The people of the three rescue squadrons depicted in this video make superheroes look like mere mortals.
To praise the worthiness of this video requires recognizing the greatness of the GoPro camera. The hand-sized camera can go anywhere and record anything.
Which made it the perfect tool to give a “being there” account of the helicopter rescue squadrons whose motto is “anywhere, anytime.” The peaceful music and the beautiful video belies the dangerous work done by the men and women of the 303rd Rescue Squadron, the 81st Rescue Squadron and the 82nd Rescue Squadron.
Swiss captures the first revenue flight from New York Kennedy Airport to Switzerland.
Boeing’s 777-300 ER is the latest in long-range luxury commercial airliners. Swiss recently debuted its first Triple Seven, which is equipped with state-of-the-art accommodations for the passengers in addition to the latest advances in avionics.
This “Welcome To The Fleet” video provides a glimpse of what it’s like for the crew to fly the 777 and what the passengers experience.
The voice of every F-18 jet signs off after a career of ‘yelling’ at pilots.
Those who have flown and will continue to fly the F-18 Super Hornet have heard “the voice” when a warning light wasn’t enough. The sound of “Bitchin’ Betty” imploring a maneuver – NOW – has helped many a flight crew avoid disaster.
Bitchin’ Betty Squawked In Every Pilot’s Ear
Leslie Shook, the woman behind the voice, is retiring, but she’s happy that her legacy lives on in F-18 cockpits. And she’s proud that the nickname given to her voice is one of affection and respect.
Longtime McDonnell Douglas and Boeing Employee
Leslie Shook was a longtime employee and McDonnell Douglas and Boeing. Her voice is featured not only on the F/A-18 Hornet but also in the cockpit of other products like the C-17 Globemaster III. Her work has saved many lives. This video may inspire pilots and aircrew to say, “it’s good to put a face to a voice.” Blue skies Leslie! Enjoy your well-earned retirement.
US Air Force to deploy B-52 bombers to replace B-1s that recently departed the Middle East region.
At some point in the near future, Avgeekery.com will post a story singing the praises and recounting the history of the B-52 – a venerable Air Force bomber from a different era which is nonetheless still a useful weapon in the American arsenal.
That fact was underscored by the recent news that the United States has deployed three B-52s to Moron Airbase in Spain. The three bombers were joined by about 200 support personnel and various other aircraft.
From The Washington Post: “It is uncommon for the large bombers to deploy to mainland Europe, since they usually take off from the United States, refuel, and carry out their assigned duties before returning to their home stations. In previous bomber deployments to the region, the aircraft have often been temporarily stationed out of the Royal Air Force Base in Fairford, England.”
The transfer of the three B-52s coincided with the U.S. Air Force pulling B-1 bombers from flying missions against ISIS. The B-1 “Bone(s)” have been flying missions since August; the crews and the planes needed a break to rest and re-fit.
While one of the candidates for President may think that most B-52 missions against ISIS will involve making the sand glow from carpet bombing, us avgeeks know that precision bombing is the name of the game these days. The B-52 has the ability to fire precision guided weapons at multiple targets with the ability to loiter for an extended time.
The B-52 Stratortress first went into service in 1954 as a long-range bomber designed to deliver nuclear weapons. With the resolution of the Cold War and advances in weapon systems, the eight-engine B-52s will are useful.
In May of last year, two B-52Hs flew a 30-hour, non-stop round trip mission from Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana to Wadi Shadiya. During the trip, the planes dropped strings of precision-guided Joint Direct Attack Munitions in a mock attack on a practice range. JDAMs are the weapons that have been deployed from the B-1s during missions over Iraq and Syria.
The B-52’s nickname is BUFF – for Big, Fat Ugly Fellow. When and if the B-52s deployed to Spain start dropping JDAMs onto ISIS positions, it would be interesting to know what names the ISIS fighters will be calling the BUFFs.
Rarely seen footage of the B-2 Spirit demonstrates the grace and beauty of America’s powerful and stealthy bomber
The B-2 Spirit Stealth bomber in flight is an inspiring sight, as this video proves (the accompanying music doesn’t hurt, either). The Spirit looks like a flying carpenter’s square or something Batman would fly. But its looks disguise the aircraft’s graceful moves in the air. And, considering it’s a stealth weapon, disguise is a fitting term.
