Jaunted

Air Force One / Airplanes / Airplane News / Presidential Travel / → All Tags

It's Not Every Day That Air Force One Goes Up For Sale

An unattainable dream is about to come true. Someone who is not the President nor in the government will be able to say that they are now the owner of Air Force One*.

The aircraft—a DC-9 with seats for 42 travelers—may not be the jumbo jet 747 we're so used to seeing presidents emerge from on state visits, but nabbing this plane for a starting bid of $50,000 isn't half bad. For that amount of money, The Telegraph notes, one could "only run Mr Obama's main presidential aircraft for a quarter of an hour."

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Boeing / Airbus / 777 / Airline News / Airplanes / Airplane News / → All Tags

Boeing is Hard at Work Cooking Up a Whole New Flavor of 777

You know we get all worked up when there's anything new to report in the saga of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, but eventually we’re going to have to shift our focus—and airplane love—towards a new aircraft. It looks like Boeing has something up their sleeve already, and if things go according to plan the world’s longest-range passenger jet may roll off the assembly line sooner rather than later.

Sure, it’s technically not a totally new aircraft, as we’re sure the engineers at Boeing are copying and pasting some stuff from one set of blueprints to another. Nonetheless, the Boeing 777X is a totally revamped and renovated option from airplane manufacturer.

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Airplanes / Airports / Air Shows / Boeing / Seattle Travel / PAE / → All Tags

Make Your Way to Aviation Day at Seattle's Paine Field

Some 787s hanging out Paine Field

If you’re looking to fill your quota of aviation avgeekiness, but can’t swing the cost of round-the-world airfare anytime soon—we’ve got you covered. Paine Field Aviation Day is just around the corner, and plenty of airplanes will be on display for your viewing pleasure on Saturday, May 18 between 9am and 5pm.

The fun all takes place in Everett, Washington, which sits just outside of Seattle. It's better known as the home to Boeing and their primary final assembly lines, but Aviation Day is meant for aircraft both old and new to show off and take to the skies. Tickets for adults will set you back $10, but the little ones—under 17—can tag along for free.

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Travel Booking Sites / Travel Websites / RouteHappy / Travel News / Travel Tech / Airplanes / Travel Hacks / → All Tags

Drop Everything and Search for Flights on Routehappy, Right Now

Routehappy explained in 90 seconds from Routehappy on Vimeo.

"I'm thinking of flying First Class for my big vacation trip!" - Friend

"Not on [redacted airline] you shouldn't! It just won't be the First Class experience you're imagining. Try [different airline] instead; at least it's lie-flat seats." - Us

"Ooh, okay. What else would I get?" - Friend

Cue a two-hour phone conversation that only ended in exasperation on both ends, after googling and browsing airline websites 'til we were blue in the thumbs. If only Routehappy.com had existed last week.

Routehappy actually went live last Friday, which may have been too late for our first timer friend in First Class, but it's right on time for a traveling public increasingly paying attention to the availability of perks on planes. At its heart, Routehappy is a flight search and booking website built and powered by self-proclaimed #avgeeks. At its full potential, it's an educational tool to make you the most informed traveler on the entire plane route.

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Flight Reviews / Cessna / Cape Air / St Croix Travel / SJU / San Juan Travel / Airplanes / Island Travel / USVI Travel / → All Tags

The Worst Part of Flying on a Cape Air Cessna is Admitting Your True Weight

Last week, Jaunted contributor Christine headed down to the US Virgin Islands in a plane smaller than any she had ever been in before. This is her story.

Those who travel around the Caribbean often think nothing of boarding an island-hopping flight on a Cessna 402, but as a first timer I would be lying if I didn't admit the experience was a little daunting.

As I waited at the Cape Air counter in San Juan International Airport, my initial fear of flying from here to St. Croix in the tiny plane was quickly replaced by the pulse-quickening realization that passengers were required to provide their weight. This must be said aloud in front of a line of fellow travelers. Of course, I shaved 7 pounds off of my real weight, which earned me a double-take and an eye roll from the Cape Air attendant checking me in. I silently wondered if she had once worked summers guessing weights at an amusement park kiosk.

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Airplane News / Airplanes / 787 / Boeing 787 Dreamliner / Boeing 787 / 787 Dreamliner / Dreamliner / Boeing / Airlines / → All Tags

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner Rides Again: First Flight Dates for Each Airline

For the first time in nearly three months, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner is in the headlines for a positive reason—they're returning to the skies! Of course, this comes after battery fires and millions upon millions lost by grounding the jets, but still—good news.

According to Reuters, the fix required for the airplane's batteries won't be a cheap one, as the FAA "pegged the cost of repairing United's six jets at about $2.8 million." The installation of the modified lithium-ion batteries in Dreamliners should be complete by mid-May, meaning tickets are again being sold for 787 flights.

