Will passengers stand for latest Ryanair stunt?

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Just when you think Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary can’t come up with another way to mess with his passengers, he takes away the seats. The European low-cost carrier’s latest way to cut costs and cram more people on planes is to stick them on stools with seatbelts. According to the Daily Mail, he’s even spoken with Boeing about making this happen.

The nice expression for this, used Ryanair spokesman Stephen McNamara, is “vertical seating.”

But, it’s not a sure thing. The Irish Aviation Authority needs to give him the green light. Something tells me that there has to be a safety issue buried in this. There just has to be. If not, well, let them stand.

The airline estimates that it could increase passengers per flight by 30 percent with the standing room approach and at the same time cut costs by 20 percent. That’s a pretty big gap between revenue and expenses – the sort of financial upside that most airlines have been unable to figure out.

Boing 787 “Dreamliner” maiden flight delayed again

by Scott Carmichael on

Poor Boeing. They are right in the middle of one of the worst economic downturns in their history, and their newest plane is creating a bit of a disaster of its own.

The 787 Dreamliner was scheduled to take its first flight early last year, but they realized back then that it could be moved to September 2008. We are now in the Summer of 2009 and Boeing is on their sixth delay.

The delay comes just one week after a horrible Paris Air Show, which is traditionally where Boeing announces a boatload of orders, but this year Airbus beat them, though neither manufacturer had that much good news to report. Airbus reported 112 aircraft sales, Boeing only sold 2.

The bad news is having a horrible effect on the share price of Boeing, which is down over 7% this morning (at the time of writing).

Still, fingers crossed that they sort out the problems with the plane. It really is a beauty, but it won’t do them (or their customers) any good if it just sits on the runway. By now I am sure Boeing will be regretting laughing at the problems Airbus encountered in building the massive A380 double-decker plane.

Boeing releases snazzy new 747-800 interiors

by Grant Martin on

Development of Boeing‘s 747-800, heralded as a direct competitor to the A380 has been underway for several years now. The super jumbo jet will feature many of the same engineering marvels that the 787 will, including swept wings, cut engine nacelles and similar cockpit controls, and will some day be the largest commercial airplane built in the western hemisphere.

So far, however, nobody has seen concepts of the interior. What new concepts from the 787 will be carried over? What new exciting upgrades will passengers of the 748 be amazed by?

Well, that mostly depends on the carrier that purchases the aircraft. Yes, seat quality, color, spacing and class is all determined by the airline, so don’t go blaming Boeing for your 3″ of leg room on your next transoceanic flight.

What Boeing has done, however, is released conceptual drawings of several 748 interiors, including a special “VIP” aircraft that is decked out to the nines. In several of the renderings that you can see at The Sydney Morning Herald, features like spiral staircases, a dining area and even a library are prevalent. Wouldn’t that be nice?

The passenger version of 747-800 is slated for delivery in 2011 with Lufthansa as the first customer. Don’t forget your reading glasses.

Why you don’t stand near the jet engine on the tarmac

by Grant Martin on

Ever look out the side of your airplane while on the ground and see those red semicircles painted around the jet engine? Those are there for a reason. If the engine powers up quickly and someone is nearby, someone (or something) could easily get sucked in. Those red regions are the “no walk” zone.

But that’s what happened at Los Angeles International Airport yesterday when a Japan Airlines 747 was pushing back in preparation for its departure to Tokyo. As the engines powered up, a metal baggage container got too close to the engine and was swept up and lodged inside of the cowling. Oops.

Nobody was hurt in the incident, but I’m sure it’s a huge inconvenience for the passengers and airline who were displaced.

Panic after fighter jets escort 747 around Manhattan

by Grant Martin on

Several buildings in Manhattan and New Jersey were evacuated earlier today, after officials spotted a Boeing 747 jumbo jet flying over the city escorted by fighter jets. As it turns out, the jet was one of President Barack Obama’s backup aircraft that was circling for a photo op. The whole operation was supposed to have been coordinated among the FAA and local officials, but apparently the message wasn’t communicated too well. The WSJ has video of the circling jets below. Imagine watching this from your highrise in Manhattan.