My very first of many flights on a 747 was in 1978 when I flew Pan Am from Heathrow to Seatac. In those days, the airlines still had a last-minute stand-by ticket option. The one-way flight cost me $225. I think my last flight on a 747 was with Thai Airways. Thai, strangely enough, used/uses a 747 on short haul flights between Bangkok and Chiang Mai. It is a magnificent flying machine!

(Written on 2020/06/26)(Permalink)

Air France already uses a similar system at CDG. It works quite well and is considerably faster than the normal baggage drop counters

(Written on 2020/02/28)(Permalink)

I think the "brainwashed child" mime that is circulating on social media is totally out of line. I view her as a very courageous young woman who is frustrated with politicians' inaction in dealing with an existential threat to the planet.

(Written on 2019/11/08)(Permalink)

I agree with you that journalists are sometimes prone to hyperbole, but this article is really very well researched and written, and I would advise you to read it rather than simply blow it off because of a turn of phrase that doesn't appeal to you. Read it first. It's really one of the most complete, and most recent, analyses of what went wrong with the overall design of the plane, the skimping on planning and personnel on the part of management and the terrible error of not informing pilots sufficiently about the very existence of MCAS.

(Written on 2019/09/23)(Permalink)

Just a quote from the article. It's a fascinating and discouraging read.

(Written on 2019/09/22)(Permalink)

Boeing has deliberately and shamelessly perpetrated the meme of pilot failure to divert attention from its own callous responsibility in the management philosophy that led to the development of this plane and the MCAS system. In a rather lengthy article from The New Republic, we read of the decision making blunders that led to the production of a "self-hijacking" plane. https://newrepublic.com/article/154944/boeing-737-max-investigation-indonesia-lion-air-ethiopian-airlines-managerial-revolution

(Written on 2019/09/22)(Permalink)