Flying down to Charlotte tomorrow for a few days in part for work. Looking fwd to getting a few photos at CLT!
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Flying down to Charlotte tomorrow for a few days in part for work. Looking fwd to getting a few photos at CLT!
Caught this USA Jet DC-9-32 on the cargo ramp. She was built in 1976, making her 42 years old, and was originally delivered to the Kuwait Air Force as a VIP transport.
https://photos.smugmug.com/Airplanes...5US_001-XL.jpg
The real reason I was out at CLT today - the New England Patriots arrived for a Friday night game against the Panthers. The registration, N36NE, is blocked on FlightAware, but checking flights between PVD and CLT for today, there was one listed as UDG4322 on a 763. Turns out they use the call sign "Underdog".
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The G-Men are in the house! The NY Giants play the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. The team charter was a UA 764 (which arrived earlier than I thought) but team co-owner Steve Tisch's Gulfstream G-IV arrived later this afternoon.
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Took a ride to CLT this afternoon to get a few shots of the Antonov that showed up at 2am.
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While we were shooting the Antonov, I saw something unusual arriving on 36R and I realized it was the Orbis Flying Eye Hospital DC-10!!! Orbis operates this aircraft in developing countries to provide eye care, as well as to teach local doctors. It is a state-of-the-art facility with operating rooms and teaching areas. This aircraft was donated to Orbis by FedEx, who also provide maintenance. It replaced an earlier DC-10, also donated by FedEx. In 2009, the older DC-10 was at LGA for several days, and a group of us got to tour it and see the onboard medical facilities - I think a few folks here were on that tour.
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Another interesting visitor to CLT this weekend - Nolinor 737-300. Nolinor is a Montreal-based charter operator, and they flew the Laval Rocket minor league hockey team in to play the Charlotte Checkers.
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Also at CLT on Sunday - Hawaiian A330 charter for the Seattle Seahawks, who played the Carolina Panthers Sunday afternoon. HA flies the Seahawks and Oakland Raiders, so when I saw the Seahawks would be in town this season, I made sure to watch for this one. I caught one of their 767s a few years ago when the Raiders were in town.
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That Rocket logo only on the port side? Why not both I wonder...
Made our first spotting trip of the new year this past Sunday - 65 degrees and sunny was too much to pass up!
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In early December, Contour replaced Via Air flying the EAS flights to Beckley, WV and other places.
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He was only going to DFW, but they used a whole lot of runway getting out of CLT!
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Delta brought one of their new Airbus A220s (formerly known as the Bombardier CS100) into CLT a couple of times today on proving runs. Interestingly enough, under the nose, ahead of the nose gear, they have the type marked as CS100.
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Nice catch John!!!
We had another An-124 drop in late last night. They loaded it up this afternoon then buttoned it up for the night.
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I love the smell of burned vodka in the morning LOL
Indeed, Mark! They ended up leaving at 3am, so I missed that.
We have been getting the DL A220/CS100 in and out multiple times in the past couple of weeks. When I went down to get the Antonov, one had just departed. It was back again today, and while I missed the arrival, I was able to get the departure from the overlook at 18C.
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Nice catch Jn!! One place they have not been yet is down here - don't know if we will get to see one for a while...
We had our first visit by an Airbus A350 to CLT today. LH is shifting them to the daily Munich flight starting this coming Sunday, but they flew one in today for testing.
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Ohhhh..you lucky man you!!! Great shots John!!!
Following Tuesday's sneak peak, today marked the start of regularly-scheduled, daily A359 service by Lufthansa between CLT and Munich. They landed 36R and rolled to the end, so we were treated to some nice shots with the skyline in the background. ARFF was out again to give them a water salute.
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Very nice!
We had a couple of interesting visitors in to CLT today! It was raining when I got down there after work, and they weren't parked in the best of spots, but you take what you can get!
National Nuclear Security Administration B-737, N990ST
https://photos.smugmug.com/Airplanes...0ST_001-XL.jpg
US Department of Justice B-757, N119NA
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Well you don't see those everyday!
The Zero-G 727 has been in Charlotte the past couple of days.
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This Atlas Air 744 brought the Jacksonville Jaguars in to play the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
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Ohhhhh nice!
Seems like forever since I've posted anything!
We had an interesting catch at CLT this afternoon, a Gulfstream G-IV which looks to be the Washington Redskins team plane. In addition to the logo, it's registered to DSWA LLC at Redskin Park Drive in Ashburn, VA. The team owner is Dan Snyder, and the team headquarters and practice facility is at that location.
Ron Rivera, who was head coach of the Carolina Panthers before being fired during the season, was hired by the Redskins in the off-season. We suspect he was using it for a trip home, as he still has a home in Charlotte.
https://photos.smugmug.com/Airplanes...4TS_003-XL.jpg
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Back in December, the Seattle Seahawks came to Charlotte to play the Panthers. They use Hawaiian for team travel, and we were able to catch it while it was in town.