The Spirit will soldier on alongside the B-52 and forthcoming B-21. It will outlive the B-1 Bone as that jet is scheduled to be retired as the new B-21 takes it place later this decade.
The device might look like a portable rocket launcher, but it’s the latest attempt to make airports safe from rogue drones.
The SkyWall 100, designed by a company in England, could be the best weapon yet developed to counter possible threats from civilian drones.
The portable defense system, developed by Open Works Engineering, could provide the type of counter measures needed to safely bring down drones that are either flying with an intent to cause harm/damage who that accidentally stray close to restricted areas.
It was recently revealed that last month a drone came within 16 feet of an Air France jet as it was landing at Charles de Gaulle Airport in France. That’s the closest encounter yet between a drone and an aircraft. The pilot had to disconnect the autopilot and take evasive action.
With the proliferation and sophistication of drones that are available for anyone to purchase, the idea of drones being used to deliver explosives or to bring down airliners is a burgeoning threat.
The SkyWall 100 system appears to be a reasonable deterrent when it comes to bringing down/capturing drones.
It’s similar to a bazooka or other shoulder-mounted weapons. The SkyWall 100 uses compressed gas and a smart-launch system. It fires a programmable projectile which releases a net that captures the drone and a parachute which brings the drone to the ground.
The SkyWall 100 is portable and can be deployed by a single operator. Open Works Engineering is also developing two more versions – a semi-permanent device needing two operators and one that will be a permanent installation.
The first 727 made its last flight today after a long restoration to bring it back to flying condition.. Photo by: Clemens Vasters
The week that was at Avgeekery.com. Here’s a look back at some of the top stories on our site from this week.
March 5, 2016
GROUNDED: An in-depth look of how and why the Boeing 717 series wasn’t a commercial success.
A POSITIVE STEP? The much-maligned and problem-plagued F-35 Joint Strike Fighter had a successful weapons test this week.
LAST FLIGHT: The original 727, an iconic three-engine jet that boosted commercial travel, made its last flight this week – a 15-minute hop to its final stop, a museum in Seattle.
747 STILL USEFUL: While production is being curtailed and many major airlines are phasing it out of their fleets, the 747 continues to have many uses.
GUILT OVER TRAGEDY: Thirty years after the space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after launch, an engineer who argued against the launch is still haunted by the disaster.
VIDEO: JetBlue came up with a clever way to turn the nasty aspects of an election year into a great promotional contest.
VIDEO: A closer look at “Ed Force One,” the tricked-out 747 that’s carrying heavy metal band Iron Maiden on its world tour – with its lead singer at the controls.
VIDEO: An American who flew the British Spitfire on photo missions once had to make a wheels-up landing. Another veteran filmed it. Nearly 50 years later, the 16mm film was discovered. Some sleuthing connected the film to the pilot, who got to witness his emergency landing for the first time.
Emirates is one of many gulf airlines that have rapidly expanded over the past decade. Photo by: Jim Mumaw
The ‘Gulf Three’ are redefining the rules and not always for the better.
Unless you are an international jet-setter or perhaps an airline industry enthusiast, you may not have heard of three relatively new airlines that are taking the world by storm. Otherwise, you may probably be aware of the existence and may even have flown on one of these three airlines. They are collectively known as the Gulf Three and are made up of Etihad Airways, Qatar Airways and Emirates Airlines. Etihad and Emirates are both based in the United Arab Emirates, while Qatar makes its home in Doha, Qatar.
Etihad, Emirates and Qatar, founded in 2003, 1985 and 1993 respectively, have grown from nothing to become global aviation powerhouses in a few short decades. They collectively employ about 112,000 employees and have a collective fleet of 526 aircraft. And they are fleets of big wide body airplanes, not puddle jumpers. Emirates, for example, has a fleet of 60 A380 Superjumbo aircraft, and is the world’s largest operator of the Boeing 777 with a fleet of 149 of those widebody aircraft.
These three airlines have been embroiled in a controversy about alleged subsidies they have received from their respective governments which I wrote about here. Leading the charge against the Gulf Airlines is a consortium of US based airlines and their associated labor groups. Their contention is that the governments of Qatar and the UAE funnel billions of government dollars into their hometown airlines thereby allowing them to undercut their competition.
