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Geeking Out Across America

Geeking Out Across America

Old Apr 19, 2013, 5:04 pm
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Geeking Out Across America

Introduction

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things


”High Flight” By John Magee Jr.

Just like John Magee, I too longed to slip the surly bonds of earth for as long as I can remember. Most boys dream of becoming a professional athlete when they’re young. Not me. I wanted to be a pilot. Rather watching sports on TV or attending the events live, I spent my spare time watching “Wings” on the Discovery Channel and going to the airshow held at our local Naval Air Station. Just about every book I read was aviation themed, to the chagrin of more than one of my elementary school teachers during book report time. I can’t explain why, but I absolutely love all things aviation. I still get excited whenever I board a plane; it doesn’t matter if I’m seated in 28E on a MD-83, or 1A on a Cathay Pacific 777-300ER... I kid of course, but you get the gist. The best way to epitomize my aviation obsession is watching a Boeing 747 fly. It’s amazing how such a large object can get off the ground, and complete a journey that historically took months, or some cases years to complete, in the matter of a few hours. To think a little over one hundred years ago humans were still trying perfect the art of powered flight.

As if my aviation obsession wasn’t geeky enough, I am also huge history buff earning me more flak from my then immature peers. Then I turned 13 and realized girls liked jocks. So I decided to mend my wayward ways, and go out for football. At my first practice, I went out for a pass and woke up 10 minutes later. I took that as a sign to remain true to my not so cool roots, and that worked out pretty well; depending on whom you ask, of course.

During family trips when I was a kid, my parents went out of the way to satisfy my geeky hunger pangs, visiting places like Gettysburg, the National Naval Aviation Museum, National Air and Space Museum, the USS Alabama, and Plymouth; much to the annoyance of my sister. However, there are still a few places I have yet to visit including Pearl Harbor, National Museum of the US Air Force, and National Air and Space Museum Annex (near Dulles). Since December of 2012, I had the opportunity to visit a couple of those places, and then some, thanks to a combination of work related travels and mileage running. Now, this wouldn’t be a proper FT TR without a review of flights and hotels, so I’ll toss a few of those in there.

Previous Trip Reports
Around The World and From Sea to Shining Sea (AA F/Y, CX F, SQ F, UA F, DL F, WN Y)
Everybody look at me because I'm sailing on a boat (KL J and DL Y)

Last edited by dat4life; May 21, 2013 at 10:35 am
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Old Apr 19, 2013, 5:07 pm
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Visiting to Pearl Harbor Part 1

Visiting Pearl Harbor

As most of you know, AA launched their AATHANKS DEQM and DRDM promotion as a gesture of goodwill for their operational issues experienced in autumn. Sitting at 61K EQM, I decided go for broke and mileage run my way to Executive Platinum. So I began hunting for decent fares. There was a nice fare to Honolulu from Houston with a 1 day turn, allowing me to visit another place I’ve always wanted: Pearl Harbor. The fact I was able to visit the day after the anniversary of the attacks, made it more meaningful.

My flights were largely uneventful. I got to experience Main Cabin Extra (AA’s version of United’s Economy Plus) on my DFW-LAX leg. With the middle seat unoccupied, it was very comfortable. My upgrade for my LAX-HNL leg cleared at exactly 72 hours out. I was very pleased that this leg of my journey would be on my favorite aircraft, the 757-200. In addition to having the ability to board through door 2L, the 757 has the best performing commercial plane active today. And in my humble opinion, the 757-200 is one of the best looking commercial aircraft out there, with its perfect proportions and long legs (tall landing gear). Of course, both of those qualifications are second to the immortal Concorde.

American Airlines 297
Los Angeles (LAX) – Honolulu (HNL)
Depart: 4:20 PM
Arrive: 8:20 PM
Aircraft: Boeing 757-200 (N687AA)
Seat: 4A (First Class)


I had a pretty short connection at LAX of 40 minutes, but it was a short walk between my arrival and departure gates so I made it with some time to spare. A couple minutes after I arrived, the gate agent invited First Class to board. My boarding pass was scanned, and I was on my way down the jet bridge. Our flight attendant, Alejandro, warmly greeted each passenger at the door with an “Aloha”, setting the tone for the flight. I was happy to find myself on another refurbished 757, which had a nice “new airplane” smell. I know a lot FTers on the AA forum dislike the new domestic First Class seats, but I find the new seats to be a big improvement over the old brown recliners, especially in the area of lumbar support.

