Tag Archives: airliner

Zero G 727

If the weather is really crap, my first thought is not to go photographing aircraft. I have experimented with going out on bad days to see if you can get an unusual view of something but when the forecast is for heavy and constant rain, that isn’t too appealing. So, what do you do when you get a notification that the Zero G Boeing 727 is coming in to Oakland. (Zero G operates flights that provide multiple short exposures to weightlessness as the plane flies a parabolic arc.) A type that is not too common any more, an unusual operator, your local large airport and it is on a Sunday morning so you aren’t at work. Everything is saying go.

Oakland is not a great place to shoot when operations are in the normal direction. You are also on the wrong side of the runway for good light. However, the storm meant that the approaches were coming down from the north and they pass by some locations that give good views of the runway. All of these things were suggesting I need to take a chance. I headed off equipped with wet weather gear. I chose to get there a little early to get some practice in.

Oakland is a pretty busy airport during the week but the weekend schedules are a lot lighter. I figured I wanted to shot a couple of approaches before my plane came in to view to get things set up right. The light was crap so I had to ramp up the ISO. Also, while the sky is dark, a lot of exposure compensation helped to get detail on the fuselage itself. Having found a combination I was happy with, a heavy belt of rain came in and the visibility rapidly diminished. By now the 727 was not far out so I figured I might just have blown it.

Fortunately, the rain came in fast but eased off just as quickly and soon I could just make out the outline of San Francisco in the murk which told me I should be able to get my picture. They checked in with the tower for landing clearance so I knew it was time to get out and get wet. Initially, everything looked really grey as the plane came in to view. Fortunately, as it ran down the approach, it was in the clear all of the way and I was able to get off a burst of shots. Once it was down, the weather was not going to get better and there were not many movements scheduled anyway so I decided I was happy with the catch and preferred to warm and dry indoors.

Rainy and Dark at SeaTac

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In the past I have been able to get some reasonable shots of departing aircraft at SeaTac from the pier of the terminal that Southwest operate from while I am waiting for my flight. I was heading home in the evening and thought I would have little luck because the sun would be on the wrong side. Turns out, the sun was nowhere to be seen – this is Seattle so I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised.

Instead, it was raining (shocking news) so, even though the light should not have faded, it was pretty bleak. Normally, I would have thought this meant I would no be getting any shots. However, I decided to have a go anyway. Sometimes, the bad weather shots can come up with something a bit special. I did not anticipate getting this but it would have been frustrating to watch and miss something cool.

As it turned out, things weren’t too dramatic. I did get a few shots of the jets and turboprops as they headed out. Sometimes there would be puffs of vapor over the wings or clouds in the inlets but nothing too good. An Emirates 777 took off which meant a fair bit of spray behind it as it powered away. Sadly it rotated just as it went out of sight so the real clouds of spray were not visible from where I was.

Nice to Still See an A310

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The freight ramps on the south side of LAX are a good place for some older jets. FedEx has a substantial fleet of aircraft and they are currently in the process of replacing many of the older jets with new (or newer) types with reduced operating costs. The fleet of Airbus A300 and A310 aircraft are gradually reducing. There was a nice looking A310-200 parked up on the ramp as we flew over. I haven’t seen too many of them recently so this was a nice surprise. A great view to get of it too.

Compression of Perspective

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Shooting with a long focal length lens has the effect of compressing the image to make elements appear a lot closer together than they really are. When shooting from the helicopter over LAX I was using a 100-400mm lens. The aircraft themselves were quite low to the ground, particularly those on short final to land. They weren’t a long way off the ground but the lens in use had the effect of making things look a lot closer than they really were. Some of the shots I got of the aircraft over parking lots or near the In’n’Out really make it look as if the jets were barely airborne. I like the extra drama this adds to the shots.

Fiji Airways

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Seeing a new airline is always a nice surprise. I had not come across Fiji Airways before but saw a few of their A330s during my time at LAX. Not a bad looking livery given the boring schemes you often see these days.

Flightpath Learning Center

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Despite having gone to LAX many times to shoot and being aware of the Flightpath Learning Center, a museum about LAX located on the south side of the field, I had never been there before. When visiting with Pete, we were a bit more determined to see what it had to offer. Sadly, we got there at about 2:45 and the place closes at 3:00. Even so, we did have a quick look around in the time available. We even got to see a Singapore Airlines A380 depart from 25R as it rotated right outside the windows. Unfortunately, as seems to have been a theme on this trip, I was not carrying a camera.

