White Tail
May 2, 2019, 11:47 am
#16
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Helvetia
Programs: AS; BA Silver; UA; HH Gold; Sprüngli Connaisseur
Posts: 2,912
It's used as a term to mean an unsold aircraft coming off the assembly line. This is fairly rare, and happens when a manufacturer wants to keep a line going when they don't have the orders to keep it going.
May 2, 2019, 12:29 pm
#17
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Seattle, Wash. USA
Posts: 1,531
See them all the time, parked in the deadbeats' lot at Boeing Field.
May 2, 2019, 12:40 pm
#18
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Helvetia
Programs: AS; BA Silver; UA; HH Gold; Sprüngli Connaisseur
Posts: 2,912
May 2, 2019, 1:44 pm
#19
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: LON
Programs: BA Gold; LH FTL; IHG Diamond; Marriott Gold; ALL Gold
Posts: 1,758
Ok... but if the OP meant that definition, were they mistaken? Is there an assembly line at LGW that I'm not aware of?
May 2, 2019, 2:43 pm
#20
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Executive Club Blue
Posts: 969
May 2, 2019, 3:31 pm
#21
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Malta
Programs: BAEC Bronze
Posts: 671
indeed - I happened to be I the BA lounge chatting with an Aviation Lawyer who was excited about it, having never seen one before, either. She explained that it was a rare sight to see one being tested at any of the main airports. I wouldn’t have noticed it had she not been taking pictures!
May 2, 2019, 3:40 pm
#22
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Malta
Programs: BAEC Bronze
Posts: 671
Is this it? https://www.aeronewstv.com/en/lifest...hite-tail.html
If so don't pay attention to some of these comments above. If you get excited by this good for you and happy plane spotting.
If so don't pay attention to some of these comments above. If you get excited by this good for you and happy plane spotting.
May 2, 2019, 4:11 pm
#23
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Seattle, Wash. USA
Posts: 1,531
One of the more prominent of the genre, from three years ago. Last I heard it was in storage at Victorville. There was a rumor that it was short-listed to be one of the new presidential aircraft.
May 2, 2019, 4:27 pm
#24
Join Date: Dec 2004
Programs: BA GGL, A3*G, Mucci de l'expertise des Apps
Posts: 3,366
indeed - I happened to be I the BA lounge chatting with an Aviation Lawyer who was excited about it, having never seen one before, either. She explained that it was a rare sight to see one being tested at any of the main airports. I wouldn’t have noticed it had she not been taking pictures!
That particular aircraft was actually moved from Victorville to Lackland Air Force Base in Texas just last Friday for the start of it's fit out as one of the new USAF Presidential aircraft.
May 2, 2019, 5:19 pm
#25
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: LON
Programs: BA Gold; LH FTL; IHG Diamond; Marriott Gold; ALL Gold
Posts: 1,758
So are you able to tell us what aircraft it was? As I understand it, the Gatwick runway operates close to full capacity during the day, so I'd be surprised if Airbus (or anyone else) was using valuable slot pairs for some "testing"... Why wouldn't they go somewhere quieter?
May 2, 2019, 5:22 pm
#26
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: London Stratford, E7
Programs: BAEC Gold! Thanks to FT
Posts: 3,378
TItan has had their 757 at LGW this week.
May 2, 2019, 6:58 pm
#27
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: YYC
Programs: BA bronze, Aeroplan peon
Posts: 4,746
I have also seen all white aircraft used as RAF charters. This was at YYC, bringing troops to Suffield for training.
May 3, 2019, 2:04 am
#28
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 687
Was reading this thread yesterday caught by the title but then also thinking ok mildly interesting but not super exciting at the same trying to remember if I had ever seen one knocking around and then of course upon landing into DUB last night a fully white plane parked up at the 300 gates. Certainly does have a moby dick quality about it lined up against some of the more colourful aircraft.
May 3, 2019, 4:02 am
#29
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Malta
Programs: BAEC Bronze
Posts: 671
So are you able to tell us what aircraft it was? As I understand it, the Gatwick runway operates close to full capacity during the day, so I'd be surprised if Airbus (or anyone else) was using valuable slot pairs for some "testing"... Why wouldn't they go somewhere quieter?
Last edited by gypsyjaney; May 3, 2019 at 4:10 am
May 3, 2019, 4:11 am
#30
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: London
Programs: BAEC Silver, HH Diamond, Avis President's Club
Posts: 1,219
I highly doubt it was an actual manufacturer owned aircraft being tested. There will be dozens of ACMI aircraft leases operating for various airlines at Gatwick over the summer as usual. Far more likely was a HiFly A340 flying for Norwegian or something like that. Certainly doesn't sound like a once in a lifetime event!
That particular aircraft was actually moved from Victorville to Lackland Air Force Base in Texas just last Friday for the start of it's fit out as one of the new USAF Presidential aircraft.
That particular aircraft was actually moved from Victorville to Lackland Air Force Base in Texas just last Friday for the start of it's fit out as one of the new USAF Presidential aircraft.