Delta Flight 777
2021年11月24日Register here: http://gg.gg/x0gru
Delta has embarked on a full-fleet interior renovation of its 777 aircraft, with the first refreshed 777-200ER taking flight this afternoon from Detroit (DTW) to Beijing (PEK) featuring the award-winning Delta One suites, the new Delta Premium Select cabin and the widest Main Cabin seats of Delta’s international fleet, among other interior upgrades. Delta’s upgraded 777 aircraft means that the Delta and Virgin Australia joint venture offers a more consistent customer experience, with fully flat-bed seats with direct aisle access available on all flights across the Pacific as well as a premium economy option, an economy comfort product with more legroom, and nine-abreast seating in main cabin.
*Delta Airlines Flights Search
*Delta Flight 7776
*Delta Airlines ReservationsDelta Air Lines Flight 89N860DA, the Boeing 777 involved in the incident, pictured in 2013IncidentDateJanuary 14, 2020SummaryCompressor stall, subsequent fuel jettisonSiteSouth Los Angeles, California, United StatesAircraftAircraft typeBoeing 777-232EROperatorDelta Air LinesIATA flight No.DL89ICAO flight No.DAL89Call signDELTA 89RegistrationN860DAFlight originLos Angeles Int’l AirportDestinationShanghai Pudong Int’l AirportOccupants165Passengers149Crew16Fatalities0Injuries0Survivors165Ground casualtiesGround injuries56+
Delta Air Lines Flight 89 was a scheduled flight from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Shanghai Pudong International Airport. On January 14, 2020, the Boeing 777-200ER conducting the flight had engine problems shortly after takeoff; while returning to the origin airport for an emergency landing, it dumped fuel over populated areas adjacent to the city of Los Angeles, resulting in skin and lung irritation in at least 56 people on the ground and triggering a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) investigation. The aircraft landed safely with no injuries to passengers or crew.Background[edit]
What year did bradley walsh present wheel of fortune. Flight 89 was a regularly scheduled Delta Air Lines flight from LAX to Shanghai Pudong International Airport. On January 14, 2020, the Boeing 777-200ER widebody jet aircraft operating as Flight 89 departed from LAX at 11:32 AM.[1][2] The aircraft had 149 passengers and 16 crew members on board.[3]
To reach Shanghai, the aircraft would be carrying enough fuel to exceed its certified maximum landing weight, increasing its landing distance and risking structural damage if fuel wasn’t dumped. However, according to retired 777 pilot and CNN aviation analyst Les Abend, many runways at major airports can safely accommodate a landing by an overweight 777 in dry conditions.[4]Incident[edit]
Minutes after departing LAX and initiating a climb over the Pacific Ocean, the pilots reported a compressor stall in the aircraft’s right engine. Air traffic controllers asked Flight 89’s pilots if they wanted to remain over the ocean to dump fuel, but the pilots declined, saying ’we’ve got it under control.. we’re not critical.’ Controllers again asked, ’OK, so you don’t need to hold or dump fuel or anything like that?’, to which the pilots responded, ’Negative.’[5] The pilots requested Runway 25R, the longest runway at the airport.[4] Flight 89 turned back towards land and headed towards LAX to make an emergency landing.
