Topic: Favourite Aircraft

[red mongoose]

I look forward to not seeing it when it kills us all!

Nah, I am sure they won't even fly, or they will fall apart in mid-air 

If anyone is interested, I have ordered a few planes from this place. They aren't models - they are diecast metal replicas (at least the ones I got). I got a Spitfire at 1:48 ratio and a Mustang, I think. Really nice work and some decent prices.

http://www.flyingmule.com/

[TepidT2O]

Imagine if this Barnes Wallis aircraft had been built!

Saw a model of it today, full on thunderbirds.

[butchersdog]

Can't go wrong with the plain old DC3, look great.

[The Gulleysucker]

Somewhat noisy if I remember rightly.

Had a short trip in one back in the mid 70's, Jersey to Guernsey and back.

Strange getting onboard and walking uphill to your seat and the take off was interesting.

As a kid I remember these beautiful planes droning slowly overhead in Liverpool back in the 60's on the IOM-Liverpool-Blackpool-Manchester routes. Always fancied a flight in one...someday perhaps.

[thekitkatshuffler]

Concorde 2

[rob1966]

I look forward to not seeing it when it kills us all!

We'll be OK, the RAF used to regularly give the USAF the tracks of the Stealth Bomber as it tried to sneak into the UK.

There was a few great posts recently on the Vulcan to the Sky FB page about stuff the RAF used to and still get up to, stuff like the Vulcan flying into the states, avoiding the radar and the first the yanks knew was when it landed at a US Airbase, or them doing bombing runs on the Pentagon and the White House, there was one story of them dropping toilet rolls on the lawn.

[PaulF]

We'll be OK, the RAF used to regularly give the USAF the tracks of the Stealth Bomber as it tried to sneak into the UK.

There was a few great posts recently on the Vulcan to the Sky FB page about stuff the RAF used to and still get up to, stuff like the Vulcan flying into the states, avoiding the radar and the first the yanks knew was when it landed at a US Airbase, or them doing bombing runs on the Pentagon and the White House, there was one story of them dropping toilet rolls on the lawn.

Brilliant, they should do that when Trump is on the lawn....

[Jwils21]

Couldn't find a more appropriate thread so apologies if this is in the wrong place.

JLR have moved to alternative suppliers due to Brexit, meaning that a high volume of parts are being shipped in from the Ukraine amongst other places. This has meant a high volume of cargo arriving on some aircraft we wouldn't normally see at LPL, over the last week we've seen a Cavok AN-12 and an AN-26 arrive. Impressive, noisy and smoky aircraft.

(Not my photo!)

[bradders1011]

Oh aye, and NASA have announced they plan to go back to the moon before 2020.

September 21st 2005. NASA are a lot of talk these days, eh?

[rob1966]

Couldn't find a more appropriate thread so apologies if this is in the wrong place.

JLR have moved to alternative suppliers due to Brexit, meaning that a high volume of parts are being shipped in from the Ukraine amongst other places. This has meant a high volume of cargo arriving on some aircraft we wouldn't normally see at LPL, over the last week we've seen a Cavok AN-12 and an AN-26 arrive. Impressive, noisy and smoky aircraft.

(Not my photo!)

This flew over us in November, got diverted to Manchester due to fog at Frankfurt

[TepidT2O]

Strange place to leave it that.

[rob1966]

Strange place to leave it that.

Didn't you ever hang planes from the ceiling as a kid?

[rob1966]

As soon as the covid shit is done with, I'm booking a flight in this. A 1972 UH-1H Huey, did 559 combat hours in Vietnam with the US Army, 45 minute flight and has been certified to fly doors open

[bradders1011]

The Superbowl Flyover - a B-1B, a B-2 and a B-52 - is just fucking cool. In terms of aviation tech, they're ancient, but in reality they're not even old yet.

https://twitter.com/NewsAirshow/status/1358582965287141377

[rob1966]

Heard a shit load of noise yesterday, looked out the window and a Chinook flew over at a few hundred feet. Love the things the pilots can do with the Chinook.

Apparently my step cousin is in this video, he's in the boat

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/v9pA4I606No" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/v9pA4I606No</a>

[bradders1011]

This is a great twitter account with old pictures of Eastern Bloc aircraft.

https://twitter.com/InterflugDDR

[Nitramdorf]

This is a great twitter account with old pictures of Eastern Bloc aircraft.

https://twitter.com/InterflugDDR

This is a great account as well. Hes also an author

https://twitter.com/ron_eisele?s=09

[I've been a good boy]

Favourite civilian aircraft currently is Airbus A350. Spent 8 hours on a cramped Boeing 787 from Manchester to Doha, most uncomfortable flight I've ever had due to the crap seats and the massive IFE box by your feet. Then spent the next 8 hours to Singapore on an A350, felt like the flight was only two or three hours long. Unbelievably comfortable and Qatar Airways sure do look after you.

