Inside ZA003: Še ena za StarMegaDo
Ko sem videl izvirno pot za današnji slovesnosti sem mislil, da je pristanek na Paine Field v Everett, Washington je, da bo vrhunec dneva. To je letališče, ki ne vidi komercialne letalske storitve, in plujejo v na curkom je zelo redko, če ste preskusni pilot Boeing. Ko smo paniko poskuša najti voznika za prtljago podjetja dostave (to celoto "Drug zgodba) Bil sem tudi klepet z enim od organizatorjev Boeing in me pustil v na dodatne podrobnosti poti: Bili smo bo v notranjosti eden od 787 Dreamliner preizkus letala.
Boeing je sprejela nekaj 787s na turnejo v zadnjih nekaj mesecih, vendar v resnici ne dovolite le kdo na krovu, da pogledam okoli. Dejansko, več od naših turističnih vodičev danes opozoriti, da nikoli niso bili znotraj enega bodisi. Still, nekako mi je uspelo prepričati, da je dobra ideja za nas, da se znotraj. In so bili neverjetno milostiv v kar nam omogoča, da to storijo.
Imamo omejena po stopnicah in v kabini in, v tistem trenutku, postala del knjigo rekordov. Bili smo prvi, ki niso industrije ljudje v biti znotraj letalom. Z našimi blizu 200 Udeleženci touring letala tudi znatno povečala skupno število ljudi, ki so jo turnejo na splošno. Nismo imeli popolno vožnjo letala, kot smo storili na A380 v Frankfurtu, predvsem zato, ker je še vedno preizkus letala in še vedno uporablja predvsem za zagotavljanje, da se stvari res deluje po pričakovanjih, tako da se lahko dostavi na letala. Ni bilo niti v celoti opremljen z notranjostjo.
To je pa dovolj bitov nameščen, Vendar pa, da bi naše sprehod skozi resnično nepozabno. Moramo suniti naše glave v pilotski kabini. To je vse steklo in velike digitalni zasloni namesto tradicionalnih instrumentov. Precej sprememb v primerjavi s Bonanza Sedel sem v na določen dan v času mojega obiska Phoenix. Celotna glavna konzola je LCD zasloni in elektronske pilotski kabini, se vključevati v pilotski kabini, ne pa v velikih veziva. Kokpit je tudi precej prostoren, z nekaj skok, sedeži in stalni prostor za drugo osebo ali dva.
Posadka počitek - nameščen v prostor nad potniški kabini - je bilo presenetljivo veliko. Mislim, da so ga razrežite na tri postelje z dveh pa bi prišlo do izredno utesnjen. Namesto tega se je zdelo zelo prostorna in udobna.
Kakšni so zabojniki so očitno spec'd, da imajo štiri vreče vsak po 12 "x16" X25 ". To je ogromen. Ni videti, da mi kot 25 "dimenzija je bil pravi, vendar nisem imel trak ukrep priročen in ne bi mi lesti v enem, da preverim (fant teče ta del dejansko ugotovljeno, da bi bil opozoril o meni in nadzemnih posode, ko sem ga vprašal o tem).
Morda najpomembnejši je, da je zrakoplov opremljen z nekaj vrsticami gospodarnosti razreda sedežev v 3-3-3 konfiguracija. Tam je bilo veliko skrb v pogostih skupnosti nagrajevanja, kot večina letalskih prevoznikov napovedala svojo namero, da gredo na tekočem 9- 787 namesto 8-sledili Boeing, ki je prvotno trdil, je bil zasnovan za letala. Sedenje na sedežih danes sem bil prijetno presenečen, kako udobna kabina čutil. Vem, da obstaja veliko več kot le to Širina sedeža, vendar pa se stvari morda ne bo čisto tako strašne, kot se bali.
In da je bilo. Obisk je bil kratek - le okoli 15-20 minut - ampak neverjetno zabavno in res neverjetna izkušnja. In še ena najprej za StarMegaDo.
Ni fotografij (od nas) zaradi poslovnih varnostni politiki, vendar njihove ljudje so nekaj naše skupine, ki upam, da kmalu objavljati.
