A Thai satellite has detected 300 floating objects in the Indian Ocean, about 200 kilometers from the international search area for the missing Malaysia Airlines MH 370.
Anond Snidvongs, executive director of Geo Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency, said that Thaichote satellite or Thailand Earth Observation Satellite, has recorded the objects in the Indian Ocean, on March 24 at 10am local time.
mh370 300 bojects thai satellite 2 211x300 Malaysia Flight Mh370 : Thai Thaichote satellite detects debris,
Taichote Sat Image multiple objects
The site was about 2,700 kilometres from Perth of Australia and about 200 kilometres from the international search area where the ill-fated flight is thought to have come down. Some objects were more than two metres long, Anond said.
The detection is resulted from Thailand’s cooperation with Malaysia in finding the missing jetliner.
He said images of the findings had already been submitted to the caretaker premier and that caretaker Foreign Minister Surapong Tohvichakchaikul will forward the images to his Malaysian counterpart to examine if they were of the debris of MH 370.
Thaichote or Thailand Earth Observation Satellite is a remote sensing satellite for natural resources observation.
Malaysia has concluded that the flight “ended” in the Indian Ocean and all passengers are presumed dead.
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Monday, March 24, 2014
Malaysia Air, Flight MH370, Flight MH370 crashed in south Indian Ocean' - Malaysia PM
Malaysia's prime minister has announced that missing flight MH370 crashed in the southern Indian Ocean.
Najib Razak said this was the conclusion of fresh analysis of satellite data tracking the flight.
[caption id="attachment_2027" align="alignnone" width="444"]
Marker buoys in place where Mh370 Debris[/caption]Malaysia Airlines had told the families of the 239 people on board, he said.
The BBC has seen a text message sent to families by the airline saying it had to be assumed "beyond reasonable doubt" that the plane was lost and there were no survivors.
"With deep sadness and regret I must inform you that, according to this new data, flight #MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean."
[caption id="attachment_2028" align="alignnone" width="445"]
Search Planes drop marker buoys in place where debris is found[/caption]
There were 227 passengers on flight MH370, many of them Chinese.
Relatives of those on board who watched the announcement at a Beijing hotel wept with grief, and some were taken away on stretchers by medical teams.
mh370.
[caption id="attachment_2018" align="alignnone" width="590"]
Japanese P-3C Orion aircraft on at RAAF Base Pearce.[/caption]
The crew of the Chinese IL-76 aircraft observed two large objects and several smaller ones spread across several square kilometresstate news agency Xinhua reported.
It is the third possible sighting in the area off western Australia that has become the focus of the search effort.
Australian and China radar echoes had picked up several objects about 2,300km (1,430 miles) from Perth, a statement added.
[caption id="attachment_2016" align="alignnone" width="590"]
Malaysia MH370 Map with fuel range[/caption]
Flight MH370 disappeared on 8 March while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, with 239 people on board.
The search for the Boeing-777 now in its third week, 10 aircraft are combing a huge patch of the southern Indian Ocean, with two Chinese military planes joining Australian, US, New Zealand and Japanese aircraft. More ships are on their way and the US is dispatching a specialised device to help locate aircraft flight data and cockpit voice recorders.
[caption id="attachment_2021" align="alignnone" width="590"]
MH370 Sat Debris Photo[/caption]
The Australian prime minister, Tony Abbott, said that the crew of an Australian P3 Orion had located two objects: the first grey or green and circular, the second orange and rectangular. An Australian navy supply ship, the HMAS Success, was on its way to attempt to recover the objects, with Malaysia's transport and defence minister, Hishammuddin Hussein, suggesting the vessel should reach them by Tuesday morning if not before.
But a US Navy P8 Poseidon was unable to find items seen by a Chinese plane earlier in the day, Australian search co-ordinators announced.
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Boeing 777 orders
Review of Boeing 777 Orders and News
Malaysia not Subject to FAA Safety Directive
(Reuters) - Boeing Co on Wednesday said the missing 777 Malaysia Airlines jetliner was not subject to a new U.S. safety directive that ordered additional inspections for cracking and corrosion on certain 777 planes.
The Federal Aviation Administration last week ordered additional, repeated inspections of certain Boeing 777 aircraft, warning that corrosion and cracking could lead to rapid decompression and damage to the structure of the aircraft.
Boeing 777 Operators
United Airlines placed the launch order for the 777 program on October 14, 1990 when it purchased 34 Pratt & Whitney PW4084-powered 777-200s valued at US$11 billion with options on an additional 34.[11][12] Subsequent versions of the 777, including the 777-200ER, 777-200LR, 777-300, 777-300ER, and 777F, have been launched by Air France, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, and Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). The following table lists milestone dates for each model of the aircraft.
| Model | Launch order | Launch customer | Go-ahead | Rollout | Maiden flight | Certification | First Delivery | Service entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 777-200 | October 15, 1990 | United Airlines | October 29, 1990 | April 9, 1994 | June 12, 1994 | April 19, 1995 | May 15, 1995 | June 7, 1995 |
| 777-200ER | June 14, 1991 | British Airways | October 29, 1990 | September 3, 1996 | October 7, 1996 | January 17, 1997 | February 6, 1997 | February 9, 1997 |
| 777-200LR | February 27, 2000 | Pakistan International | February 29, 2000 | February 15, 2005 | March 8, 2005 | February 2, 2006 | February 27, 2006 | March 3, 2006 |
| 777-300 | June 14, 1995 | Cathay Pacific | June 26, 1995 | September 8, 1997 | October 16, 1997 | May 4, 1998 | May 21, 1998 | May 27, 1998 |
| 777-300ER | March 31, 2000 | Air France | February 29, 2000 | November 14, 2002 | February 24, 2003 | March 16, 2004 | April 29, 2004 | May 10, 2004 |
| 777F | May 24, 2005 | Air France | May 24, 2005 | May 21, 2008 | July 14, 2008 | February 6, 2009 | February 19, 2009 | February 22, 2009 |
Mixed News about Malaysia 777, MH370 Flight
Mixed Conclusions arise on the internet news services about Missing Malaysia 777 Boeing Flight MH370
The Slate: Update, March 17, 9:45 p.m.: Flight MH370's initial turn off course, to the west over Malaysia, was programmed into the plane's computer system not manually maneuvered, according to senior U.S. officials. The New York Times, who is reporting the latest development, says the command would have involved seven or eight keystrokes into the Flight Managment System, a computer which sits between the pilot and the co-pilot. It is not clear if the command was programmed before or after the airliner took off.
The latest information, if true, suggests the diversion was initiated by a pilot or someone with very specific technical knowledge. Investigators are still analyzing radar tapes that show the first few movements of the plane after it went off course. The airliner appears to have tracked along several so-called waypoints, or pre-established locations in the sky, as it travelled from its scheduled path. Here's the New York Times with the details:
From Mirror.co.uk : March 18, 2014 America's former head of air security believes the crew of missing flight MH370 died heroically trying to save the plane from a fire.
