Tag Archives: KORD

I Guess Humid Days Are Useful

If you want to get some nice vapor from an aircraft, start with a good, humid day. The hours after a storm are perfect since there is plenty of moisture in the air and the ground is wet meaning it will keep feeding the moisture for a while. Now you just need a big jet to climb out at high power settings. Enter an ANA 777-300ER stage left.

The engines were filling with inlet vapor as the beast hauled itself into the sky and the tip vortices were also doing their bit to pull the water from the air. The fact is was late afternoon so the sun was in a good position too meant that the combination was pretty ideal. We got a few like this for a while but eventually the humidity levels dropped and things returned to normal. Still, it was good for a while and there were other benefits to come.

When a Storm is Your Friend

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Usually when you head out to shoot planes you are hoping for some nice weather. Being out on a sunny day with planes to shoot is not a bad plan. If it is looking like crummy weather, you will have a good reason for thinking things will not go so well. However, there are times when it can work out. (I should point out that crap weather is more likely to be a bust than a success but it can work out sometimes.)

The perfect combination is the storm that passes through quickly but is isolated. As it moves through the weather may be harsh but, once it has passed by, you have the hope that the sun will come out again while there are still evil black clouds in the background. So was the case at O’Hare not long ago. The storm was really strong and the downpour was biblical in proportions. As it migrated north, the sun popped out and we got a combination of light and background that you can’t turn down. Some of the earliest arrivals got the best combination. The clouds soon moved off enough that the effect was reduced and then was gone. However, for a short span, we could get some great shots.

Is There a Plane in There?

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Sometimes you find yourself right in the middle of a storm of epic proportions. I was at O’Hare getting a few shots of the aircraft operating on the southerly runways. I later found out this spot is one that the local businesses do not like you using so I won’t be heading back here again. At the time, I had no idea that was the case and no one come out while I was there although the storm might have been a factor!

A 747 freighter was lining up to depart and I was ready to get some shots just as the rain arrived. It absolutely hammered down. I got very wet very quickly and, since I was now already wet, I figured I would try and get a shot anyway. This is the result. Somewhere in that murk was a 747 – I think!

Rainbow

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Rainbows are very pretty. Having a rainbow in a beautiful setting is excellent. Next to an interstate – not so much. You take what you get, though. This rainbow came out when the storm had passed through near O’Hare. We all started shooting it. Here you get a view of the back of Koz while he was shooting the rainbow. His vest is a little brighter than it was!

Getting up someone’s nose

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I have shot many times at O’Hare over the years. There are a few locations that provide opportunities but they do depend on the time of day and the approaches the jets are making. I was out there recently and wanted to try something different. I didn’t know how well it would work out but wanted to experiment. I checked out what was due in and found a time in the schedule when nothing unusual was coming in. Without the need to make sure I got something that was uncommon, I could risk not getting anything at all for a while.

I wanted to get more directly under the approach path. This is something that I have done before at Washington National but I have had less success at O’Hare. I went out a little further on the approach. The jets were a little higher but I wanted to see what I could get. You end up with both a slightly more head on shot and also get to look right up as they pass overhead. I like the view which is slightly less conventional. Winter is probably a good time to do this since the sun is lower in the sky and the snow on the ground provides a bit more light on the underside avoiding the silhouettes more common in the summer.

New American Livery – Not That Bad

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Having heard a lot of comments about people’s views of the new livery American Airlines has adopted, I was reserving judgement until I had seen it myself. When I first saw images online, I was not bowled over with it but I was not appalled as some people seem to have been. Given the boring nature of many liveries these days, I thought it was a little different from the norm and certainly not cause for offense. Of course, there were plenty who thought the exact opposite.

I have now had my first chance to see it for myself and I have to say my opinion is much the same. I was lucky in this instance that I got to photograph it just before the sun went down so it was bathed in some very favorable light. Even so, I think it looked okay. You will make your own decision of course. In time, we will forget this discussion ever took place!

Other O’Hare stuff

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The trip to O’Hare for the arrival of the United 787 meant I had a bit of time to shoot some other aircraft while I was there. I had started out at the arrival end of 28 for the 787 to show up. When we changed rapidly to 10, I was now on a good side of the field for some of the departures.

Departures at this end can be a good selection. Some will turn towards you and give a nice topside view. Others head out straight or turn away so you are always wondering whether this one will be worthwhile. I wasn’t out for a long time so this was just a chance to see what would come out before heading home. A 747 freighter is a welcome addition but it, sadly, turned away. Even so, it still looks cool. A few gave me a better view. I grabbed some shots and then headed home.

United 787

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A while back I was in Seattle and headed up to Everett to see the large numbers of 787 airframes parked up awaiting rework and delivery to their customers. When you see that many of them lying around, sometimes it is hard to remember that some of them are now getting delivered and entering service. One of Chicago’s local airlines (if you have a local airline these days) is United and they are the first US operator to take delivery of the aircraft.

Houston is the base of operations for the early aircraft but as they are trying to build experience for the crews, they are carrying out internal flights before taking the planes overseas. The first revenue flight was a leg from Houston to Chicago O’Hare. I was interested in covering this for the magazine since they were planning a reception for the aircraft when it got to O’Hare. The Chicago airport media relations people were not handling the event but they gave me the contact details for United. Sadly United were not inclined to respond to inquiries.

However, I decided that it was worth heading up to O’Hare anyway since the forecast was looking quite pleasant. Admittedly, these things will soon be a very common sight but getting the first arrival seemed like something worth spending a morning on. (In truth, the 787 had already been to O’Hare a few times on proving flights but let’s not get too picky!)

I was not the only one there. A lot of people had shown up and the place under the approach to 28 was pretty busy. That is until they changed runways shortly before the 787 was due in. A convoy of cars suddenly headed out to get around to the 10 arrivals. I was part of the convoy and found a spot that seemed reasonable. I had barely got out when the 787 came into view. Fortunately, the sun was being cooperative and the 10 approach actually was better for putting the light on the nose of the aircraft rather than the rear. I wonder how long it will be before I get bored with United 787s showing up.