After The Rain

Well we had another rain storm move through SoCal today which let up late this afternoon and brought out the sun. I thought I would share some of the results above. Also ramp construction will start within the next week or so and new parking places have been set up on the ramp which can be seen in the photos. This will be covered in a future post.

JetBlue "Blueberries" repaints

JetBlue has started repainted A320s with the new billboard titles and "Blueberries" tail design. The following aircraft have been spotted with the new titles and tail design: N534JB, N561JB, N562JB, N563JB, N564JB, N566JB, and N568JB. Updates will follow as planes are repainted.

Friday 2-5-2010

Allegiant Air MD-87 N952MA ferried in from Laughlin/Bullhead Intl (KIFP) as AAY5043 at 7:55pm and parked at the terminal.

Frontier announces DEN-LGB Service

Here is the schedule for Frontier starting May 14, 2010.

Denver to Long Beach $299* each way

Flight Number - 1011
Departs - 8:40am
Arrives - 10:15am
Frequency - Daily

Flight Number - 1009
Departs - 6:10pm
Arrives - 7:45pm
Frequency - Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sun

Long Beach to Denver $299* each way

Flight Number - 1008
Departs - 6:45am
Arrives - 10:05am
Frequency - Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sat

Flight Number - 1010
Departs - 11:00am
Arrives - 2:19pm
Frequency - Daily

JetBlue tests Winglets again on A320

JetBlue had a A320 N556JB testing winglets for Aviation Partners Inc (API) last month. The photos were taken at San Bernardino Int'l Airport (KSBD) on Janary 17, 2010. The plane is now back in Orlando and will be returned to service in the next week or so without the winglets. Aviation Partners Inc, (API) and JetBlue will now review the data collected from testing. Hopefully the results will show a fuel savings of 5-8% which is what JetBlue and API are hoping for. More updates to come later this year I am sure.

Obama rejects C-17 funding in new budget

President Barack Obama strongly rejected continued funding for Boeing's C-17 in his proposed fiscal year 2011 budget Monday, calling future spending on the Long Beach-built jet "waste, pure and simple."

"We save money by eliminating unnecessary defense programs that do nothing to keep us safe," Obama said. "One example is the $2.5 billion that we're spending to build C-17 transport aircraft. Four years ago, the Defense Department decided to cease production because it had acquired the number requested - 180. Yet every year since, Congress had provided unrequested money for more C-17s that the Pentagon doesn't want or need. It's waste, pure and simple."

Boeing officials reacted to the statement diplomatically, saying they believe there is future need for the aircraft both domestically and internationally.

"While we do not comment on our lobbying activities, we can say that Boeing is focusing our efforts on the demand for affordable, reliable and capable airlift globally," said Boeing spokesman Jerry Drelling. "We intend to aggressively seek international sales of the C-17."

The C-17 supports some 5,000 jobs at Boeing's production, sales and research plant in Long Beach.

The president had also suggested in 2009 that Congress not support additional dollars for the heavy airlift cargo plane. Despite his request, Congress funded 10 jets for the U.S. Air Force at a cost of $2.5 billion.

The president's suggested budget is only a proposal, as Congress holds ultimate authority on spending, so his call to end C-17 production will need approval by both the House and Senate. Obama can veto spending projects approved by Congress, but federal law allows a presidential veto to be overridden by a two-thirds majority of both houses.

Area Congress members could not be reached Monday for reaction to the President's latest call to end C-17 funding, but California Sen. Barbara Boxer said in a statement that she strongly disagreed with Obama's assessment.

"While I agree with President Obama's focus on job creation in his new budget, this is one area where we don't agree," Boxer said. "I will work to restore funding for this program that is important for so many of our military and humanitarian missions."

The plane has traditionally enjoyed strong support from lawmakers in California and the 44 states where suppliers are based.

The C-17 has seen extensive use in Iraq, Afghanistan, and more recently, ferrying relief aid to earthquake-stricken Haiti. Along with the United States, C-17s are owned by Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and a NATO-led consortium based in Hungary.

The Indian Air Force is also considering purchasing 10 of the jets.

But while Boeing looks for international orders, company officials believe domestic production is vital to keep the plant and its suppliers across the country operating. Boeing estimates it needs 12 to 15 orders annually to justify high production costs.