Emirates aircrew at Suvarnabhumi Airport (Thailand). Source: Wikipedia
For their part, the Gulf airlines counter that they deliver a far superior product to their customers than do American based airlines. This is the reason, the Gulf airline managements cite, for the competitive advantages they currently enjoy. All the Americans need to do to compete, they say, is to up their game.
And in terms of customer service satisfaction, the Gulf airlines do indeed deliver. The three Gulf airlines routinely wind up at the top of airline customer satisfaction surveys. For instance, the Gulf airlines took second, third and fifth place in the 2015 Conde Nast Traveller Reader’s Choice Awards.
In the Skytrax Awards, which bill themselves as “the Oscars of the aviation industry”, the Gulf Three placed first, fifth and sixth. Delta, as the top rated US international carrier, came in at a dismal 45th place while United and American placed quite a bit further down the list.
There’s Something Wrong in Paradise
So it would seem that the US carriers do indeed need to tighten up their customer service game a bit, but as usual, there’s more to the story. Over the past several years reports have leaked out about hiring practices and working conditions for cabin crew at the Gulf airlines and they don’t paint a very flattering picture.
The three Gulf airlines hire their cabin crew from all over the globe including many impoverished areas. For many of these employees, a job with an international airline is a dream ticket into a jet-setting lifestyle. Except that it apparently isn’t.
Reports of long hours, low pay and stringently enforced limits on marriage, pregnancy and weight plague the Gulf airlines. A 2014 Wall Street Journal article noted that pregnancy may result in termination at all three Gulf airlines. Flight attendants must also remain single for the first five years of their contracts as well or seek the airline’s permission to marry.
Other critics maintain that workers at the Gulf airlines live in a climate of fear for their jobs and are under daily surveillance in their company provided dormitories. The companies insist that strict security is necessary for the safety of their cabin crews. Qatar Airways in particular has a reputation for being quite severe in its treatment of cabin crew. From the Economist:
Allegations of harsh treatment and overbearing scrutiny are commonplace. Many complaints centre on the accommodation provided to cabin crew, where rigid curfews and restrictions on visitors create a less-than-homely atmosphere. Swipe-in door keys and CCTV on the premises have fuelled speculation–warranted or otherwise–that management are interested in more than just their employees’ safety.
Given that even appearing in public without a niqab can be problematic for women in Doha, having extra security precautions for a dormitory full of young, single women far from home in an Islamic country may not be unreasonable.
Union Sour Grapes?
Earlier in 2015, several US flight attendant unions also jumped into the fray when Etihad announced new service to Orlando, Florida claiming that the Gulf airlines had “abhorrent labor standards”.
One can’t help but notice that many of the complaints about working conditions are coming from labor unions. It should also be noted that unions are illegal in the Gulf states where these airlines are headquartered. It must be teased out, then, whether the conditions are truly as horrid as is being reported or whether the reports contain a measure of union hyperbole.
My guess is that there is a pinch of truth on both sides of this story. Emirates states that it receives over 400,000 applications annually from 143 different nations for jobs across their network so there seems to be no lack of enthusiasm for those wishing to sign on. Conversely, with those types of numbers, it can be easy to see that should an employee have an infraction or be anything less than completely submissive, it is far easier to sack them for a younger replacement.
Hypocrisy of the Elites
Getting back to the popularity of the Gulf Three airlines with elite status flyers, I must confess to being completely amused by the comment sections on the various news and opinion websites which report on this story. Here’s a good example (typos and grammar in the original):
Yes the middle east carriers have unfair working practices But I prefer to fly on those airlines than american carriers as the staff in general are rude and not interested in any service what so ever . Plus the middle east carriers have young crews who are either more motivated or scared not to do there job properly so makes for a more enjoyable flight. I think the american carriers have just realised that the gulf carriers are so much better and just jealous thats all
Yes, of course, who doesn’t appreciate young, attractive and motivated (scared) flight attendants? This commenter is likely more correct than he realizes: US airline managements are no doubt quite jealous of the freedom their Arab counterparts have to fire flight attendants when they get married, old or overweight…just like it used to be here back in the “halcyon” days of the 1960s.
Who also doesn’t have at least a bit of nostalgia for the image that Leo DiCaprio presented in Catch Me If You Can as he traipsed in his pilot uniform through the airline terminal accompanied by half a dozen young, alluring and razor thin flight hosties? One need not look too far into aviation literature to find a paean to the good old days of “coffee, tea or me?”
