Southwest Scimitars and the Inaccuracy of Online Truths

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Online forums can be a great source of information.  They can also be full of rubbish.  With the introduction of the split scimitar tips on the 737 fleets, Southwest was an early adopter on their 800 series jets.  However, I read that they had not been happy with performance and had stopped adopting them.  They definitely weren’t going to have them on the 700 series.  Above is a 700 series with split scimitars.  A number of airframes have now been fitted including this one so I guess those people were not the most accurate source of info!

The Alpha Wolf Even Looks Like He’s the Boss

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The small pack of wolves at Cougar Mountain Zoo were quite something to watch.  They had a variety of territories in their enclosure and they moved between them frequently.  They did patrol the area near the visitors to keep tabs on what was going on.  There was a very distinct hierarchy in the pack.  The alpha male was very obvious.  A number of them seemed to be at a secondary level and one seemed to be the most passive in the group, often staying away from rest.  He didn’t seem to have any problems but did not get in the way of the others.

The alpha was a great looking wolf.  When compared to the others, there was even something about the face that made you know he was in charge.  He had a look that suggested he was constantly assessing things.  It is easy to project human emotions on to animals but something about this guy made you think that he didn’t have time for the fun stuff and he was always on guard.  He looked great.

So Close to a Gear Up Landing

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A gear up landing is never something you want to have.  What is worse is doing it in front of a lot of people.  However, the crowd can sometimes be a benefit.  The open house at Paine Field included some flybys by various types and one Navion was the last in his group to recover.  Coming down the approach with flap deployed but no gear he looked very odd.  I imagine the horn should have been blaring but, whatever the reason, he continued.  Much frantic waving by the crowd and a call from the air boss had the desired effect, fortunately.  A go around ensued followed by a normal approach a landing.  I understand many beers were bought that night.

Camden Yards

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I last saw Camden Yards over 20 years ago when I was living in Washington D.C.  At the time, the trend for developing baseball stadiums back in downtown areas was only just getting going.  Camden was a trendsetter.  Now, many cities have gone down the same route and baseball stadiums are in the cities whether it is the majors or the minors.  I was heading to get the train back to the airport at the end of my work visit and the route took me right through the middle of the complex.  A game was due later in the day and some visitors were already taking tours while the vendor staff were just getting ready to serve the crowds that would come later.  However, it was still nice and quiet as I passed through.  It was also going to be a warm day so I imagine that the vendors were going to have a busy day keeping everyone refreshed.

Legacy 600 and a Close Relative

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When you consider the large cabin corporate jets, there is one jet that has not had as much success as it deserves.  The Legacy 600 from Embraer is a derivative of the E135 regional jet but transformed into a longer range and far more comfortable jet.  It hasn’t done much to dent the market that Gulfstream, Dassault and Bombardier have been operating in.  It doesn’t have the super long range of some of the competitor products but, given that many operators never go off the US East Coast, that range is not a big deal for many customers.  Prestige is though and the Legacy has never had the same cachet given its regional jet heritage.

This one showed up at San Jose on a sunny winters day.  The interesting thing was that something very similar was also flying that day.  The second aircraft is not a Legacy, though.  It is an E145 that is operated by Intel.  They have outfitted it as a corporate shuttle.  It runs their staff between their locations.  I don’t know what the interior is like but externally it looks a lot like a bizjet which, I guess is what it is.

The Sun is Out – Time to Jump in the Fountain

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It doesn’t matter whether a sunny day is a hot day or not.  Get a bunch of kids somewhere near a fountain and they will be running through it in a heartbeat.  When the air temperature is not that high, I guess the water temperature is probably not going to be much different.  That doesn’t matter though.  I think when you are a kid, you don’t care about stuff like that so much.  Instead, you run through the water and have fun!

Ruslan Chases the Small Guys at Paine Field

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Antonov 124s make a regular appearance at Paine Field.  Boeing obviously receives a lot of shipments which I am guessing may be engine deliveries.  Plenty of the flights come from Columbus OH which is near a GE plant and the GE90-115 fan is too big for most freighters when installed.  However, it could be for something else.  Anyway, I got one coming in to Everett recently.  Paine Field is a popular field for light aircraft so you get a lot of them flying patterns on the main runway.  One called up on final when the Ruslan was turning on to final.  They made it in without any trouble but it was quite amusing to see the little plane on final with the unmistakable silhouette of the Antonov not far behind.

Edgar Allan Poe Rests Here

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A recent trip to Baltimore for work did not involve much time to take a look around.  Most of the time was in meetings or work related social events.  However, I did need to go to the post office at one point to mail something out.  As I walked up the street, I passed a little church that seemed to have some signage.  I didn’t immediately pay attention but, when I was walking back, I saw that the graveyard included the last resting place of Edgar Allan Poe.  The churchyard is not large and it is tucked in amongst a lot more modern buildings but Poe is a local favorite and his house is apparently nearby.  This is where he is now, though.

FedEx Sneak in But the Background is Good

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While on the hunt for a different aircraft, I was getting some shots of the aircraft coming in to SeaTac from the south.  I was pleased to see a FedEx jet showing up on FlightRadar24 but it seemed to be rather close to another plane.  It turns out they were scheduling them in on roughly parallel approaches and the FedEx was going to the center runway – not near me.  I was a bit annoyed and the view of the center was a bit obscured from where I was.  Haze was also going to be a problem – plus the odd power line.  However, there was one upside.  Mount Rainier is in that direction so, while the shot wasn’t what I wanted, it wasn’t a total loss.

The Navy Had Good Architects

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At the bottom end of Lake Union is the Museum of History and Industry.  It is located in a building that used to be a Navy facility.  I think the Navy had a building spree in a short time as a lot of their building have a similar architectural style.  The buildings on Treasure Island in San Francisco that I covered previously here seem to have some similar styles.

The museum looks to have some interesting exhibits but, we were there on a sunny day and enjoying the outside.  I shall return to check things out on a more rainy day.  Do they have those here?