I settled into seat 4A, which already had a pillow and blanket there. Despite the full flight, boarding wrapped up early. My seatmate arrived toward the end of boarding, and he turned out to be quite the talker. More on that a bit a later. Just before the boarding door closed, Alejandro came around with a tray of orange juice, “champagne”, and mimosas. I chose a mimosa, which was alright. We ended up pushing back a few minutes early, and began taxiing toward Runway 25R. Take off was powerful and our climb to cruising altitude was quick, as expected with the overpowered 757. We had a gorgeous view of the sunset throughout our climb.

Service began as we reached cruising altitude. The flight deck added their welcome aboard at that time. Alejandro warmly greeted each passenger by name and offered us some” light reading” (menus), as the familiar smell of nuts being warmed slowly wafted through the cabin. Let’s take a look at what’s on offer tonight, shall we.





Not long afterwards, Alejandro came around to take drink orders and those lovely ramekins of warmed tropical mix nuts, which is essentially the regular nut mix with some dried pineapple and macadamia nuts. It was tasty and went down nicely with my gin and tonic. Dinner orders were taken as drinks and nuts were delivered.



As I had mentioned earlier, my seatmate was very talkative. We had struck up a conversation as we pushed back. He was a SVP with Marriott, but retired to Hawaii a few years ago. Marriott Rewards has been my primary hotel program since I began working in 2009, so I am quite knowledgeable about the ins and outs of the program. We talked about all things Marriott Rewards, and the travel industry in general. Unlike most of the talkative seatmates I’ve had over the years, he was an absolute pleasure to talk to. While we were talking, the purser, Brandon, came around offering to refresh drinks and refill nuts, which I took him up on.

10 minutes later, Alejandro came around with the salad cart and Brandon followed with bread basket. I chose the spicy Asian dressing, which was a bit sweet with a spicy kick. The salad itself was a big step up from the typical mid-con First Class salads, with asparagus, cucumbers, and radish. The vegetables were fresh and crisp, and the dressing was delicious. And the King Hawaiian rolls were pretty good.



Salad plates were cleared, and main courses were delivered at each passenger’s pace. I chose the beef…which was a mistake. It had the consistency of pot roast, and the rice was way over cooked. The vegetables were the redeeming part of the meal. But I was hungry, so I ate it anyways.



We were offered after dinner drinks, as mains were cleared. Brandon came around to take dessert orders, after a nice lull. I went with the ice cream sundae, and told him to surprise me with the toppings. He certainly did not disappoint. I got the works with a dash of Bailey’s, which went well with the glass of Bailey’s on the rocks I was already working on.


Bailey’s with more Bailey’s. Life is good

After dessert, I unwrapped my blanket, made of substantially higher quality than the blankets offered in regular domestic First Class, and reclined my seat and took a nap. I woke up about 40 minutes out of Honolulu. Alejandro made a pass through the cabin a couple minutes after I woke up, and offered me a drink. I went with a water, which was delivered with a package of AA’s “premium” snack mix. Soon we were descending into Honolulu, which was interesting. Everything was pitch black until we were well into our final descent. Touchdown was smooth and the taxi to the gate was quick. I thanked the great crew on the way out, and gave them AAplause certificates. They certainly earned it.

A wall of warm and humid air greeted me when I stepped into the jet bridge. 15 minutes later, I was waiting for the shuttle bus to Hertz. The line at the service counter was about 20 deep when the bus dropped me off at offsite location. Thankfully, an agent asked for Gold members to come see her. I was the only one that approached her. She had some difficulty with my rental contract printed, and I found out after I got back home she ended putting 5 separate holds on my credit card while trying to fix the problem. But everything worked out, so no harm, no foul. A little while later, I was driving off in a crappy sky blue Chevy Impala. The worse thing about driving in Hawaii is the freaking speed limit, which tops out at 60 mph…which drove me absolutely insane. It was quite a chore to make sure I was within a reasonable deviation from the limit, as I was tired and constantly glancing at my iPhone for directions. 30 minutes later, I was pulling into the JW Marriott Ihilani Ko Olina.

The most important thing about mileage runs is keeping your costs to a minimum. When I found the fare to Honolulu, I kind of forgot about how expensive hotel rooms are there before I booked. To complicate matters, I went the weekend of the Honolulu Marathon, so every hotel room I found was in excess of $350 per night. It pained me to do it, but I ended burning 30,000 points for a room at the JW as it was certainly the most cost effective way to remedy the situation, or so I thought. More on that in a bit.