Billie Vincent, former head of security for the Federal Aviation Administration throughout the 1980s, has dismissed theories of a terror attack or suicide mission.
Instead he believes the pilots struggled to save their aircraft after a blaze in the cargo hold until they were eventually overcome by smoke.
Mr Vincent, who was an expert witness in the Lockerbie bombing trial, said: “The data released thus far most likely points to a problem with hazardous materials.
“This scenario begins with the eruption of hazardous materials within the cargo hold – either improperly packaged or illegally shipped – or both.”
Mr Vincent believes a fire started in the cargo hold and gradually destroyed the plane’s communications systems.
He says toxic fumes would have quickly overwhelmed the passengers and cockpit.
Mr Vincent guesses that one of the pilots managed to put on an oxygen mask and tried to turn the plane back to Kuala Lumpur.
He puts the plane’s rapid ascent and descent down to the crew simply not being able to see properly until they manage to stabilise at 23,000 ft.
Mr Vincent added: “The airplane then continues flying until no fuel remains and crashes – most likely into the ocean as there has been no report of any Emergency Locater Transmitter (ELT) signal which can be received by satellite if the crash were on land.”
And Mr Vincent, who played a key role in negotiations after the hijackings of US planes during the 1980s, insists it is unlikely the aircraft was sabotaged.
He said: “There is no indication that either of the pilots was criminally involved in the disappearance of this aeroplane.
“Neither has Malaysia released any data indicating anything amiss in the security clearance of the passengers for this flight.
“The one question raised about the two passengers travelling on stolen passports has been cleared indicating that they were planning on illegally claiming refugee status in another country, probably Germany.
“I have yet to see anything released about the nature and content of the cargo carried in the cargo hold of MH370.
“Hazardous cargo can be legally carried on passenger aircraft. However, the amount and type of such hazardous materials are strictly controlled.”
Update 1: Says MH370's Flight Path Was Altered By Computer Command, Not Manual Controls.
The Slate: Update, March 17, 9:45 p.m.: Flight MH370's initial turn off course, to the west over Malaysia, was programmed into the plane's computer system not manually maneuvered, according to senior U.S. officials. The New York Times, who is reporting the latest development, says the command would have involved seven or eight keystrokes into the Flight Managment System, a computer which sits between the pilot and the co-pilot. It is not clear if the command was programmed before or after the airliner took off.
The latest information, if true, suggests the diversion was initiated by a pilot or someone with very specific technical knowledge. Investigators are still analyzing radar tapes that show the first few movements of the plane after it went off course. The airliner appears to have tracked along several so-called waypoints, or pre-established locations in the sky, as it travelled from its scheduled path. Here's the New York Times with the details:According to investigators, it appears that a waypoint was added to the planned route. Pilots do that in the ordinary course of flying if air traffic controllers tell them to take a different route, to avoid weather or traffic. But in this case, the waypoint was far off the path to Beijing. ...
Normal procedure is to key in a five-letter code — gibberish to non-aviators — that is the name of a waypoint. A normal flight plan consists of a series of such waypoints, ending in the destination airport. For an ordinary flight, waypoints can be entered manually or uploaded into the F.M.S. by the airline.
Update 2 : America's Head of Home Security says :the crew of missing flight MH370 were overcome trying to save the plane from a fire in the cargo hold.
From Mirror.co.uk : March 18, 2014 America's former head of air security believes the crew of missing flight MH370 died heroically trying to save the plane from a fire.
Billie Vincent, former head of security for the Federal Aviation Administration throughout the 1980s, has dismissed theories of a terror attack or suicide mission.Instead he believes the pilots struggled to save their aircraft after a blaze in the cargo hold until they were eventually overcome by smoke.
Latest updates on search for missing jet
Mr Vincent, who was an expert witness in the Lockerbie bombing trial, said: “The data released thus far most likely points to a problem with hazardous materials.
“This scenario begins with the eruption of hazardous materials within the cargo hold – either improperly packaged or illegally shipped – or both.”
Mr Vincent believes a fire started in the cargo hold and gradually destroyed the plane’s communications systems.
He says toxic fumes would have quickly overwhelmed the passengers and cockpit.
Mr Vincent guesses that one of the pilots managed to put on an oxygen mask and tried to turn the plane back to Kuala Lumpur.
He puts the plane’s rapid ascent and descent down to the crew simply not being able to see properly until they manage to stabilise at 23,000 ft.Mr Vincent added: “The airplane then continues flying until no fuel remains and crashes – most likely into the ocean as there has been no report of any Emergency Locater Transmitter (ELT) signal which can be received by satellite if the crash were on land.”
And Mr Vincent, who played a key role in negotiations after the hijackings of US planes during the 1980s, insists it is unlikely the aircraft was sabotaged.
He said: “There is no indication that either of the pilots was criminally involved in the disappearance of this aeroplane.
“Neither has Malaysia released any data indicating anything amiss in the security clearance of the passengers for this flight.
“The one question raised about the two passengers travelling on stolen passports has been cleared indicating that they were planning on illegally claiming refugee status in another country, probably Germany.
“I have yet to see anything released about the nature and content of the cargo carried in the cargo hold of MH370.
“Hazardous cargo can be legally carried on passenger aircraft. However, the amount and type of such hazardous materials are strictly controlled.”
Saturday, March 15, 2014
Boeing 777 Flight MH370 Flown off course, deliberately
Investigators have concluded that at least one person with considerable flying experience flew the missing Malaysia Airlines jet off course for seven hours in a "deliberate action" after turning off its communication systems.
From CNN, TIME, Saturday 15, 2014
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak announced at a press conference on Saturday that Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which disappeared a week ago with 239 people aboard, appeared to be intentionally steered off-course by at least one person with considerable flying experience.
“This has been a situation without precedent,” said Najib, adding that the plane’s disappearance was the result of a “deliberate action by someone on the plane.”
Authorities are very confident that the jet’s transponder was disabled during the flight, he added, and that the last satellite communication from the aircraft came about seven hours after takeoff. The investigation has been “refocused” into the passengers and crew members.
[caption id="attachment_1925" align="aligncenter" width="460"]
Map of possible flight routes/capabilities of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370[/caption]Wednesday, March 12, 2014
TomNod activates crowdsourcing search in Satellite images of Malaysia Mh370
Crowdsourcing MH370 Online Search
TomNod is using his online crowdsourcing platform to help search for the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777, Flight MH370. The platform allows internet users to log in and view actual satellite images and mark possible findings on the search area.
Capture of TomNod Online Platforma for Crowdsourcing Search of MH370.
Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 and its 239 passengers vanished from radar while en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur.
Go to TomNod Website Now
HOW IT WORKS?
1 Join the Tomnod team as you view the planet and mark what you see.
2 Others on the team mark the same images -- you get nods when they agree with you.
3 In places where the team agrees, we find the strongest marks.
Help them tag...
