Ben's Air Blog

In the last weekend of September 2017, Southwest Airlines retired its “classic” 737, the 300 series, and introduced the latest generation 737, the MAX.

Saying Goodbye to the Queen of the Skies On November 7, 2017, United Airlines flew its last passenger 747 flight after 47 years of service.  As an aviation enthusiast in San Francisco (SFO), it was a sad day.  The iconic Jumbo had been a staple at SFO ever since I started plane spotting there.

Paris (CDG) to Los Angeles (LAX) on the A380

I originally did not intend on writing on a trip report on this flight.   But given the relative rarity of long haul TAP Portugal trip reports – especially on an unique A330 with original Azul Business Class seats – I decided to share with you the small number of photos I took as well as some thoughts on the flight.

Ever since JetBlue introduced its premium product, Mint , I wanted to fly it.   With Mint, formerly all-economy class JetBlue ventured into a new territory.   JetBlue has entered the highly competitive U.S. transcon market fighting head-to-head with established legacies of United, American, and Delta, as well as west coast power house Virgin America.  

San Francisco (SFO) to Paris (CDG) on the B777-300ER In February, Airways was invited by Air France to cover Paris CDG Airport's 20th anniversary as a hub.  I covered the story for Airways .  Air France covered my flights to Paris and back in Business Class.  Here are my trip reports.  

  I am happy to report that my article about Air North’s Hawker Siddeley HS 748 is the cover subject in the April 2017 issue of Airways magazine – complete with a cover photo taken by yours truly!   Air North is the last airline worldwide flying the HS 748 in scheduled passenger operations.   Two ATR-42 Combi’s are to replace HS 748 flights in the first quarter of this year.   Although Air North is keeping the HS 748 for charter and cargo flights, sunset has definitely come for this venerable British propliner. This is a pretty special issue for me.  Long time aviation cohort Bill Hough has an article about the Ford Trimotor, featuring gorgeous air-to-air photos from yet another aviation buddy, Sagar Pathak . Find Airways at your local newsstands.   Or if they don’t exist anymore (like around where I live), you may purchase on-line directly from Airways or download the app ( iTunes or Google Play ) and purchase the electronic version.