CLEHillbilly

Hi,

I avoid them like the plague but I flew TATL to FRA on a CO Boeing 764, what a step back into time. Luckily I still had my 6 year old Empower adapter to enjoy my own movie but as much as I hate to say it I wanted to be on a TATL 757 for the amenities such as current movies and normal laptop power throughout the cabin.

When does CO plan on upgrading these dinosaurs? Why fly that old of an aircraft into a Premier Star Alliance hub, isn't that a little embarrassing for CO?

Kindest Regards,
CLEHillBilly

Steph3n

the 764 is still a workhorse of a plane.

I am hoping they will upgrade them then move some of them to domestic after the 787s start coming online.

but maybe they will go to CM or CO Mike for long hauls there with no config changes.

sdm1130

They may have the older BusinessFirst seats and no AVOD, but I'm not sure I'd call them dinosaurs as they aren't that old.

CO.com says they should be completed by 8/2012, so I would imagine they won't start any sort of updates on them until late 2010 or early 2011 at the earliest. My guess is CO is waiting on the 787 deliveries to start before they can really ramp up 762/764 upgrades.

sdm1130

I highly doubt we'll see CO move widebodies to domestic routes - they've been pretty clear that that doesn't fit in to their plans.

Why could CO send aircraft to CM? CO already has a shortage of widebodies, so there is no reason that they would start selling off the 767s.

Steph3n

I am talking about after 787s are online they will retire or sell them. This would not be an immediate thing of course, and it would with with CM's no frills more service oriented configs.

CLEHillbilly

Once you fly one TATL versus the 777 and 757's you'd also consider them dinosaurs.

What am I missing with the 787 comments, the 787 is targeted at a different market/business model then what CO is using the 764 for. They UG'd all of the TATL 757s/777s but neglect the in between model? It doesn't make sense.

Let me ask the simple question.....who in the past 2 years, well 4 years even have purchased a empower adapter for their laptop because they thought it would be useful? Can you even buy them at Best Buy anymore? No one in their right mind would purchase one....its a legacy product, update teh AC if you're going to fly it TATL, especially into a large *A hub like FRA.

Just my 2 cents, I'll again avoid the 764 after my return flight, except if I find it flying domestically. It is just not a good Intl Product to show off for CO.

BTW it did have old BF seats.

CALMSP

shortly, EWR-FRA turns into a 777, so the amenities will be there, and soon the lie-flat as well. And if the 2nd flights gets the green light, the 757 will also be an option. (which I prefer due to the faster service and more attentive to each individual in the BusinessFirst cabin)

sdm1130

I have flown plenty of TATL flights on CO's 777, 757 and 767s. I completely agree that the interiors are lacking the modern features found in the 772s and 752s. My point was that it's hard to call them dinosaurs when CO's oldest 764 was delivered in mid-2000.

Have you ever flown a DL 763ER (the workhorse of their TATL operation)? Those are dinosaurs (and about 10 years older than COs 764s).

I only mentioned the 787s because they are widebodies that would give CO more flexibility to take 762/764s offline to upgrade the seats and add AC power and AVOD.

Sure, it's an older technology but lots of carriers still use it. Don't forget, some carriers don't even offer any power! I'm sure we'd all agree that empower is better than no power at all.

Correct, no one said it wouldn't have the older BF seats.

Hartmann

I guess I don't understand the "different market" for the 787 comment, but I'll save that for later.

I think the waiting to upgrade the 764s after the 752s has to do with fleet optimization. The 752s already have AVOD so all that has to change is the BF config. CO has a ton of 752s so it doesn't take much to move them around to get them into the shop. The 764s on the other hand are heavily used, especially out of IAH.

Just a guess.

For me, having Empower on CO is better than being stuck in the back on UA or LH with no power.

CALMSP

the 762/764 conversion is to start in 2011. Will be intersting to see how those shape out, but will be glad once they do!!

adastra

Agreed!

I sprung for a cheap $10 inverter that will work with Empower - but also with a car cigarette lighter. So it's no big hardship if they switch all of the planes to regular power outlets. I can still use the inverter for powering my laptop in the car. And at $10, I bought inverters for a bunch of my friends and family. They aren't CO flyers... and they found them immediately useful on some long-hauls.

But back to the 764 - I'm excited about the overhaul, but they're getting the job done for now. A little utilitarian but I don't generally mind.

sbm12

That was the original plan. I wonder if the accelerated 772 rollout will alow them to move the 767 conversion up a bit. It sure would be nice.

hangpilot

Where from? Can you buy them without mail ordering? I've a 764 trip coming up in less that two weeks, and lots of Powerpoint to prepare on board!

EWR764

Check Amazon or eBay. I got a great (off-brand) MagSafe EmPower adapter for my Macbook Pro for less than $20 shipped about 10 days before a series of long hauls on the 762/764. Turned out to be a great buy, and plenty useful too on other airlines with EmPower.

My issue with the 767s is not the BF seat (I actually like the recliner), nor the power (with my adapter, EmPower is perfectly adequate), but the entertainment. On 3 of my last 5 767 flights, there have been significant issues with the IFE, whether it be an extremely grainy picture, poor sound, or the entire system being totally inop. AVOD is long overdue.

adastra

Unfortunately, I bought mine through Woot - so they were not only online, but a one-day offer (that came up twice). This is the one that I got, for not much more than I paid, and I bet you'd get it in plenty of time for your trip.

I did find a laptop-specific inverter (with a variety of specialized tips) at a local MicroCenter before my first 764 journey. It was around $30.