Field trip in First Class
I’m pretty sure that the first class service on today’s LH440 from Frankfurt to Houston was not typical. With eight people hanging out in two of the seats upstairs at one point it was much more reminiscent of a field trip than a flight. Even with the extra bodies up there is was a quite fun and pleasant experience.
As we sat around sharing travel stories and canapés it was an opportunity to truly enjoy some of the best that air travel has to offer. At triple the normal capacity seated in the first class beds, it was still quite a bit more comfortable than my assigned seat in the economy cabin. And the food and beverage choices were definitely a few steps above.
There was plenty of champagne to be had, as well as a few bottles of Baileys consumed, several beers and a glass or two of Johnnie Walker Blue, and that was just during the bit of the flight that I was invited up to visit.
The food spread was quite impressive, too. From finger sandwiches to fresh fruit to a quite impressive caviar presentation, everything I saw was top notch.
Oh, and some fun with the amenity kits, too:
It really did seem much more like summer camp or a field trip than a 10 hour flight across the Atlantic.
The Seat Guru
There are a few new faces on the second go-round of Star Mega DO, and one happens to belong to Matt Daimler, a.k.a Phatteus, who founded Seatguru.com nearly a decade ago. “It started in 2001 as one plane, with one map,” he says, and wasn’t much more than a hobby until revenue Google AdSense began turning it into a real business circa 2004. He sold the site to Expedia in 2007 (today his card says “Founder” and his role is effectively an evangelist) and his current wish is to see Seatguru’s maps incorporated into the most popular iPhone apps like Flight Tracker.
He still tells the story of learning how fare classes work. While traveling with a friend circa 1996, their flight was canceled and the airline was forced to rebook them on another carrier, issuing paper vouchers to do so. Seeing a “Y” written on the voucher, Matt’s friend asked what it meant. Informed “Y” meant coach and an “F” was required to be rebooked in first, his friend decided to fix that. Using a pen, he doctored the “Y” into an “F.” And it worked.
Star Alliance solicits suggestions from FlyerTalk members – USATODAY.com
By Ben Mutzabaugh, USA TODAY
Ever wonder what Star Alliance’s headquarters looks like?
Many people on the FlyerTalk “Mega Do” frequent-flier trip did, and dozens stopped to snap photos of the Star Alliance map and logo (seen here) at the group’s headquarters near the Frankfurt Airport earlier today.
That came as several dozen FlyerTalk members met with Star Alliance officials today in Frankfurt as the world’s largest frequent-flier group solicited their feedback on potential future products.
Star Alliance CEO Jaan Albrecht was on hand to address the group, thanking them for their loyalty to the alliance and its carriers.
Star Alliance members traveled from as far as Hawaii and Australia for the “Mega Do” Dogodek, which is affiliated with FlyerTalk and gave the travelers access to Star’s top executives. The MegaDo trip began in New York and will continue on to Houston, Phoenix and the Seattle area by Friday evening.
“I think the access [to alliance and airline executives] is pretty incredible,” a FlyerTalk member from Australia told me.
Star Alliance officials invited the FlyerTalk members to participate in a series of workshops in which the “FlyerTalkers” where encouraged to give their feedback on products the alliance is considering adding in the future.
continued: Star Alliance solicits suggestions from FlyerTalk members – USATODAY.com.
SMD vs. OMG
OK, today is unlike any other day. Mislim, just how many days do you start out on a mileage run of sorts with 70+ members of that special secret society of frequent flyers? Anyway, I’m just bidding my time at the gate waiting for my next connection when I hear across the way a few young ladies exclaiming their joy over some topic that clearly brings interest and excitement to themselves. The chosen term—O-M-G. O-M-G in todays lexicon stands for Oh My God or Oh My Goodness, that being a statment of exclamation. Since an exclamation is an expression of feeling, the next words from my mouth will be—S-M-D. You know, an exclamation of feeling about the Star Mega Do. Say it, say it with emotion. We, ladies and gentlemen are getting ready to rumble in the skies—forward march to the airport gate that greets us later today. Let me say it again … S-M-D.