Favourite aircraft of all time is the Boeing 747-400. It was the first ever plane I flew on and I think it's what made me fall in love with aviation. I still remember the smell of the cabin as I walked in, looking out the window and being in awe at the length of the wing, the takeoff roar, banking left and right making me feel like I was an a rollrcoaster, amazing experience at a child.

[Riquende]

As soon as the covid shit is done with, I'm booking a flight in this. A 1972 UH-1H Huey, did 559 combat hours in Vietnam with the US Army, 45 minute flight and has been certified to fly doors open

Will you be blasting out Fortunate Son as you go?

I may have posted in this thread before but my all time favourite as a kid was the SR-71 Blackbird. I remember seeing one overhead in Milton Keynes once and was properly excited. The whole concept and design is utterly mad, looking like some sort of crazy spaceship - which is probably what appealed to me, growing up on a diet of 80s cartoons and Star Wars. I think I read somewhere it's the only aircraft ever operated by the USAF that has never seen a single pilot casualty, and there's a famous story that does the internet rounds of a Blackbird pilot requesting an air speed check by a nearby civil airport just so that everyone in the area knew they were travelling at Mach 3 above LA.



I was gutted when I found out that it was just a recon plane and didn't have a cool array of bombs and missiles, I must have had a toy that pretended it was a combat aircraft... possibly it was from Ring Raiders, if anyone remembers that? Those little planes that you wore attached to your finger to simulate flying.

[RedSince86]

The Avro Vulcan which still looks modern, British engineering at it's finest, first flown in the 1950's and still wouldn't look out of place in 2021.

A plane so good it penetrated USA defences during the height of the Cold War during war games, the Vulcan unofficially nuked the USA twice even though the Yanks knew it was coming, the Pentagon was so embarrassed it wasn't revealed until 50 years later.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/-Wx6npt421c" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/-Wx6npt421c</a>

B-1 Lancer looks amazing as well.





The Russian's newest beast of the sky Sukhoi Su-57.

Loads of videos on Youtube of this pilot Sergey Bogdan flying Russian fighter jets at airshows.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/5iVLLTlviQU" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/5iVLLTlviQU</a>

[RedSince86]

This LA speed check story is hilarious by a SR-71 pilot.


<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/ILop3Kn3JO8" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/ILop3Kn3JO8</a>

[rob1966]

The Avro Vulcan which still looks modern, British engineering at it's finest, first flown in the 1950's and still wouldn't look out of place in 2021.

A plane so good it penetrated USA defences during the height of the Cold War during war games, the Vulcan unofficially nuked the USA twice even though the Yanks knew it was coming, the Pentagon was so embarrassed it wasn't revealed until 50 years later.

Love the Vulcan, XH558 flew over our garden during its last year tour at about 1,000 ft, the sound was immense.

I read some tales from Vulcan air crew about landing unannounced at a USAF base in the desert, the Yanks had no idea it was there until it landed and also about bombing the White House Lawn with bogrolls. The RAF love winding up the USAF, they sent them photos taken from above of I think the U2 spy plane

Will you be blasting out Fortunate Son as you go?

Got to be Ride of the Valkyries.

[RedSince86]

Love the Vulcan, XH558 flew over our garden during its last year tour at about 1,000 ft, the sound was immense.

I read some tales from Vulcan air crew about landing unannounced at a USAF base in the desert, the Yanks had no idea it was there until it landed and also about bombing the White House Lawn with bogrolls. The RAF love winding up the USAF, they sent them photos taken from above of I think the U2 spy plane

Got to be Ride of the Valkyries.

Yeah those Vulcan flyover videos on YouTube are amazing, epic sound.

[kopite77]

This flew over us in November, got diverted to Manchester due to fog at Frankfurt

My god, you don’t really realise the sheer size of the Antonov 124 until you see compared that DC10 on the ground!

[rob1966]

My god, you don’t really realise the sheer size of the Antonov 124 until you see compared that DC10 on the ground!

I thought it was an A380 at first

Back in summer 1980, a USAF C5 Galaxy visited Speke. It was great, it was free to visit and you walked in the rear up the ramp, walked right through the plane and then walked down the ramp at the nose.

