Aside from FedEx, MD-11s are becoming pretty thin on the ground. Lufthansa Cargo has had a decent fleet of them but there will come a time before too long when they are all gone. I figured one weekend I would nip out and get the arrival of one of them. The arrivals of heavy jets, particularly freighters, are often put on the inside runway which gave me a bit of a chance but, at that time of day, there aren’t great spots. I found a place that is rather close to being underneath the jet but it would have to do. I still think it is a nice looking jet, even if it didn’t prove to be a success in its originally intended role.
I’ve taken so long to write this post that it has been expanded. I got an ABX 767 freighter coming in to SeaTac one time in overcast conditions. I had been meaning to write about it for a while but other topics had seemed more appropriate to cover first. Then, while out hunting for an MD-11F, I happened to have another example fly over me as I was parking up. (This one is an ABX jet but they are a common fleet.) The camera was to hand so I was able to get some shots for almost directly beneath. I guess this was the trigger for me to finally write the post!
The 787s fleeing the hurricane weren’t the only aircraft arriving at Paine Field while we were there. The regular schedule of 787 component deliveries was underway with the Dreamlifters. One of the jets landed just after we got there. We watched from the rooftop as it taxied in, the crew opened up the tail and a fuselage barrel section was offloaded. There was another Dreamlifter already parked up when we got there.
Once our tour was over, we headed back upstairs because this Dreamlifter was now ready to go. It pushed back and taxied out. I decided to try some video of it rather than more stills. The jet was off to Japan and was fueled up. Consequently, it used a good chunk of the runway to get airborne. I was watching through the camera and can admit to being a little surprised how long it ran. The video I got is below.
With visitors in town, I took them to the Boeing factory tour at Everett. I know this might seem like I was doing this for my own benefit but I think they were happy to go and it helped to be doing something indoors on a rainy day. When we got there, we arrived in time to see a bunch of jets landing. There was a stream of them coming in it seemed and I was surprised to see that there were 787-10s coming in. The Dash 10 is not built at Everett. They are only assembled in Charleston so they wouldn’t normally be at Everett. Some Hainan 787-9s had also made the trip.
It turns out that they were evacuations from the impending hurricane. South Carolina was in the path of a major hurricane, Florence, heading towards the southeast coast of the US. Apparently, Boeing had decided to get the jets that were airworthy out of there to minimize the risk of damage. I suspect they would move more if they could but this was the best that they could do. The thing I found interesting was that they brought the jets all the way across the country and that there wasn’t somewhere closer that they could have as a refuge. Perhaps it is easier logistically to manage but it is a long flight to make.
I was walking along the trail that goes through the park next to the airport at Renton taking a look at the stored jets. There is a bridge across the river that is used by Boeing to move jets from the production areas to the flightline and, as I got close to the bridge, I could see the tractor hooking up to a China Southern 737-800 that had yet to be painted. They looked like they might bring it across the bridge. I figured I might linger and see what was up.
Sure enough, they started to pull the jet out and towards the bridge. I stayed out of the way but the wings of a 737 hang over the trail when they are moving it. This was not a problem so they were happy for me to stand there as the jet was moved out. I figured a little iPhone video was in order.
They pulled the jet onto a taxiway and left it there so I figured it might be heading out on a test flight. With the light now slightly to the other side, I chose to go back to the car and move to the overlook on the west side of the field. The jet was starting up but they clearly had a few things to run through so I had time.
They taxied to the south threshold which initially disappointed me. The wind had flight operations in the other direction which would have meant a takeoff towards us and into the light. Going the other way meant they would be airborne a long way away and heading over the lake. What I hadn’t figured on was, just like at Everett, they would do a run with an abort first prior to flying. They carried this out and were then at the north end of the field.
A turnaround at the far end of the field and they were soon lined up. A floatplane was flying about in the background as they got ready to take off. Then it was power on and rolling. There was a lot of crap in the foreground and this was a bit of an obstruction at the point of rotation but I was able to get some good shots as they got airborne and climbed out past us. The green primer/protective film was glinting in the sun. The flight will have ended at Boeing Field where I hope everything was trouble free.
Engine supply is a bit of a problem for the big two airliner manufacturers at the moment. Rolls powered 787s are going through a drawn out program of rework and A320neos are sitting around awaiting both Pratt and CFM engines. Boeing is also short of CFM Leaps and the result is a lot of parked 737 Max jets at Renton and Boeing Field. Apparently, they are flying jets to Boeing Field and then trucking the engines back to Renton. As I flew over Boeing Field earlier in the week, the flightline did look full!
I wanted to see all of these parked jets so took a trip to Renton one weekend to see how things were. There were certainly plenty of jets around and quite a few had ballast weights attached to the pylons. Supposedly the backlog will not be sorted out until the fourth quarter (although some think that is a bit optimistic)!
It was time to head home, so I checked in for my flight and headed to Delta’s lounge to await boarding. What I did not realize is that the lounge overlooks the flightline and mirrors the view from the viewing terrace. It was a crummy day with a typhoon approaching so not ideal for shooting and certainly not ideal for shooting through glass but, despite the occasional reflection, it was actually surprisingly good. The battery on the camera was on its last legs but why not get whatever you can.
The fun of a different city in a different country is the new airlines. Airlines I have heard of but not seen and airlines I have never heard of at all. They kindly would rotate quite close to where we were which was appreciated. The rainy conditions also meant that, while the lighting was pretty flat, there were vortices, spluff over the wings and inlet fogging to add some interest.
Lufthansa changed their livery recently. It was not universally appreciated and I can’t say I disagree. It really is rather dull. I hadn’t even bothered to keep an eye on whether it was on a jet coming to Seattle. Instead, while out in Federal Way, I saw a 747 heading my way so decided to take a couple of shots. Turns out it was the new colors (or lack thereof). Soon it will be a common sight as they repaint the fleet but this was my first encounter.
While at Haneda, I saw a Vietnam Airbus A350 on approach. I think their livery is a great change from the bland look of most airlines. Unfortunately, it was a long way off so not something I could get a good shot of. When I was waiting to head home at Narita, the Vietnam A350parked at the gate right in front of me. Hurrah? Nope. It was a Skyteam special so was a rather less interesting silver scheme. Still better than average but disappointing compared to what it could have been.
Haneda introduced me to a new airline. Air Do. They had a lot of traffic coming through Haneda, both narrowbody and widebody. In fact, one of their 767s took off in great light as I was walking to the viewing terrace which was a touch frustrating. It was a long time before another one took off but at least the evening light improved so the wait was worthwhile. Meanwhile, the 737s were busy and some 767s taxied past after landing so I got to see a few of them in action.
Aside from FedEx, MD-11s are becoming pretty thin on the ground. Lufthansa Cargo has had a decent fleet of them but there will come a time before too long when they are all gone. I figured one weekend I would nip out and get the arrival of one of them. The arrivals of heavy jets, particularly freighters, are often put on the inside runway which gave me a bit of a chance but, at that time of day, there aren’t great spots. I found a place that is rather close to being underneath the jet but it would have to do. I still think it is a nice looking jet, even if it didn’t prove to be a success in its originally intended role.
