Monsieur trots off to Paris for work. I stay in London. Yesterday morning on the way to the tube, Monsieur and I preview our days ahead.

"Darling," I say, "you're so lucky. You're going to Paris for meetings, have a cocktail event in the Louvre tonight, you're staying in a lovely hotel with very soft beds and really good room service. You'll even have time to hang out in the Galeries Lafayette food hall!" And yes, I really do jabber like that, which irritates Monsieur first thing in the morning but hey! I'm excited for Monsieur, because if roles had been reversed, I'd certainly be looking forward to some time out of London. Just the mere thought of Paris makes me feel particularly poetic so I'm not prepared for his response.

"The reality is, I'll be there for work, I won't know anyone at the cocktail and room service isn't as good as your cooking." He looks a little glum and I start to miss him already.

That evening, I decide to have a night off being the master chef of our household and order in. Then the phone rings. It's Monsieur so I ask him how things are going in Paris. He tells me he's just left the Louvre, didn't have time to view the Valentino exhibition because it turns out he did actually know some people at this schmoozing shin-dig, is now walking along the street to his hotel in Concorde and can see all around him Parisians soaking up the evening sun with a verre or two on terraces. "I can see the Eiffel Tower," he tells me, "and the weather's great!" I enthuse right along with him, picturing the scene in my head. It's almost as good as being there myself, but without the confit de canard.

Back in London I console myself with an indulgent night in: a white pizza, a glass of chilled rosé, a couple of chick flicks and a whole lot of blog-reading. It may not be Paris, but these quiet nights are so rare that they're precious indeed. Later on my brow does crease for a moment, just before bedtime when I wonder whether, without Monsieur, I'll be able to set the UFO alarm clock? What is it with me and Monsieur's machines? They must all be French. The minute he leaves, they know it and go on strike.

Muito trabalho e muitas coisas na cabeça... então a gente acaba deixando o blog por último (quando as vezes deveria ser o primeiro, mas enfim... são as prioridades).

Vou direcionar este blog também para algumas sugestões de baladas que acho bacana/vou/iria ou apenas por sugestão mesmo.

Aqui em Floripa tem um lugar em especial que tem resistido às intempéries mercadológicas da cidade. Muitos bares e boates abrem e fecham aqui, alguns com velocidade surpreendente.

A Concorde Club se mantém firme diante das únicas opções de música boa, pessoas bonitas e localização.

O lugar já teve muitos nomes e estilos e há uns 7 anos é GLS. Claro que já foi melhor, já foi pior, mas está lá, ou melhor... aqui. Passei ótimas noites/manhãs lá.

Apesar de ainda estarmos anos-luz atrás de São Paulo, no momento é o lugar mais indicado para sábado.

Para inspirar:

Se joga!

I cannot explain my intial reaction, but I can confirm my last feeling was "I want one".

Unfortunately after some research I found it was hand built.  However, I can imagine some fun filming where you could almost imagine it was real.

Even the sound as she flies past is amazing.

Take a look

I am sure, if you are a fan, you would want one too.

Andy
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La e-boutique Air France propose une kyrielle de goodies, maquettes d'avions, bagages siglés, Barbie hôtesse de l'air et objets collectors, comme le kit audio Concorde (en fait le casque qui était distribué pendant le vol pour écouter les films).

Beaucoup plus troublant... Vous pouvez même vous procurer les consignes de sécurité du Concorde en cas d'incident pour la modique somme de 10 € ! Et 30 miles en bonus pour les titulaires d'une carte de fidélité FlyngBlue... Là, je dit bravo !

Y'a pas de petits profits ;-(

Cada Semana & Comentando la Nota

Además de nuestros programas en vivo!

===========================================================

La historia no olvida y tarde o temprano se cobrará los errores cometidos. Un juez francés ordenó que la aerolínea estadounidense Continental y cinco personas sean llevadas a juicio por el accidente de un avión Concorde de Air France en el que murieron 113 personas, en el aeropuerto Charles De Gaulle ¿Lo recuerdas?

El juez dijo que los acusados, incluido el hombre que supervisó el desarrollo del avión supersónico, serán imputados por homicidio culposo.

El Concorde estalló en llamas minutos después de su despegue en el aeropuerto Charles De Gaulle, de París, el 25 de julio del 2000, y causó la muerte de las 109 personas que había a bordo y de cuatro personas más que había en tierra.

Posteriores investigaciones concluyeron que una pequeña banda metálica había caído sobre la pista, de un vuelo de Continental, y fue lo que provocó que un neumático reventara, enviando metralla a los tanques de combustible del Concorde, que se prendió fuego en el despegue.

Continental ha negado tener cualquier responsabilidad en el accidente y dijo que recurriría cualquier acusación.

Entre los cinco individuos incriminados hay dos técnicos de Continental y Henri Perrier, que participó en el primer vuelo del Concorde en 1969 y fue jefe de pruebas antes de convertirse en director del programa Concorde.

Otro hombre que trabajó en el proyecto Concorde y jefe de la autoridad de la aviación civil en el momento del accidente también irá a juicio.

Los jueces ya han emitido una orden internacional de arresto para un soldador llamado John Taylor, tras no aparecer en el interrogatorio, por arreglar una banda de metal en el avión DC10.