[kopite77]

I thought it was an A380 at first

Back in summer 1980, a USAF C5 Galaxy visited Speke. It was great, it was free to visit and you walked in the rear up the ramp, walked right through the plane and then walked down the ramp at the nose.

Yes, I went there with my dad, the Galaxy was massive, the only plane I’d been on before that was a Viscount when we went to Isle of Man, I would have loved to of gone on Concorde but that dream won’t happen unfortunately.

[rob1966]

Yes, I went there with my dad, the Galaxy was massive, the only plane I’d been on before that was a Viscount when we went to Isle of Man, I would have loved to of gone on Concorde but that dream won’t happen unfortunately.

I'd never been on a plane, just remember it being huge. We were in Walton at my cousins christening, all the lads were bored and someone suggested we went the airport to see the plane. We were aged between 9 and 14 and the parents just said see you later as we all sodded off to get the bus.

["21C or 70F?" SchizoidWeatherMan!]

As a big aviation enthusiast, I love this topic.

In terms of civilian aircraft, my favourites are;

Wide body

Boeing 747 - Nothing like the big ol Jumbo. If you've had the chance to sit on the upper deck, it is fucking amazing.  The most comfortable big plane still , 40 years after launch.  THe economy seats still have the best legroom in my reckoning.   The newer 787 just sucks in terms of leg room as well as lateral space.  Its a pity to see this 4 engined big bird retire from passenger service. Magnificent airplane.

Airbus A380 -  Another massive plane, the biggest passenger plane in the world. I have had the pleasure of traveling on Emirates' A380 and i have to say, the plane is amazing.  Good legroom in economy and comfortable seats. For a plane with such massive engines, it is surprisingly silent.  You won't see too many of these around in the next 20 years, given the economics of operating a 4 engined plane.
You have to see this behemoth in person to believe.

Lockheed Tristar - What an amazing aircraft, well ahead of its time when introduced to the market.  Fly by wire, flight computers and autopilot in the 70s was a brilliant feat of cutting edge engineering.  Perhaps the most comfortable wide body aircraft I have ever had the pleasure to travel in, apart from the cabin noise at the back due to the engine layout.  Superb looking plane as well with the third tail mounted engine. The airframe still looks uber modern in 2021. 


Narrow body

Boeing 717 -  Have flown on this more than a handful of times in the states with Delta. Very nice plane to travel in, especially if you are sitting in the twin seat row. It has 3-2 seating configuration, which means no middle seat for many.  Very underrated short haul aircraft and one of the few T Tail birds still flying in active service.  Rear is a bit noisy as is the case with most planes with rear mounted engines.

Embraer E190 E2 -  I flew this last year with Helvetic.  Two abreast seating means no pesky middle seats. Amazing seats and leg space for a narrow body aircraft. Ultra modern interior with all the works. Possibly the most comfortable short haul/regional jet. The cabin is so silent, you wont know you are flying!  Big windows too.  Better than Airbus A220 in terms of comfort IMO.

Boeing 737 -200 - I have lots of great memories associated with this plane, especially of holidays with my family, which started with a one hour hop on this old bird. Not the most comfortable or silent, but for sentimental reasons I love this plane.

[rob1966]

^

Good choices there.

My first ever flight was in a Cessna 172, jumped out at 10,000ft.

First proper flight was on a BAE 146, I loved that plane, flown with KLM and Lufthansa on that model. When I worked in Germany for a bit I did a few flights on the Embraer 146.

Have sat upstairs in economy on the A380, we had the two seats next to the window, that was lovely that, bro in law always flies Business/First with Emirates when he goes to Dubai.

One of the worst landings we had was a Virgin 747 returning from Florida, we came in sideways and then swerved side to side, the view out the window was runway/grass/runway/grass, women were screaming and kids puking, it was a bit mad

[Red Beret]

My god, you don’t really realise the sheer size of the Antonov 124 until you see compared that DC10 on the ground!

I imagine though, planning to go to Frankfurt, but ending up in Manchester...

["21C or 70F?" SchizoidWeatherMan!]

^

Good choices there.

My first ever flight was in a Cessna 172, jumped out at 10,000ft.

First proper flight was on a BAE 146, I loved that plane, flown with KLM and Lufthansa on that model. When I worked in Germany for a bit I did a few flights on the Embraer 146.

Have sat upstairs in economy on the A380, we had the two seats next to the window, that was lovely that, bro in law always flies Business/First with Emirates when he goes to Dubai.

