In this issue:

• Trip Report: Air Canada 787 Cross Country; Hits and Misses
• History Special: Miracle Over the Atlantic
• Incidents: VivaAeroBus A320 Engine Surge + Alaska Airlines B737 Lost Cowling
• Emirates wants an even Bigger Airplane to Replace A380
• Ethiopian Airlines B737 Misses Landing After Both Pilots Fall Asleep
• Video: Air Canada B787 Cross Country – Why are Airfares so High?

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Trip Report: Air Canada 787 Cross Country; Hits and Misses

After 3 days of raw aviation megafun on the Curtiss C-46 and Lockheed L188 Electra with Buffalo Airways at Yellowknife, Canada. I am “back to the present” and flew out on Air Canada CRJ900 to Calgary.

The airfare is expensive as expected from Yellowknife. Last-minute airfare can go as high as over CAD1,000.

I redeemed 28,800 United miles for Air Canada domestic Business Class from Yellowknife via Calgary to Montreal. The latter flight is operated by B787-9 which has the international product.

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History Special: Miracle Over the Atlantic

On Thursday, May 5, 1983, a Lockheed L-1011 Tristar series 1 registered N334EA, a widebody jet powered by three Rolls-Royce RB.211 turbofans, was rostered for a morning rotation from Miami to Nassau in the beautiful Bahamas with 172 passengers onboard, flight number EA855. The 40-minute, 180-mile (290 kilometers) hop is usually the preserve of smaller jets, but a quick short haul out-and-back between longer legs can be a good way to squeeze a bit of extra value out of an asset.

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Incidents: VivaAeroBus A320 Engine Surge + Alaska Airlines B737 Lost Cowling

On 23rd August, a VivaAeroBus Airbus A320 was forced to return to Guadalajara in Mexico after suffering an engine surge shortly after takeoff.

The Airbus A320-200 with registration XA-VAJ was performing flight VB518 from Guadalajara International to Los Angeles. A loud boom was heard from the right-hand engine while it was climbing out of the airport.

After noticing the loud boom, the crew stopped the climb at 13,150 feet, shut the engine down and returned to Guadalajara. The A320 safely landed on runway 10 some 43 minutes after departure from the same runway.

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Emirates wants an even Bigger Airplane to Replace A380

Looking into the future, Emirates‘ President, Sir Tim Clark is concerned and has expressed his desire for Airbus to build a replacement super jumbo jet – just bigger the size. Clark has been one of the most vocal supporters of the A380 super jumbo jet from the beginning. Nearly half of all A380s ever produced […]

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Ethiopian Airlines B737 Misses Landing After Both Pilots Fall Asleep

On 15th August, both pilots of an Ethiopian Airlines flight reportedly fell asleep in flight and only woke up after an alarm from the autopilot disconnection. The Boeing 737-800 with registration ET-AOB was performing flight ET343 from Khartoum to Addis Ababa when the unusual event occurred. As reported by the Aviation Herald, the aircraft was […]

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Video: Air Canada B787 Cross Country – Why are Airfares so High?

After 3 days of raw aviation megafun with Buffalo Airways at Yellowknife, NWT. I am “back to the present” and flew out on Air Canada CRJ900 to Calgary. The CRJ even has a Business Class product. An impressive hot meal was served on the 2 hours flight.

I overnighted in Calgary and flew on Air Canada B787-9 Dreamliner to Montreal the next day. The Air Canada lounge in Calgary has decent food selection. I met with two other Canadian traveler there, and they told me the airfare within Canada are sometimes higher than flights to Europe.

My flight out of Calgary was delayed by an hour due to a late inbound flight. Once onboard Air Canada B787, the crew showed me the cockpit and the pilot crew rest area on the B787. A course-by-course full lunch was served onboard with a printed menu and paired wines. The Air Canada B787-9 also features Premium Economy Class.

At the end of the 3.5 hrs flight, I highlighted two observed issues with aviation in Canada.

1. The airfares are high. I was redeeming miles to fly for better value.

2. No refund to canceled flights during the pandemic. Given the current high airfare and inflation, the voucher value is unlikely to hold.