when flying extremely long distances

[Alpo]

I have decided, for whatever reason, to fly from Tallahassee to Berlin.

 

According to the internet that is 4,890 miles.

 

The airplane I am in - A 747-100 - has a range of 4,620 miles.

 

Obviously I'm going to have to stop somewhere and refuel.

 

It holds 48,000 gallons. Seems like this would take a while to refill the tank.

 

So would the passengers sit on the tarmac while they refuel the plane? Or would they deplane and wait in the airport until the plane has been refueled? Or would everyone switch to another plane to continue on to Berlin?

[Yul Lose]

I would guess you’d switch to another plane, the 747-100 would be for the long haul across the water and then a smaller plane for the final leg.

[Father Kit Cool Gun Garth]

At 270 miles from shore....

 

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

43 minutes ago, Alpo said:

I have decided, for whatever reason, to fly from Tallahassee to Berlin.

 

According to the internet that is 4,890 miles.

 

The airplane I am in - A 747-100 - has a range of 4,620 miles.

 

Obviously I'm going to have to stop somewhere and refuel.

 

It holds 48,000 gallons. Seems like this would take a while to refill the tank.

 

So would the passengers sit on the tarmac while they refuel the plane? Or would they deplane and wait in the airport until the plane has been refueled? Or would everyone switch to another plane to continue on to Berlin?

The only 747-100s still flying are operated by the Islamic Republic of Iran.

[Marshal Dan Troop 70448]

You more then likely will be taken a flight from Tallahassee to Chicago or New York, then a non stop flight from either O Hare or Kennedy to Berlin. 

That's how its been for us and last out 2 years ago.

Leave O Hare everytime at 1715 and arrive next morning in Berlin at 0745.

[Gateway Kid SASS# 70038 Life]

We just got back from Sau Paulo Brazil to Houston Texas on a direct flight. 4900 (approximately) miles one way. 787 aircraft, took about 8 1/2 hours. Our travel friend just had a bunch of remodeling done on her house and got a load of air miles which she used to upgrade our party of four to business class on the way down and first class on the way back. Actually one of the more pleasant flights I have been on. Had several shorter flights, Ciauaba to Sau Paulo, Houston to Denver and Denver to Grand Junction but didn't keep track of their miles.

Regards

    

Gateway Kid

[Gateway Kid SASS# 70038 Life]

2 hours ago, Father Kit Cool Gun Garth said:

At 270 miles from shore....

 

So the guy in the back (white shirt) with the annoyed look on his face, is that Alpo, saying "I knew my math was correct"

Just funning with ya!

Regards

    

Gateway Kid

[Father Kit Cool Gun Garth]

10 minutes ago, Gateway Kid SASS# 70038 Life said:

So the guy in the back (white shirt) with the annoyed look on his face, is that Alpo, saying "I knew my math was correct"

Just funning with ya!

Regards

    

Gateway Kid

That would be him. 

[Trailrider #896]

What always gets me is the trip prizes on the Price Is Right..."You'll fly roundtrip coach for two to Rumdumb, Egypt or Tahiti or somesuch."  Sure, you can get up and stretch your legs, but flying coach with the seat pitch the airlines are trying to squeeze in...   Also, you'll fly from Los Angeles, but you have to get there, which could be a project and expense in itself, if you live, say, in Bangor, Maine! 

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

18 minutes ago, Trailrider #896 said:

What always gets me is the trip prizes on the Price Is Right..."You'll fly roundtrip coach for two to Rumdumb, Egypt or Tahiti or somesuch."  Sure, you can get up and stretch your legs, but flying coach with the seat pitch the airlines are trying to squeeze in...   Also, you'll fly from Los Angeles, but you have to get there, which could be a project and expense in itself, if you live, say, in Bangor, Maine! 

The problem with trips from price is right, let’s make a deal, etc,

is they give you a 1099 for the price they quote because it’s taxable. You can usually find the same trip for less.  The shows will let you negotiate the price down to a lesser prize.

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

5 hours ago, Alpo said:

I have decided, for whatever reason, to fly from Tallahassee to Berlin.

 

According to the internet that is 4,890 miles.

 

The airplane I am in - A 747-100 - has a range of 4,620 miles.

 

Obviously I'm going to have to stop somewhere and refuel.

 

It holds 48,000 gallons. Seems like this would take a while to refill the tank.

 

So would the passengers sit on the tarmac while they refuel the plane? Or would they deplane and wait in the airport until the plane has been refueled? Or would everyone switch to another plane to continue on to Berlin?

It’s not a 747-100, so what is it?

[Irish Pat]

we flew British Airways from Denver to London. 4,687 miles non stop . I seem to remember it was a 747. we went over Canada and Greenland. 

[Irish Pat]

that was i. January of 2020, just before Covid. I noticed the Chinese we saw were wearing mask. we did not have idea what was about to happen but they did 

[Pat Riot]

I flew from San Francisco to Frankfurt Germany and back a couple of times flying in Coach. It was 9 hours of suck!

Of course the German mother…sonsof…uh, colleagues flew Business class.

I do not recall what plane it was, but it had rows that had 2 seats port and starboard and 5 or 6 seats in the center. 
My flights were supposed to be on Lufthansa but I ended up on United planes contracted by Lufthansa. The German basta…sh**birds got to fly on Lufthansa planes in business class. 
 