One of the worst landings we had was a Virgin 747 returning from Florida, we came in sideways and then swerved side to side, the view out the window was runway/grass/runway/grass, women were screaming and kids puking, it was a bit mad

Ah, yes, the Bae 146/Avro RJ. Wonderful little plane with some distinct quirks.  The thing has 4 tiny engines, the only 4 engined short haul/RJ ever built!  Could take off from very short runaways too if i remember correctly.  The wing design is different from any comparable aircraft.

Wonderful piece of Engineering to be honest. UK has produced some great aircraft over the years, including the BAE 146, Hawker Sidley Trident and of course the Concorde.  Unfortunately the Trident was before my time and never had a chance to ride it. 

Talking of short haul/RJ aircraft, another favourite is the Fokker 100. I think Qantas still flies a handful of those in regional routes.  Sexy looking plane imo. 

The 747 is surprisingly rated as one of the easiest big planes to fly and land by pilots, so i guess your pilot fucked up the landing approach that day!  It does require a long runaway though.

[rob1966]

Ah, yes, the Bae 146/Avro RJ. Wonderful little plane with some distinct quirks.  The thing has 4 tiny engines, the only 4 engined short haul/RJ ever built!  Could take off from very short runaways too if i remember correctly.  The wing design is different from any comparable aircraft.

Wonderful piece of Engineering to be honest. UK has produced some great aircraft over the years, including the BAE 146, Hawker Sidley Trident and of course the Concorde.  Unfortunately the Trident was before my time and never had a chance to ride it. 

Talking of short haul/RJ aircraft, another favourite is the Fokker 100. I think Qantas still flies a handful of those in regional routes.  Sexy looking plane imo. 

The 747 is surprisingly rated as one of the easiest big planes to fly and land by pilots, so i guess your pilot fucked up the landing approach that day!  It does require a long runaway though.

It was a woman pilot (runs and hides)

["21C or 70F?" SchizoidWeatherMan!]

It was a woman pilot (runs and hides)

I have had mostly great landings on the Jumbo. 

The MD-11 on the other hand... That thing lands fast as hell, not for the weak hearted at all. You feel its going to crash at the speed it lands.  Lovely looking plane though.

[TepidT2O]

My worst landing was in the 1987 storm.  We got diverted from luton to Gatwick. Hit the ground very very hard. So hard that a couple of ceiling panels fell down. 

There was a lot of screaming I can tell you that.  When we got off the plane the airport was closing.  A small plane was blowing away, and the bigger planes were bouncing up and down 8-10ft

It was fun!

[Elmo!]

My worst landing was in the 1987 storm.  We got diverted from luton to Gatwick. Hit the ground very very hard. So hard that a couple of ceiling panels fell down. 

There was a lot of screaming I can tell you that.  When we got off the plane the airport was closing.  A small plane was blowing away, and the bigger planes were bouncing up and down 8-10ft

It was fun!

And you didn't have to go to Luton! I'd call that a win all round.

[TepidT2O]

And you didn't have to go to Luton! I'd call that a win all round.

[Riquende]

And you didn't have to go to Luton! I'd call that a win all round.

As a resident (but not a native), I wholeheartedly concur. Escaping via the airport is one of Luton's only perks.

But then, if all goes to plan, in 6 months' time I'll be living in Scotland (after ignoring it entirely for the first 38 years of my life).

[Elmo!]

As a resident (but not a native), I wholeheartedly concur. Escaping via the airport is one of Luton's only perks.

But then, if all goes to plan, in 6 months' time I'll be living in Scotland (after ignoring it entirely for the first 38 years of my life).

I may be biased but you are making an excellent choice!

I once had to spend 8 hours in Luton airport as a 16 year old on my own too young to go to the pub and left luggage was closed so couldn't leave to go outside the airport. Absolute hell.

Anyway going a bit off topic.

[bradders1011]

Lockheed Tristar - What an amazing aircraft, well ahead of its time when introduced to the market.  Fly by wire, flight computers and autopilot in the 70s was a brilliant feat of cutting edge engineering.  Perhaps the most comfortable wide body aircraft I have ever had the pleasure to travel in, apart from the cabin noise at the back due to the engine layout.  Superb looking plane as well with the third tail mounted engine. The airframe still looks uber modern in 2021. 

My username on here and most other sites is 1011 because of how much I loved the look of this plane as a kid.

[Ashburton]

Always stunning.  F14 Tomcat.