New FedEx 767 Struggles for First Flight

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Aside from the USAF, FedEx is the main recipient of aircraft coming off the 767 line these days.  They have just placed another order too so they will continue to take new 767 freighters for years to come.  One of the jets was planning to have a first flight at Paine Field.  Prior to first flight, Boeing tends to run a high speed taxi and braking profile.  If this goes well, they will then take off for the first flight.  Judging by the radio traffic this time, things were not going well.  They did one run, braked and vacated.  They taxied down to my end and repeated in the opposite direction.  Then they called the tower to confirm that they were heading back to the ramp.  I imagine they fixed the issue before too long but no first flight on this occasion.

Parking Garage Rooftop Garden

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We have been watching a TV show that has aerial imagery of cities around the US for a 24 hour period (clearly not always a consecutive 24 hours but it is TV!).  One of the shows had Seattle and they covered a parking garage that has a garden on the top level.  I decided I needed to find this when up the Needle and it wasn’t hard.  There it was beneath us just as we saw it on TV.  The Airstream in the middle is apparently for the people that manage the lots.  Quite a cool location.

Not Often You See An Avro These Days

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The BAe146 was a regular feature in the 90s.  It was a popular regional jet with use both in Europe and the US.  They were still in service when we moved to Chicago and I traveled on them on occasion.  However, a four-engine jet became a bit dated and they have mostly been replaced in service with newer and more efficient types.  Therefore, it was a pleasant surprise to see one show up at Vancouver.  In their later iterations, they were renamed Avros to pay homage to one of BAe’s predecessor companies.  They were basically just a tweaked 146 as far as I was concerned though.  The new generation RJX made it to protype form but was cancelled before production.  I guess the economics were just never going to be compelling.

Above Half Dome

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I was staring idly out of the window as I was flying across California when a shape on the ground below caught my eye.  I grabbed the camera as I realized we were coming across Yosemite.  From above, the most conspicuous shape is that of Half Dome.  However, it looks very different when looking down on it than it does when you are on a level with it.  It almost seems distorted.  I grabbed a few shots as we zipped overhead and then it disappeared behind the wing.

Fuddy Duddy

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The Lyon Air Museum has a B-17 as part of its collection.  Named Fuddy Duddy, I was told by a docent that it is airworthy.  I don’t know whether that means it is still flown or not and a quick search has not brought up any recent photos of it but maybe it is out and about at times.  I walked around it in the hangar and got a few shots of it in amongst the rest of the museum collection.  It looked to be in great condition but I have no idea what is beneath the skin.

Lots of Wheels to Touch Down

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The spot Mark introduced to me at Vancouver was good for touchdown shots.  British Airways brings an A380 in each day so I was keen to get that landing.  The landing shots included a lot of tire smoke as the wheels spun up but having something like an A380 means you have a few extra wheels and a lot more smoke, even if it is progressively given the configuration of the gear.

The size of the A380 makes it good at longer range if the conditions will allow.  The background is getting busy as more buildings are added but you could get a clearer view further out with only the bridge for the Canada Line showing up.  Swapping to the wider lens was necessary given the size of the jet.  I know it is one that polarizes opinion but I quite like it and I definitely enjoyed flying on it.

It’s Raining on Us Only

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A trip to Snoqualmie Falls ended up being on a day that was not the greatest weather.  We were hoping that it wouldn’t rain.  When we got to the top of the Falls, it was getting pretty wet.  However, it wasn’t raining.  Instead, the spray from the glass was being driven up the cliff face towards us by the prevailing wind.  It was then dropping on us.  Head off down the trail a short way and we were dry again.  Of course, that was little compensation when you were getting drenched at the overlook points!

A-26 Invader

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The A-26 is a plane that had a longer life in service than many of its stablemates.  It found use as a ground attack aircraft in Vietnam despite having its origins in WWII.  It cropped up along the way between these extremes.  Some of them found use as corporate transports too including the one I saw at Lyon Air Museum.  It had been used by Howard Hughes at some point.  Now it is restored to something closer to its operational configuration.

It was tight in amongst the other exhibits which made getting good shots tricky.  It is also finished in black which can make the photography a touch more challenging.  However, having not shot a lot of them, I was keen to make the best of it.  These shots are a summary of what I got as I checked out this speedy beast.  How I would like to get some airborne shots of one.  I believe one lives close to me but I have yet to see it out in the wild.

Follow the Lock Staff Instructions

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The smaller of the locks at Ballard has mooring points that float with the water level so the boats can tie up and wait for the process to be over.  In the big lock, the boats have to let out or take in their lines as the level changes because they are tied to the lock side itself.  When the boats were down, the lock crew shouted out clear instructions to everyone to keep their lines tight until instructed to do otherwise.  As the boats had come in, we had watched with some amusement a guy who didn’t seem to know how to handle his boat.  Judging by the text on the boat, it was a share scheme of some sort.

I wandered away as they started to move out of the lock but Nancy and Mum stayed to watch.  Judging by the shouting that followed, one of the boats had let off his lines early.  When the gates open, there is a flow out of the lock which starts to take loose boats with it.  One of them started to rotate and take the other boats with it.  I missed the whole thing but I was able to guess who was the one that hadn’t followed instructions.  Hmm…