best looking games the PC has ever seen, but it’s nice to see that Microsoft has done more than just slap a fresh coat of paint onto the series. From creating a deeply immersive world to providing more structured gameplay elements, they’ve done a lot to ensure that there will be something for everyone.

Official Site
Buy it from Amazon

Welcome to the latest incarnation of MrPilot.org. I have decided to completely abandon the previous stale blog and begin anew. My focus has changed from a little bit of everything, to just straight aviation. I will (hopefully) blog about aviation news, my flight simulator adventures, and my favorite pictures from the absolutely wonderful Airliners.net. Thanks for looking, and I hope you enjoy the change.

Note: The old blog and entries will be saved, but no longer viewable.