Tag Archives: Boeing Field

It Might Have Been Green but the Light Was Excellent

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An Air Tanzania 737 Max 9 made its initial flight from Renton and was due into Boeing Field at the end of the day.  The timing of its arrival was looking promising.  However, I was dealing with something else, and it was a higher priority.  If that could be completed in time, the Air Tanzania might just work out.  Having shot their 767 freighter, I was hoping that it would already be painted.  That was not to be the case with only the rudder and winglets showing the colors that are to come.

The evening light was developing nicely so the green of the protective covering really looked pretty good.  However, the real benefit was once the plane had passed me.  The sky to the east was developing a really cool purple hue.  The evening light was working wonders with the clouds over there.  Stick a green 737 in front of that and things really did look good.  I hope I get to see it once painted before it heads off to its new home.

Comparison of Two Globals

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When Bombardier launched the Global 7500, I was quite keen to see them.  My friend was the engineering director on the project and, despite me giving him crap at every opportunity, I think he probably did a good job on this one.  Sadly, I haven’t shot as many 7500s as I would have liked.  Global 6000s, on the other hand, I have shot plenty of.  There have been a few, though, so I decided to see what the obvious visual differences would be.

With some bizjets, counting windows is the way to know.  That rarely helps me out as I can never remember what the appropriate numbers are.  For the 7500, though, I think the windows look very different.  They seem to be a lot larger and squarer.  That is a bit of a giveaway.  Then there is the fin top.  The 7500 has a more angular top to it which actually looks a bit like some of the CRJ versions.  Last, there are the flaps.  The 7500 flap system seems to be more complex than that of the 6000.  I have included images of NetJets and VistaJet examples of both types at similar angles for comparison.  See what other differences you spot.

Omni 777 Takes the Band to Houston

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The appearance of UW in the national championship game meant a lot of people flying from Seattle to Houston.  That included the band and I believe they were the ones to fly in an Omni Air International 777-200ER.  We get plenty of Omni’s 767s at Boeing Field but a 777 was an interesting change.  I hung around quite a while one Saturday waiting for them to depart.  As with so many charters, they went late.  (Late enough to mean I got stuck on I-5 heading back for lunch when a protest closed down the interstate.)  I took a chance by going with a long prime rather than a zoom and, fortunately, they rotated just early enough for that to work out for me.  I was rather pleased with the tighter shots of them getting airborne.

Grab It While You Can – Or Will I Be Wrong?

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UW had some success with their football program this year which meant a few charter flights took place.  Some of the charters that they arranged were with New Pacific Airlines.  This is a relatively new airline that originally was going to be Northern Pacific until BNSF Railway, which owns that name, objected to their using it.  Their plan has been to operate transpacific flights via Anchorage in a similar model to that of Icelandair.  Things have got off to a slow start.  They are doing some domestic US flying but those routes have been erratic too.  The fleet is a pair (I think) of Boeing 757-200s so hardly cutting edge.  I think they might not last long.

Consequently, when their jet showed up at BFI, I figured I should definitely get photos since I might not get the chance again.  Winter conditions are not going to be the greatest, but I was able to get a few that I was pretty happy with.  I don’t wish the airline any harm at all, but they don’t seem to be giving off the vibe of a great success story.  Let’s hope the charters can fill in until they get something more solid going.

F-35As Departing for Their Veterans’ Day Flyover

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The UW Huskies had a home game during the weekend of during the weekend of Veterans’ Day.  The USAF provided a flyover for the start of the game with a couple of F-35As from Luke AFB making the trip up to Seattle to do the honors.  The sun was a bit erratic on the day of the game, but it wasn’t too bad and the trees around Boeing Field still had a little fall color in them.  Both jets launched for the flyover.

I watched them taxi out from the Modern ramp and head to the departure end.  I knew that they would be airborne well before they got to me, but I was hoping that they would keep it low.  The first of the jets obliged keeping nice and low at least for a while allowing me to get a shot with the ground in the background.  The second jet was a little more eager to climb and it was well skylines by the time it got close to my spot.  They were planning on some time in the local area before the flyover so now it was time to wait.

So, What Really Happened With This Jet?

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Titan Airways provides jets for some high end tourist programs.  I have shot their older A321s before, but they recently took on an A321neo that had previously been used as a transport for the UK government.  On a flight, it had issues with windows that were not sealed, and the plane was not pressurizing properly with a load of noise.  When they investigated further, it turned out it had been used for filing work and the high intensity lights had damaged the window seals.

With the windows repaired and a test flight undertaken, it was back in service and its next trip was to Seattle.  I caught it landing at Boeing Field.  It arrived at the worst time of day for lighting but, with something unusual like this, I decided to make the best of it.  It turned out okay and I was quite pleased with the results, as was one of the pilots!

Just in Time for an Everts MD-83BCF

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I was waiting for my mate to get through immigration at SEA after a flight from the UK.  He was telling me that there was a horrible line to get through, so I figured I had a little time.  I also knew that Everts Air Cargo’s MD-83 freighter was due to launch out of Boeing Field.  Originally, I had figured I would miss it but, since he was stuck in line, I might as well wait around and get the take off.  A slightly gloomy day but a Mad Dog freighter is still worth it!

Another Epic Encounter

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Nothing too special about this one.  It’s just because Epics are a pretty rare type and a rather unusual looking plane so, when one shows up and I am lucky enough to be able to catch it, I think it is worthy of note.  The fuselage of this type has a strange shape with a slightly humped look to it.  It goes against the “if it looks right, it flies right” idea but it might just make for a more useful cabin for the occupants.  Until I fly in one, I’ll never know.  Would be good to get one air to air, though.

Other Sunny Sunday Bizjets

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One Sunday earlier in the year, I was up at Boeing Field for the arrival of an old Gulfstream.  That proved to be a successful encounter and has been on this blog already.  However, that was not the only bizjet traffic that day.  I ended up with a variety of corporate aircraft movements.

There was a Canadian Challenger as well as some NetJets examples.  A Falcon 7X was on the move which is a cool looking aircraft.  There was also a Falcon 50 parked near the road alongside a Hawker.  An Excel came through which isn’t that special but then we got an Eclipse which certainly is.  It was a fun time to be out photographing with a lot in a short space of time.  Here are some shots of those planes.

Drake is in Town, But Not at a Good Time

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Drake recently announced he was stepping back from touring, but this comes after he has been on quite a touring schedule.  Seattle was one stop he made.  He has his own 767-200 that is operated by Cargojet for him.  It is painted in a distinctive sky-blue livery.  It came into Boeing Field for the duration of his stay in the city.  Sadly, his schedule means he finishes a show and jumps on the plane to fly to the next location overnight.  That meant it arrive some time after midnight and departed at an inconvenient time too.  I only got it while parked and the light was not great either.  Still…