The docents at the museum were very friendly and explained a little of the history of the collection and I decided I should go back again. The following day, Pete was on the crew for the return to London and I was due to fly back to Oakland. I decided to get everything ready ahead of returning my rental car and then go to Flightpath to spend some time prior to the trip home.

They have a DC-3 out in front of the museum which you can go inside. It is configured as a corporate transport for Union Oil and looks pretty neat. You can also stand outside their building under supervision and shoot the arrivals and departures. The location is a little closer to the thresholds of the 25 runways so it has a better view of some operations that can be achieved at Imperial Hill. The low shooting angle also provides a different perspective to the norm.

The museum itself has a lot of information on LAX and the operators there. They have a great selection of models, uniforms and memorabilia from the various airlines that have been based there. To see how LAX has evolved over the years is quite interesting. All of this is provided free of charge so is certainly worth a visit if you have some free time.

Korean A380

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The Airbus A380 may be a lot more common now than it was a few years ago but they are still comparatively rare. LAX is a place that gets a lot of them so the chance of catching one airborne was high, particularly given the time we were flying. Korean Air were the operator that obliged. We picked up the aircraft as it was on its downwind leg. Knowing it was out there made it easier to keep track of it – particularly knowing which runway it was coming in on.

We spotted it when it was still well out on the approach. As it came across the buildings surrounding the airport were were able to choose how we wanted to have it line up with the background. Finally it was coming across the parking lots, passing the In’n’Out Burger and then coming over the threshold. A little float and then the tires smoked on touchdown. The angles and light were pretty much ideal and Paul, our pilot, had us ideally placed. We could also keep an eye on it as it taxied in including getting on the gate.

An Abundance of Parallel Approaches

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Getting a parallel approach that actually results in the two planes being close together is something that you always hope for at SFO. While I was waiting for the Qantas jet to arrive, I was given an abundance of parallel approaches. No idea why it was good on this day. Traffic wasn’t particularly heavy. However, it seemed like everything was coming in at the same time. Sadly the conditions were not ideal but it was still okay.

Sometimes, the jets are a bit further apart but, when they first line up, they overlap in the distance. Other times they seem to start out further apart but you know that the perspective is off and they will end up close together. I guess this was just a lucky day. It is good to have lens options on an occasion like this. My longest lens is a prime. It works well for many things at SFO but, when the jets are close together, they will usually end up being too much for the lens. Having a second zoom to hand is ideal in that case.

Qantas Comes to Town

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If you shoot a few times at the same place, you get familiar with what to expect. Consequently, the arrival of a new operator is something of interest. In this case, it is the return of an operator. Qantas used to operate to SFO but pulled out a number of years ago. Now they have returned with a 747-400 coming in several times a week. I got my first view of one of the jets when I was at the airport to pick some people up. The scheduling of their flights means that they land in the morning but don’t leave again until late the following night. In the mean time, the plane is parked up near the parking structure for the international terminal and it was from there that I saw it.

I thought I ought to get an airborne shot so headed our one morning to see the arrival. The weather forecast was for a nice start followed by cloud moving in. The forecast was almost spot on but was a little optimistic about when the clouds would show up. They arrived a little early. Having had some really nice morning light on earlier movements, the conditions got a lot more overcast and dull by the time that the jet showed up. I guess this means I will have to try again at some point.

New KLM Colors

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KLM are one of the few airlines that are not soon to be rid of their 747s. They have demonstrated this by starting to repaint them in a new color scheme. When I was at LAX, one of the newly painted jets was due to come in. Annoyingly, rather than follow the normal approach path to the 24 complex, he came straight over the field and went in on the 25 complex. I saw it come overhead and could see it in the distance as it landed over on the other side of the airport.

Fortunately, later in the day I was on the south side up on Imperial Hill awaiting a message from my buddy that he was ready to roll. I had not thought further about the KLM jet but, since it had come in earlier, that meant it was going to go out again. It took off in front of me – catching me a little by surprise. I was able to get a shot of it in good light so all was not lost.