El comunicado de la fiscalía dijo que los trabajadores de Continental no siguieron los procedimientos normales para la reparación del DC10. El fiscal dijo que la propia Continental había sido negligente en el mantenimiento de su flota de aviones DC10.

Los dos operadores del Concorde, Air France y British Airways, retiraron el avión en el 2003.

Las autoridades francesas dijeron previamente este año que el juicio precisaría una organización enorme y no comenzaría hasta finales del 2008 o principios del 2009.

In a multicultural crash in the middle of the night, the jet, a Concorde that is owned by a British airline, was hit by a truck that was hauling equipment from a Jamaican music and soccer festival. The truck clipped the distinctive nose cone off the parked Anglo-French jet about 3 a.m. last Monday, prompting an impassioned uproar among the jet’s band of enthusiasts.

To many admirers, the tapered nose, which could be lowered up to 12.5 degrees to clear the pilots’ field of vision during the jet’s steeply angled takeoffs and landings, was what made the Concorde the Concorde. Within 20 hours of the accident, photos of the damaged plane appeared on the Internet, and Concorde lovers were deploring the level of care it had received during its postretirement odyssey in New York.

Bill White, the man responsible for maintenance of the 32-year-old jet, said he learned of the damage indirectly through the Concorde’s fan club. The plane is in Mr. White’s charge because he is the president of the foundation that operates the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. After British Airways retired its fleet of Concordes, the airline leased the jet to the museum, which displayed it on a barge in the Hudson River.

But when the Intrepid, the aircraft carrier that houses the museum, had to temporarily abandon its rotting pier on the West Side of Manhattan in late 2006, the Concorde had to go, too. British Airways considers the plane a three-dimensional billboard for its service, and it did not want the Concorde to stay with the Intrepid, which is docked at Staten Island and is closed while the West Side pier is being refurbished.

So Mr. White found a temporary home for the jet at Aviator Sports, a recreational complex at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn. The Concorde, which had traveled by barge to Manhattan from Kennedy International Airport in 2004, retraced most of that voyage en route to Aviator Sports.

The jet’s stay there has been more turbulent than a trans-Atlantic crossing at Mach 2. Shortly after agreeing to rent the plane for $15,000 a month during the Intrepid’s absence, the original operators of Aviator Sports sold out. Their successors have balked at honoring the previous managers’ pledge to pay for the plane’s return to the Hudson waterfront, Mr. White said. The cost of that trip has been estimated at $250,000.

Mr. White said he was perturbed that the current operators of the complex did not notify him of the damage right away. He said he expected the cost of replacing the nose cone to be covered by Aviator Sports’s insurance policy.

He said he had been told that a driver “smacked the front end of the Concorde with his truck.” He added that Intrepid museum officials would “take steps with Aviator to secure the aircraft so that this kind of a ridiculous happening won’t happen again.”

Salvatore Musumeci, the director of security at the complex, said, “It was an unfortunate thing that happened, and everyone here is upset about it.” He said he did not know who would pay for the repairs.

John Lampl, a spokesman for British Airways, said the airline expected the jet to be fixed and returned to the Manhattan pier by the end of the year. Replacement parts for Concordes are no longer being manufactured, but Mr. Lampl said the airline knew of collectors who had bought spare nose cones at an auction. He said he expected that Intrepid officials could buy one from one of those enthusiasts.

By PATRICK McGEEHAN

New York Times

This is my final piece for my GCSE art exam. Took me 10hours but I liked it and thought it wa really worth it [even though I don't know the mark yet]. The wall itself is sponges on card layered partly in PVA glue and tissue paper. It has barbed wire on it which I made myself. The background is just a watercolour painting. The wall itself has posters on it which is a print that are torn and I've painted grafitti on top of it...

Photo Credit: NYCAviation.com

It is very saddening to find the once supersonic jet in such an pathetic state. I hope the New York authorities restore it and place it back into some museum.

For more pictures check it out here

A French judge has ordered Continental Airlines and five people to stand trial for manslaughter in connection with the 2000 crash of a Concorde jet that killed 113 people.

Two of those to be tried are employees of the US carrier. Two others were employed by Aerospatiale, the maker of Concorde and the precursor of plane-maker Airbus. One is an employee of the French civil aviation authority.

The Air France Concorde crashed shortly after takeoff from Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport in July 2000, killing 113 people.

French investigators blamed the crash on a titanium strip left on the runway by a Continental Airlines DC-10.

The metal strip caused one of the Concorde's tyres to burst, which sent debris flying and punctured the jet's fuel tanks.

A terrible disaster all the worse to recall for a simple cause, enhanced by carelessness.

It seems that the French courts have decided to launch a case against Continental Airlines, two of their employees, two people concerned with Concorde development and one other person who worked for the French licensing body.

Just to remind ourselves - the Air France charter flight departed Charles de Galle on July 25, 2000 at 2:42 pm with 100 passengers and 9 crew. During the take off roll and at a speed of around 180 knots (200+ mph) the aircraft ran over a strip of titanium that had dropped off a Continental Airlines DC10 that had departed minutes before.