While over land and approaching LAX for an emergency landing, the plane dumped fuel over a five-mile portion of the Los Angeles county area, including five elementary schools and a high school.[1] The most affected area was Park Avenue Elementary School in Cudahy, California, where several students were doused with jet fuel. Students at elementary schools in South Gate, California were also affected.[6] Children who were in a physical education class thought it was rain before seeing the plane above them.[7] CBS News reported that, based on the expert opinion of a former Boeing 777 captain, Flight 89 would’ve likely dumped 15,000-20,000 gallons of fuel.[3] Shortly after completing the fuel dump, the aircraft landed safely.[8]Aftermath[edit]
First responders were called to multiple schools to treat children and staff who were outdoors at the time Flight 89 dumped fuel. At least 56 children and adults were reported to have minor skin and lung irritations.[3] All affected schools were closed for cleaning, but reopened the following day.[5]
The story received widespread media attention, with detailed investigation and analysis from organizations including CBS News,[3]The New York Times,[1] the Los Angeles Times,[2] and received substantial international media coverage.[5][9][10] Aviation experts were puzzled by the actions of the flight crew. A former United Airlines captain called the fuel dump over a populated area ’a pretty outrageous thing’ that ’nobody’ would do. Safety expert John Cox said that because ’they were not in an immediate threat condition, and they started out over water,’ the pilots will need to explain ’why they continued to dump fuel at low altitude when they weren’t in a fuel-dumping area, and didn’t advise ATC that they were dumping fuel.’[11] Abend noted that the pilots twice told controllers that they needed to delay the landing for unexplained reasons, suggesting that they needed more time to complete checklists and dump fuel, and did not feel compelled to land right away. However—trying to surmise why the pilots did not use the extra time to explain their intentions, nor to ask for vectors to a dumping area over the ocean—Abend stated ’Honestly, I don’t have the answer.’[4]
Following the Flight 89 incident, the mayor of Burien, Washington, a city located adjacent to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, called on the Port of Seattle to develop an emergency response plan for similar situations.[12]
The aircraft was put back into service with Delta ten days later on January 24.[13]Investigation[edit]
On January 15, 2020, the FAA announced it was investigating the Flight 89 incident. In a statement, the FAA noted that ’There are special fuel-dumping procedures for aircraft operating into and out of any major U.S. airport,’ and that ’procedures call for fuel to be dumped over designated unpopulated areas, typically at higher altitudes so the fuel atomizes and disperses before it reaches the ground.’[5]References[edit]
*^ abcBogel-Burroughs, Nicholas; Lyons, Patrick J. (January 15, 2020). ’Delta Airplane Dumps Jet Fuel on Los Angeles Schools’. The New York Times. ISSN0362-4331. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^ ab’Tracking Delta Flight 89’s path before it dumped fuel on an elementary school’. Los Angeles Times. January 14, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^ abcdMartinez, Peter (January 14, 2020). ’Delta jet dumps fuel over Southern California, sickening dozens of schoolkids and adults’. CBS News. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^ abcAbend, Les (January 22, 2020). ’Pilot: The mystery of Delta flight’s fuel dump’. CNN. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
*^ abcdDazio, Stefanie (January 15, 2020). ’FAA investigating Delta jet fuel-dumping on schoolkids’. CTV News. CTV Television Network. Associated Press. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^’Elementary school kids doused as jet dumps fuel before emergency landing’. Los Angeles Times. January 14, 2020. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
*^’Children in P.E. class showered with jet fuel: ’We thought it was rain’’. Los Angeles Times. January 14, 2020. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
*^’Jet dumps fuel that lands on schoolkids near Los Angeles’. The Bakersfield Californian. January 14, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^’Children seen leaving school in tears after plane fuel dumped on playground’. Metro (British newspaper). January 15, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^’Plane dumps fuel over schools near Los Angeles airport’. BBC. January 15, 2020.
*^’Aviation experts puzzled after airliner dumps fuel over city’. The Washington Post. January 15, 2020. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
*^Ayers, Christin (January 15, 2020). ’Burien mayor calls for ’plan of action’ at Sea-Tac Airport after LAX fuel dump incident’. KING 5 News. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
*^’Flight history for aircraft - N860DA’. Flightradar24. Flightradar24. Retrieved January 24, 2020.Delta Airlines Flights SearchRetrieved from ’https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Delta_Air_Lines_Flight_89&oldid=1000377033’© Provided by The Points GuyMSN has partnered with The Points Guy for our coverage of credit card products. MSN and The Points Guy may receive a commission from card issuers.
To a casual observer in the cabin, Delta Air Lines flight 8777 from New York to Los Angeles on Saturday might have looked like a run of the mill hop from coast to coast, one of many crisscrossing the country every day.
But at a closer look, it would have become clear that this was not a normal coast-to-coast flight like we used to have before the pandemic.