- Wreckage / Airplane Wreckage
- Raft / Life Raft
- Other / Anything interesting or suspicious
- Oil Slick / Oil Slick in Water
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Malaysia Airlines Mh370: Stolen Passports not linked to terrorism.
Police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said: "He [Iranian man] is not likely to be member of terrorist group"
Malaysian police named one as Pouria Nour Mohammad Mehrdad, 18, and said he was probably migrating to Germany.
Interpol identified the other as Delavar Seyed Mohammadreza, 29.
View Photos here
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26525281
[caption id="attachment_1903" align="alignnone" width="590"]
BBC's Alice Budisatrijo says searchers are 'using the naked eye' to try to find the missing plane[/caption]
Four areas of investigation were focused on the possibility of human agency, the police chief said: hijacking, sabotage, psychological problems or personal problems with passengers or crew.
Two-thirds of the passengers were Chinese. Others were from various Asian countries, North America or Europe.
Relatives have expressed frustration at the lack of information about the plane's fate.
At least 40 ships and 34 aircraft are taking part in the search in the seas off Vietnam and Malaysia.
[caption id="attachment_1904" align="alignnone" width="590"]
Mh370 Extended Search Area[/caption]
By Martin Abbugao (AFP) – 20 hours ago
Singapore — Nearly three days after it disappeared while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, mystery still shrouds the fate of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 and the 239 people on board.
No debris from the Boeing 777-200ER has been recovered despite an international search involving the navies and air forces of several Asian nations as well as the United States.
Following are some questions surrounding the disappearance and the search, and answers by industry experts who spoke to AFP:
Q: Could the plane have disintegrated in mid-air?
The failure of the plane's pilots to send a distress signal has given rise to speculation there was a sudden catastrophe -- possibly caused by a mechanical failure or an explosion.
The lack of wreckage recovered so far also suggests a high-altitude disaster which spread debris across an area too wide to be easily detected.
"If it had been an impact at sea level of the whole craft, chances are more debris will be found immediately," said Chris de Lavigne, an expert on aerospace and defence issues at business consultancy Frost & Sullivan.
Sudden, accidental structural failures are considered extremely unlikely in today's passenger aircraft. This is especially so with the Boeing 777-200, which has one of the best safety records of any jet.
Authorities said the plane was at cruising altitude, 35,000 feet (11 kilometres) above sea level, when it last made contact.
"It's the safest point in the flight," de Lavigne said. "It's an extremely safe aircraft with very, very few incidents in its history. This is just overly puzzling."
Q. Have there been other plane mysteries like this?
Air France flight 447 crashed into the Atlantic Ocean in June 2009 while on a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, killing 216 passengers and 12 crew. Debris was not found for days and it took years to locate the wreckage. Investigators eventually concluded that both technical and human error were to blame for the tragedy.
Adam Air flight 574 with 102 people on board disappeared from radar in January 2007, also at its cruise phase during a domestic flight in Indonesia. Debris was found nine days later after an extensive search and it took months to recover the plane's black box.
Indonesian authorities said the pilots lost control after becoming preoccupied with malfunctioning navigational equipment.
Q: What are the theories on what happened to MH370?
"One possibility is a mid-air explosion," said Gerry Soejatman, an Indonesia-based independent aviation analyst.
"The other is when there is a simple problem and then the crew tries to diagnose it, gets caught up in it and then they don't realise what's happening and the plane crashes. That's what happened with the Air France case. At the moment, until we find anything, it has to be one of these two scenarios."
De Lavigne said that at this stage, with so little information, all possibilities must be considered.
"It's either a serious mechanical failure or something a little bit more sinister," he said.
"It's pretty surprising that there was no SOS call from the plane and it just disappeared. It would lead to the conclusion that something fast and drastic happened."
Malaysian authorities have launched a terror investigation, but are refusing to rule anything out, including a possible hijacking.
Q: Why is it so hard to find evidence?
The region being searched, including the Gulf of Thailand and the South China Sea, are busy shipping lanes with large amounts of flotsam that will complicate the search for any wreckage.
"When they see something, it is not blatantly obvious that it is a wing or tail. They have to go and examine what it is, it takes time," Soejatman said.
Q: Why have authorities not picked up any signals?
Aircraft have an Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) which is designed mainly for when the plane crashes on land and pilots are still trying to control it. In the event of a major crash, it may not work.
"Basically what this beacon does is simply say 'I've been activated, find me!'" Soejatman said. "It is not fool-proof but it is the best thing that we have at the moment."
The plane also has a "black box" consisting of the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder. If immersed in water they should activate a "pinger" that can draw investigators to the location. However, the sound cannot be heard over long distances.
"You need a ship equipped with a listening sonar to pick up the signal within the area," Soejatman said, cautioning however that the shallow waters of the MH370 search site could create interference.
The missing Boeing 777-200ER was also equipped with ACARS (Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System), a system which sends short messages to ground controllers -- either automatically or manually depending on the airline.
"If Malaysia Airlines does have these messages, that would be very useful" to determine events before it lost contact, Soejatman said.
Malaysia Airlines' chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahya told reporters at a press conference late Monday that the missing aircraft was equipped with ACARS, but did not provide any further details.
An airline representative later confirmed: "The aircraft has got the ACARS system which transmits automatically. There were no distress calls. No information was relayed."
Q: Is security at Kuala Lumpur International Airport questionable?
Revelations that at least two people aboard the plane were using stolen European passports have heightened fears about a security breach.
Rohan Gunaratna, a terrorism expert at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University, said the passport issue could indicate a "glaring flaw" in the airport's immigration clearance.
He noted that Interpol maintains a database of stolen passports that should have raised alarms at the immigration counter.
The 2 men travelling with stolen passports in the Mh370 Malaysia Airlines are not supposedly linked to terrorism.
Malaysian police named one as Pouria Nour Mohammad Mehrdad, 18, and said he was probably migrating to Germany.
Interpol identified the other as Delavar Seyed Mohammadreza, 29.
View Photos here
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26525281
The Search for MH370 continues
[caption id="attachment_1903" align="alignnone" width="590"]
BBC's Alice Budisatrijo says searchers are 'using the naked eye' to try to find the missing plane[/caption]Four areas of investigation were focused on the possibility of human agency, the police chief said: hijacking, sabotage, psychological problems or personal problems with passengers or crew.
Two-thirds of the passengers were Chinese. Others were from various Asian countries, North America or Europe.
Relatives have expressed frustration at the lack of information about the plane's fate.
At least 40 ships and 34 aircraft are taking part in the search in the seas off Vietnam and Malaysia.
[caption id="attachment_1904" align="alignnone" width="590"]
Mh370 Extended Search Area[/caption]Q&A: What happened to Malaysia Airlines flight MH370?
By Martin Abbugao (AFP) – 20 hours ago
Singapore — Nearly three days after it disappeared while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, mystery still shrouds the fate of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 and the 239 people on board.
No debris from the Boeing 777-200ER has been recovered despite an international search involving the navies and air forces of several Asian nations as well as the United States.
