Tag Archives: Boeing

Under Your Nose at King County

Hayman and I had a few hours to kill after we arrived in Seattle and before we had a ferry to catch (of which more in another post). We decided to stop off at Beoing Field to have a look around. We checked out a number of places including the excellent pilot shop they have and ended up near the end of the runway. I had looked at this location on a previous visit but not shot there. A 737 was up on a test flight and due in soon so we decided to hang around.

Before the 737 appeared, we did have a couple of corporate jets show up. Identifying them from underneath is a little hard to do, even for those of us with far too familiar a knowledge of this things. However, I was more interested in getting a slightly different shot from underneath. With power lines nearby, there was a relatively short period of time in which you could get a clear shot.

The 737 showed up shortly afterwards. We did get to shoot it as it passed overhead but I did remember to stop shooting at one point and just look. The view through a wide lens tends to make everything look small. However, having something the size of a 737 right over your head is very impressive and you need to stop taking pictures and just have a look every once in a while.

Sunset Above the Clouds

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As the spring moves closer to summer, the view on my flights home changes. The timing is not any different but I get further east before the sun gives up and disappears. Arriving in the light is not far off now but I am still getting to experience the sunset while airborne. Sometimes it doesn’t appear to be very interesting. I guess this is a function of where the clouds are relative to us. However, one recent trip included a very nice looking sky. Looking back across the wing, I could just make out the sun going down.

The light on the top of the clouds looks particularly nice from above. Sadly it is one of those events where I am disappointed that the image can’t replicate exactly how it felt to be looking out. However, maybe it will give you a small example of how it looked or, if you have seen the same thing yourself, remind you of how nice it looks.

Ameriflight

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Not a company that I was previously familiar with, Ameriflight seems to have a significant operation at Boeing Field. I assume they are a feeder to some of the larger parcels businesses that operate out of there bringing in and distributing out the packages to smaller locations that don’t have the need for something the size of a 757. They operate a mix of turboprop types.

Beech see to be a popular choice. They had Beech 99s, King Air 200s and Beech 1900 airliners operating at various points, all seeming to have been converted for cargo business. In addition, they had some Metroliners – a type that you don’t get to see so often these days.

Flightware suggested they also had Brasilias but I didn’t get to see one while I was there so whether that is true or one of Flightaware’s not infrequent errors, I don’t know. Sadly, as color schemes go, they are not terribly distinctive but it was still nice to see a selection of different types in a very short space of time. I imagine they have a window of deliveries and pick ups so timing was everything.

Boeing 737s In Progress

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While there might be changes afoot in Boeing’s production locations, Seattle is still the heart of what they build. A short distance from Boeing Field is Renton, the home of 737 production. However, the plant at Renton is an assembly facility as much as a production location and, while they do build chunks of the aircraft there, a substantial portion is made elsewhere.

Most notable of the parts coming from other places is the fuselage. Boeing used to own a plant in Wichita that builds the fuselages but they sold it a few years back and it now goes by the name of Spirit. The production of the fuselages is still done there under sub-contract and the finished fuselages are shipped to Renton by train. The train comes along the tracks right behind Boeing Field. Earlier in my visit I had been driving when a train with a couple of fuselages on it went by. I was pretty annoyed to have missed it. However, I would get lucky when another train with several more fuselages on board came by.

Supposedly the journey across is not always trouble free. There is no issue with the length of the fuselage. However, some of the residents along the route are not as concerned with the well-being of an expensive piece of airplane. Repairs are often required after they arrive including patching the occasional gun shots. I guess those people are not planning on flying on the plane any time soon or maybe they might be a little less cavalier!

Biz Jets Too!

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I am always partial to a corporate jet or two. Since Boeing Field is closer to downtown Seattle, it is a popular base of operations. There are a couple of FBOs on the field and a few movements took place while I was there. While the end of the line has come for the Hawker business jet as far as production is concerned, there are a huge number of them in service so seeing them will be common for many years to come. A nice Canadian example came in while I was there.

A departing Falcon 2000 was another nice one to see. Falcons are a very popular line and the 2000 looks okay to me but as it takes off over you, I think you get the best angle on it. There were a selection of jets departing as well. Heat haze was a small problem but not terrible and, for web sized images, it doesn’t cause too much trouble.

A Learjet came in while the sun was out but the sky in the background was a touch more moody. That certainly made me happy as it makes for a more interesting shot. It was a brief visit but still resulted in a fair bit of interest so I would happily stop back again.