All the middle seats, blocked by Delta’s social-distancing policy, were unoccupied, and everybody wore a mask — but most importantly, the vast majority of the passengers behind those masks weren’t regular flyers just getting from JFK to LAX. They were aviation enthusiasts, flying to California on the last run of a popular airplane that’s fallen victim to the pandemic: Delta’s former flagship, the Boeing 777.© The Points Guy Boarding the last Delta 777 flight at JFK (Photo by Alberto Riva/The Points Guy)
Because of the drop in traffic this year, the biggest twinjet ever made has become too big for Delta to fly economically. Its almost 300 seats are tough to fill these days when there isn’t a planeload of aviation geeks who want to go on a last ride, so Delta is phasing it out in favor of the Airbus A350. The Airbus doesn’t fly as far, but offers much better economics.
For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.
The demise of the 777 is bad news for the passenger experience in coach class, where Delta was among the few carriers in the world retaining the original 3-3-3 seat layout that Boeing had originally designed. Most other airlines that fly 777s have squeezed in one more seat in a 3-4-3 layout, and that made Delta’s Triple Sevens very popular among passengers, by contrast.
“Retiring a fleet as iconic as the 777 is not an easy decision,” Delta CEO Ed Bastian said earlier this year. “I’ve flown on that plane often and I love the customer experience it has delivered.”
Customers on DL8777 agreed.
“Flying to Australia was the best on Delta,” reminisced Craighton Miller, a flight dispatcher with regional carrier Endeavor Air who flew the 777 across the Pacific. “Oh, that flight was long!” The 777 was the first twin-engine airplane that could fly it nonstop, breaking into the exclusive long-haul domain of the four- and three-engined jets.
Yan Chan, a defense contractor, loved the Triple Seven so much that he showed up at the gate with a model Delta 777 he asked his fellow avgeeks to sign.© The Points Guy Yan Chan and his model 777 (Photo by Alberto Riva/The Points Guy)
Max Moncrief, a ramp trainer with Delta, came on his day off to salute an airplane that took him, he said, “all over the world.”
And at the front of the jet, half of the Delta One cabin — sporting the individual suites that the airline had just spent millions installing, before the pandemic — had been taken over by members of the Delta Diamond Medallion Flyers, a Facebook group for people who have the highest elite status on the airline. Buoyed by free biz-class champagne, they had clearly come to party, lowering their masks only to drink from the special cups they had made for the occasion.© The Points Guy (Photo by Alberto Riva/The Points Guy)
Not everybody was so into it.
“I don’t understand the excitement about it,” said Mel Bollom, who had come from Wisconsin to chaperone his young, aviation-enthusiast grandson Cooper, “but I am amazed by the enthusiasm.”
About 10 percent of the people on board, according to a quick estimate by a flight attendant, were normal passengers like him — a number that gives an insight into the scale of the problem Covid-19 has given the airlines. Without the avgeeks filling the jet on this one special occasion, the flight would have gone 90 percent empty.
And that’s why Delta’s Triple Sevens — even if they are at most two decades old, which is young in airplane years — are going away.
According to a study by the International Council for Clean Transportation of airplanes flying on North Atlantic long-haul routes, the Airbus A350 is the most fuel-efficient jet currently used to serve that very important market, while the 777 is among the worst performers. Delta says the Airbus burns 21 percent less fuel per seat than the 777 it replaces.© The Points Guy Screen shot from International Council for Clean Transportation
The two jets have similar capacity, both seating around 300 people, but the A350 is a generation later. Thanks to the use of composite materials, it’s about 30 percent lighter, and it also has newer engines.
Until the pandemic reduced air travel to a trickle, the higher fuel burn of the Boeing was not an issue. Delta flew its Triple Sevens full, which made them profitable. It had also just refurbished their interiors, a sure sign that an airline plans to keep a plane type in the fleet for a while — especially if that airline is Delta, known for investing in maintenance and updated cabins to keep its jets longer than many competitors do.