Well, we are living in the future that we created here in America. Oddly enough, we won’t buy tickets on our own airlines, but instead opt to be served by young hotties who can be fired on a whim.
I personally believe that there probably exists some middle ground between what is effectively third world indentured servitude as practiced by the Gulf Three, and the hardened battle-ax ingrates employed with depressing regularity by US airlines who seem to relish bashing into your kneecap with the cart.
Some lessons often need relearning. We should be careful for what we wish, for the aviation gods have a sense of humor and may smite us by granting our wishes.
Up to 585,000 lbs of Jet, Flown Around the World, With a Whole Lot of Skill, Dedication and Heart.
C-17 pilot Jon Leech wanted to find a way to share his love of flying and the airlift mission with others. He produced a kick ass video of his flying that would make any #avgeek proud. The video was uploaded to YouTube by Skyride 10. Jon’s story and details below the video.
Here’s Jon’s story and the details about the video above:
“Growing up my fondest memories were listening to the stories of when my Dad, uncles and grandpas were in the Navy. Without question I knew I was headed in the same direction, only because, even at that age, I recognized the value and importance of the skills they gained, experiences, and especially their friendships which inevitably evolved into extended family they still see today. When I was lucky, some of the stories they told of their world were supported by still pictures.
shellback initiation. image via gerald ford library
They would tell the tale of when and where it was taken, why, and the crazy people who were around at that time; the band playing in random bars on random islands, the “shellback” initiation (google it…), launching missiles, etc. Looking back at it, I would pay to have had GoPros and hand-held cameras available for all of them back then; that would be the only thing that would have made it better. So, on my third deployment flying the C-17, I decided to avoid having my friends and family wish the same. This was my attempt to capture and share what I am so fortunate to see and do every time we go gear up.”
image via uSAF/DVIDS
A World-Wide Experience
“The video was shot all over the world on various missions. We flew pretty frequently and at times it felt routine. However, there were some instances I will never forget and that I am fortunate to have captured. One such instance was flying a full jet of troops out of country on what happened to be our crew member’s daughter’s birthday. Unfortunately he had missed quite a few of her birthdays, but wanted to send something heart felt home to her. Watch what he does, along with other experiences I am so fortunate to have been a part of. Hope you enjoyed it!”
The only camp in the world where you can experience what it was like to load and drop bombs from WWII bombers.
Bright sunlight glitters in the bluebird sky as streaks of white contrails stream behind the lumbering bomber force like beacons pointing the way. Dream-like in flight, little is heard save the roar of engines and cold wind. Frosty oxygen masks work hard to keep life flowing and the men themselves strain their weary eyes to keep vigil at 20,000 feet. With no warning a dark cloud appears above and to the right moving quickly toward the formation. What seems to be a swarm of insects suddenly turns into the bombers and the cloud is now individual specks growing larger by the second. The intercom screams, “Bandits, 2 o’clock high!” Machine guns turn in unison to the coming threat while enemy fighters fly into range. First one burst of fire is seen from a neighboring B-17, and then twenty or more streaks of tracers are unleashed at the gray intruders. Twinkles on the wings of the enemy fighters show evil intent and what looks like popping flashbulbs appear around the bombers. Like a hailstorm swiftly passing, the enemy vanishes and is replaced by a hundred puffs of greasy smoke. Flak engulfs the heavily laden planes. For a moment the formation flies straight and level and a rush of wind announces that the bomb bay doors are open. Every muscle and nerve is tight with anticipation and fear. The intercom crackles with the welcome words, “Bombs Away!” A collective sigh of relief is breathed by over a hundred men… now they can head home…
These flashes of history crowd the senses of participants in the one of a kind Bomber Camp as they fly a “mission.” This experience is the realized vision of Taigh Ramey, owner of Vintage Aircraft in Stockton, California. He felt that the Living History Flight Experiences and Aircraft Tours offered by organizations were just not enough to truly show modern audiences what the people of the 1940s went through in WWII. He believes that to truly understand what it was like for the men who trained and fought in the US Army Air Forces that it had to be experienced firsthand. Taigh talked with Rob Collings of the Collings Foundation and asked what he thought about dropping concrete bombs, shooting machineguns and operating turrets on the Collings Foundation’s B-24 “Witchcraft.” Bomber Camp was born. Soon the WWII Living History organization, “The Arizona Ground Crew Living History Unit, Inc.” and some other dedicated historians responded to the call for action and met at Stockton Field California to load 250lb concrete bombs and blank adapted guns onto Witchcraft.
