They'd have used helium, but less lifting power meant not only worse delays out of NEL, but plastic cups and silverware in F. The whole FlyerTypewriter community was up in arms.

I saw one at CAK last week.

No, I don't dream of the 747SP, but I do have very fond memories of AA's two birds on AA60/61 DFW-NRT in the late 80's. My one and only international up-op was on one of those flights.

I think that is the single most funny thing I've read here. And to think they once thought people would dock at the top of the empire state building.

I'd rather be ferried around on a 744.

Probably one of the best places to still see a 747SP is in the VIP area at London Heathrow, which is on the south side of the airport next to terminal 4. There are more executive flight slots through Heathrow than you might expect, the landing fees for them are huge but the SPs which remain seem to have become a favourite of those in the Middle East who fancy their own 747; they are relatively cheap to buy nowadays, still have the "747" prestige, and don't get used for many hours per year. There's one comes through most days, sometimes quite a number are there at once. Often the owner is either (1) ill and going to a London hospital, or (2) going to one of the main horse races.

Does anyone else think offering a shortened version of a streched version is somewhat incongrous?

They should've just let EK order some 744s and be done with it.

I don't sleep deeply on planes. And when I do nod off, I'm in that state where I think I'm awake but I'm actually dreaming.

Usually then I start dreaming that I'm in a plane narrowly avoiding a crash. Often we are taking off from a narrow and short runway, and have to rotate more steeply than normal to avoid the traffic lights and telephone wires. Sometimes we can't get the altitude and have to fly under them and try to cimb before we hit the next batch. Sometimes there are other plance parked there. They're not in the wrong place -- it's just a really crowded airport. Regardless of where I'm flying to/from those take off dreams usually take place at JFK.

I also have similar dreams on landing. Usually in the dream, we're on approach to SEA (though sometiems the dream is about BFI). For some reason, though, we are landing on the street and, again, those traffic lights get in the way.

Most of the time we make it. Or I "wake up" and realize it was only a dream, only to realize in a little while I'm still dreaming. I've had those recursive loops go 5 or 6 levels deep, which sucks.

And then there were the various post-9/11 dreams which stopped sometime around 2003. But that's another story.

Cromely.