But when an airline is flying planes almost empty and burning through $750 million a month, fuel savings matter a lot. That means it’s curtains for the airplane that just three years ago had inherited from the 747 the title of biggest and heaviest in the Delta fleet.
None of that mattered on Saturday, though, as the 777 branded on the fuselage as The Delta Spirit crossed the U.S. with its complement of socially-distanced aviation geeks. People were there to celebrate another storied airplane that’s going away, like so many 747s and A380s this year.
“You made this flight extremely special,” Captain Tim Freeman told his passengers on the intercom as the 777 began descending from 40,000 feet. “This is my final landing with the Triple Seven, so make sure to say it’s a nice landing.”Delta Flight 7776
Captain Freeman did make a nice landing at LAX, and many of the avgeeks onboard saluted his smooth touchdown with something that frequent flyers never do, as if to highlight the special occasion: they clapped.
After the 777, the captain will go on to fly Delta’s new flagship, the A350. The first officer, Scott Gottschang, will become a captain himself, on the short-haul Airbus A320.
For the airplane they flew to Los Angeles, though, the future is not as bright.© The Points Guy The last takeoff (Photo by Alberto Riva/The Points Guy)
A few hours later, having disgorged its final passengers into a near-deserted terminal, The Delta Spirit departed one last time, headed for storage — and likely recycling — in the California desert. As the sun went down over the Pacific, Delta’s last 777 gave one of those passengers, watching from a nearby terrace, a sight that summed up a career: it took off, literally, into the sunset.
All photos by Alberto Riva/The Points Guy
SPONSORED: With states reopening, enjoying a meal from a restaurant no longer just means curbside pickup.
And when you do spend on dining, you should use a credit card that will maximize your rewards and potentially even score special discounts. Thanks to temporary card bonuses and changes due to coronavirus, you may even be able to score a meal at your favorite restaurant for free.
These are the best credit cards for dining out, taking out, and ordering in to maximize every meal purchase.
-- Delta Airlines Reservations
Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
Register here: http://gg.gg/x0gru
https://diarynote.indered.space
Delta has embarked on a full-fleet interior renovation of its 777 aircraft, with the first refreshed 777-200ER taking flight this afternoon from Detroit (DTW) to Beijing (PEK) featuring the award-winning Delta One suites, the new Delta Premium Select cabin and the widest Main Cabin seats of Delta’s international fleet, among other interior upgrades. Delta’s upgraded 777 aircraft means that the Delta and Virgin Australia joint venture offers a more consistent customer experience, with fully flat-bed seats with direct aisle access available on all flights across the Pacific as well as a premium economy option, an economy comfort product with more legroom, and nine-abreast seating in main cabin.
*Delta Airlines Flights Search
*Delta Flight 7776
*Delta Airlines ReservationsDelta Air Lines Flight 89N860DA, the Boeing 777 involved in the incident, pictured in 2013IncidentDateJanuary 14, 2020SummaryCompressor stall, subsequent fuel jettisonSiteSouth Los Angeles, California, United StatesAircraftAircraft typeBoeing 777-232EROperatorDelta Air LinesIATA flight No.DL89ICAO flight No.DAL89Call signDELTA 89RegistrationN860DAFlight originLos Angeles Int’l AirportDestinationShanghai Pudong Int’l AirportOccupants165Passengers149Crew16Fatalities0Injuries0Survivors165Ground casualtiesGround injuries56+
Delta Air Lines Flight 89 was a scheduled flight from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Shanghai Pudong International Airport. On January 14, 2020, the Boeing 777-200ER conducting the flight had engine problems shortly after takeoff; while returning to the origin airport for an emergency landing, it dumped fuel over populated areas adjacent to the city of Los Angeles, resulting in skin and lung irritation in at least 56 people on the ground and triggering a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) investigation. The aircraft landed safely with no injuries to passengers or crew.Background[edit]
What year did bradley walsh present wheel of fortune. Flight 89 was a regularly scheduled Delta Air Lines flight from LAX to Shanghai Pudong International Airport. On January 14, 2020, the Boeing 777-200ER widebody jet aircraft operating as Flight 89 departed from LAX at 11:32 AM.[1][2] The aircraft had 149 passengers and 16 crew members on board.[3]
To reach Shanghai, the aircraft would be carrying enough fuel to exceed its certified maximum landing weight, increasing its landing distance and risking structural damage if fuel wasn’t dumped. However, according to retired 777 pilot and CNN aviation analyst Les Abend, many runways at major airports can safely accommodate a landing by an overweight 777 in dry conditions.[4]Incident[edit]
Minutes after departing LAX and initiating a climb over the Pacific Ocean, the pilots reported a compressor stall in the aircraft’s right engine. Air traffic controllers asked Flight 89’s pilots if they wanted to remain over the ocean to dump fuel, but the pilots declined, saying ’we’ve got it under control.. we’re not critical.’ Controllers again asked, ’OK, so you don’t need to hold or dump fuel or anything like that?’, to which the pilots responded, ’Negative.’[5] The pilots requested Runway 25R, the longest runway at the airport.[4] Flight 89 turned back towards land and headed towards LAX to make an emergency landing.