"U.S. orders will ultimately be needed in the future to keep the line open," Drelling said. "It is important to preserve this vital airlift program that is the only military wide-body manufacturing capability in the United States."

Currently, C-17 production is expected to end in mid- to late 2012, though Boeing has entered into formal negotiations with India for 10 planes, which could push production into 2013.

Other recent orders have come from the United Arab Emirates, which purchased six C-17s in early January and the United Kingdom, which added one to its existing fleet of six a few days later.

Increasingly, the C-17 has been used for humanitarian efforts.

The plane has been used to haul tons of medical aid, food, water and personnel in the wake of such disasters as Hurricane Katrina, the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, the earthquake and tsunami that struck American Samoa and Tonga in September and most recently, the earthquake in Haiti.

The plane can carry up to 170,000 pounds of equipment and land on remote, unpaved runways as short as 3,000 feet, making it unique among the world's heavy-lift aircraft.

The U.S. Air Force has a C-17 fleet of about 194 with roughly a dozen more on order. It was first introduced in the early 1990s as a more-efficient alternative to Lockheed's C-5 aircraft.

Last year, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., led a spirited attempt to strip funding for more C-17s in the federal defense budget, but his amendment was eventually voted down in a bipartisan 68-30 vote.

And in October, over strong objections from the White House, the Senate and House jointly agreed to purchase 10 more C-17s.

The federal government estimates restarting the plant after closure would cost in excess of $1 billion.

"Preserving this program provides an affordable option to the U.S. Air Force and Congress if they need to fill what we believe is a growing demand for airlift," Drelling said.

(Press Telegram)

New Airlines Coming To LGB!!

First off I want to appologize for not posting anything the last 3 weeks but I have been busy between work and personal life. Now on to the news!

On January 29, 2010 there was a raffel for the six available slots at Long Beach Airport. Four airlines had standing letters on file with the city for slots. They were Allegiant Airlines, Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways and Skywest Airlines. Both Allegiant and Frontier will recieve 2 slots while JetBlue and Skywest both get 1 slot each. The new airlines have 90 days to begin service from March 1.

The airlines must then operate service continuously for 180 days to finalize the allocation. If any of the airlines choose to relinquish a slot, then the city would go back to the other carriers that were interested in additional slots and would most likely have a raffel.

The six slots were the most available since 2001 when JetBlue came to LGB. Currently there are 16 commuter slots still available.

Wednesday 1-6-2010

USA Jet's first MD-83, N949NS (c/n 53022) arrived as JUS949 from Tuscaloosa Rgnl (KTCL) at 1:16pm and parked at Signature. The plane brought in Alabama fans for the BCS Championship game and is painted all white.

Tail numbers noted on the Gulfstream ramp: N421QS, N265DV, VH-LAL

Tuesday 1-5-2010

Sun Country Airlines had three 737-800s bring in the Alabama marching band for the BCS National Championship game at the Rose Bowl. The flights were as followed:

Boeing 737-800 N813SC arrived as SCX8685 at 1:10pm from Tuscaloosa Rgnl (KTCL) and parked at Signature. The plane ferried out at 2:03pm to Minneapolis/St Paul Intl (KMSP) as SCX8685.

Boeing 737-800 N809SC arrived as SCX686 at 1:35pm from Tuscaloosa Rgnl (KTCL) and parked at Signature. The plane ferried out at 2:15pm to Minneapolis/St Paul Intl (KMSP) as SCX686.

Boeing 737-800 N804SC arrived as SCX8687 at 2:24pm from Tuscaloosa Rgnl (KTCL) and parked at Signature. The plane ferried out at 3:14pm to Minneapolis/St Paul Intl (KMSP) as SCX8687.

Monday 1-4-2010

Kelowna Flightcraft Air Charter Ltd IAI 1125 Westwind Astra (IAI Gulfstream G100) C-FDAX (c/n 058) arrived at 4:30pm from Palm Springs Intl (KPSP) and parked on the Gulfstream ramp.

There was suppose to a Mid East Jet Boeing 777 arriving from Las Vegas at 9:30pm tonight but the plane departed late from New York and did not arrive into Las Vegas until 9:45pm, so they decided to stay in Vegas.