Tag Archives: seattle

R44 With a Camera Boom?

There is no shortage of Robinson R22s and R44s at Boeing Field. Plenty of flight training takes place there and these types will be on the move on a regular basis. This R44 was coming in one evening when I was over there waiting for a later arrival. What caught my eye was that it was fitted with a boom of some sort. It looked like the sort of thing from which a camera might be mounted. An extension would be needed to bring to camera forward far enough but maybe this was the base of the mount? It was certainly not normal. Anyone know details about this installation?

Hot Tub on the Lake

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Renting a boat seems like a fun thing to do. Having a hot tub is something people like a lot too. I had never contemplated the idea of renting a hot tub boat, though. Apparently this is a thing in Seattle. We passed these people in their hot tub. It sat very low to the water and I assume that waves lapping over the side is not going to result in them sinking but it still seemed like a very odd idea. They seemed to be having fun, though.

Alaska and Southwest on Test

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The return to airworthiness of the 737 Max was first given in the US so there was a focus on getting airlines deliveries if they were under FAA jurisdiction. I guess we didn’t realize at that point that there would be some follow on issues that resulted in these jets getting grounded but such is the life of the Max watcher. Southwest started taking jets very soon after it was possible and Alaska soon followed with their first delivery – the grounding having come into effect before they had a chance to take their first jet.

On one day when I was watching the activity at Boeing Field, both airlines had aircraft out on test. They were operating under Boeing flight numbers but it wasn’t possible to tell whether they were production flight tests for Boeing or customer acceptance flights. No doubt I shall see a lot more of both operators with these jets in due course – once Boeing sorts out the latest issues and they become a more reliable part of service!

Long Time Since I Shot an MD-11 Touchdown

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MD-11 freighters are still a big part of the UPS fleet. In visits to Boeing Field before I lived up here, I got to see them quite often. For some reason, my more recent visits have not included many MD-11s. However, one nice evening with pleasant light, a UPS MD-11 was due in. They were on a northerly flow so a touchdown shot was not a problem. The bigger issue is that the 100-400 is fine for most of the sequence but, at the closest point, it is a bit too much lens. Still, nice to get one of these again. No idea what the long term plan is for UPS and the MD-11 but I hope they hang around for a bit.

Life Flight Bell 429

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Life Flight Network operate a lot of movements at Boeing Field. They have a Bell 429 that is there regularly. The thing I like about this airframe is that it has a metallic looking paint finish which looks great on a sunny day and can really catch the light. Here it is heading out on a mission from a while back.

A220 Engines Look Big Underneath

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The A220 (or C Series as it was then) was the plane that spooked Airbus and then Boeing. It was an efficient plane with a new engine – the Pratt and Whitney geared turbofan or GTF. Airbus decided the re-engine the A320 family with a version of the same plane and the success of that project changed Boeing’s plans from a new plane to a reboot of the 737 which gave us the Max! They went with a different engine to the GTF (and Airbus decided to offer both). The GTF is a high bypass engine so it takes up a lot of space under the wing. This A220 passed over me on approach to SeaTac and gave a good idea of just how large the engine nacelles are compared to the rest of the plane.

T-34 Low Departure From BFI

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A civilian owned Mentor lives in the Pacific Northwest. I don’t know which airport is its base as I have seen it flying from a bunch of locations but it is always interesting to catch. One morning I was up overlooking Boeing Field when it taxied out to depart from the short runway. It is a small plane for that distance but unusual enough to justify some attention. They took off quickly but kept it nice and low as they built up speed before climbing away for whatever they had planned.

Life Flight PC-12

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PC-12s are a common aircraft in the North American aviation scene so this one is nothing special. Seeing one on approach, albeit in nice light, is not cause for much celebration. However, it does mean that, with the light on the nose and a prop spinning up front, it is worth dropping the shutter speed and getting some prop blur. If I try and fail, I haven’t lost a shot of something that I wanted desperately to get and, if it works, it’s a bonus.

Nice Looking Global 7500

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The Global 7500 has been around for a while now but I have only shot one in flight. I did see one on a ramp but I was keen to see another in motion. Fortunately, one evening, an example was coming in to Seattle before heading off across the Pacific. Since these jets have incredible range, I assume it was picking someone up or dropping them off since it could easily have made the trip in one step.

This one was slightly better than average because the owner had decided to paint it in a scheme other than plain white. It had a couple of brown swoops along the side. Makes for something a little more interesting. I went with a relatively low shutter speed but, since I was keen to get the shot, I wasn’t quite as brave as I had been with less interesting jets. I kind of wish I had taken it a bit lower. Maybe next time.

Aspen Sounds Familiar

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There was a call sign of an inbound flight at Boeing Field that caught my attention. It was Aspen. This is a call sign that the 9^th Reconnaissance Wing at Beale AFB has used since the days of the SR-71. I have seen their T-38s show up at Boeing Field before so thought there was a good chance it could be another one. Sure enough, when they called up on approach, I could see a T-38 inbound. However, it was coming in at the same time as something else and it was actually aligned with the short runway.

They put the power on when crossing the airfield boundary and pulled up into the downwind for a second approach. The first approach had made the jet look pretty small in the viewfinder – I hadn’t realized that they were further away than the main runway – so I went with the 500mm when they came back. This made for a tighter shot than expected. However, I managed to get a few shots of the jet as it turned final – a long way away – and then as it was on short final. A nice treat.