I think I might be a little bitter. What were we talking about?

[Sedalia Dave]

7 hours ago, Alpo said:

I have decided, for whatever reason, to fly from Tallahassee to Berlin.

 

According to the internet that is 4,890 miles.

 

The airplane I am in - A 747-100 - has a range of 4,620 miles.

 

Obviously I'm going to have to stop somewhere and refuel.

 

It holds 48,000 gallons. Seems like this would take a while to refill the tank.

 

So would the passengers sit on the tarmac while they refuel the plane? Or would they deplane and wait in the airport until the plane has been refueled? Or would everyone switch to another plane to continue on to Berlin?

 

They would stop likely somewhere along the route to refuel. The Azores comes to mind. Because it costs money to carry extra fuel they would only put on enough fuel to make their destination plus the safety margin. Plane could be easily be refueled in about 30 minutes. The added benefit is now you can expand the customer base because you can sell tickets to people that want to go to or leave from the Azores as well as to those that want to go all the way to Berlin. This will result in the airline selling more seats and operating a greater profit.

 

IF you just want to refuel and not make the Azores a passenger stop, then having the passengers get off and back on doesn't make sense as it would take longer than 30 minutes. Easier to have them remain on the plane while it is being refueled. This is also cheaper as the airline does not have to pay for using a gate.

[Marshal Dan Troop 70448]

19 hours ago, Sedalia Dave said:

 This is also cheaper as the airline does not have to pay for using a gate.

Airlines have to still pay Landing Fees which maybe higher then carrying extra Fuel. Also Aviation Fuel and Taxes on it maybe higher in an area were there is little passenger services.  This were the smaller commute planes come in.

[Sgt. C.J. Sabre, SASS #46770]

23 hours ago, Irish Pat said:

that was i. January of 2020, just before Covid. I noticed the Chinese we saw were wearing mask. we did not have idea what was about to happen but they did 

I saw many Chinese and Japanese wearing masks when I was there back in the 80s. I thought it was stupid then, and I think that it's stupid now!

The ONLY time I wore a mask during the Zombie Apocalypse was when I was making a delivery to a customer that required it. 

[irish ike, SASS #43615]

They don't fly due East. They head towards Greenland which is weird but a shorter route. I flew a 747 from LosAngeles to Berlin, non-stop! Your ticket should reflect any stops.

[MizPete]

On 7/8/2024 at 8:21 PM, Irish Pat said:

I noticed the Chinese we saw were wearing mask. we did not have idea what was about to happen but they did 

Nah.  Normal behavior we noticed in 2006 & 2008.  They do it when they're sick or when the air gets too thick in Beijing.

[MizPete]

On 7/8/2024 at 8:45 PM, Pat Riot said:

I do not recall what plane it was, but it had rows that had 2 seats port and starboard and 5 or 6 seats in the center. 

767?

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

1 hour ago, MizPete said:

Nah.  Normal behavior we noticed in 2006 & 2008.  They do it when they're sick or when the air gets too thick in Beijing.

They wore masks a lot in 1990.

[Pat Riot]

7 hours ago, MizPete said:

767?

I really don’t know. I am not really into planes, especially people carriers. 

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

I recall going through 12 time zones many times

[Sgt. C.J. Sabre, SASS #46770]

3 hours ago, Pat Riot said:

I really don’t know. I am not really into planes, especially people carriers. 

All I know is when they say "Get on the plane", I say "No, I'm getting IN the plane."

[Charlie Harley, #14153]

On 7/8/2024 at 1:11 PM, Alpo said:

 

So would the passengers sit on the tarmac while they refuel the plane? Or would they deplane and wait in the airport until the plane has been refueled? Or would everyone switch to another plane to continue on to Berlin?

In April I went to Bali for a meeting. One leg went from Houston to Singapore (26 hours total travel time) with a refueling stop in Manchester, UK. We deplaned and went through an abbreviated customs. There were about 90 minutes to grab food and souvenirs before reboarding the plane. 

[Pat Riot]

The longest trip I haven taken by plane was a trip that started in Pittsburgh and ended in the Philippines at Clark AFB. Over 24 hours of flying. Boy, was I tired. I cannot sleep on a plane. 
Pittsburgh to San Francisco

San Francisco to Hawaii - refuel

Hawaii to Guam - inspection and refuel

Guam to the Philippines - end of the line.
From San Francisco it was a Continental Airlines plane charted by the military. The plane was civilian and the crew were civilian, but the passengers were all military. Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines plus some family members of some of the Service people. 

I flew there to meet my ship, the USS Virginia CGN-38.

Then it was off to the IO (Indian Ocean) for 5 months of fun and games while Carter decided on what to do about the Iran Hostages. 
 

Good Times!

[Marshal Dan Troop 70448]

16 hours ago, irish ike, SASS #43615 said:

They don't fly due East. They head towards Greenland which is weird but a shorter route. I flew a 747 from LosAngeles to Berlin, non-stop! Your ticket should reflect any stops.

I flew 3 rimes from LA to Berlin, but then we stopped each time in Frankford for 1 hr and then continued on the Berlin. Both Tegel and the Brandenburg. Things must have changed and no longer a stopover and refuel at Frankfort. Worse part was we couldn't get off the plane and sat for almost an hour.

[Sedalia Dave]

Great circle route.

 

 

Kilometers

 

Nautical Miles