One of the 4 tyres on the left side main undercarriage was destroyed and a large (4½ kilo) lump of rubber flew up and impacted against the underside of the wing. The pressure created by this impact caused one of the fuel tanks immediately above the point of impact to explode leaving a sizable hole through which fuel escaped.

The escaping fuel then ignited and a raging fire developed under the wing right in front of the No 1 and 2 engine intakes. This led to a significant loss of power from these engines.

The pilot knew that something had gone catastrophically wrong but could not know precisely what. He was also aware that he was at a point where the take off could not be aborted and took the aircraft into the air hoping to keep it flying long enough for him to reach nearby Le Bourget Airport.

To do this he needed to raise the undercarriage but damage from the initial tyre burst and the subsequent fire precluded this. The aircraft, powered only by engines 3 and 4 on the right side and already well below the speed needed to maintain height and overcome the drag created by the extended undercarriage, was doomed.

Seconds later it fell onto a hotel at Gonesse, a short distance from Charles de Galle airport. There were no survivors and 4 people on the ground were also killed.

Rumours abounded at the time. The aircraft was over weight. The Centre of Gravity was displaced leaving the aircraft ‘nose high’. The aircraft took off with a tail wind rather than into the wind.

The subsequent BEA investigation proved all of this to be false. Up to the point where the aircraft ran over the metal strip lying in its path, everything was completely normal; nothing that the flight crew had done was out of the ordinary.

Enter the ambulance chasers.

What is the point of pursuing this through the courts? What can they possibly hope to achieve? This was an accident – something that could not have possibly been foreseen just like the explosive decompression of the early Comet airliners – like the DC10 that suffered an uncontained centre engine explosion that took out all the hydraulics to the rudder and elevators. The list is long.

To the French judiciary – forget it. Don’t go there.

Bits fall off aeroplanes all the time. That the bit fell off a Continental aircraft which lead to this sad accident is happenstance. To go after the 5 named people could well be construed as vengeance.

Just leave it alone.

Continental claimed that these charges were "outrageous and completely unjustified," (forbes.com). However, the French investigators say that the metal strip was faulty and not built / secured properly. A French judge has asked that the airline and its employees come to court in France. 

I feel as though the French are seeking someone to blame for this incident. In all my years observing the industry, Continental has been a leading carrier in service and on-time efficiency. If it was the strip that caused it, the mechanics should lose their jobs - and that's all. The faulty construction in this story was not the strip, but the Concorde's fuel tanks.

Un nuevo capítulo de la crisis del Concorde (2000) se escribió hoy cuando un juez francés determinó que la aerolínea estadounidense Continental y cinco personas sean enjuiciadas por el accidente de un avión de Air France en el que murieron 113 personas, según reporta la agencia Reuters.

Todavía se recuerda que un Concorde de esta aerolínea estalló en llamas después de despegar del aeropuerto de la capital francesa el 25 de julio del año 2000. Posteriormente, la aeronave se desplomó sobre un hotel causando la muerte de 109 pasajeros y tripulantes y cuarto personas en tierra.

Ya se habían realizado investigaciones sobre el accidente y los peritajes habían concluido que "una pequeña banda metálica había caído sobre la pista, de un vuelo de Continental, y fue lo que provocó que un neumático reventara, enviando metralla a los tanques de combustible del Concorde, que se prendió fuego en el despegue", recuerda el cable de la agencia inglesa.

No obstante, Continental rehusó aceptar esas conclusiones y se inconformó con las mismas. Ahora se cierra un nuevo capítulo de ese litigio.

El juez informó que serán imputados dos técnicos de Continental y Henri Perrier, que participó en el primer vuelo del Concorde en 1969 y fue jefe de pruebas antes de convertirse en director del programa Concorde.

Otra persona que laboró en el proyecto Concorde y jefe de la autoridad de la aviación civil en el momento del accidente también irá a juicio.

El juez dijo que los acusados serán acusados por homicidio culposo.

John Taylor, the Continental mechanic who allegedly fitted the metal strip to the
DC-10, and Stanley Ford, a maintenance official from the airline

Henri Perrier, a former head of the Concorde division at Aerospatiale, now
part of the aerospace company EADS, and Concorde's former chief
engineer Jacques Herubel

Claude Frantzen, a former member of France's civil aviation watchdog

OTHER THEORIES ABOUT THE CRASH -
From Wikipedia -

"British investigators and former French Concorde pilots looked at
several other possibilities that the report ignored, including an
unbalanced weight distribution in the fuel tanks and loose landing
gear. They came to the conclusion that the Concorde veered course on
the runway, which reduced take-off speed below the crucial minimum."