Rather than saving a few bucks, I splurged on valet parking for convenience. Upon entering the lobby, I found there was a bit of the line at the front desk as my AA crew was checking in. I exchanged a quick greeting with them before I approached the desk. Check in was prompt, and I was in my upgraded ocean view room 10 minutes later, as I got lost. Go figure. Anyways, my room was nice. The room itself was generously sized and well appointed.


Entry way








Nifty multi-function alarm clock


Welcome gift of water and some amazing macadamia nuts


View from the balcony the next morning

After an amazing shower, I opened the balcony door, closed the screen, and fell quickly fell asleep on the very comfortable bed while listening to the soothing sound of the surf. The next morning I woke up about 7, feeling completely refreshed, and decided to take a run along the beach. I was treated to some really nice views through-out my run.




View of the JW Marriott



When I returned to the hotel, I got a Facebook notification from a high school friend, since I posted I was Hawaii. I completely forgot he was stationed there. D’oh! Of course, I find out then I could have crashed with him, as he lived off base. Anyways, we made plans to grab lunch. Though it would cut into my time to visit Pearl Harbor, it would be worth it as we hadn’t seen each other in couple of years.

At around 11 AM, I checked out and headed over to Waikiki to meet my friend for lunch. We met at a place called Chibo in the Ala Moana Center, next to the Sheraton Waikiki. We caught up and watched our beloved Saints get pounded by the Giants over a delicious lunch of Okonomiyaki, washed down by a couple of ice cold Kirins. We bade each other farewell after lunch, and then I spent the better part of 30 minutes looking for my car as forgot where I parked. Finally, I swallowed my pride and I asked a couple of valets to help me out.

It was short drive from Waikiki to Pearl Harbor Visitors Center. Of course, I had forgotten to charge my iPhone the night before, so I improvised by using the camera on my iPad to take pictures. The center is located just next to the active Pearl Harbor base. One of the most popular attractions of the memorial is visiting the USS Arizona. I had pre-booked a visit to the USS Arizona Memorial, but I had missed it due to my impromptu lunch plans. The ticket agent told me the next available tour at 3 PM didn’t look full so I could stand by for that one. So I walked around the memorial for a bit before heading over to the boarding area, where I was greeted by a friendly park ranger, whom I chatted with a bit. The tour was not full, as expected, and I made it on the tour. The group was herded into a small theatre where a short film about the attack was shown.

After the film, we headed to the dock where a boat, operated by the Navy, was waiting to take us to the USS Arizona memorial. The boat was operated by the US Navy. My high school Naval Science Instructor used to say, 99 percent of the women in the world are good looking, the other one percent join the Navy. Well, the cute Petty Officer 3rd Class in charge of our boat today must have somehow slipped through the cracks. Boarding was quick and we were soon knifing through the harbor toward the USS Arizona.

Last edited by dat4life; May 30, 2013 at 9:10 pm
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Old Apr 19, 2013, 5:10 pm
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Visiting Pearl Harbor Part 2

As Franklin Roosevelt so aptly put it, December 7, 1941 is a date which shall live in infamy. Over 2,000 people were killed and a 1,000 more were wounded on that terrible day. The USS Arizona is the most well-known out of all of the ships sunk that day, as over 1,100 sailors from the Arizona were killed after a bomb struck its forward magazine. The ensuing massive explosion caused the ship to sink very quickly. Due to the sheer size and bulk of the great battleship, efforts to raise the ship were unsuccessful, leaving all of those killed entombed in the depths of harbor. A memorial was eventually built to allow the public to pay their respects, and 71 years and 1 day after that horrific day, I was there to pay mine.

There were markers dotting the harbor, indicating the position of each ship on that day on the famed battleship row.



We docked at the pier alongside the memorial and disembarked. Although the large previous tour group was waiting to board the boat to return to the visitors’ center, it was very quiet. In fact the only distinguishable sound was the Stars and Stripes flying smartly in the stiff breeze.







As I previously mentioned, the Arizona was left exactly where she sunk; although, some work was completed to better preserve the site including removing the ship’s gun turrets. The mount for the one of the Arizona’s forward 14 inch gun turrets as well as part of the ship’s superstructure still protrudes above the water today.


Gun turret


Part of the superstructure…I believe




Names of the killed on board inscribed in the wall of the shrine room


Wreath that was laid during the remembrance ceremony the day before.

Our time was limited to about 20 minutes at the memorial. The boat that had taken us to the Arizona soon arrived to deposit a new tour group and pick my group up. The new group seemed to be primarily composed of high school aged kids. While the majority of the group were quiet and respective, a few of the guys took it upon themselves to impress the young ladies by acting like complete dumb alpha sierra sierra. Call me old fashioned, but you’re at a graveyard for crying out loud. Show a little respect. Don’t be complete clowns and test your vertical jumps on the archway while loudly arguing about who had the best verticals. The sternest of stares didn’t remotely calm these fellas down. Thankfully, we soon reboarded the boat, which soon set course toward the Visitors Center. As we pulled away from dock, I caught a glimpse of which of the USS Missouri, on board which a document was signed on September 2, 1945 ending the terrible and costly war.



After we got back to the Pearl Harbor memorial, I headed back to the airport to begin the 13,000 miles of flying I would undertake over the next 48 hours.

Last edited by dat4life; Apr 24, 2013 at 8:23 pm
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Old Apr 19, 2013, 5:14 pm
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The 8th Air Force Museum

The 8th Air Force Museum

In January, I was assigned to work on a client in Monroe, LA, which is located about 300 miles east of Dallas. While I was happy to be able to spend an extended period of time in my home state, I wish it was in a more exciting area, such as my hometown of New Orleans. But still, I had a few friends who live in the area, and visit a place I’ve been meaning to visit for years: The 8th Air Force Museum.

The museum is located at the Barksdale Air Force Base, just outside Shreveport, LA. The 8th Air Force became famous for their efforts in Europe during the World War II, and its commanders included the likes of Jimmy Doolittle. In the current day, the 8th Air Force still serves as the backbone of the U.S. heavy bomber fleet.

I had a meeting at my office the morning of the day I was scheduled to travel to Monroe, so I couldn’t leave my office until lunch. Speaking of lunch, I ended grabbing lunch at Burguesa Burger. If you’re ever in Dallas, go there. Ask for the # 1 Combo with spicy fries. Don’t ask what’s in it. Just eat. So much better than In-N-Out, and dare I say Whataburger. There, I managed to piss off two passionate fan bases in one sentence. But to mollify one fan group, and to save myself from being run out of town with pitchforks, I love me some Whataburger too. Anyways, Burguesa Burger for lunch was a mistake, as I was nodding off the entire drive to Shreveport. I arrived at the museum around 3, leaving me a little over 2 hours to enjoy the museum.

As I mentioned, the museum is located in Barksdale Air Force Base, so I had to leave my driver’s license with the guard at the base entrance to enter. The museum itself is rather small; though, its exhibits are quite impressive. The two exhibits I wanted to see most were the B-17 and the B-29. Both were heavy bombers produced by Boeing and were instrumental to the Allied Forces efforts in World War II. While examples of B-17 are quite common, heck I’ve even taken a ride in one, intact B-29 airframes are quite rare. In fact, I’ve never actually seen one in person before, and I was pretty excited about being able to see one for the first time. While both aircraft were built for military purposes, experience with mass producing those large aircraft proved to be valuable for Boeing as they ramped up the production of large civilian aircraft in the 1950s. Additionally, B-29 had then revolutionary features such as a pressurized cabin, which were incorporated into later civilian models. Before you fellow aviation geeks crucify me, I know the Boeing 307 was the first pressurized airliner, but the B-29 was Boeing’s first mass produced aircraft with that feature.


Boeing B-17F Flying Fortress


Boeing B-29 Super Fortress


Consolidated B-24 Liberator


B-24 Engine


Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter


Boeing B-47 Stratojet


Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird


General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark


Boeing B-52G Stratofortress


Hmm…duly noted

In addition to the aircraft on exhibit, the 8th Air Force Museum also has other interesting items including the podium President Bush used on September 11, 2001. As you may recall, President Bush left Florida on that fateful day and headed to a then undisclosed location, which was later revealed to be Barksdale. He gave a short speech that afternoon. The podium he used for that speech is on display at the museum. Another interesting exhibit at the museum is the World War II era Norden bombsight. The U.S. Army Air Force brass considered the bombsight to be the key piece in their strategy of precision daylight bombing; “hitting a pickle barrel from 20,000 feet” as it was touted. Though in practice, it was not quite as effective as publically acknowledged due to variety of factors, including weather.





All in all, it was worth a visit. There’s certainly enough to see to keep even the most hard core of aviation geeks happy for a short while. It’s noteworthy to mention admission to the museum is free. As I exited museum, I caught a glimpse of an active duty B-52H of the 20th Bomb Squadron.


