Yellow budgie
What do you call a new, on-demand air taxi operation that uses a fleet of mini/micro/personal/very light jets? Co-founders Don Burr (creator of People Express) and Robert Crandall (ex-American Airlines) are probably on the hunt for new ideas after their proposed name of 'iFly' was turned down by the regulators as it conflicted with existing names registered by Independence Air. Any advances on 'myBudgie' or 'YellowJet' will be most welcome.
Raptor blues
General Strike: Welcome to Tyndall Air Force Base. Now, if you look to your right, you'll witness the spectacular take-off of the first F/A-22 training unitaircraft."
(one hour - and no take-off - later)
Budgie News: "...er...is there any chance of one of the aircraft actually taking off soon General?"
Strike: "Apparently the pilot is performing an important part of the training syllabus."
Budgie: "What's that?"
Strike: "The little-known control-alt-delete manoeuvre."
Reggie frenzie
Nephew Hans Cloeter is leading Germany's entry for the Sir Reginal S Potter memorial award with recollections of a fleet of BAC One-Elevens once operated by Bavaria Fluggesellschaft of Munich. These included D-AISY, D-ANDY, D-AILY and D-ALLI - which, he tells me, is German slang for "quick, now!" If you fancy a spot of in-flight refreshment he also suggests a trip on Cirrus Airlines-operated Dash 8 D-BIER. Nephew Jimmy Lambert meanwhile lays claim to fame in having made his very first flight (in July 1954) from Croydon in the Evening Standard blood-red Westland Sikorsky WS51 G-ANAL. "At the time little was thought about it, although when it was subsequently sold and re-painted silver, it was re-registered G-ANZL, which was more acceptable," he adds.
Raising the roof?
"A nine-point accord aimed at settling the dispute over routing of night flights from Brussels National Airport in Zaventem was reached at a cabinet meeting earlier this week. The plan is intended to relieve eastern and northern communes of night flight noise with a number of measures, including splitting take-offs and landings between runways and having planes take-off and land at higher altitudes."
(From the Brussels expat magazine The Bulletin, 6 May 2004).
Source: Flight International