"They argued that the Concorde was in trouble before takeoff, as
it was overweight for the given conditions, with an excessively aft
center of gravity and taking off downwind. When it stood at the end of
the runway, ready to roll, it was more than six tonnes over its
approved maximum takeoff weight for the given conditions."
"Moreover, it was missing the crucial spacer from the left main
landing-gear beam that would have made for a snug-fitting pivot. This
compromised the alignment of the landing gear and the wobbling beam and
gears allowing three degrees of movement possible in any direction. The
uneven load on the left leg’s three remaining tires skewed the landing
gear disastrously, with the scuff marks of four tires on the runway
showing that the plane was skidding out of control"
"These investigators were frustrated by the lack of cooperation from
French authorities, including an unwillingness to share data and the
immediate resurfacing of the Concorde's takeoff runway after the crash.
"
"They alleged that the BEA was determined to place the sole blame of the
accident on the titanium strip to show that the Concorde itself was not
at fault. The piece of metal from the DC-10 was found 7 meters forward,
and 37 meters to the right of where the Concorde's tyre blew"

Conduire une Formule 3000 sur la place de la Concorde, le KIFF. C'est ce que Ramzy a eu l'occasion de faire lors du tournage de leur nouvelle Histoire "Seuls Two". Un chose rare, conduire en Formule 3000 dans les rues de Paris, pas beaucoup de personne peuvent aprétendre voir la chance de le faire.

[dailymotion id=x5i8qb]

Dans les faits, qu'est-ce que l'A-610, au juste? Pour ceux qui sont familiers avec les autoroutes de l'Estrie, mais qui ne passent pas souvent dans le coin, pensez au dernier tronçon de l'A-10, qui commençait à la sortie 143, et qui se rendait jusqu'à la route 112, à Fleurimont. C'est ce tronçon qui fut rebaptisé A-610. Je ne comprends toujours pas la logique derrière cette manoeuvre du MTQ. J'ai d'ailleurs écrit au ministère, afin que l'on m'explique, de façon claire, quel sera le réseau autoroutier du futur, selon leurs prévisions. À part un accusé réception, je n'ai pas eu d'autres nouvelles de cette requête.

Voyons donc voir quelques petits détails de l'A-610.

Voici le panneau indiquant le début de l'A-610, que l'on voit quand on arrive de Drummondville, via l'A-55 sud, dans un endroit situé plus ou moins à mi-chemin entre Bromptonville et le centre-ville de Sherbrooke. Comme on peut le voir, le changement de logo, sur le panneau, n'est pas des plus réussis.

L'A-610 file vers l'est, à travers la chaîne des Appalaches.

Un autre rapiéçage de panneau plutôt bâclé. Surtout que celui-ci indique qu'il n'y a plus de services, à la sortie 7, qui fut autrefois la sortie 150 de l'A-10.

Une autre preuve du rapiéçage passablement ordinaire des panneaux de l'A-610. Selon la logique actuellement appliquée par le MTQ, on devrait plutôt voir le logo de l'A-610, suivi du mot "ouest", puis des logos de l'A-10 et de l'A-55, le tout sur une même ligne, puisque c'est là que mène l'A-610. Mais bon, on s'est contenté de masquer le logo de l'A-10 avec un de l'A-610.

Dans l'autre sens, et un peu à contrejour, on voit au loin la séparation des chaussées, à environ un kilomètre à l'est de la sortie 7. Les trois derniers kilomètres de l'A-610 sont construits en super-2.

Ici, à deux kilomètres de la sortie 7, on peut voir qu'à quelques exceptions près, le terrain nécessaire à la construction de la deuxième chaussée est bien dégagé.

C'est la fin de l'A-610. Elle se termine bêtement, à la hauteur de la route 112, dans l'ancienne ville de Fleurimont, qui fait désormais partie de la ville de Sherbrooke.

Vous aimez les autoroutes aux fins toutes bêtes? À Sherbrooke, vous serez bien servis. Encore plus bête que celle de l'A-610, voici la fin de l'A-410, au boulevard de l'Université. Comme vous le voyez, on a construit une jolie courbe, plutôt accentuée, puis on a fait une belle pente, pas très longue, au bout de laquelle on a installé un feu de circulation. Tout ce qu'il faut pour se casser la gueule! On dit depuis des années que l'A-410 sera prolongée vers Lennoxville, mais il semble que les travaux pourraient débuter en 2009, pour une ouverture possible en 2013. Reste à voir si cet échéancier tiendra le coup.

J'avoue que je n'ai pas écrit beaucoup de billets depuis une dizaine de jours. À part le temps que je passe à répondre à vos commentaires (en passant, merci beaucoup à ceux qui m'écrivent, et ne vous gênez surtout pas!), j'ai procédé à quelques achats, dernièrement, dont un nouvel ordinateur, qui me fait royalement chier depuis une semaine, ainsi qu'un projet de "blogue-mobile", que je vais récupérer ce lundi, et qui prend les airs d'une vieille Jeep Cherokee Chief, de couleur bleue. Je vous tiendrai au courant des derniers développements dans les deux cas.

D'ici-là, suite à une question de Sam, je tenterai de savoir où se termine la route 155. Je vous montrerai aussi des travaux sur l'A-20, en Montérégie, sur l'A-10, dans les Cantons-de-l'Est, ainsi que d'autres bouts de routes intéressants, dont un lien inter-rives, où l'on roule sur rien de moins qu'un barrage d'Hydro-Québec! Alors n'allez pas trop loin, car les prochains jours risquent d'être captivants pour les amateurs de routes.

It is however, a wonderful film about the 27 years of service that Concorde gave this country.  They in fact mention what an icon she is, all we need to do is get them to let one out, to stretch her wings like the graceful swan she is.