There are currently 50 Boeing 787 Dreamliners in service with airlines, all of which will be "fixed" and flying again as soon as the airlines can handle it. Here's the dates for when airlines expect their 787s to again fly with paying passengers:

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Throwback Thursday / Videos / Airline Safety Videos / TWA / Airplanes / Retro Travel / → All Tags

Throwback Thursday: An Airline Safety Video from the 1980s

Sure, we love all the speed and comfort of modern travel, but it didn't that way overnight. Every Thursday, we're going to take a look back at travel the way it used to be, whether that's decades or centuries ago. This is Throwback Thursday, travel edition.

Oh, the 1980s. The decade of boxy suits, big hair, and this safety video from a TWA Lockheed L-1011 TriStar jet. Note that it's also still a decade of allowing smoking on planes and airline safety videos so lengthy that the real danger was in zoning out before they'd finished.

No portable electronic devices to turn off, nor were there any in-flight wifi instructions in the seatback pockets, that's for sure. What they did have, however, is quite clear in the 1976 commercial below. Steaks in economy!

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Boeing / Airplanes / 747-8 / Livery / 747 / → All Tags

Break Out the Crayons and Create Your Own 747 Livery

We’ve seen various contests here and there dedicated to airline and airplane liveries, but now there’s a way to play graphic designer anytime and anywhere. Boeing has fired up a pretty neat addition to their website, and they welcome one and all to slap some paint onto the side of a 747-8.

You get a blank slate jumbo jet, and then you’re welcome to rotate it this way and that way to get your livery just right. Boeing has loaded a few different paintbrushes, stamps, and designs, so there are plenty of options from which to choose. There’s a whole bunch of colors, and you can even change up the background. Unfortunately you can’t upload your own logos and photos, so you won’t be able to stick your face onto the belly of the plane.

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Videos / British Airways / 747 / Boeing / Airplanes / → All Tags

Video Interlude: One Jumbo Art Project for One Jumbo British Airways Jet

Even though British Airways is champing at the bit to get their hands on the superjumbo Airbus A380, they aren't so quick to forget the original jumbo—the Boeing 747.

Just last week, the airline gathered together some creative employees and cleared a space in a hangar to generate a massive mural made up of the many thousand items which go on each BA 747 aircraft before it heads up into the skies. This are the soft products of the service, and they aren't anything minor: "With a combined weight of 6,120 kg, the items have to be unloaded and re-loaded before every take-off."

Now consider that each 747 on its own is made up of nearly 6 million pieces, and we're talking Puzz 3D, extra difficult edition for sure.

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Photo Gallery / Marathon Travel / Running / Events / JetBlue / US Airways / El Al / Lufthansa / Active Travel / Prime Planespotting / Airplanes / Airports / JFK / → All Tags

What It's Like to Run on a Runway at New York's JFK Airport

Let's race! Running shoes? Check. Healthy breakfast? Check. Warm-up stretches? Check. A runway course at New York's busiest international airport? CHECK.

This past Sunday, April 14, nearly 1,000 runners and aviation enthusiasts resisted hitting the "Snooze" button and got their butts to JFK Airport for the 41st Annual JFK Runway Run. The 5K course actually closes a major runway to air traffic, while the rerouted aircraft continue landing and taking off like normal on other runways. No earplugs needed, but most runners had a camera in hand.

Registration was $25 in advance and $30 onsite. We were lazy and showed up at 7am for the 9am race to ensure we secured a last-minute spot. Come to find out that our worry was all for naught; anyone who showed up and paid was welcome to race.

The 963 participants were runners and walkers of all ages and ability levels, and even those in wheelchairs were welcome to have a pusher. We watched as one little girl, who couldn't have been older than 8, spent her time walking the runway and taking iPhone photos of planes. Very cute. Meanwhile, the serious runners were probably well into their lunches; the fastest times were just over 20 minutes while the slowest (ours) was 1 hour and 20 minutes. Yes, we proudly finished 963rd on account of all the aircraft distractions.

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Airline Seats / In-Flight Comfort / Airplane Seats / Airplanes / Airplane News / → All Tags

It Probably Won't Happen, but the Airplane 'Side-Slip Seat' Idea is Unique

It’s been a little bit of time since we first heard about the Side-Slip Seat, but now it looks as though the latest idea in airplane seating design is making the rounds once again. We’ve got a few more details and some additional renderings, since Molon Labe Designs sincerely hopes this will be the next great thing in airplane seating.

The basic premise behind this new design is that the aisle seat can slide over the middle seat, with the goal that the aisle of the airplane gets a little bit roomier during the boarding process. Faster boarding means quicker turnaround time for the airlines, and as a result that might just lead to more cash in their bank accounts.

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Fun Stuff / Lists / Airplanes / GIFs / → All Tags

14 Fun Travel GIFs to Get You Through the Weekend

In a Daily Dot article from last year, on the history of the animated nugget that is a GIF, we were shocked to read this:

"'I think the first GIF was a picture of a plane. It was a long time ago,' [CompuServe GIF inventor Steve] Wilhite told the Daily Dot in a rare interview via Facebook."

Okay, well if the first GIF may have been of a plane, then travel inspiration has been part of the GIF history from the very beginning. Doing our own part, here's 14 travel GIFs to brighten up your weekend:

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