While over land and approaching LAX for an emergency landing, the plane dumped fuel over a five-mile portion of the Los Angeles county area, including five elementary schools and a high school.[1] The most affected area was Park Avenue Elementary School in Cudahy, California, where several students were doused with jet fuel. Students at elementary schools in South Gate, California were also affected.[6] Children who were in a physical education class thought it was rain before seeing the plane above them.[7] CBS News reported that, based on the expert opinion of a former Boeing 777 captain, Flight 89 would’ve likely dumped 15,000-20,000 gallons of fuel.[3] Shortly after completing the fuel dump, the aircraft landed safely.[8]Aftermath[edit]
First responders were called to multiple schools to treat children and staff who were outdoors at the time Flight 89 dumped fuel. At least 56 children and adults were reported to have minor skin and lung irritations.[3] All affected schools were closed for cleaning, but reopened the following day.[5]
The story received widespread media attention, with detailed investigation and analysis from organizations including CBS News,[3]The New York Times,[1] the Los Angeles Times,[2] and received substantial international media coverage.[5][9][10] Aviation experts were puzzled by the actions of the flight crew. A former United Airlines captain called the fuel dump over a populated area ’a pretty outrageous thing’ that ’nobody’ would do. Safety expert John Cox said that because ’they were not in an immediate threat condition, and they started out over water,’ the pilots will need to explain ’why they continued to dump fuel at low altitude when they weren’t in a fuel-dumping area, and didn’t advise ATC that they were dumping fuel.’[11] Abend noted that the pilots twice told controllers that they needed to delay the landing for unexplained reasons, suggesting that they needed more time to complete checklists and dump fuel, and did not feel compelled to land right away. However—trying to surmise why the pilots did not use the extra time to explain their intentions, nor to ask for vectors to a dumping area over the ocean—Abend stated ’Honestly, I don’t have the answer.’[4]
Following the Flight 89 incident, the mayor of Burien, Washington, a city located adjacent to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, called on the Port of Seattle to develop an emergency response plan for similar situations.[12]
The aircraft was put back into service with Delta ten days later on January 24.[13]Investigation[edit]
On January 15, 2020, the FAA announced it was investigating the Flight 89 incident. In a statement, the FAA noted that ’There are special fuel-dumping procedures for aircraft operating into and out of any major U.S. airport,’ and that ’procedures call for fuel to be dumped over designated unpopulated areas, typically at higher altitudes so the fuel atomizes and disperses before it reaches the ground.’[5]References[edit]
*^ abcBogel-Burroughs, Nicholas; Lyons, Patrick J. (January 15, 2020). ’Delta Airplane Dumps Jet Fuel on Los Angeles Schools’. The New York Times. ISSN0362-4331. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^ ab’Tracking Delta Flight 89’s path before it dumped fuel on an elementary school’. Los Angeles Times. January 14, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^ abcdMartinez, Peter (January 14, 2020). ’Delta jet dumps fuel over Southern California, sickening dozens of schoolkids and adults’. CBS News. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^ abcAbend, Les (January 22, 2020). ’Pilot: The mystery of Delta flight’s fuel dump’. CNN. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
*^ abcdDazio, Stefanie (January 15, 2020). ’FAA investigating Delta jet fuel-dumping on schoolkids’. CTV News. CTV Television Network. Associated Press. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^’Elementary school kids doused as jet dumps fuel before emergency landing’. Los Angeles Times. January 14, 2020. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
*^’Children in P.E. class showered with jet fuel: ’We thought it was rain’’. Los Angeles Times. January 14, 2020. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
*^’Jet dumps fuel that lands on schoolkids near Los Angeles’. The Bakersfield Californian. January 14, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^’Children seen leaving school in tears after plane fuel dumped on playground’. Metro (British newspaper). January 15, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
*^’Plane dumps fuel over schools near Los Angeles airport’. BBC. January 15, 2020.
