Delta has gone in for the A321neo in a big way. They are taking delivery of them at a pretty steady pace. That doesn’t mean you get them everywhere as some types get focused on regions that others don’t. For a while, we didn’t see too many of the neo jets up this way but that seems to have changed now. I am seeing loads of them if I am around SEA these days. Here is a selection of shots of their jets that I have taken in recent months.
We were walking through the city checking out areas that we didn’t normally go to when we worked in Town during our visit last year. Our route brought us up to the Royal Exchange. It is a really cool looking old structure but one that has been adapted to modern uses. The inside is some pretty high end retail and we weren’t buying whatever they were selling. However, I did love the look of the place. It was also quite funny because I bumped into an old work colleague that I knew from Seattle (who has moved back to the UK). Not what you expect in a city the size of London!
The trip to the UK early this year included a quick trip to Kemble or Cotswolds Airport as it is also known. Near the tower, they have a couple of preserved airframes that harken back to the time that this was a Royal Air Force base (including it being home of the Red Arrows). One of the gate guards (okay, they aren’t near the gate, but you get the idea) is a Folland Gnat. I don’t know whether it is a genuine ex-Red Arrow or just painted to look like one, but it is cool either way. It is the tiniest of jets. I wonder what it was like ferrying one across the Atlantic as they did for a tour.
The other airframe is a Hawker Hunter. This is a classic aircraft and one that continues in use to this day. It is a trainer version with the side-by-side cockpit arrangement and in a grey paint job that I am not familiar with them having used in service. Either way, another great looking jet and something cool for any visitors to check out.
While walking through Washington Arboretum, we passed where a couple of trees had been taken down. It looked like it had been done very recently because the remains of the trunk where it had been sawn off still looked very fresh. The texture of the cross section caught my eye and I figured a view straight down with the light from the side picking out detail was the best angle.
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.
Fall means leaves and, at least in the Northwest, it can also mean rain. The rain helps accelerate the dropping of the leaves, but it also does a nice job of making the colors look at their best. I was out at lunchtime and saw these leaves on the ground in the parking lot. I couldn’t walk by without taking a few shots.
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.
A hangar has been under construction at Paine Field for a while and, while so much time has been taken up by the preparation of the groundwork, I happened to be there when they were assembling the frame of the hangar. The long span that the finished structure will have is built up of two pieces with the side beams and the roof beams for one side being assembled on the ground and then two cranes being called in to lift both halves up simultaneously so that they can be bolted in the center to provide the rigidity needed.
Seeing the cranes holding these large frames in place and the crews using scissor lifts to get up to put the connections in place was quite neat. Once the frames are in place, the process of cladding the building can take place in slower time. Those cranes will have been expensive to rent so getting that heavy lifting done as fast as possible will have been the goal.
It seems for each generation of airliner, the smallest one from the previous generation is the one that doesn’t do so well. The 737-500 sold reasonably well but the -600 was the unloved on of the NG range. The -700 sold well but the Max 7 is not really attracting any love (except from Southwest). The A320 family has the same thing. Apparently, the small one just doesn’t age well. The 737-600 did not end up with many airlines so I have few shots of them. Aside from the Janets, these are the only operators I have seen.
My first visit to Lopez Island included a stop down by Agate Beach. When Nancy and I took a trip to the island, we headed down to the beach so I could see it again. The weather was lovely and the beach looked at its best. I took some panorama shots as well as regular ones to try and convey the feeling of the bay that the beach sits in. It’s a lovely location.