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Old Apr 19, 2013, 5:17 pm
  #5  
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National Air and Space Museum Annex

Soon after I finished my Louisiana assignment, I was scheduled for a two week training session in Washington DC. While I go to DC several times a year, I have sadly not visited the fantastic National Air and Space Museum Annex, also known as the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, located near Dulles. It was high time for me to go. While admission to the museum was technically free, it costs $15 for parking. But it’s certainly well worth it. As soon as I parked, I hastened toward the entrance, giddy with excitement.

The two exhibits I wanted to see most at the Annex was the Boeing Dash 80 and the Enola Gay. The Dash 80 is the prototype of the Boeing 707, which kick started golden age of commercial aviation. The Enola Gay is the most famous B-29 Stratofortress, as it carried the atomic bomb to Nagasaki, which helped bring World War II to an end.















In addition to those two primary exhibits, the other exhibits at the Annex are quite good as well.


Vought F4U Corsair


FW-190


A very rare Me-163 Komet


Hawker Hurricane


Republic P-47D Thunderbolt, with a Mitsubishi Zero in the back ground


Republic F-105 Thunderchief

For some reason I didn’t take pictures of the Space Shuttle Discovery, but the exhibit alone is well worth the visit. There’s also an observation deck with a nice view of Dulles. Just below the observation deck is an air traffic control exhibit complete with a couple mock up consoles. There were a few retired controllers volunteering their time with exhibit. I stuck up a conversation with one of them worked as a TRACON controller at SoCal Center. He was incredibly enthusiastic and very interesting to talk to. It was kind of funny as we getting some eye rolls and stares since we were so engrossed in conversation.

If you have a long layover at Dulles, I highly recommend visiting the museum. It’s absolutely worth it. I believe there’s a free shuttle bus from the airport to the museum, which makes visits quite easy during layovers.

Last edited by dat4life; Jul 30, 2013 at 8:13 pm
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Old Apr 19, 2013, 5:32 pm
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The National Museum of the Air Force

National Museum of The Air Force

Another aviation mecca I’ve always wanted to visit is the National Museum of the Air Force in Dayton, OH. While looking for some mileage run fares, I happened to stumble on a $200 fare from Dallas to Dayton, Ohio. It’s certainly not mileage run material, but it’s pretty good compared to what fares on this route usually run. So, I figured why not since I had a free weekend, and visiting the museum would be a nice break from all of the studying I had been doing. I went ahead and booked it, going through Chicago to net a few extra miles and an extra segment on my outbound.

My upgrades cleared exactly at the beginning of the Executive Platinum window. Before I left my place on the day of departure, I checked to see which gate my flight was departing from. I was pleased to see it was departing from gate A9, which is in the renovated section of the Terminal A. The renovations have only been recently completed, and for some reason all of my flights have been departing out of the C Terminal since the section has reopened. As usual, I parked at the Remote North Lot and hopped on the shuttle to the A Terminal. On the ride to terminal, the friendly shuttle driver proudly regaled me with the story of the brawl of her son’s semi-pro football game. As we approached the drop off point for the low A gates, the improvements made during the renovations were immediately evident.





The check in area was much brighter and airy than before, a concept that is reflected in all of the renovated areas. There is a separated Priority Access area which is next to general check in area. A pleasant agent greeted me and quickly printed my boarding passes. We chatted for a few minutes about the how employees felt about the renovations. He indicated it was generally well received, although there are some design shortcomings in the storage compartments of the agent podiums. I then headed to priority security lane, which is only accessible through an entry way from the Priority Access check in area. Security was quick, and I was soon exploring the “new” terminal for the first time.









Overall, the renovations are a significant improvement; though, given the condition of parts of the terminal that might not be saying a whole lot. As previously mentioned the renovated portion is a lot brighter and feels more airy. Short of knocking the place down and rebuilding the terminal, it is a pretty good effort. If you want to see the how the terminal looked before the improvements, just take a stroll down to the “high” A gates. Speaking of which, it was where my flight was departing from thanks to a last minute gate change to dingy A39, the last gate in the terminal.

I got to the gate about 15 minutes prior to boarding, and found gate lice already crowding the boarding area. However, today’s gate lice were decidedly more premium as they were solely comprised of First Class passengers in the Priority Access lane. I found an empty seat and killed a little time by finishing up the book I was reading.