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That same day we caught the AA Astrojet arriving.
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Caught a pair of Honeywell Gulfstreams one day in December as well. N922H is a G-VI, N599H is a G-V.
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Monday it was 75 degrees and sunny, so I stopped by CLT after work. Got there about 10 minutes before the LH A350 was due in - light was perfect...and they landed 18L while I was at the Overlook.
https://photos.smugmug.com/Airplanes...7NN_001-XL.jpg
Nice, John.
That light is just perfect John!!!!
Playing catch up here. Charlotte went to a stay-at-home condition in mid-March, and we took one last spotting trip to CLT the weekend before it went into effect.
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ABX 762 Freighter hauling a load for Amazo
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jetBlue E-190 flight from Houston to JFK dropped in to CLT when New York Approach was closed due to coronavirus.
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As air traffic dried up, airlines started parking stuff anywhere they could, and AA parked a bunch around CLT. These are from the first weekend in May - we saw about 4 flights in and out over the course of an hour and a half.
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Yes, that's a 777 in the background near the AA maintenance hangar. AA will be replacing A330 service to Europe with 777s starting in July, and this guy was in town for a couple of weeks for ground staff to familiarize themselves with it.
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A very empty hourly deck next to the terminal.
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It's never this quiet in front of the terminal!
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In early May, the local NC ANG unit flew a C-17 around the state, performing flyovers above hospitals and other emergency response facilities. I caught it departing CLT at the start of their trip.
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Not CLT directly, but CLT-adjacent if you will...
NASCAR resumed their season - with no spectators - about a month ago with two races in Darlington, SC followed by two in Charlotte. On Sunday evening of Memorial Day weekend, they ran the Coca-Cola 600 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway, just two miles up the road from my place. Since it was a race already on the schedule (the two Darlington races were rescheduled from postponed events) and since it was Memorial Day weekend, they had a pre-race flyover scheduled.
We were supposed to get a USAF Heritage Flight group, with 2 P-51s, an F-16, and an F-22. Thunderstorms in the area threw a wrench into those plans, and we ended up with two F-16s and two F-22s. The F-16s were out of Shaw AFB, not too far away in South Carolina, and the F-22s were out of Langley, although one had Tyndall AFB markings, possibly one of the Raptors that evacuated ahead Hurricane Michael in late 2018.
The track was not open to the public, but we hung out in a parking lot across the street to shoot the flyover, then headed home to watch the race on TV.
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Bell 206, owned by Helivision and based out of nearby Concord, provides aerial TV coverage of NASCAR races and other events. They were flying over the track as part of the race broadcast.
https://photos.smugmug.com/NorthCaro...1HV_001-X2.jpg
jetBlue had suspended service to CLT in early May, and it looks like they restarted it Thursday. We were getting a couple of E-190s a day to Boston (they switched JFK service to BOS last year) and yesterday they flew an A320 trip BOS-CLT. Today, they used N615JB, the FDNY special scheme, and I took a run down at lunchtime to catch it departing.
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Nice stuff John!!!
Looks like jetBlue has changed their twice a day BOS-CLT E-190 flights into a single A320, and we've gotten a couple of specials already. In addition to the FDNY jet I caught last week, I think their "I Love NY" jet was in one day. Today was the second time "Bear Force One", the Boston Bruins scheme, dropped in, and I was able to get out to catch it.
https://photos.smugmug.com/Airplanes...2JB_002-XL.jpg
If they are going to park it here, they need to do a San Jose Sharks jet. :smile:
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Thanks to some stormy weather in ATL late this afternoon, we had a rare visitor - a Qatar Cargo 777F dropped in.
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Lovely stuff!!!!
AA's Stand Up To Cancer A321 dropped in to CLT today:
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Pike the Otter stopped by to see us too!
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Taxi!
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Blue Finest, B6's NYPD themed A320 visited CLT this morning.
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I was also able to catch the UPS 767 departing.
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Wow!!! Lovely!!!!
A few from Concord Regional Airport (JQF) just up the road from Charlotte.
N411DE, a Department of Energy / National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA) Nuclear Emergency Support Team Bell 412 at Concord Regional Airport. It's in town to survey radiation levels prior to the Republican National Convention in Charlotte.
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N1RJ, HondaJet HA-120 owned by Jackson Executive Transport based in Jackson, Michigan
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Nice!!!! Those HondaJet's are pretty sleek....
Thanks, Mark!
The Las Vegas Raiders made their first road trip to Charlotte to start the NFL season this weekend for a game against the Panthers. They are flying Hawaiian this year - I've caught a few Hawaiian flights in prior years when the Seattle Seahawks used them. We were up on the hourly deck waiting, since CLT was on the 36s, and we knew they were going off 36R. It was great light, but after they joined the departure line, clouds moved in...
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