Following are some questions surrounding the disappearance and the search, and answers by industry experts who spoke to AFP:
Q: Could the plane have disintegrated in mid-air?
The failure of the plane's pilots to send a distress signal has given rise to speculation there was a sudden catastrophe -- possibly caused by a mechanical failure or an explosion.
The lack of wreckage recovered so far also suggests a high-altitude disaster which spread debris across an area too wide to be easily detected.
"If it had been an impact at sea level of the whole craft, chances are more debris will be found immediately," said Chris de Lavigne, an expert on aerospace and defence issues at business consultancy Frost & Sullivan.
Sudden, accidental structural failures are considered extremely unlikely in today's passenger aircraft. This is especially so with the Boeing 777-200, which has one of the best safety records of any jet.
Authorities said the plane was at cruising altitude, 35,000 feet (11 kilometres) above sea level, when it last made contact.
"It's the safest point in the flight," de Lavigne said. "It's an extremely safe aircraft with very, very few incidents in its history. This is just overly puzzling."
Q. Have there been other plane mysteries like this?
Air France flight 447 crashed into the Atlantic Ocean in June 2009 while on a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, killing 216 passengers and 12 crew. Debris was not found for days and it took years to locate the wreckage. Investigators eventually concluded that both technical and human error were to blame for the tragedy.
Adam Air flight 574 with 102 people on board disappeared from radar in January 2007, also at its cruise phase during a domestic flight in Indonesia. Debris was found nine days later after an extensive search and it took months to recover the plane's black box.
Indonesian authorities said the pilots lost control after becoming preoccupied with malfunctioning navigational equipment.
Q: What are the theories on what happened to MH370?
"One possibility is a mid-air explosion," said Gerry Soejatman, an Indonesia-based independent aviation analyst.
"The other is when there is a simple problem and then the crew tries to diagnose it, gets caught up in it and then they don't realise what's happening and the plane crashes. That's what happened with the Air France case. At the moment, until we find anything, it has to be one of these two scenarios."
De Lavigne said that at this stage, with so little information, all possibilities must be considered.
"It's either a serious mechanical failure or something a little bit more sinister," he said.
"It's pretty surprising that there was no SOS call from the plane and it just disappeared. It would lead to the conclusion that something fast and drastic happened."
Malaysian authorities have launched a terror investigation, but are refusing to rule anything out, including a possible hijacking.
Q: Why is it so hard to find evidence?
The region being searched, including the Gulf of Thailand and the South China Sea, are busy shipping lanes with large amounts of flotsam that will complicate the search for any wreckage.
"When they see something, it is not blatantly obvious that it is a wing or tail. They have to go and examine what it is, it takes time," Soejatman said.
Q: Why have authorities not picked up any signals?
Aircraft have an Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) which is designed mainly for when the plane crashes on land and pilots are still trying to control it. In the event of a major crash, it may not work.
"Basically what this beacon does is simply say 'I've been activated, find me!'" Soejatman said. "It is not fool-proof but it is the best thing that we have at the moment."
The plane also has a "black box" consisting of the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder. If immersed in water they should activate a "pinger" that can draw investigators to the location. However, the sound cannot be heard over long distances.
"You need a ship equipped with a listening sonar to pick up the signal within the area," Soejatman said, cautioning however that the shallow waters of the MH370 search site could create interference.
The missing Boeing 777-200ER was also equipped with ACARS (Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System), a system which sends short messages to ground controllers -- either automatically or manually depending on the airline.
"If Malaysia Airlines does have these messages, that would be very useful" to determine events before it lost contact, Soejatman said.
Malaysia Airlines' chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahya told reporters at a press conference late Monday that the missing aircraft was equipped with ACARS, but did not provide any further details.
An airline representative later confirmed: "The aircraft has got the ACARS system which transmits automatically. There were no distress calls. No information was relayed."
Q: Is security at Kuala Lumpur International Airport questionable?
Revelations that at least two people aboard the plane were using stolen European passports have heightened fears about a security breach.
Rohan Gunaratna, a terrorism expert at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University, said the passport issue could indicate a "glaring flaw" in the airport's immigration clearance.
He noted that Interpol maintains a database of stolen passports that should have raised alarms at the immigration counter.
Saturday, March 8, 2014
Malaysian Ailines 777 missing and reported crash into the sea.
Vietnam Navy says Malaysian plane crashed into the sea
6.21 pm: Vietnam Navy says Malaysian Airlines crashed off southern coast The Vietnam navy says that the Malaysian Airlines plane with 5 India passengers on board crashed into the South China Sea. However, the Malaysian officials have said are still not aware of the location of the crash.
6.12 pm: Oil slicks suspected to be from Malaysian Airlines found Reports suggest that Vietnam air force planes have found two oil slicks suspected to be from the missing Malaysian jetliner.
5.18 pm: Malaysian Airlines releases identities of Indian passengers Five Indians, including three from one family, and an Indian-origin Canadian were among the 239 people on board the Beijing-bound Malaysian Airlines plane that went missing and is presumed to have crashed today. The five have been identified as Chetna Kolekar, Swanand Kolekar, Suresh Kolekar, Chandrika Sharma and Prahlad Shirsatha, Indian Embassy in Beijing said. One Indian-origin Canadian Muktesh Mukherjee was also on board the flight. Other details of the Indians on board were not immediately available.
4:00 pm: Malaysia Airline say there's still no luck in locating the aircraft In a brief statement on Twitter, Malaysia Airlines said that they still have no information about the missing aircraft: We understand everyone's concern on MH370 pax & crew. We're accelerating every effort with all relevant authorities to locate the aircraft.
2:15 pm: Airline says still no clue about missing aircraft Malaysia Airlines has issued a new statement in which it has said that it has still been unable to locate the missing flight MH370. "We are still trying to locate the current location of the flight based on the last known position of the aircraft.
We are working with the International search and rescue teams in trying to locate the aircraft. So far, we have not received any emergency signals or distress messages from MH370. We are working with authorities and assure that all sources are deployed to assist with the search and rescue mission," the airline said. Malaysia Airlines also clarified that the error in the nationalities of the passengers had resulted in the airline initially not mentioning that five Indians were missing. "Please take note that the earlier statement did not include the number of Indian nationals. This was due to confusion between the country code of Indonesia and India," the airline said. The airline said it wouldn't release the names of the passengers until they had made contact with the relatives of all the missing passengers. 1:20 pm: Malaysia says it is confirming with Vietnam navy about crash The Star Online reports that the Malaysian Navy is presently talking with the Vietnamese Navy to verify the report of its flight to Beijing having crashed. The report quoted the Malaysian defence minister as saying that they have no verification of the wreckage presently.