American Airlines 2352
Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) – Chicago O’Hare (ORD)
Depart: 12:35 PM
Arrive: 2:55 PM
Aircraft: McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (N581AA)
Seat: 5F (First Class)


Boarding was called exactly 30 minutes before departure, and I found myself settling in to my favorite seat on the Mad Dog, 5F. The gentleman, who was first to board the aircraft, ended up being my seatmate. The friendly purser chatted with us as she was hanging coats. She was particularly proud of the new Samsung Galaxy Note that AA is equipping their flight attendants with. years As boarding continued, I was rather amused by the conversation of the two gentlemen seated behind me. Their conversation sounded a lot like the UA v. AA threads, as they were both former 1Ks.

The FA working First Class today was kind of cute, not something I say often about AA FAs. In fact, she resembled a slightly older Kristen Stewart, with a similar personality (i.e. lack there of). Despite her stoic persona, she was very attentive and provided excellent service, which started with an open bar pre-departure beverage service.

The Captain added his welcome aboard as we pushed back, and announced we would be arriving a few minutes early. Take off was quiet as it always is in a MD-83, at least in front of row 20, and we were soon climbing into the gorgeous clear sky. Hot towels were offered soon after we crossed 10,000 feet. Of course, this was followed by warm mixed nuts and a drink of choice. A Bloody Mary for me, please.


Ramekin of warm mixed nuts and a Bloody Mary

I know it’s essentially a can of salt, but there’s something I absolutely love about airline Bloody Marys. Of course, I like the real thing too, but it’s just so good for some reason. Today’s BM was good and strong. Another round on nuts and drinks were offered before the snack was served.

After the meal service “enhancement” late last year, shorter range flights (less than 1,000 miles in length) have a much narrower lunch service window. Thus, my flight was technically snack flight. Though, American has improved snack flight meal choices from the humus plate or a very small wrap, to a pretty decent salad or an open face sandwich, after many complaints. Today we had a choice of a steak salad with soba noodles or an open faced chicken sandwich. I had preordered the steak salad through American’s new online premium cabin ordering system. Although my preorder was not acknowledged, I still ended up getting what I wanted.


Steak salad with soba noodles with sesame ginger dressing

The salad was pretty good, though not as good as my favorite: the chicken salad. Wine, water, or a cocktail refill was offered during the meal. Dessert was a choice of cranberry oatmeal cookie or chocolate chip cookie. I chose the former, which was good. We began to descend into O’Hare as trays were being cleared. Connecting gate info and mints offered to each First Class passenger individually, just before final descent. Touchdown was smooth and true to the Captain’s word we arrived at the gate 20 minutes early

I thanked the excellent FA on my way out of the plane. We had parked at H6, and my flight was departing out of G20, so it was a bit of a hike. On my way to the gate, I saw spotted this:


American Eagle CRJ-700 in new livery

There were actually quite a few American Eagle aircraft in the new livery at ORD that day. While the new livery is still polarizing, and admittedly I wasn’t a fan at first, it has grown on me. Aside from the tail, it’s pretty clean and modern design. Though the more I see the new livery in person, the more I don’t mind the tail.

I ended up setting up shop at nearby gate G18, as there were more open seats there. Plane spotting opportunities were abundant, as heavies from Etihad, Swiss, Cathay, and Lufthansa arrived or departed. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get a good shot because of the pillars and jet bridge obstructing the view. But I did get this little gem:


American MD-83 with the Chi-Town skyline in the background

When I first booked this itinerary, I didn’t realize I had over a 2 hour connection. I was able to pass time quickly with the aid of a good book. About 45 minutes before departure, I found out my gate had changed to K3 via a notification from the AA app. So I made a trek to K3, only to get another gate change notification when I got there. Ugh. This time, I headed to G4, where the FIDs indicated I was at right place. So I settled down again at the gate, only to have the gate agent announce a mechanical delay of indeterminable length. This turned into a 15 minute rolling delay, and eventually they decided to pull a spare aircraft to make the flight. Of course, there was another gate change, this time to G16. We finally began boarding about 20 minutes after getting to G16, about 1.5 hours late.

American Eagle 3994
Chicago O’Hare (ORD) – Dayton (DAY)
Depart: 6:58 PM
Arrive: 8:55 PM
Aircraft: Embraer ERJ-145 (N928AE)
Seat: 7A (Economy)


I dropped off my carry on at the cart, and headed into aircraft. By virtue of being the only elite on the flight, I was first to board. I was greeted by our friendly FA, who apologized for the delay, and made my way to my seat. As boarding finished up, our captain came into the cabin and spoke a couple ladies seated in 9EF. The only part of the conversation I caught was him asking the ladies to please pour something out in the lavatory before we closed the cabin door. So I’m assuming it was something to do with alcohol. The boarding door soon closed and we pushed back immediately. The captain welcomed us aboard and apologized for the delay while we taxied to runway, which was 32R for us tonight.

