I knew this exact story within less than 12 months of the incident. Maybe even sooner. Someone I know was on that plane. In fact, it was not very long ago that I read some theory that she was a target. Her name was Pam Lychner and she was a crusader against sex offenders. Also was pushing Texas to pass sex offender tracking laws...hmm...
The NTSB/FAA knew damn well that the center fuel tank larp was a larp. That is why it wasn't until 2018 - 22 years later - that they finally made the airworthiness directive take effect on 747 center fuel tanks. And was the AD that rid the skies of the 4 holers :(
Queen of the skies...and the best ride across the ponds either direction. Damn shame they were forced out over a larp. They continually kept pushing back the effective date over and over and over. Delta and United couldn't justify a couple of million bucks to comply with it, when the frame itself wasn't worth more than a few million. And worth a helluva lot more parting it out.
Part of me feels like the market didn't force the 747 out of the airline lineup. Something else did. Nothing inherently wrong with the 777 or the A330. The A380 is a boondoggle that died before it started. The A340 has massive gas guzzling engines that put out the power of a hair dryer and get weight limited on virtually all summer long hauls due to their hair dryers lacking sufficient power to get off the ground fully loaded in the heat.
Air travel will never be the same without the 747. It is a flying experience unlike any other. You just can't understand unless you've ever been on it. I've been very upset since they were booted.
I've not been on an airplane since this covid nonsense started. I will NEVER wear a mask on a plane. So I simply didn't fly. And now I am swamped and don't have time to fly for now. We used to travel on average every six weeks. I was an enthusiast - always buying tickets based on rate/travel time/airline quality/alternate options if something goes wrong/aircraft type. And I knew the ins and outs of all the travel reward systems...damn near OCD levels...I just stopped cold. Didn't touch it during covid and I've not gotten back into it. Kind of like sports - that's a lifetime activity that was halted cold turkey recently from wokeness.
It used to be (pre-covid and post US airline retirements) you could catch 747 rides in the US on Qantas, British Airways, Lufthansa, & Korean Air. Maybe Air China. But airlines were decimated in 2020/2021. Not sure those birds are out of moth balls. And they might not ever come out...who knows. Very very sad for the aviation fanatics.
funny how the fuel tanks on the 747 were "faulty" by design, and yet pretty much the same design is used in most boeing large aircraft. how many of them have exploded like that?
precisely 0 before and 0 since...complete bs and truly impossible to occur in the manner they suggested. Not enough force to break a wing spar on vapors, and not enough oxygen at that altitude to ignite. There is a reason jet engines have big ass compressors...
I knew this exact story within less than 12 months of the incident. Maybe even sooner. Someone I know was on that plane. In fact, it was not very long ago that I read some theory that she was a target. Her name was Pam Lychner and she was a crusader against sex offenders. Also was pushing Texas to pass sex offender tracking laws...hmm...
The NTSB/FAA knew damn well that the center fuel tank larp was a larp. That is why it wasn't until 2018 - 22 years later - that they finally made the airworthiness directive take effect on 747 center fuel tanks. And was the AD that rid the skies of the 4 holers :(
...those were decent aircraft....
Queen of the skies...and the best ride across the ponds either direction. Damn shame they were forced out over a larp. They continually kept pushing back the effective date over and over and over. Delta and United couldn't justify a couple of million bucks to comply with it, when the frame itself wasn't worth more than a few million. And worth a helluva lot more parting it out.
Part of me feels like the market didn't force the 747 out of the airline lineup. Something else did. Nothing inherently wrong with the 777 or the A330. The A380 is a boondoggle that died before it started. The A340 has massive gas guzzling engines that put out the power of a hair dryer and get weight limited on virtually all summer long hauls due to their hair dryers lacking sufficient power to get off the ground fully loaded in the heat.
Air travel will never be the same without the 747. It is a flying experience unlike any other. You just can't understand unless you've ever been on it. I've been very upset since they were booted.
I've not been on an airplane since this covid nonsense started. I will NEVER wear a mask on a plane. So I simply didn't fly. And now I am swamped and don't have time to fly for now. We used to travel on average every six weeks. I was an enthusiast - always buying tickets based on rate/travel time/airline quality/alternate options if something goes wrong/aircraft type. And I knew the ins and outs of all the travel reward systems...damn near OCD levels...I just stopped cold. Didn't touch it during covid and I've not gotten back into it. Kind of like sports - that's a lifetime activity that was halted cold turkey recently from wokeness.
It used to be (pre-covid and post US airline retirements) you could catch 747 rides in the US on Qantas, British Airways, Lufthansa, & Korean Air. Maybe Air China. But airlines were decimated in 2020/2021. Not sure those birds are out of moth balls. And they might not ever come out...who knows. Very very sad for the aviation fanatics.
...flying used to be fun...
...wonderful observations, nicely stated and framed....
funny how the fuel tanks on the 747 were "faulty" by design, and yet pretty much the same design is used in most boeing large aircraft. how many of them have exploded like that?
precisely 0 before and 0 since...complete bs and truly impossible to occur in the manner they suggested. Not enough force to break a wing spar on vapors, and not enough oxygen at that altitude to ignite. There is a reason jet engines have big ass compressors...