12:25 pm: Five Indians on board missing Malaysia Airlines flight Malaysia Airlines says 5 Indians on board missing flight to Beijing. While it was initially stated that there were no Indians on board, Malaysia Airlines has amended the list to state that there were five Indians among the crew and passengers of the airline. AFP quotes Faridah Shuib, a spokeswoman for the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency as saying that Malaysian authorities have dispatched a plane, two helicopters and four vessels to search seas off its east coast in the South China Sea. The Philippines says it is sending three navy patrol boats and a surveillance plane to help efforts. 12:15 pm: Malaysia Airlines says they have no information on flight yet In a brief statement that the airline has issued, it said that it has not received any confirmation on the fact that the flight has crashed. "We are currently working with international authorities on the search and rescue mission and as at 1400 hours (1130 IST), 08 March 2014, we have no information on the location of the airline," Malaysia Airlines said in its statement.
11:35 am: Details about crash very unclear presently Reuters quoted Admiral Ngo Van Phat telling the website of official news site Tuoi Tre said, "At the moment there are no Vietnamese navy boats in that area so we have to ask boats from Phu Quoc island to be prepared for rescue." Tho Chu and Phu Quoc lie to the southwest of southern Vietnam. Reuters reports it was not immediately clear how the Admiral knew where the plane had crashed or whether wreckage had been spotted. The plane last had contact with air traffic controllers 120 nautical miles off the east coast of the Malaysian town of Kota Bharu, Malaysia Airlines had said.
Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/world/live-vietnam-navy-says-malaysian-plane-crashed-into-the-sea-1424627.html?utm_source=ref_article
Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/world/live-vietnam-navy-says-malaysian-plane-crashed-into-the-sea-1424627.html?utm_source=ref_article
#PrayForMH370
6.21 pm: Vietnam Navy says Malaysian Airlines crashed off southern coast The Vietnam navy says that the Malaysian Airlines plane with 5 India passengers on board crashed into the South China Sea. However, the Malaysian officials have said are still not aware of the location of the crash.6.12 pm: Oil slicks suspected to be from Malaysian Airlines found Reports suggest that Vietnam air force planes have found two oil slicks suspected to be from the missing Malaysian jetliner.
5.18 pm: Malaysian Airlines releases identities of Indian passengers Five Indians, including three from one family, and an Indian-origin Canadian were among the 239 people on board the Beijing-bound Malaysian Airlines plane that went missing and is presumed to have crashed today. The five have been identified as Chetna Kolekar, Swanand Kolekar, Suresh Kolekar, Chandrika Sharma and Prahlad Shirsatha, Indian Embassy in Beijing said. One Indian-origin Canadian Muktesh Mukherjee was also on board the flight. Other details of the Indians on board were not immediately available.
4:00 pm: Malaysia Airline say there's still no luck in locating the aircraft In a brief statement on Twitter, Malaysia Airlines said that they still have no information about the missing aircraft: We understand everyone's concern on MH370 pax & crew. We're accelerating every effort with all relevant authorities to locate the aircraft.
2:15 pm: Airline says still no clue about missing aircraft Malaysia Airlines has issued a new statement in which it has said that it has still been unable to locate the missing flight MH370. "We are still trying to locate the current location of the flight based on the last known position of the aircraft.
We are working with the International search and rescue teams in trying to locate the aircraft. So far, we have not received any emergency signals or distress messages from MH370. We are working with authorities and assure that all sources are deployed to assist with the search and rescue mission," the airline said. Malaysia Airlines also clarified that the error in the nationalities of the passengers had resulted in the airline initially not mentioning that five Indians were missing. "Please take note that the earlier statement did not include the number of Indian nationals. This was due to confusion between the country code of Indonesia and India," the airline said. The airline said it wouldn't release the names of the passengers until they had made contact with the relatives of all the missing passengers. 1:20 pm: Malaysia says it is confirming with Vietnam navy about crash The Star Online reports that the Malaysian Navy is presently talking with the Vietnamese Navy to verify the report of its flight to Beijing having crashed. The report quoted the Malaysian defence minister as saying that they have no verification of the wreckage presently.12:25 pm: Five Indians on board missing Malaysia Airlines flight Malaysia Airlines says 5 Indians on board missing flight to Beijing. While it was initially stated that there were no Indians on board, Malaysia Airlines has amended the list to state that there were five Indians among the crew and passengers of the airline. AFP quotes Faridah Shuib, a spokeswoman for the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency as saying that Malaysian authorities have dispatched a plane, two helicopters and four vessels to search seas off its east coast in the South China Sea. The Philippines says it is sending three navy patrol boats and a surveillance plane to help efforts. 12:15 pm: Malaysia Airlines says they have no information on flight yet In a brief statement that the airline has issued, it said that it has not received any confirmation on the fact that the flight has crashed. "We are currently working with international authorities on the search and rescue mission and as at 1400 hours (1130 IST), 08 March 2014, we have no information on the location of the airline," Malaysia Airlines said in its statement.
11:35 am: Details about crash very unclear presently Reuters quoted Admiral Ngo Van Phat telling the website of official news site Tuoi Tre said, "At the moment there are no Vietnamese navy boats in that area so we have to ask boats from Phu Quoc island to be prepared for rescue." Tho Chu and Phu Quoc lie to the southwest of southern Vietnam. Reuters reports it was not immediately clear how the Admiral knew where the plane had crashed or whether wreckage had been spotted. The plane last had contact with air traffic controllers 120 nautical miles off the east coast of the Malaysian town of Kota Bharu, Malaysia Airlines had said.
Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/world/live-vietnam-navy-says-malaysian-plane-crashed-into-the-sea-1424627.html?utm_source=ref_article
Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/world/live-vietnam-navy-says-malaysian-plane-crashed-into-the-sea-1424627.html?utm_source=ref_article
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
British Airways puts Austin in the Transatlantic Flight Map.
AUSTIN, Texas, March 3, 2014 . British Airways launched its inaugural flight between Austin, Texas and London, England. This marks the first regular transatlantic nonstop service for the city of Austin. The inaugural flight into Austin Bergstrom International Airport will be met by Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell and British Airways EVP Americas Sean Doyle.
For this much anticipated route, British Airways will operate one of the newest aircraft in its fleet, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The service will be available five days a week, increasing to daily flights in May. The first flight is perfectly timed to help accommodate travelers from Europe heading to the international South by Southwest Conferences and Festivals.
The new aircraft features three cabins: Club World (business class), World Traveller Plus (premium economy) and World Traveller (economy). The cabins feature stylish new interiors with state-of-the-art entertainment systems. British Airways provides meals, snacks and beverages, including full-service bar for free. Customers can also benefit from a generous baggage allowance.
"British Airways sees a great opportunity to make a connection between the vibrant cities of London and Austin," said Sean Doyle, EVP Americas, British Airways. "Both cities have rich histories, brilliant arts and music scenes, and bright futures. Equally important, today's flight connects Austin, primed for innovation and entrepreneurship, to London, Europe and beyond."
"As the Mayor of Austin and a former pilot, I am excited to have British Airways, one of the world's foremost carriers, create this trans-Atlantic link. This first time, nonstop service between ABIA and Heathrow Airport is sure to take our cities to new levels for both business and vacation travelers," said Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell. "We look forward to a great and growing relationship between Austin, British Airways, and London."