We were cleared for take off without needing to hold at the runway threshold, and quickly climbed into fading daylight. As soon as the landing gear thumped shut, the FA announced it was safe to use electronic devices. Perhaps it was because of the short duration of the flight, though I have never had that happen before. Since we had taken off to the north, I thought we would be making a quick turn to the east and eventually to the south toward Dayton. That way I could take full advantage of the early use of electronics, and take some nice aerial shots of the Chicago skyline in the fading light before we climbed into the overcast. Unfortunately, we flew to the north for a several minutes before making the turn so I was unable to do so. This probably the only time I’ve ever wished I chose one of the cramped “EF” seats on an ERJ. I was though able to get this shot before we entered into the high overcast.


Climbing out over Lake Michigan

There was only time for one quick drinks run, which our flight attendant completed with ease. When she got to me, my status was recognized and she offered me a choice of snacks. I chose the nut and berry mix, but I shunned alcohol in favor of a ginger ale. This would serve as my dinner as I was tired and it was getting late.


My Eagle Flight EXP dinner

I was in my rental car about 20 minutes after we touched down, and headed to the Courtyard in South Dayton for the night.

Coming up, the ultimate aviation mecca!

Last edited by dat4life; Apr 24, 2013 at 8:30 pm
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Old Apr 20, 2013, 1:32 am
  #7  
 
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Well done, dat4life.
A very nice narrative, beautiful pictures. It was a pleasure for me to read yr TR.
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Old Apr 20, 2013, 6:22 am
  #8  
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The National Museum of the Air Force

The museum is located next to Wright Patterson Air Force base, which was about a 20 minute drive from where I was staying. I got to there just as they opened at 9AM. Now, I only planned to stay a day there, but you could easily spend a few days there to see all of the exhibits. I was absolutely blown away by how great the museum was. The quality and comprehensiveness of the exhibits is unmatched; but as discussed in this thread, it’s the details that set this museum apart from the other aviation museums.

I took quite a few pictures, but I won’t inundate y’all with all of ‘em. Just some of my favorites. I do apologize in advance for the quality of some the pictures. It’s quite dim inside the museum. Needless to say, it’s not conducive environment for picture taking.

Before the Wright Brothers built and flew Wright Flyer, forever changing the course of human history, they were bike makers in Dayton. This is some of their handy work:


Wright Bike


Curtiss P-40 Warhawk in the distinctive Flying Tigers colors


North American B-25 Mitchell

The B-25 was medium bomber, perhaps most famous for its role in the Doolittle Raid. Speaking of which, if you look to the left of the above picture, you can see two figures standing there.



Yep, it’s the “great little man” himself, Jimmy Doolittle. As I mentioned earlier, what sets this museum apart from other museums are details like this. In this case, a scene from preparation of the Doolittle raid was depicted.


Mitsubishi Zero


Bell P-39 Airacobra


de Havilland DH 98 Mosquito

The Mosquito was a British fighter known for its speed and unique construction (entirely of wood). It was used the US Army Air Force as a photo reconnaissance aircraft.


D-Day “invasion stripes” being painted on the Mosquito


Lockheed P-38J Lightning. IMHO the most gorgeous fighter of its time.


4 of the 8 .50 caliber machine guns of the P-47, with a 500 pound bomb slung under its swing


Martin B-26 Marauder


North American P-51D Mustang


The famous license built 1600 horsepower V-12 Rolls Royce engine powering the Mustang


A very rare Me 262


To the left, part of the vertical stabilizer of a B-17 shot down over Germany. To the right, the twin .50 caliber tail mounted machine guns of a B-17


Display honoring Major Thomas McGuire, the USAAF second leading ace of WWII. To the top right is his Medal of Honor


An Italian Macchi MC-200 Saetta


Northrop P-61 Black Widow


The 8th Air Force’s D-Day Orders

Last edited by dat4life; Apr 20, 2013 at 6:17 pm
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Old Apr 20, 2013, 6:24 am
  #9  
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Originally Posted by abeyro
Well done, dat4life.
A very nice narrative, beautiful pictures. It was a pleasure for me to read yr TR.
Thanks, aberyro. Glad you enjoyed it. I still have one or two more post to come as soon as I finish editing the pictures!
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Old Apr 20, 2013, 10:26 am
  #10  
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Excellent trip report, dat4life! I look forward to more contributions from you down the road (or runway as it were!).
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Old Apr 20, 2013, 11:42 am
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Great TR dat4life, can't wait for more...
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Old Apr 20, 2013, 6:14 pm
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The National Museum of the Air Force Part 2