*^’Aviation experts puzzled after airliner dumps fuel over city’. The Washington Post. January 15, 2020. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
*^Ayers, Christin (January 15, 2020). ’Burien mayor calls for ’plan of action’ at Sea-Tac Airport after LAX fuel dump incident’. KING 5 News. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
*^’Flight history for aircraft - N860DA’. Flightradar24. Flightradar24. Retrieved January 24, 2020.Delta Airlines Flights SearchRetrieved from ’https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Delta_Air_Lines_Flight_89&oldid=1000377033’© Provided by The Points GuyMSN has partnered with The Points Guy for our coverage of credit card products. MSN and The Points Guy may receive a commission from card issuers.
To a casual observer in the cabin, Delta Air Lines flight 8777 from New York to Los Angeles on Saturday might have looked like a run of the mill hop from coast to coast, one of many crisscrossing the country every day.
But at a closer look, it would have become clear that this was not a normal coast-to-coast flight like we used to have before the pandemic.
All the middle seats, blocked by Delta’s social-distancing policy, were unoccupied, and everybody wore a mask — but most importantly, the vast majority of the passengers behind those masks weren’t regular flyers just getting from JFK to LAX. They were aviation enthusiasts, flying to California on the last run of a popular airplane that’s fallen victim to the pandemic: Delta’s former flagship, the Boeing 777.© The Points Guy Boarding the last Delta 777 flight at JFK (Photo by Alberto Riva/The Points Guy)
Because of the drop in traffic this year, the biggest twinjet ever made has become too big for Delta to fly economically. Its almost 300 seats are tough to fill these days when there isn’t a planeload of aviation geeks who want to go on a last ride, so Delta is phasing it out in favor of the Airbus A350. The Airbus doesn’t fly as far, but offers much better economics.
For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.
The demise of the 777 is bad news for the passenger experience in coach class, where Delta was among the few carriers in the world retaining the original 3-3-3 seat layout that Boeing had originally designed. Most other airlines that fly 777s have squeezed in one more seat in a 3-4-3 layout, and that made Delta’s Triple Sevens very popular among passengers, by contrast.
“Retiring a fleet as iconic as the 777 is not an easy decision,” Delta CEO Ed Bastian said earlier this year. “I’ve flown on that plane often and I love the customer experience it has delivered.”
Customers on DL8777 agreed.
“Flying to Australia was the best on Delta,” reminisced Craighton Miller, a flight dispatcher with regional carrier Endeavor Air who flew the 777 across the Pacific. “Oh, that flight was long!” The 777 was the first twin-engine airplane that could fly it nonstop, breaking into the exclusive long-haul domain of the four- and three-engined jets.
Yan Chan, a defense contractor, loved the Triple Seven so much that he showed up at the gate with a model Delta 777 he asked his fellow avgeeks to sign.© The Points Guy Yan Chan and his model 777 (Photo by Alberto Riva/The Points Guy)
Max Moncrief, a ramp trainer with Delta, came on his day off to salute an airplane that took him, he said, “all over the world.”