"Boeing is proud of its partnership with British Airways," said Boeing Sales Director David Longridge. "The airline continues to use the 787 Dreamliner to link passengers to new destinations and also makes sure they travel in comfort. This new route offers travelers from Heathrow a new non-stop adventure that begins when they step on board the Dreamliner, and a chance to explore new horizons."
The new route marks British Airways' third destination in Texas, with the airline also serving Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth. Business and leisure travelers will fly into the modern Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport with fast connections to the city or easy transfer to onward destinations in Europe, Asia and Africa. American Airlines customers will be able to 'earn and burn' frequent flier miles on the new service as part of the joint business agreement between the two airlines.
About British Airways
British Airways, part of International Airlines Group, is one of the world's leading global premium airlines and the largest international carrier in the UK. The carrier has its home base at London Heathrow, the world's busiest international airport and flies to more than 70 different countries. In 2012 the airline carried more than 37 million customers. The airline currently has a fleet of more than 270 aircraft. For more information visit www.ba.com
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport served a record 9.4 million passengers in 2012 and traffic has increased 6% year-to-date. Austin's airport has nonstop service to 41 destinations and is home to 13 airline carriers. Austin-Bergstrom generates a $2.4 billion economic impact to the Austin area annually and is entirely self-sustaining, generating its own revenue to cover its operating costs. For more information, visit http://www.austintexas.gov/airport.
From : AviationPros.com
For this much anticipated route, British Airways will operate one of the newest aircraft in its fleet, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The service will be available five days a week, increasing to daily flights in May. The first flight is perfectly timed to help accommodate travelers from Europe heading to the international South by Southwest Conferences and Festivals.The new aircraft features three cabins: Club World (business class), World Traveller Plus (premium economy) and World Traveller (economy). The cabins feature stylish new interiors with state-of-the-art entertainment systems. British Airways provides meals, snacks and beverages, including full-service bar for free. Customers can also benefit from a generous baggage allowance.
"British Airways sees a great opportunity to make a connection between the vibrant cities of London and Austin," said Sean Doyle, EVP Americas, British Airways. "Both cities have rich histories, brilliant arts and music scenes, and bright futures. Equally important, today's flight connects Austin, primed for innovation and entrepreneurship, to London, Europe and beyond."
"As the Mayor of Austin and a former pilot, I am excited to have British Airways, one of the world's foremost carriers, create this trans-Atlantic link. This first time, nonstop service between ABIA and Heathrow Airport is sure to take our cities to new levels for both business and vacation travelers," said Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell. "We look forward to a great and growing relationship between Austin, British Airways, and London."
"Boeing is proud of its partnership with British Airways," said Boeing Sales Director David Longridge. "The airline continues to use the 787 Dreamliner to link passengers to new destinations and also makes sure they travel in comfort. This new route offers travelers from Heathrow a new non-stop adventure that begins when they step on board the Dreamliner, and a chance to explore new horizons."
The new route marks British Airways' third destination in Texas, with the airline also serving Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth. Business and leisure travelers will fly into the modern Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport with fast connections to the city or easy transfer to onward destinations in Europe, Asia and Africa. American Airlines customers will be able to 'earn and burn' frequent flier miles on the new service as part of the joint business agreement between the two airlines.About British Airways
British Airways, part of International Airlines Group, is one of the world's leading global premium airlines and the largest international carrier in the UK. The carrier has its home base at London Heathrow, the world's busiest international airport and flies to more than 70 different countries. In 2012 the airline carried more than 37 million customers. The airline currently has a fleet of more than 270 aircraft. For more information visit www.ba.com
About Austin-Bergstrom International Airport
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport served a record 9.4 million passengers in 2012 and traffic has increased 6% year-to-date. Austin's airport has nonstop service to 41 destinations and is home to 13 airline carriers. Austin-Bergstrom generates a $2.4 billion economic impact to the Austin area annually and is entirely self-sustaining, generating its own revenue to cover its operating costs. For more information, visit http://www.austintexas.gov/airport.
From : AviationPros.com
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Garuda Indonesia to order Boeing 787, Airbus A350 or Boeing 777X
Garuda Indonesia has a tough decition on the next generation of its international fleet by 2014, players are the Boeing 787, Airbus A350 and Boeing 777X.“We are looking at the Dreamliner compared to the (Airbus) A350, and we are looking at the A350-1000 compared to the Boeing 777X” Garuda Indonesia CEO Emirsyah Satar told journalists at a press briefing in Bali, ahead of the airline’s entry into the SkyTeam alliance tomorrow.
Garuda’s fleet is about to reach 194 aircraft by 2015, and Satar says total aircraft orders of 200 in the next 10 years if the airline meets its growth targets.
“We want to maintain a five year average (age)” Satar explained. “If there is no growth, just for 194 aircraft in the next ten years I need to order 100 (new aircraft) to replace and maintain that average.”
“But if we are talking growth it’s at least double that, at least 200 in the next ten years.”
Garuda’s biggest bird to date is the Boeing 777-300ER, with four currently in the fleet “and three more coming later this year, starting June” Satar said.
Monday, March 3, 2014
Boeing, ‘Avgeeks’ invade the Planet largest building
EVERETT, Washington (CNN) — As part of a convention of aviation fans called Aviation Geek Fest, we’re gaining ultra-exclusive access to the factory FLOOR at Boeing. The public tour is limited to the balcony. We’re about to walk knee-deep where Boeing gives birth to some of the world’s biggest and most advanced airliners, including the 747-8 Intercontinental, the 777 Worldliner and the 787 Dreamliner.
[caption id="attachment_2274" align="aligncenter" width="400"]
aviation-geekfest-777-1000[/caption]
But not so fast — before we go inside, Boeing has laid down some rules: no photos, no video, for our eyes only.
Here’s a painful development: Our smartphones have been confiscated. Gulp. I’m already suffering from phantom phone pangs.
We enter through a small, inconspicuous door marked S-1. Suddenly, we’re surrounded by partly assembled airliners in a room so big it takes on the feeling of an entire world. In some spots, we gaze across an unobstructed view measuring a quarter-mile.
This building is so flippin’ big that — years ago — it created its own inside weather patterns, including vapor clouds. They eliminated that by installing a special ventilation system. Today’s factory forecast: avgeeking, with continued avgeeking and a favorable chance of avgeeking later in the day.
[caption id="attachment_2275" align="aligncenter" width="670"]
777-boeing-production[/caption]
Here are a few cool tidbits:
Jaw-dropping perspective
The thrill of being so close to the planes literally stops you in your tracks. Seemingly everywhere you look there’s another five- or six-story-tall airplane towering over you. Some are covered with a green, protective temporary coating. One Dreamliner tail is painted with the familiar British Airways red, white and blue. Another sports New Zealand Air’s cool black-and-white.
Boeing paints the tails before they’re attached to the planes. Then they carefully adjust the tails for balance. Paint adds hundreds of pounds of weight, which would ruin the plane’s balance if the tails were painted after being attached.