Andy
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Conceived in the 50s, built in the 60s but not brought into service until the mid-70s Concorde was the most beautiful commercial aircraft ever designed. She was the result of an Anglo-French government treaty. The Russian Tupolev Tu-144 was nicknamed 'Concordski' because of its marked similarity to Concorde. The Tu-144 was only in service for two and a half years.

Concorde's average cruising speed was Mach 2.02, around 1330 miles per hour, and her maximum cruising altitude, 60000 feet. It was the high speed Atlantic crossing, where there was no-one to complain about the sonic boom caused by such speeds, that was the mainstay of her service. Business people could travel from London to New York in three and a half hours. On westbound flights you could arrive at your destination 'before you had left'.  The famous 'Droop snoot' was a necessary compromise in the aerodynamic design to enable the pilot to see where he was going during taxiing, take off and landing. Once airborne it would be moved back to its sleek, high speed shape.

Although the maiden flight was on 2 March 1969, she was not introduced into service until 21 January 1976 when she flew from London to Bahrain with British Airways, and Paris to Rio de Janeiro with Air France. Protests in the US prevented flights on the transatlantic routes until 24 May, when both services sent flights to Washington Dulles International Airport. Flights to John F Kennedy Airport in New York didn't start until 22 November 1977 when it was shown that Concorde was quieter during subsonic flight than the Boeing 707 being used as Air Force One, the President's aeroplane.

The only time I saw Concorde in flight was when the crew made a dummy landing approach to Southampton Eastleigh Airport. I was living in a house on the flight path and normally didn't take much notice of the air traffic. It was after making a fly-by appearance at an air race event in the Solent, that she flew in as a token of appreciation to the local air traffic controllers. I was surprised that she was so small, and also by the incredible noise when the pilot applied full power to pull away from the airport.

Twenty Concordes were built and the type continued in service for 27 years. A number of reasons were cited in her withdrawal from service in 2003, including the only fatal crash suffered by the type at Paris on 25 July 2000. No replacement is planned.

Jeff has a passion for old war planes, especially the World War II era. So when we found out that Boeing was putting on a World War II aviation special over Memorial Day Weekend we made the trip down to Marginal Way to visit The Museum of Flight. In particular we ventured to the Personal Courage Wing, which houses 28 restored World War I and World War II fighter planes.

Jeff's favorite plane is the Vought F4U Corsair, in the Personal Courage Wing there is a Goodyear F2G-1 Corsair. This WW2 warbird appeals to Jeff because of its durability, its folding wing design, and the fact that it could be used in a variety of war situations; off carriers and landing strips.

I found out that Jeff's interest in war planes stemmed from his youth watching the television show titled Black Sheep Sqaundron featuring naval fighter pilot, Pappy Boyington.

We toured "the flying White House" America's first presidential jet, known as Air Force One. It was famed for carrying several Presidents from Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon to other VIPS such as Nikita Khrushchev and Henry Kissinger. 

We also checked out the inside of British Airways famed Concorde. It carried celebrities and musicians from New York to London. It's fastest-ever Atlantic crossing was in 1996 when it flew from New York to London in two hours, 52 minutes, 59 seconds. But with speed comes problems. Plagued with overheating issues, structural issues, and following the crash of one in 2000 caused British Airways to retire the Concorde model in 2003 due to low passenger numbers.

Overall it was a fitting adventure for our Memorial Weekend! Thanks to all those currently serving and to all those who have served, we appreciate it!

Wow!!!! Sierra Delta looks immaculate!! The best condition Concorde I have seen so far. Looks like new! & Lucky me because the museum was empty.

Inside the Concorde Hall I was approached by ex Air France Concorde Engineer, Pascal [worked on Concorde for 15 years] who told me to wait around because in 10mins time they would be powering up Sierra Delta and I would be able to get some shots of visor down, and the nose being drooped. Cool!!!

They are able to run a generator outside the hall and bring cables across to provide power to Concorde.

10 minutes later........navigation lights on.....tail, wing tips, edge of the wing etc........then landing lights on. Then I get a private demo from their engineering team testing visor down and droop nose positions until I have all the photos I need and then they keep asking if I'd like them to run the sequence again. That was nice!!!

After that I got invited to visiit the cockpit and sit in the first officers seat of Sierra Delta with all the cockpit instruments illuminated. How spooky to sit there with everything powered up 3 years after the fleet had been retired...... [very hot in the cockpit too!!] and finally when the power went off.......warning gong/chime sounds.......just like on "Concorde An Interpid Journey" DVD.

Pascal [President of the team working on Sierra Delta] told me by 2009 the plan is that Sierra Delta will be in flying condition with all systems fully working WOW!!! Unfortunately my French isn't that good and Pascals English was a bit limited.

They have a website and are looking for support. You can join them for 20euros per year and that includes free unlimited admission to Le Bourget.

I would suggest to anyone thinking of visiting that they contact Pascal before hand to check if they will be able to power up Sierra Delta for you. I think they can do something like that for groups of enthusiasts.

What a pity BA couldn't have allowed something like this.

But I guess that makes Sierra Delta unique!! Ignore the critics who say SD and 001 are couped up in that hanger.......they both look like they are very very well cared for.

Also visited FF at CDG Terminal 2..........no problem taking photos and looks great lit up at night!!!