Photo by Roger Cain (Provided by Bomber Camp)
The first mission was flown with a crew of WWII USAAF Veterans in May, 2007. The Veterans got a chance to get back into their old crew position and feel as though they were young again as they took off into the wild blue yonder on a bombing mission. For this mission, there was no enemy aircraft or FLAK to be concerned with, a first for our crew of Veterans. This was merely a test run though, because Taigh had bigger plans, he intended to repeat this mission again with student participants or “Cadets” as they would be called.
The Cadet Class of 44-1 assembled at the Stockton Field Aviation Museum Hangar on May 28, 2008 in the early morning hours. The next 48 hours would be an immersive experience into the culture, lifestyle and training indicative of 1944. Cadets learned aerial navigation, bombing principles (including the operation of the Norden Bombsight), aerial gunnery, military drill, operation of the ball turret and top turret. They trained on the live fire gunnery range with various small arms working up to the turret trainer truck and the ANM2 Caliber 50 Machinegun. Back at the Airfield they trained in the ball turret trainer so that they would be able to operate the ball turret in flight. On day two, Class 44-1 assisted with the loading of 250lb concrete bombs into the bomb bay of Witchcraft. Underwent a mission briefing and then flew off into the unknown on a bombing mission. The waist guns blazed away and the ball turret spun as the gunner searched for any sign of enemy aircraft in the area. As the plane approached the target area the bomb bay doors opened and the Norden Bombsight put the bombs right onto the target just as it had done 64 years ago.
This scene has been repeated nearly every year since, with a B-24 or B-17, adding new components to the training, atmosphere and program for each new Cadet Class. But now in 2016 we’re gonna up the ante! The Cadet Class of 44-7 will be using the B-24 “Witchcraft”, B-17 “909” and the B-25 “Tondelayo” in combined bomber operations. Hap Arnold, Chief of the Air Corps would be proud to know that this will be the Largest WWII bomber sortie of its kind in recent history! Nowhere else will you be able to help to bring WWII aviation back to life in such a unique and special way. It is truly an amazing experience.
If you are over 18 or 16 with a legal guardian accompanying you, have a desire to truly experience the training that the “Greatest Generation” went through and want to fly your own bomber mission, you are a candidate for Class 44-7. You can enlist at www.planetreg.com/E610101818154966 or contact the Recruiting Command Center at 209-982-0273. Follow them on Facebook too: Bomber Camp.
Cost for Bomber Camp is $4000.00 and includes all training materials, uniforms, equipment, ammunition, food and lodging. Cadets stay in a hotel from Tuesday, May 31st until Friday, June 3rd. Training will be from Tuesday May 31st at 1800 hrs until Thursday June 2nd in the evening. With food provided from the 1944 Army Cookbook and while training with the 3033rd Army Air Forces Base Unit, 60th Training Squadron, Stockton Army Air Field, you’ll feel like you’ve stepped into an incredible time warp. Travel expenses to and from Stockton, California are the responsibility of the individual Cadet.
What’s better than flying around like a rockstar? How about being a rockstar and flying yourself and your band in a 747-400 around the world!
A few weeks ago, an Avgeekery.com news roundup led with the item that Iron Maiden’s world tour would make its way around the globe via a customized 747. There’s even more to the story than just a tour to promote the heavy metal band’s “Book Of Souls” album.
Lead vocalist Bruce Dickinson is a licensed pilot and he will captain and pilot “Ed Force One.” He underwent special training in order to be cleared to fly the jumbo jet.
“When the opportunity arose from my friends at Air Atlanta Icelandic to lease a 747 for The Book of Souls World Tour, of course we jumped at the chance, who wouldn’t?” Dickinson said in a news release. “The greatest benefit of travelling in a 747 is that because of its colossal size and freight capacity we can carry our stage production and all our stage equipment and desks in the cargo hold.”
The United States portion of the tour is underway and Dickinson is as thrilled to be flying a 747 as he is about performing. This video shows him seeing Ed Force One, a 747-400 Jumbo Jet, for the first time.