Freighter Frenzy

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A recent post mentioned an evening at Boeing Field in Seattle. With nice evening light, this is a great place to shoot. Not only is the warm evening light in exactly the right diction, the field is situated at the bottom of a hill that provides a far more interesting backdrop for shots than a clear sky. Also, the variety of traffic is very good. Today, I shall focus on the bigger freighters. The airport is a base for UPS and DHL and also has a variety of other freight traffic.

With so many airlines vanishing and the variety of aircraft types diminishing, freighters provide an interesting level of diversity. First they are different operators, even if UPS and FedEx are pretty ubiquitous. Also, they tend to operate older types so aircraft that are in the twilight of their passenger careers may show up more often. This trip was not going to deliver too many exotic types with 757s and 767s still being regulars in passenger service but it won’t be too long before they start to disappear.

Irrespective, it is nice to see something a little different and to shoot them in nice light and at a nice location is even better.

Not so long ago, this would have been boring

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One evening after work I had some time to hang out at King County Airport, oath wise known as Boeing Field. In the evening light, this is a nice place to observe aviation. It has quite a variety of activity and, with quite a lot of freight activity focused later in the day, getting there after work can be productive. I shall tell more about the other movements in upcoming posts. Today is focus on one of those things that the passage of time brings. There was a Boeing 737 and I was excited by it. Why? It was a 200 series jet. For many years these were the only type of 737 around and, even when the 300 series came along, they were still very common.

As a sign of my age, I remember when the 200 series was called the “classic” compared to the newer 300-500 series jets. Now those are called classic compared to the NG jets. With the 7X, 8X and 9X coming along, will the NG now become classic and the previous two generations will need a different moniker? Anyway, 200s are not terribly common anymore so seeing one getting regular use was a nice change. It has a cargo door in the forward fuselage which, I suspect, it didn’t have earlier in its life. I hope it has a good few years left.

New American Livery – Not That Bad

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Having heard a lot of comments about people’s views of the new livery American Airlines has adopted, I was reserving judgement until I had seen it myself. When I first saw images online, I was not bowled over with it but I was not appalled as some people seem to have been. Given the boring nature of many liveries these days, I thought it was a little different from the norm and certainly not cause for offense. Of course, there were plenty who thought the exact opposite.

I have now had my first chance to see it for myself and I have to say my opinion is much the same. I was lucky in this instance that I got to photograph it just before the sun went down so it was bathed in some very favorable light. Even so, I think it looked okay. You will make your own decision of course. In time, we will forget this discussion ever took place!

First Crossing Shot of the Season

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Just a quick joke. I was out shooting wildlife when there were a couple of airliners overhead. It is a bit early in the year for airshows but I guess this might count as my first crossing shot of two jets for the year. Hopefully there will be a few more!

United 787

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A while back I was in Seattle and headed up to Everett to see the large numbers of 787 airframes parked up awaiting rework and delivery to their customers. When you see that many of them lying around, sometimes it is hard to remember that some of them are now getting delivered and entering service. One of Chicago’s local airlines (if you have a local airline these days) is United and they are the first US operator to take delivery of the aircraft.

Houston is the base of operations for the early aircraft but as they are trying to build experience for the crews, they are carrying out internal flights before taking the planes overseas. The first revenue flight was a leg from Houston to Chicago O’Hare. I was interested in covering this for the magazine since they were planning a reception for the aircraft when it got to O’Hare. The Chicago airport media relations people were not handling the event but they gave me the contact details for United. Sadly United were not inclined to respond to inquiries.

However, I decided that it was worth heading up to O’Hare anyway since the forecast was looking quite pleasant. Admittedly, these things will soon be a very common sight but getting the first arrival seemed like something worth spending a morning on. (In truth, the 787 had already been to O’Hare a few times on proving flights but let’s not get too picky!)

I was not the only one there. A lot of people had shown up and the place under the approach to 28 was pretty busy. That is until they changed runways shortly before the 787 was due in. A convoy of cars suddenly headed out to get around to the 10 arrivals. I was part of the convoy and found a spot that seemed reasonable. I had barely got out when the 787 came into view. Fortunately, the sun was being cooperative and the 10 approach actually was better for putting the light on the nose of the aircraft rather than the rear. I wonder how long it will be before I get bored with United 787s showing up.