Lista in ordine decrescente che prende in esame la produzione, modello per modello, degli aerei di linea a getto (airliner e regionali) entrati in produzione dalla fine degli anni quaranta ad oggi.

I modelli *dovrebbero* esserci tutti, ma siccome sono tutt'altro che infallibile, potrei essermi dimenticato qualche oscuro tipo nordkoreano :-D Fatemi sapere eventualmente.

I dati provengono dalle case costruttrici e riguardano gli esemplari consegnati.

Boeing 737 // Produzione: 5.626 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1968-
Airbus A320 family // Produzione: 3.471 // Naz: EU // Prodotto dal: 1987-
Boeing 727 // Produzione: 1.832 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1963-1984
Boeing 747 // Produzione: 1.402 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1969-
Bombardier CRJ-200 // Produzione: +1200 // Naz: CAN // Prodotto dal: 1991-
McDonnell Douglas MD-80 // Produzione: 1.191 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1979-1999
Boeing 757 // Produzione: 1.050 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1982-2004
Yakovlev Yak-40 // Produzione: 1.011 // Naz: Rus // Prodotto dal: 1966-?
Boeing 707/720 // Produzione: 1.010 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1958 al 1978
Embraer ERJ-135/40/45 // Produzione: +1000 // Naz: BRA // Prodotto dal: 1991-
McDonnell Douglas DC-9 // Produzione: 976 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1965 al 1982
Boeing 767 // Produzione: 962 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1982-
Tupolev 154 // Produzione: 935 // Naz: Rus // Prodotto dal: 1968-2006
Tupolev 134 // Produzione: 852 // Naz: Rus // Prodotto dal: 1966-1984
Boeing 777 // Produzione: 713 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1993-
Airbus A300 // Produzione: 561 // Naz: EU // Prodotto dal: 1974-2007
Douglas DC-8 // Produzione: 556 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1958-1972
Airbus A330 // Produzione: 533 // Naz: EU // Prodotto dal: 1992-
BAe 146 // Produzione: 387 // Naz: UK // Prodotto dal: 1978-2003
McDonnell Douglas DC-10 // Produzione: 386 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1968-1988
Embraer E-Jets (E-170/75/90/95) // Produzione: 369 // Naz: BRA // Prodotto dal: 2002-
Airbus A340 // Produzione: 349 // Naz: EU // Prodotto dal: 1991-
Yakovlev Yak-40 // Produzione: 300 // Naz: Rus // Prodotto dal: 1980-?
Sud Aviation Caravelle // Produzione: 282 // Naz: FR // Prodotto dal: 1955-?
Bombardier CRJ-700 // Produzione: 265// Naz: CAN // Prodotto dal: 1999-
Airbus A310 // Produzione: 255 // Naz: EU // Prodotto dal: 1983-2007
Lockheed Tristar // Produzione: 250 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1968-1984
McDonnell Douglas MD-11// Produzione: 200 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1988-2000
Tupolev 104 //Produzione: 200 // Naz: Rus // Prodotto dal: 1956-1960
Boeing 717 // Produzione: 191 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1998-2006
Bombardier CRJ-900 // Produzione: 165// Naz: CAN // Prodotto dal: 1999-
Tupolev 124 // Produzione: 165 // Naz: Rus // Prodotto dal: 1960-
Hawker Siddeley Trident // Produzione: 117// Naz: UK // Prodotto dal: 1962-?
McDonnell Douglas MD-90 // Produzione: 116// Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1993-2000
De Havilland Comet // Produzione: 114 // Naz: EU // Prodotto dal: 1949-1963
Tupolev 204/214 // Produzione: 68 // Naz: Rus // Prodotto dal: 1995-
Convair 880 // Produzione: 65// Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1959-1962
Vickers VC-10 // Produzione: 54 // Naz: UK // Prodotto dal: 1962-1970
Convair 990 // Produzione: 37 // Naz: USA // Prodotto dal: 1961-1963
Concorde // Produzione: 20 // Naz: UK-FR // Prodotto dal 1969
Tupolev 144 // Produzione: 16 // Naz: Rus // Prodotto dal: 1968-?
Airbus A380 // Produzione: 14 // Naz: EU // Prodotto dal: 2004-
Dassault Mercure // Produzione: 11 // Naz: FR // Prodotto dal: 1967-?
Antonov 148 // Produzione: 2 // Naz: RUS // Prodotto dal: 2005-
ACAC ARJ21 //Produzione: 1(?) // Naz: CINA // Prodotto dal: 2008
Sukhoi Superjet 100 // Produzione: 1// Naz: RUS // Prodotto dal: 2008

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Commento musicale:

Niente di piu' appropriato di "Jet Airliner" della Steve Miller Band

[dailymotion id=x3qwq7&v3]

"As I get on the 707
Ridin' high I got tears in my eyes
You know you got to go through hell
Before you get to heaven"

THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY

Bob Hoskins, Helen Mirren, Paul Freeman, Leo Dolan, P.H. Moriarty, Kevin McNally, Patti Love, Bryan Marshall, Pierce Brosnan, Daragh O'Malley / Screenplay  Barrie Keeffe / Soundtrack  Francis Monkman / Cinematography  Phil Meheux / Editor  Mike Taylor / Director John Mackenzie

Who lit the fuse that tore Harold's world apart?