In the second video, Bruce does a walkaround of the Ed Force One Jumbo Jet. The video was originally posted by “Made In Cardiff”, a local news organization in the UK.
The 717 could have been more than just a single model. There were plans for a regional sized jet and a stretch model the length of an MD-80.
Even prior to the introduction of the Boeing 717 into commercial service, there were ideas to develop stretched and shortened versions to complement the basic 106-seat Boeing 717-200.
Born as the McDonnell Douglas MD-95 and launched in November 1995 when Valujet Airlines ordered 100. The aircraft was re-named “Boeing 717“ in January 1998 and entered service with AirTran – the successor of ValuJet – in September 1999.
The Boeing 717 earned high marks for efficiency, quietness, and comfort. The basic design of the Boeing 717 bears the pedigree of the Douglas DC-9 with further evolvement into the highly successful MD-80 series and then the MD-90.
The DC-9/MD-80 earned high reputation for robustness, durability, efficiency, and comfort while the MD-90´s hallmark were the very quiet and clean IAE V2500-engines. The DC-9 and MD-80 enjoyed longevity and were widely used by many airlines around the world. The majority of DC-9-operators also selected the MD-80.
However, the MD-90 can´t be described as a business success due to many cancellations by major customers and the fact that the MD-90 (without a family of differently-sized aircraft) was not able to compete with the Boeing 737-series and the Airbus A320-family.
While the commercial success of the civil branch of McDonnell Douglas declined during the first half of the 1990s but at the same time, McDonnell Douglas developed their new 100-seater MD-95.
MD-95 Could Have Been a Family Of Jets
The MD-95 was seen as the perfect solution for many operators to replace their DC-9s and to augment their MD-80s. That led McDonnell Douglas to announce development of an MD-95 family. That led to a shorter-fuselage MD-95-10 and a stretched MD-95-50 to complement the basic MD-95-30. When Boeing took over, those concepts became the Boeing 717-100X and Boeing 717-300X, respectively.
The development of a Boeing 717-family was seen as an important step by many analysts. Providing buyers with versions that fit their needs while maintaining consistency in maintenance were considered great selling points.
It´s noteworthy that the stages of development and/or potential evolution were mentioned during the entire production-run of the 717 and even during certification and flight-testing.
Source: Boeing (Uploaded to www.MD-80.com)
The larger Boeing 717-300X would have been enlarged to 138 to 147 feet with a capacity for 128 to 145 passengers. AirTran was seen as the most likely airline to order this stretched version to augment their Boeing 717-200s. There were also sales-efforts to companies belonging to the “Star Alliance” including Air Canada, Austrian Airlines, and Lufthansa.
Sketch of the Boeing 717-100x (Source: Boeing, Uploaded to MD-80.com)
The Boeing 717-100X would have been a shortened variant of the 717-200 with a total length of 108 to 114 feet and a capacity of approximately 85 passengers in two classes. This version generated interest by British Midland Airways amongst others as part of a purchase of the smaller 717-100X and the basic 717-200.
Others like Aerolineas Argentinas/Austral saw the 717-family of all three versions as an attractive solution to standardize and modernize their fleets.
In 1999 there was also a concept called the “Boeing 717-200 Lite.” Weighing in at under 50 tons, this version would save money on daily operations due to lower fees, etc.
End Game For The Boeing 717: Not Enough Orders
Boeing also worked to develop best practices with smaller companies that lacked the infrastructure of larger carriers. Olympic Aviation and Bangkok Air were typical customers with their small 717-fleets and regional routes.
Additionally, there were ideas to de-rate the BR715-engines electronically to lower thrust-settings in the interest of longer engine life.
Boeing was only interested in producing three version of 717s if the orders were sufficient. Sales were sluggish and in 2005 Boeing announced it would discontinue production the following year.
What started with the DC-9 four decades earlier ended with that decision. Delta ordered 15 DC-9 aircraft and currently operates the largest world’s largest fleet of MD-80/-90/Boeing 717s.
Special thanks to Peter Breiting for being an Avgeekery guest author. You can learn more about the DC-9, MD-80 and its derivatives from MD-80.com.
About the author:
Peter Breiting, born in in Hamburg/Germany, maintains the largest enthusiast-site dedicated to the MD-80, MD-90, Boeing 717 and DC-9. Educated as a merchant for wholesale trade, he has no job-related connection to aviation but is always looking to break into an aviation career.