And at the front of the jet, half of the Delta One cabin — sporting the individual suites that the airline had just spent millions installing, before the pandemic — had been taken over by members of the Delta Diamond Medallion Flyers, a Facebook group for people who have the highest elite status on the airline. Buoyed by free biz-class champagne, they had clearly come to party, lowering their masks only to drink from the special cups they had made for the occasion.© The Points Guy (Photo by Alberto Riva/The Points Guy)
Not everybody was so into it.
“I don’t understand the excitement about it,” said Mel Bollom, who had come from Wisconsin to chaperone his young, aviation-enthusiast grandson Cooper, “but I am amazed by the enthusiasm.”
About 10 percent of the people on board, according to a quick estimate by a flight attendant, were normal passengers like him — a number that gives an insight into the scale of the problem Covid-19 has given the airlines. Without the avgeeks filling the jet on this one special occasion, the flight would have gone 90 percent empty.
And that’s why Delta’s Triple Sevens — even if they are at most two decades old, which is young in airplane years — are going away.
According to a study by the International Council for Clean Transportation of airplanes flying on North Atlantic long-haul routes, the Airbus A350 is the most fuel-efficient jet currently used to serve that very important market, while the 777 is among the worst performers. Delta says the Airbus burns 21 percent less fuel per seat than the 777 it replaces.© The Points Guy Screen shot from International Council for Clean Transportation
The two jets have similar capacity, both seating around 300 people, but the A350 is a generation later. Thanks to the use of composite materials, it’s about 30 percent lighter, and it also has newer engines.
Until the pandemic reduced air travel to a trickle, the higher fuel burn of the Boeing was not an issue. Delta flew its Triple Sevens full, which made them profitable. It had also just refurbished their interiors, a sure sign that an airline plans to keep a plane type in the fleet for a while — especially if that airline is Delta, known for investing in maintenance and updated cabins to keep its jets longer than many competitors do.
But when an airline is flying planes almost empty and burning through $750 million a month, fuel savings matter a lot. That means it’s curtains for the airplane that just three years ago had inherited from the 747 the title of biggest and heaviest in the Delta fleet.
None of that mattered on Saturday, though, as the 777 branded on the fuselage as The Delta Spirit crossed the U.S. with its complement of socially-distanced aviation geeks. People were there to celebrate another storied airplane that’s going away, like so many 747s and A380s this year.
“You made this flight extremely special,” Captain Tim Freeman told his passengers on the intercom as the 777 began descending from 40,000 feet. “This is my final landing with the Triple Seven, so make sure to say it’s a nice landing.”Delta Flight 7776
Captain Freeman did make a nice landing at LAX, and many of the avgeeks onboard saluted his smooth touchdown with something that frequent flyers never do, as if to highlight the special occasion: they clapped.
After the 777, the captain will go on to fly Delta’s new flagship, the A350. The first officer, Scott Gottschang, will become a captain himself, on the short-haul Airbus A320.
For the airplane they flew to Los Angeles, though, the future is not as bright.© The Points Guy The last takeoff (Photo by Alberto Riva/The Points Guy)
A few hours later, having disgorged its final passengers into a near-deserted terminal, The Delta Spirit departed one last time, headed for storage — and likely recycling — in the California desert. As the sun went down over the Pacific, Delta’s last 777 gave one of those passengers, watching from a nearby terrace, a sight that summed up a career: it took off, literally, into the sunset.
All photos by Alberto Riva/The Points Guy
SPONSORED: With states reopening, enjoying a meal from a restaurant no longer just means curbside pickup.
And when you do spend on dining, you should use a credit card that will maximize your rewards and potentially even score special discounts. Thanks to temporary card bonuses and changes due to coronavirus, you may even be able to score a meal at your favorite restaurant for free.
These are the best credit cards for dining out, taking out, and ordering in to maximize every meal purchase.
-- Delta Airlines Reservations
Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
Register here: http://gg.gg/x0gru
https://diarynote.indered.space
コメント