To the uninitiated The Long Good Friday is probably best described as the British Scarface, though it pre-empted the Brian De Palma remake by three years, and Bob Hoskins' crime boss Harold, is quite a different beast. A pitbull gangster with vision, morality, elequence even (albeit laced with a colourful acid tongue), in curious contrast to the ugly violence that is prone to erupt if left unchecked. A little more of Tony Soprano than Tony Montana perhaps.. Harold seeks to launch London into the 21st Century, to take it's place as 'Europe's Capital', but his old-school moralities ultimately leave him ill-equipped to cope with that very future. Hoskins gives us a real sense of despair, of frustration and loss, as his world crumbles. All the more enhanced by the passage of the last three decades since Long Good Friday's release. Gone are the symbols of Harold's Britain ; the iconic Concorde (that superbly echoes his first white suited entrance) consigned to the rubbish heap, a dinosaur ; the death nell of the old Docklands, replaced with souless glass, whilst the lifeblood of the old East-end runs dry ; decency, honesty, loyalty.. fading (bloody hell, this is all getting a bit maudlin).

'I'm not a politician, I'm a business man, with a sense of history, and I'm also a Londoner. and today is a day of great historical significance for London. Our country isn't an Island anymore, we're a leading European state, and I believe that this is the decade when London will become Europe's capital, having cleared away the outdated, we've got mile after mile and acre after acre of land for our future prosperity, no other city in the world has got right in it's centre such an opportunity for profitable progress. so it's important that the right people mastermind the new London, proven people, with nerve, knowledge and expertise..and that, ladies and gentlemen is why you are all here today. All trusted friends, and why Charlie and Tony are here today, our American friends, to endorse the global nature of this venture. Let's hear it ladies and gentlemen..

 ..hands across the ocean.'

For some British actors access to America is a decidedly positive move. Anthony Hopkins has carved out a rather comfortable niche for himself in Hollywood, as has Michael Caine. Willowy beauty Kate Beckinsale's career has positively flourished, as has Kate Winslet's. Samantha Morton manages to field quality Hollywood parts, whilst still keeping one foot in British Indie cinema.. but Bob Hoskins? Poor old Bob may have raked in the dollars over the past few decades, but he's made some awful tat. Popular tat admittedly, but we really expected more somehow didn't we? Things were going so well too. Dennis Potter's iconic 'Pennies from Heaven', 'Long Good Friday', Gilliam's 'Brazil', Neil Jordan's gutsy 'Mona Lisa'.. hmm, what's next? 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit', 'Mermaids', 'Hook', 'Super Mario Brothers'..What the hell happened?  Bob replies: ' Well.. it was the money wasn't it..'

'The Yanks love snobbery, they really think they've arrived in England if the Upper Classes treat 'em like shit.'

I hear an American remake is being considered. Initially it makes some species of sense, after the popularity abroad of Guy Ritchie's 'Lock Stock' and 'Snatch'  films, and 'The Italian Job'  remake (don't get me started on that one!) but given that the heart of this film is the anti-American rant in the penultimate scene, you'd think that might prove a fairly fundamental problem. Akin to the mindboggling decision to dub the British comedy show 'Allo Allo' into French & German.. a series that mainly consists of comical piss takes of French & German accents (reckon something gets lost in translation?). They'll probably stick Michael Caine in there somewhere, dig up some old Civil War resentment perhaps.. or have a pop at the Canadians. On the surface British and American Gangster films would seem to be interchangable, dealing with similar issues and sharing similar moralistic grounds, but they really are chalk and cheese. All the more evident when the two collide, both here and in Richie's Gangster send ups. The two exist happily in their own right, but never the twain shall meet to any convincing extent. Scorsese's 'Departed' is the closest marriage of the two styles I can think of, but only in a superficial visual sense. In just the same way that Hollywood can't match the realism of a British Gangster film like Sexy Beast, so too Britain can't hope to imitate the pure cinematic experience of The Godfather.

'I tell you something, I'm glad I found out in time what a partnership with a pair of wankers like you would've been like! A sleeping partner's one thing, but you're in a fucking coma! No wonder you've got an energy crisis your side of the water.. but us British, we're used to a bit more vitality, imagination, touch of the Dunkirk spirit, know what I mean? The days when Yanks could come over 'ere and buy up Nelson's Column, an 'arley street surgeon and a couple'a Windmill Girls are definately over! What I'm looking for..is someone who can contribute to what England has given to the world: Culture, sophistication, genius.. a little bit more than an hotdog, know what I mean? We're in the Common Market now, and my new deal is with Europe, I'm going into business with a German organisation. Yeah! The Krauts! They've got ambition, knowhow, and they don't lose their bottle. Look at you..The Mafia? I've shit 'em.'

