Finally made a trip to St. Maarten after a few years of procrastination.  Decided to go before the busy season, as hotels were pretty cheap compared to mid-December onward.  The only downsides were the unpredictable WX and reduced flight schedules.  I took Continental’s flight out of EWR, mainly because I have a NJ Transit train station near me, for an easy connection.  The flight landed 30 minutes early, and since I only had carry-on luggage, I went through customs and was out of the airport in no time. Continue reading »

The Historical Flight Foundation brought their Eastern Air Lines DC-7B (N836D) to Teterboro, NJ this week, following appearances at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2010 and the 2010 Thunder Over Michigan Air Show. The DC-7B, originally delivered to Eastern Airlines in 1958, is flying again after an extensive six-year restoration, and returned to the sky on July 4, 2010. Check out photos from both of Saturday’s flights below: Continue reading »

A short trip to Philadelphia International Airport (KPHL) netted two nice surprises – the first Chautauqua ERJ-145 in full Frontier Airlines colors and the AirTran Boeing 717-231 promoting “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter” at Universal Orlando Resort. Continue reading »

After high winds forced cancellation of the Red Bull Air Race training sessions a day earlier, I returned to the track to catch Friday’s practice.  The lighting from my vantage point was less than ideal in the morning, but by the time the afternoon runs started, the sun was in a favorable position for nicely-lit aircraft.  This was the first time the Red Bull Air Race has been held in New York City, and my first time attending the event, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. Continue reading »

Spent the day at JFK, and had one of my most productive spotting days to date. In 9 hours, I was able to cross 6 planes off my wish list, including the brand new Swiss “Summer of Love” A340-300 and the pink Delta “The Breast Cancer Research Foundation” Boeing 767-400. Other highlights included equipment subs for Icelandair (Boeing 757-300) and Turkish (A340-300). Continue reading »