Solar plane flies nonstop for a week

by Sean McLachlan on


We recently reported on the historic flight of the Solar Impulse, the first solar-powered plane to fly through the night. Now another barrier has been broken. The Zephyr solar plane has flown nonstop for seven days.

Unlike the Solar Impulse, which carried a pilot, the Zephyr is an unmanned drone built by the UK defense firm Qinetiq. Drones have seen extensive service in Afghanistan and Iraq in recent years but are hampered by the need to return for refueling and thus losing sight of targets. Drones that never need to land have an obvious advantage. The civilian potential is obvious too, with researchers already thinking up applications for using them for scientific observation.

This development also marks another step forward for potential solar-powered commercial flight. The Zephyr has solar cells along its 22.5 meter (74 ft) wingspan that drive the propellers and fill batteries that are robust enough to power the plane from sunset to sunrise. Will we one day see solar-powered commercial flights? It may be a long way off, but considering the rapid pace of technological change, it’s unwise to say that anything is impossible.

The Zephyr is still in the air near the US Army’s Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona and its support team plans to leave it flying for another week.

ANA brings keg beer to 30,000 ft

by Grant Martin on

Spend enough time in the friendly skies and you being to notice that things taste a bit different. Perhaps it’s the air pressure and humidity when 6 miles above sea level, or maybe the small child that’s crying and pooping all over your armrest, but something about airline food, drink and air just tastes weird.

As a result, when tidbits from terra firma are successfully emulated upstairs, people get excited. A recent thread on Flyertalk announcing that American Airlines was bringing Illy Issimo coffee to some flights had dozens of airline nerds reaching for hand lotion, and every time a new snack or beverage gets loaded into Gate Gourmet the servers at Airliners.net heave under the heavy load.

These improvements, however, aren’t without careful targeting. Many passengers, especially those flying in business and first class cabins are willing to make their choice in airline based on the catering, and one small change can mean a slew of ticket sales or losses. Perhaps that’s why All Nippon Airways (ANA) is bringing keg beer to some of its flights.

It’s genius, in a way, as many a beer-lover can tell you that draft beer tastes many times better than anything straight out of the can (perhaps because of the air pressure or small children.)

Unfortunately, most westerners won’t be able to try out the draft beer any time soon. Draft beer will only be available on select flights out of Japan, and even then, only on certain routes. Let’s hope that the trend will catch on soon and that draft beer will soon be on Delta Connection flights from Peoria to Chicago.

[Photo via Hyougushi on Flickr]

The world’s longest and shortest flights

by Andrew Evans on

Because you’re just apoplectic to find out how you can maximize your time on an airplane, right? We covered this a while back, but things keep changing: planes keep getting bigger, stronger, and faster, routes change based on demand and somehow, we keep increasing our tolerance for being locked up and pressurized like pringles in a can. Fortunately, the world’s many airline nerds have already done the technical legwork–we just had to fact check:

  • At present, the world’s longest non-stop commercial flight is Singapore Airlines SQ21 from Newark Liberty (EWR) to Singapore Changi International (SIN) clocking in at a whopping 18 hours 50 minutes! Thankfully, the huge all-business-class Airbus A340-500 and world-famous in-flight service makes the halfway-around-the-world jaunt from New Jersey quite bearable. (In that same time, you could drive from Newark to Kansas City.)
  • The world’s shortest regularly-scheduled, non-stop commercial flight is on Scotland’s Loganair, from the island of Westray (WRY) to Papa Westray (PSV) in the Orkney Islands, clocking in at a meager 2 minutes (so I’m guessing there’s no beverage service).There are plenty of other super short commercial flights all over the world, mostly inter-island and commuter connections. The Caribbean’s LIAT flight between the islands of St. Kitt’s (SKB) and Nevis (NEV) is scheduled at 15 minutes long but rarely takes more than 5 minutes from take-off to landing.