Soon these behemoths will jet across vast oceans as they carry travelers to far-flung destinations.
‘You’ve gotta have secret clearance’
The planes’ huge fuselages are joined together with the help of a giant piece of equipment called a “saddle.” This U-shaped metal cage straddles the top of the planes during the body-joining process.
The “Wing Build” area — where workers attach wings to the planes — is the loudest part of the entire facility. The staccato of rivet guns pierces the heavy air. Whooshing vacuums suck up any dust that may be created when workers drill into the planes’ lightweight carbon composite material.
Security concerns in the plant are real. “Conversation-restricted area,” says one sign.
As we walk past a fenced-off zone, our guide quips, “You’ve gotta have secret clearance. I can’t even go in there!”
The rock star engine
Then, like a holy relic brought back from the Crusades — Boeing lets us touch “it.”
By “it” we mean the GE90-115B. Guinness calls it the most powerful commercially produced jet engine in the world.
We gather around this rock star engine like thirsty travelers at a desert oasis, each taking turns running our hands across its silver exterior. The lip of the engine’s mouth feels rough, like it has countless scratches etched into it. That design, engineers discovered, helps reduce noise.
This 19,000-pound monster hangs from the wing of a giant 777, but the engine still looks humongous — measuring more than 11 feet in diameter. In fact, Boeing says it’s so big you could fit the body of a 737 airliner inside it.
“There’s no way to sense the sheer size of an airplane without being right there underneath it,” says NYCAviation.com contributor Ben Granucci, enjoying his first Aviation Geek Fest. Engines like this make it possible for wide-body planes to fly long-distance routes nonstop with only two engines instead of three or four. In fact, the 777 flies many of the world’s longest nonstop routes. In 2005 it set the world distance record for a nonstop commercial airline flight, jetting 13,423 miles from Hong Kong eastbound to London in 22 hours, 22 minutes.
The world’s top flying hauler
Just a few hours earlier, a handful of aviation geeks were hanging out at a hotel next to Paine Field, the airport Boeing uses to test and deliver the factory’s planes.
Then, Granucci tweeted out that the plane that hauls the most cargo by volume in the world just happened to be passing through.
Count me in.
Soon, a dozen camera-wielding geeks are lined up outside the hotel to welcome the Dreamlifter — a modified 747 — as it lumbers in for a landing. “We’re gonna be late for breakfast,” says avgeek Steve Dillo as he snaps photo after photo. “But this is worth it.”
The thing roars like a lion, but it looks like a whale as it slows for touchdown. In the entire world, there are only four of these giant planes. Boeing uses them to ferry big sections of the 787 for final assembly here in Everett. Last year, when a Dreamlifter landed at the wrong airport in Kansas, it wasn’t exactly a stellar moment.
The Avgeek News Network
This is the fifth avgeek fest, co-sponsored by AirlineReporter.com and Everett’s Future of Flight Museum. The February convention drew a record 300-plus participants from 18 different states and three countries. Former GM and Toyota engineer Philip McKenzie, flew 8,000 miles from Melbourne, Australia, to see how “things are laid out” in the factory. Vancouver Airport official Trevor Batstone traveled 100 miles from Canada. Who are these people — these avgeeks? What defines them?
“It’s someone who always looks up in the sky when they hear a jet roar,” says Ryan Ewing, 14, who runs airlinegeeks.com out of his Bethesda, Maryland, home. Ewing was right there in the thick of the geeks with his camera when the Dreamlifter came calling.
The event was born from an aviation-obsessed online community that uses social media to organize and share information. Aviation news sites like Airchive, AirlineReporter, NYCAviation and AirlineGuys all share common friends, connections and interests. When news breaks, their informal social network sometimes challenges traditional news media. This month AirlineReporter and a few other aviation sites broke news about the hijacking of an Ethiopian Airlines 767 in Rome about 30 minutes before many “legacy” news organizations, says AirlineReporter founder and editor-in-chief David Parker Brown.
Boeing’s desire to connect with fans and fliers combined with the emerging power of the avgeek nation opened the doors to the exclusive Boeing tours, Brown says. “Boeing has increasingly realized how smart and educated about aviation avgeeks are.”
Baby Boeings
The following day southeast of Seattle, Boeing opens up yet another factory for us to tour. This one is the birthplace of what Guinness calls the “most produced large commercial jet in aviation history” — the 737.
No public tours here. This is a tour for avgeeks and VIPs. “Avgeeks love getting access to places that are off limits,” says Brown. “It’s all about exclusivity.”
Here’s some 737 tour trivia:
—This place creates 38 of the planes every month on a moving assembly line. And they’re pushing to increase that rate. “Even though we joke that the 737 is the ‘Baby Boeing,’ it’s still a large and complex machine,” says Granucci. “It requires precision to put it together. The fact that you can perform such precise work on a moving target — I find that to be incredible.”
— The facility receives pre-assembled fuselages by train from a factory in Wichita, Kansas.
— Workers attach wings to the fuselages. It takes about nine hours to put wings on a 737.
—The planes also get “winglets” — the tiny, upward pointing wings you see on the wingtips of 737s and other airliners. These doodads reduce drag on the plane and make it more fuel efficient — by about 4%.
—Workers install seats on the planes by using a loading machine they call a “hay baler.”
— In an operation called “high blow,” Boeing tests each plane’s passenger cabin for possible leaks during pressurization. The procedure includes putting people inside the planes to listen for leaks.
— Each 737 is made up of 42 miles of wire and 394,000 separate parts
— If there’s a problem on the assembly line, workers activate a purple flashing light — alerting others that they need help. “Blinking purple is bad for us here,” says Christian Ofsthus, a Boeing senior manager. “If there’s something wrong, something doesn’t fit, we need to do something about that.”
As the tour ends, we wind through an employee diner named for the World War II symbol Rosie the Riveter, and file back onto our bus. Driving off the property, we spot a train loaded with brand new wingless 737 fuselages headed to the factory behind us.
That triggers spontaneous applause and scattered whoops throughout the bus. Well, you just can’t get any geekier than that.
“That is so cool,” I hear someone say.
By Thom Patterson, CNN
http://fox2now.com/2014/02/26/boeing-avgeeks-invade-worlds-largest-building/
[caption id="attachment_2274" align="aligncenter" width="400"]
aviation-geekfest-777-1000[/caption]But not so fast — before we go inside, Boeing has laid down some rules: no photos, no video, for our eyes only.
Here’s a painful development: Our smartphones have been confiscated. Gulp. I’m already suffering from phantom phone pangs.
We enter through a small, inconspicuous door marked S-1. Suddenly, we’re surrounded by partly assembled airliners in a room so big it takes on the feeling of an entire world. In some spots, we gaze across an unobstructed view measuring a quarter-mile.
This building is so flippin’ big that — years ago — it created its own inside weather patterns, including vapor clouds. They eliminated that by installing a special ventilation system. Today’s factory forecast: avgeeking, with continued avgeeking and a favorable chance of avgeeking later in the day.