BOB HOSKINS' GUARDIAN INTERVIEW

Friday 3rd August, 2007

Bob Hoskins says he's still waiting to be found out. He hasn't got a clue what he's doing in this business. "I feel I'm the wrong name on the right list," he says. "Keep going, keep prodding, and nobody'll notice. When I told my relations I'm gonna be an actor, they said: 'Don't be fucking daft. Forget it! You've got to be kidding, aintcha?'" He's got a point. A bullfrog of a man with a boxer's nose and a right gob on him, he's hardly your conventional lead. But he's been working for 40 years now, and in that time has created some of the most memorable characters in television and film - Arthur Parker, the frustrated songsheet salesman in Pennies from Heaven, Harold Shand, the psychotic gangster in The Long Good Friday, lovelorn George in Mona Lisa, the eye-popping private eye Eddie Valiant in Who Framed Roger Rabbit. He does hard bastard and soft bastard equally well. In his new film, Sparkle, he is playing one of his touching - and touched - softies.

Not surprisingly, acting wasn't his first job - it came along by accident one evening in London in the late 1960s. Hoskins turned up with his mate for an audition at the old trade union theatre, the Unity. He was just there for a drink, it was his friend who wanted the part. Right, next, said the casting director, pointing to Hoskins. Before he knew it, he found himself on the stage reading from the script of a play about a young thug. He got the lead, and that was that. He didn't have any training or theory behind him, but he was good at pretending to be other people. "There's two things I love about this business. One's acting and the other one's getting paid for it. The rest of it is a mystery to me. But I ain't got the faintest idea what the fuck is goin' on, you know. I've read Stanislavsky, and I thought, well, this is obvious." Ignorant sod that I am, I ask if he means the Method, as thesps like to call it. "Nah! Nah, that's Lee Strasberg, that's bollocks! Like how to look busy. It's just looking busy, impressing the boss. That's bollocks, going through all this cobblers. Living it out and all that. Bollocks. Total cobblers!"

I think I know what you mean, I tell him - for example, with The Long Good Friday it's pointless killing a few people just to get into character. "Exactly!" he says. "I'm out the door in a flash. Gone. Let's face it, some of the characters I've played you can't take home to the wife and kids." It was in the late 1970s and early 80s that he produced his most outstanding work, partly because he was more fussy with his choices, and partly because Britain was rich in writers and directors. On television, Dennis Potter mingled genres and explored the subconscious in ways that hadn't been seen before. Was he aware that Pennies from Heaven was special when he was making it? "Nah. The thing was at the time the BBC were quite frightened of it. Whasisname, Piers Haggard, the director, asked me to take me clothes off - I come home, take me clothes off, put me pyjamas on and go to bed, about as sexy as a bag of Brussels sprouts. But he says, 'I want full frontal.' Well, Bill Cotton [then controller of BBC1] went fuckin' bananas. 'We can't have that,' he says, 'If you show Hoskins' cock on the television we will get letters of complaint.' Dennis, without a beat, says, 'No Bill, you'll get letters of sympathy.' Hahahahaha!" Hoskins roars.

What happened to the golden age of TV drama? "Gawd knows. It's all fucking live television, isn't it? It's all bollocks. Living television is the cheapest way to make TV and the cheaper they make it, the more money for the executives."

Hoskins is now 64, but has no plans to retire. The thing is, he says, an actor can be in an iron lung and you can still give him a part. And now, with his age and status, he's enjoying himself more than ever. "You reach a point where the cameo is the governor. You go in there for a couple of weeks, you're paid a lot of money, everybody treats you like the crown jewels, you're in and out, and if the film's a load of shit, nobody blames you, y'knowwhadimean. It's wonderful." Maybe for you Bob, I say, but not always so wonderful for us. The cameos can frustrate the viewer, and unbalance a film. In Sparkle, for example, you wish he was in the film longer. He laughs off the criticism. "Always leave 'em wanting more, son!" Hoskins has always liked his money. He is probably better known these days for the irritating British Telecom campaign than for his movies. For years, people stopped him in the street and told him: "It's good to talk." He was paid a huge amount by BT, but was it worth it? "You're joking, intcha? I couldn't believe it. It was un-be-lie-va-ble." So little work, so much money. Of course, he'd do it again if he was asked. "The worst thing that happened to me was Madonna getting stalked by a fella called Bob Hoskins, and I had fuckin' hundreds of people come up to me, and say 'It's good to stalk.' Bastards! Hahaha!"

He accepts there have been flops, and films he's detested, but that's the nature of the game. "The worst thing I ever did? Super Mario Brothers. It was a fuckin' nightmare. The whole experience was a nightmare. It had a husband-and-wife team directing, whose arrogance had been mistaken for talent. After so many weeks their own agent told them to get off the set! Fuckin' nightmare. Fuckin' idiots."

As the debate gets closer, and hopefully some demands will be made, lets reflect back on one of the best designs and ideas formed between the English and French.

Ironically, the Concorde was funded by British and French taxpayers. but sold for £1 per plane to Air France and British Airways.  British Airways, made the decision to ground her (albeit it through a subsidiary part manufacturer).   Many people are still of the opinion that someone like Sir Richard Branson should be allowed to save this plane for flying exhibitions, like he has assisted the saving of other great british icons.

Anyhow, lets look back on this beauty of the skies, thanks to more Youtube users.  And yes, its that song again, but it so suits the clips.  Watch for the noise of the engines part way through when the plane first went into service.

Andy
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One member of Youtube, has prepared a tribute to the graceful lady.

Andy
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