Bomb bay of a B-29


F-86 Sabre and MiG-15


North American F-82 Twin Mustang

It took nearly 3 hours, but I finally got to one of the two exhibits I wanted to see most: The Convair B-36 Peacemaker. The B-36 is a Cold War era heavy bomber. Unique features of the aircraft include 6 rear mounted piston (propeller) engines and 4 jet engines, which are mounted in pod on the outboard of the wings. I’ve seen many pictures and videos of the B-36, but to see the mammoth aircraft in person was absolutely awesome.






HUGE bomb bay. It was probably larger than my childhood bedroom. Literally.




Outboard jet engines. Used for burst quick bursts of speed


Rear mounted prop engines

For those of you wondering what the B-36 looks like in its entirety, here’s picture courtesy of Google Images.


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Old Apr 20, 2013, 6:16 pm
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The National Museum of the Air Force Part 3

Moving on…


North American F-100 Super Sabre


Endeavour, the Command Module of the Apollo 15 mission


Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit

I was somewhat surprised and pleased to see a B-2 (aka) the stealth bomber on display; but there she was…all nearly $800 million of her. As it turns out, it was one of the test aircraft of the program. It was definitely an impressive sight.


Mikoyan Mig-29 Fulcrum


Fairchild-Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II


A-10 Cockpit

The A-10 is considered by many to be the red-haired stepchild of the USAF, as it’s not sleek, sexy, or have electronic bells and whistles. But it’s beloved by its pilots as it’s one tough SOB, and packs quite a wallop. The A-10 is essentially a “flying gun”, since it’s built around the GAU-8 30mm cannon which is one of the most powerful guns ever installed in an aircraft. One of my high school friends was just assigned to an A-10 squadron last month.

Speaking of flying guns…


Lockheed AC-130 Spectre Gunship


Rolling out the big guns


Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor


AIM-9 Sidewinder air to air missile in the port fuselage weapons bay of the F-22


The recently retired Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk aka the Stealth Fighter

Interestingly although the F-117 is designated as a fighter (F)and is known as the “stealth fighter”, it has absolutely no air to air combat capabilities. It was actually a pure attack aircraft. The last active F-117s were retired in 2008 in order to reduce costs… An oxymoron, I know

As I mentioned a little earlier, I used many aviation related books for book reports in elementary school. When I was in 5th grade, I used Captain Scott O’Grady’s book, Return With Honor. He described the cockpit of the F-16 as snug. I was about to find out firsthand how snug it was, thanks to the F-16A cockpit trainer on display at the museum. Oh boy, was he right. I have no idea how even smaller pilots survive on long intercontinental flights.


TIGHT SEAT PITCH…makes Spirit look pretty inviting

But, you do have the ultimate IFE Controller :


Side stick

Unfortunately, I ran out of time and had to leave in order to make flight. But I will definitely be back. If you ever get a chance to go to the National Museum of the Air Force, do it! It is without a shadow of a doubt, the best aviation musuem I've ever been too, and I've been to quite a few. It definitely blows the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola out of the water. Admission is free and it’s heaven for any aviation geek.

The weekend in Ohio was not cheap but it was more than worth it, even including explaining to the girlfriend what why I was doing this. I had a hard enough time ‘splaining’ why I was doing my December mileage runs. “Don’t you spend enough time in planes already.”

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed reading my TR, as much I enjoyed writing it. It was certainly a nice change of pace from being holed up in my hotel room at night actually working on work. Till next time, happy contrails!

Last edited by dat4life; Jul 30, 2013 at 8:14 pm
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Old Apr 20, 2013, 6:22 pm
  #14  
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Originally Posted by Seat 2A
Excellent trip report, dat4life! I look forward to more contributions from you down the road (or runway as it were!).
Thanks, Seat 2A! I have a couple more reports planned for later this year.

Originally Posted by SFore
Great TR dat4life, can't wait for more...
Thanks, SFore! Glad you enjoyed it.
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Old Apr 21, 2013, 12:08 pm
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Great TR. Which I must forget all about before I get any ideas about trip planning
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