[caption id="attachment_2275" align="aligncenter" width="670"]
777-boeing-production[/caption]Here are a few cool tidbits:
Jaw-dropping perspective
The thrill of being so close to the planes literally stops you in your tracks. Seemingly everywhere you look there’s another five- or six-story-tall airplane towering over you. Some are covered with a green, protective temporary coating. One Dreamliner tail is painted with the familiar British Airways red, white and blue. Another sports New Zealand Air’s cool black-and-white.
Boeing paints the tails before they’re attached to the planes. Then they carefully adjust the tails for balance. Paint adds hundreds of pounds of weight, which would ruin the plane’s balance if the tails were painted after being attached.
Soon these behemoths will jet across vast oceans as they carry travelers to far-flung destinations.
‘You’ve gotta have secret clearance’
The planes’ huge fuselages are joined together with the help of a giant piece of equipment called a “saddle.” This U-shaped metal cage straddles the top of the planes during the body-joining process.
The “Wing Build” area — where workers attach wings to the planes — is the loudest part of the entire facility. The staccato of rivet guns pierces the heavy air. Whooshing vacuums suck up any dust that may be created when workers drill into the planes’ lightweight carbon composite material.
Security concerns in the plant are real. “Conversation-restricted area,” says one sign.
As we walk past a fenced-off zone, our guide quips, “You’ve gotta have secret clearance. I can’t even go in there!”
The rock star engine
Then, like a holy relic brought back from the Crusades — Boeing lets us touch “it.”
By “it” we mean the GE90-115B. Guinness calls it the most powerful commercially produced jet engine in the world.
We gather around this rock star engine like thirsty travelers at a desert oasis, each taking turns running our hands across its silver exterior. The lip of the engine’s mouth feels rough, like it has countless scratches etched into it. That design, engineers discovered, helps reduce noise.
This 19,000-pound monster hangs from the wing of a giant 777, but the engine still looks humongous — measuring more than 11 feet in diameter. In fact, Boeing says it’s so big you could fit the body of a 737 airliner inside it.
“There’s no way to sense the sheer size of an airplane without being right there underneath it,” says NYCAviation.com contributor Ben Granucci, enjoying his first Aviation Geek Fest. Engines like this make it possible for wide-body planes to fly long-distance routes nonstop with only two engines instead of three or four. In fact, the 777 flies many of the world’s longest nonstop routes. In 2005 it set the world distance record for a nonstop commercial airline flight, jetting 13,423 miles from Hong Kong eastbound to London in 22 hours, 22 minutes.
The world’s top flying hauler
Just a few hours earlier, a handful of aviation geeks were hanging out at a hotel next to Paine Field, the airport Boeing uses to test and deliver the factory’s planes.
Then, Granucci tweeted out that the plane that hauls the most cargo by volume in the world just happened to be passing through.
Count me in.
Soon, a dozen camera-wielding geeks are lined up outside the hotel to welcome the Dreamlifter — a modified 747 — as it lumbers in for a landing. “We’re gonna be late for breakfast,” says avgeek Steve Dillo as he snaps photo after photo. “But this is worth it.”
The thing roars like a lion, but it looks like a whale as it slows for touchdown. In the entire world, there are only four of these giant planes. Boeing uses them to ferry big sections of the 787 for final assembly here in Everett. Last year, when a Dreamlifter landed at the wrong airport in Kansas, it wasn’t exactly a stellar moment.
The Avgeek News Network
This is the fifth avgeek fest, co-sponsored by AirlineReporter.com and Everett’s Future of Flight Museum. The February convention drew a record 300-plus participants from 18 different states and three countries. Former GM and Toyota engineer Philip McKenzie, flew 8,000 miles from Melbourne, Australia, to see how “things are laid out” in the factory. Vancouver Airport official Trevor Batstone traveled 100 miles from Canada. Who are these people — these avgeeks? What defines them?
“It’s someone who always looks up in the sky when they hear a jet roar,” says Ryan Ewing, 14, who runs airlinegeeks.com out of his Bethesda, Maryland, home. Ewing was right there in the thick of the geeks with his camera when the Dreamlifter came calling.
The event was born from an aviation-obsessed online community that uses social media to organize and share information. Aviation news sites like Airchive, AirlineReporter, NYCAviation and AirlineGuys all share common friends, connections and interests. When news breaks, their informal social network sometimes challenges traditional news media. This month AirlineReporter and a few other aviation sites broke news about the hijacking of an Ethiopian Airlines 767 in Rome about 30 minutes before many “legacy” news organizations, says AirlineReporter founder and editor-in-chief David Parker Brown.
Boeing’s desire to connect with fans and fliers combined with the emerging power of the avgeek nation opened the doors to the exclusive Boeing tours, Brown says. “Boeing has increasingly realized how smart and educated about aviation avgeeks are.”
Baby Boeings
The following day southeast of Seattle, Boeing opens up yet another factory for us to tour. This one is the birthplace of what Guinness calls the “most produced large commercial jet in aviation history” — the 737.
No public tours here. This is a tour for avgeeks and VIPs. “Avgeeks love getting access to places that are off limits,” says Brown. “It’s all about exclusivity.”
Here’s some 737 tour trivia:
—This place creates 38 of the planes every month on a moving assembly line. And they’re pushing to increase that rate. “Even though we joke that the 737 is the ‘Baby Boeing,’ it’s still a large and complex machine,” says Granucci. “It requires precision to put it together. The fact that you can perform such precise work on a moving target — I find that to be incredible.”
— The facility receives pre-assembled fuselages by train from a factory in Wichita, Kansas.
— Workers attach wings to the fuselages. It takes about nine hours to put wings on a 737.
—The planes also get “winglets” — the tiny, upward pointing wings you see on the wingtips of 737s and other airliners. These doodads reduce drag on the plane and make it more fuel efficient — by about 4%.
—Workers install seats on the planes by using a loading machine they call a “hay baler.”
— In an operation called “high blow,” Boeing tests each plane’s passenger cabin for possible leaks during pressurization. The procedure includes putting people inside the planes to listen for leaks.
— Each 737 is made up of 42 miles of wire and 394,000 separate parts
— If there’s a problem on the assembly line, workers activate a purple flashing light — alerting others that they need help. “Blinking purple is bad for us here,” says Christian Ofsthus, a Boeing senior manager. “If there’s something wrong, something doesn’t fit, we need to do something about that.”
As the tour ends, we wind through an employee diner named for the World War II symbol Rosie the Riveter, and file back onto our bus. Driving off the property, we spot a train loaded with brand new wingless 737 fuselages headed to the factory behind us.
That triggers spontaneous applause and scattered whoops throughout the bus. Well, you just can’t get any geekier than that.
“That is so cool,” I hear someone say.
By Thom Patterson, CNN
http://fox2now.com/2014/02/26/boeing-avgeeks-invade-worlds-largest-building/
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