(Photo Flickr: William James Tychonievich)

Mother attempts to flush newborn baby down airplane toilet

by Scott Carmichael on

A 25-year-old medical student has been arrested in Northern India after attempting to flush her newborn baby down the toilet.

The woman was flying home from Turkmenistan when she gave birth in the bathroom. Upon landing, she left the plane, leaving the baby in the toilet.

The entire toilet had to be removed, and surgeons at a local hospital used a saw to remove the newborn from it. According to doctors, the baby is in critical condition.

The mother was arrested in the airport and has been transferred to a local hospital where she was reunited with her baby.

Once doctors declare her fit, they’ll investigate her motives, but it appears she had been studying medicine in Belarus and did not want to return home with a baby.

[Image from Flickr/dpstyles]

Galley Gossip: 5 tips for traveling with a wedding dress

by Heather Poole on

From the moment my husband got down on one knee and proposed in the sand at sundown, I knew I wanted a destination wedding. When it came time to choose a wedding dress, I only considered styles that were sleek and simple. Basically I had to find something I could pack inside a suitcase since we had booked tickets on a regional carrier. Most of these airlines do not have closets or decent overhead bin space. So I knew beforehand that I’d have to gate-check a bag at the airport. It was a risk I chose to take. Thankfully my dress arrived safe and sound. I picked it up on the tarmac in Monterey.

Not all brides are quite so lucky.

“Can I hang this inside the closet?” asked a passenger on my flight from New York to Miami last week. She held a long, white garment bag with the words David’s Bridal written in gold across the zippered front.

Normally flight attendants are more than happy to accommodate a wedding dress, but sometimes it’s just not possible. This was one of those times.

“Congratulations!” I said to the blushing bride in an attempt to soften the blow. She smiled. Oh how I dreaded delivering the bad news. How could I tell her there were no closets and that first class coats had been hung on a hook between the bulkhead wall and the last row of first class seats? No way would her big puffy dress fit in such a confined space. And if miracle upon miracle it did fit, it would get crushed.

Tips for traveling with a wedding dress:

1. Ship it: FedEx / UPS / DHL and avoid airline hassles altogether! Most wedding dress places have shipping boxes and many will ship (domestically) for free. Too much can happen in transit. Do you really need the added stress?

2. Skip the poofy dress: Cinderella dresses belong in fairytales, not on airplanes. Sure it looks beautiful on you, but it’s not going to look so great after you pick it up at baggage claim because you were forced to check it when it didn’t fit on the airplane. Doesn’t matter that you’re getting married, if it doesn’t fit it doesn’t fit case closed! Be smart and travel light.

3. Check aircraft equipment: Most wide-body equipment (an aircraft with two aisles used mainly on long haul routes) have closets on board for passengers to use. They’re usually located in first class. Not all narrow-body equipment (single aisle aircraft) have closets since so many of them have been reconfigured to make more room for passenger seats.

4. Board first: Just because there’s a closet on the airplane doesn’t mean there’s going to be space available for your dress. Closets are small and quickly fill up with large bulky items such as wheelchairs, walkers, crutches, paintings, strollers, musical instruments and garment bags. Your only option may be to place the dress inside an overhead bin. If you’re in coach, choose a seat near the rear of the aircraft since most major carriers board from back to front first. This will ensure you find a place for your dress since bins tend to fill up quickly now that passengers bring everything on board to avoid checked luggage fees. If you’re traveling on an airline like Southwest that uses a first come-first serve boarding system, get to the airport extra early so you’re one of the first passengers in line.

5. Buy the dress a seat: The only surefire way you won’t have to check the dress is to buy a seat for it. I’m not kidding. Passengers traveling with musical instruments do it all the time. There’s nothing more important than the dress, am I wrong? The dress to a bride is a lot like a child to a parent in that you’ll do anything to protect it from being harmed. Just make sure to book it a window seat and don’t forget to buckle it in.