Shot of the day: 4 of a kind

There was a time when having four A380s on the ground at LAX was kind of a big thing. Some time later, I can remember the first time I had four A380s moving on my frequency at one time. Now, it's not even that big a deal to have four of them at the runway for departure. This is kind of a bigger thing than it seems, though, because the runway and parallel taxiway are so close together that if we have an A380 departing, any other A380 on the parallel taxiway must be within the first 1,500 feet of the beginning of the runway. As a result, the ground controller either has to meter out the A380 departures one at a time, and hold the other(s) back, or get all of them out there all at once, which is what you see here. This is a normal cluster of A380 departures that usually happens around 4 PM, although we don't normally get all four of them leaving at exactly the same time; however getting three of them together is pretty common. If it had been just a few minutes earlier, there could have been a fifth A380 in the picture, as Emirates has just arrived on runway 24 Right.

Dreamin' of a Virgin

 

This week we added another carrier to the list of Dreamliner operators at LAX: Virgin Atlantic has begun using a B787-9 on one of their daily flights from London Heathrow. Unlike the other B787-9 users at LAX (United and LAN, so far), Virgin didn't first show up with a B787-8 before bringing the B787-9. Virgin has had B787s since last October, and was the first European operator of the B787-9. Virgin has also ordered more Dreamliners than any other European carrier so far. With the retirement of their A340-300s, whic had a seating capacity of 240, Virgins' B787-9s are the smallest aircraft in their fleet (by passenger capacity, anyway). Virgin's B787-9s are configured for 264 passengers; the next smallest, their A330-300s, are set up for 266. This appears to be a reduction in capacity at LAX, since the Dreamliner has replaced either an A340-600, which seats 308, or a B747-400, which seats at least 367.

Resources:

Check out this Virgin Atlantic Dreamliner fact sheet

Virgin Atlantic fleet

Wikipedia: Virgin Atlantic

Virgin B787-9 with an Aeroflot A330-200 touching down

With an Air China B777-300

And another Air China B777-300. If I hadn't told you that was Air China, how long would it have taken you to sort that out? Now do you see why I don't like Star Alliance paint jobs? And SkyTeam is just as bad!

 

Here's a rare view; how often do you get to see a Dreamliner from this angle?

The windshield is one of the distinctive features of the B787. Unlike all other current airliners, it smoothly follows the sweep of the fuselage; there is no inset or step. Compare to the other airliners shown above; the Aeroflot A330 is a particularly good example.

Shot of the day

Yours truly is currently on a cross-country road trip with MINI Takes The States. In the meantime, here's a sight that's becoming less and less common at LAX: Two passenger B747s together.

LAX aircraft spotters' guide: Airbus A340-600

A recent comment included the following question: "Does any carrier fly an A340-600 into LAX?" Why yes, they do. Three carriers bring in a total of four A340-600s each day at LAX.

On its website, Airbus touts the A340-600 as the longest airliner in operation (although the new Boeing 747-8 now beats it at 250 feet long). With a length of 247 feet (75.3 meters) and a wingspan of 208 feet (63.5 meters), its size presents some difficulties at LAX. I've mentioned A346s and the challenges they represent at LAX before, so I'll let that go except to say that thankfully we only get four of them each day. The A346 has a range of 7,900 miles (14,600 km) and a maximum passenger capacity of 475, although a more typical seating configuration would be about 380. Each of the carriers using A346s at LAX has a different seating capacity, and all are considerably less than the advertised maximum. According to Wikipedia, Airbus has recently wrapped up the A340 program as all ordered aircraft have been delivered. The reported 2011 price for a new A340-600 was $275 million or €190 million.


The first A340-600 we see each day arrives from Shanghai, China. China Eastern was the first Chinese airline to purchase Airbuses, and has five A346s, which are configured for 322 passengers. The flight from Shanghai takes ten to eleven hours, while the return trip is about fourteen hours.

With a Skywest E120 Brasilia and a Delta (former Northwest) B747-400

With an American B767-300

From the archives: With an Air France A340-300 (Air France no longer brings A340s into LAX). The A343 is a relatively poor performer in the terminal environment; it's a real dog on climb-out. Not so the A346; notice the much larger engine cowlings on the -600.

China Eastern in SkyTeam colors

With a pair of B737s: Above, a Southwest -700; Below, an Alaska -800

Virgin Atlantic operates two A340-600s into LAX each day from London's Heathrow airport. Virgin's A346s carry 308 passengers, and Virgin has currently has nineteen of them, although there are plans to reduce that number. Used Airbus, anyone?

From the archives: With a Northwest B757-200

With a LAN B767-300

Sandwiching in-between a pair of B777-300s, with a CRJ9 waiting to get in

Almost the same scenario, except with the new paint on Virgin (and old on Air France) and New Zealand is in a B747-400

Our final A340-600 arrives after an eleven-hour flight from Munich, Germany. Lufthansa is the only carrier offering direct service between LAX and Munich. Lufthansa has two dozen A346s, each with a seating capacity of 306.

With a British Airways B747-400

References:

Airbus Industries A340-600

Wikipedia: Airbus A340

China Eastern Fleet Information A340-600

Wikipedia: China Eastern Airlines

Lufthansa Fleet A340-600

Wikipedia: Lufthansa

Virgin Atlantic Our Fleet

Wikipedia: Virgin Atlantic

Birds of a feather

LAX serves as a hub or focus city for a number of airlines, and so it's not anything special to see a number of one airline's aircraft here at once; Air Canada, Alaska, American, Continental, Delta, Fedex, Qantas, Southwest, United, US Airways, and Virgin America all regularly have a gaggle of airplanes here. But for some of our other carriers it's not so common to have more than one plane here at once, or it may only happen once during the day. Here are some: