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Post by Kahloke on Apr 11, 2024 7:13:40 GMT -8
Summer 2024 schedule was released today for Anacortes, and immediately noticed one large change that will be super helpful this summer. The previous 1845 ANA LOP only (daily exTueWed) will now continue to Orcas, allowing for a 2015 ORI 2045 LOP ANA (daily exTueWed) which delays the #3 from 2100 L/S/O to 2150 on Thursday thru Monday. On Tuesday/Wednesday, the LOP SHI ORI remains at 2100. ** Schedule notation indicates that this new 1845 ANA LOP ORI sailing will prioritize Lopez Island *standby* vehicles over Orcas standbys -> they suggest taking the existing 1925 sailing** ** Lopez still retains two dedicated sailings in each direction daily, leaving ANA at 0940 and 1715, leaving LOP at 1050 and 1820. ** Extra summer capacity to Orcas will be welcomed on the Lopez sailing that's typically underutilized in both directions on most days so that's great to see! I do imagine that the eastbound allotment on that new sailing will be mostly dedicated to Lopez, since there is a 2050 ORC ANA right after the new 2015 sailing. Will need to wait and see on that. In exchange for the extra Orcas sailing added at 1845, the #4 vessels Friday only 2300 from ANA is now LOP FRH only, dropping the stop at Orcas Island, allowing them to return to FRH nearly 40 minutes earlier. The 1135 FRH interisland departure also switches to the current Spring/Fall pattern, stopping at Shaw first, then Orcas and Lopez, versus going to Orcas, Shaw then Lopez. (as a result of this, the midday Orcas departure at 1205 is now at 1220 & Shaw at 1240 instead of 1225) Reservation release is 4/16 1000 as scheduled, summer will also see only 75% of vessels reserved, with 25% released at the 2-month-week-day before interval. Happy sailing everybody. Curious change regarding the 18:45 sailing continuing on to Orcas, essentially having 2 boats going to Orcas within 40 minutes of each other. As you stated, the 18:45 Lopez only sailing we saw in previous summers was under-utilized, so maybe there is some logic here. It does underscore the need to completely re-write the schedule, as they've been doing for the fall/spring and winter schedules. I expect the drafts for a new summer schedule starting in 2025 will be coming out soon?
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Post by Kahloke on Apr 5, 2024 12:39:35 GMT -8
Alaska stays close to Boeing because Boeing has made absolute sweetheart deals (read: below cost) to place 737MAX planes at Alaska and keep them committed to an all Boeing narrowbody fleet. But if Boeing is still missing up passenger might start staying away from airlines that are hugely Boeing planes. We're already seeing that happen. For most airlines, you can see what plane you'll be flying when booking the ticket and some passengers are already booking non-MAX flights or on airlines that don't have the MAX.
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Post by Kahloke on Apr 4, 2024 18:48:15 GMT -8
Wow! Not sure how I missed your posts, but thanks for doing it. It's interesting to see the schedule modifications. I haven't looked at them in depth, but it does appear to be an improvement over the current schedules. I'm curious when they plan on releasing the new schedules.
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Post by Kahloke on Apr 4, 2024 7:53:38 GMT -8
Gotta say I agree with SFO. Adding the words "San Francisco Bay" to Oakland's airport name would be more confusing, in my opinion.
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Post by Kahloke on Apr 2, 2024 18:19:04 GMT -8
one step closer. There's been a lot of speculation (rumours, really) on airplane/airline forums about fleet integration if, and/or, when the merger happens. One of the bigger debates has been what is going to replace the Boeing 717's for inter-island service. There is no airplane currently being built that has small enough engines that can cool down quickly enough for the airline to operate the 20 minute turns the 717 does, so most folks are speculating those planes will eventually be replaced with 737's on a reduced frequency schedule with 30 minute turns, and may even operate some Hawaii to mainland flights with those 737's, like Southwest currently does. Southwest, interestingly, is providing some decent competition with Hawaiian on inter-island flights, and some of those planes will do an inter-island circuit, then fly to the mainland. I wonder if Hawaiian Airaways: Horizon Airway or Alaska SkyWest will get AirBus A220 for inter island service like QantasLink replacing the Boeing 717. The A220-300 would be a great plane to do the inter-island flights, but I don't see it happening, especially now with Alaska Airlines taking over the helm. Despite Boeing's maddening problems, Alaska is still very much tied to them. Airlines don't just up and switch camps on a whim. Years of planning go into aircraft purchases, and both Boeing and Airbus order books are several years out, so switching to Airbus is unrealistic at this time. For better or worse, Alaska is stuck with Boeing which means they need to fix the MAX ASAP. Additionally, the A220 would add complexities and cost to maintenance and pilot training at a time when Alaska is trying to simplify its fleet. What I think may end up happening is inter island flights going to 737 MAX-7's once that type is certified, as that plane is pretty close in size to the existing B717's. There's still some years left on the existing 717's so the MAX-7 could potentially be available when those are ready to retire. As of yet, I don't think Alaska has ordered any -7's, but I've got to think they could get them sooner than an A220. Airbus is booked several years out for that plane. The other option is to up-gauge to a 737-800 or MAX-8 for inter island flights to add capacity if the schedule has to be reduced due to engine cooling requirements. It's still way too early to say for certain what will happen, but I would be surprised if they chose the Airbus A220 given Alaska's close relationship with Boeing.
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Post by Kahloke on Apr 1, 2024 11:15:54 GMT -8
Hey folks, can you help me identify this ferry? I was sailing today and I noticed a strange BC Ferries ship that I don't recognize. Sorry for the blurry photo, it was the best I could get. Anyways, I am off to Richmond for the day. Cheers Ah, yes. April one-eth is at hand, so I guess it's time for the annual spotting of "you know what".
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Post by Kahloke on Mar 30, 2024 15:27:25 GMT -8
I wonder where people get the money to buy these things, and the gas to fuel them. I've been wondering that, too. New trucks (and some used) have become obscenely expensive in recent years. A new base SR trim Toyota Tacoma Extra Cab with the smallest output engine and no options starts near $33,000 USD. But, that's a pretty stripped version. An SR5 model with the up-level turbocharged engine, 4WD, and some of the optional safety features (the way I would want it) is around $43,000, all for a truck that's not even lavishly appointed.
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Post by Kahloke on Mar 30, 2024 15:20:43 GMT -8
Old fashioned paper schedules, they do exist, at least for the Sunshine Coast. Easy to read. I found this one a few weeks ago while on board the Queen of Surrey on its once per day round trip to Nanaimo. Question: are these available for any other routes?
I miss paper schedules. WSF got rid of theirs when the pandemic hit. It seems unlikely they will ever return.
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Post by Kahloke on Mar 30, 2024 15:17:58 GMT -8
one step closer. There's been a lot of speculation (rumours, really) on airplane/airline forums about fleet integration if, and/or, when the merger happens. One of the bigger debates has been what is going to replace the Boeing 717's for inter-island service. There is no airplane currently being built that has small enough engines that can cool down quickly enough for the airline to operate the 20 minute turns the 717 does, so most folks are speculating those planes will eventually be replaced with 737's on a reduced frequency schedule with 30 minute turns, and may even operate some Hawaii to mainland flights with those 737's, like Southwest currently does. Southwest, interestingly, is providing some decent competition with Hawaiian on inter-island flights, and some of those planes will do an inter-island circuit, then fly to the mainland.
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Post by Kahloke on Mar 26, 2024 13:36:27 GMT -8
I guess some, or maybe just a few, of Alaska's former Q400's are going to Nepal. Someone posted a photo of an ex Alaska Dash-8 at Munich on its ferry flight to Nepal. Kinda looks a little like the minimum cover-up we've seen ex BC Ferries receive after their retirement - the colours are still there, just no titles or logo. Here's the link to the photo: www.airliners.net/photo/Shree-Airlines/Bombardier-DHC-8-402-Q400/7528221/L
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Post by Kahloke on Mar 23, 2024 18:03:45 GMT -8
Would've been much better to see Sealth and Suquamish swapped in this situation, allowing for more Orcas capacity and the FH/Lopez sailings still being supplemented by 1 144-car but oh well this time around. I agree. Suquamish or Samish should be running in the #1 position and Sealth in the #3 position. I'm sure WSF has its reasons for doing it this way, but it really does screw Orcas for the first sailing of the day and the evening sailings. Ultimately, the spring and fall schedules need to be re-written, but that is a much larger undertaking.
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Post by Kahloke on Mar 21, 2024 17:25:56 GMT -8
They've been talking about this for awhile. Guess it's really happening now. Personally, I would love to see SAS come back to Seattle. It may be possible now that they're joining Skyteam because Delta is a founding member of that alliance and SEA is one of Delta's hubs. I don't think there are any talks about SAS returning to Seattle at this time, but I would still love for it to happen.
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Post by Kahloke on Mar 14, 2024 17:37:10 GMT -8
For anyone musing about where the Atlantic Vision might fit into in our system, it would only be the north coast, given all her cabins. She's a lot bigger than the NorEx... 203 metres long, compared to 152. I'll be interested to see where she ends up. Bit too expensive and too nice for George Goundar's blood, I think. She could go to POLFerries in Gdansk and serve alongside Nova Star between Poland and Sweden.
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Post by Kahloke on Mar 10, 2024 18:23:05 GMT -8
About 2 weeks ago I had the chance to ride WSF, MV Coho and BCF all in the same day. With that I also had to chance to have ferry food from all of them. Started off on WSF onboard the MV Tacoma. I got a Chorizo Breakfast Burrito and a Vanilla Late drink. This came to $15.71 US which is absolutely insane. To put that into comparison, you can get a pirate pack for like $13 CAD. The burrito was actually pretty decent in my opinion but not worth like $8 US. Next onboard the MV Coho I got a soft serve ice cream and hot dog. This time ended up coming to $8.50 US although not as bad as the price I paid on WSF, thats still pretty bad. The ice cream and hot dog were only alright too. You would be getting a much better deal at Costco or IKEA to say the least. Last but definitely not least on BCF I got a BC Chicken Burger combo (which I got with Caesar Salad) and that came to about $19.30 CAD. While this was in theory the most expensive, it was definitely the best and felt like the least of a rip off. That day I realized that while I have found BCF ferry food to be pretty overpriced a lot of the time, at least it isn't as bad as the MV Coho or WSF. The food on WSF vessels hasn't been great for a long time now. I miss the old days (think 70's and early to mid 80's) when they still had grills in the galleys and you could get actual food. When I was a kid, I remember getting cooked breakfasts on the ferries. It hasn't been that way for many years now, and I honestly cannot remember the last time I purchased any food items on one of our ferries. Same with Coho. I don't think I've ever gotten anything from their galley. It's nice to see BC Ferries still has some good food choices.
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Post by Kahloke on Mar 5, 2024 19:12:45 GMT -8
The article states American has 440 new aircraft on order from both this order and previous orders. That's A LOT of new planes. Granted, the deliveries are projected out into the next decade, and presumably, many of these new planes will be replacing older aircraft, but it's still an astonishing figure and shows how AA is the world's largest airline. The Embraer 175's will go to the regional airlines that American owns, but I'm curious what will eventually replace the 133 Airbus A319's they own. The article talks about upgrading the cabins on that subfleet as well as the cabins on the 48 A320's, which are also getting on in years, but no mention as of yet on their eventual replacement. The A220-300 would certainly be a strong contender to replace the A319, and it seems likely the A320's will be replaced with 737 MAX's, probably split between the -8 and -10.
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Post by Kahloke on Feb 28, 2024 6:16:32 GMT -8
A model of what the original C-class was supposed to look like - circa 1974. Notice any differences ...
Everything from the passenger deck up looks to be identical, or nearly identical, to Spokane and Walla Walla, which is not a surprise as those boats were the design template for the C-Class. They did end up differentiating the passenger deck superstructure more than what is seen in this model, and so ended up with not exactly a carbon copy of the Jumbos, but it's still pretty close to what the final build looked like. Thanks for sharing that.
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Post by Kahloke on Feb 27, 2024 12:48:38 GMT -8
What qualifies as a good-looking ferry? This is an unusual design, but I like that it emulates the Queen of Alberni; it's a nice way to honour her legacy and it will be a good reminder of her when she's gone. I really like how the Queen of Alberni looks but this “New Major Class” looks nothing like the Alberni to me, more like a big Salish. I think new ferries are designed as unattractive as possible to look different from older ones and to make it obvious that the ferry is “modern”. If they were designed similarly to the older ferries they would look much better in my opinion, but then it would not be obvious that the ferry is “modern”. I think a lot of the new vessel designs seem to be prioritizing function over form (aesthetics). I'll leave it up to you whether you think that is good or not. Based on the two conceptual images BC Ferries has just provided, I rather like the looks of these new boats - kind of a Coastal Class (car deck layout) meets Queen of Alberni (passenger decks) with a little Salish Class design thrown in there - very loosely, mind you. The two funnels are a bit strange looking, but if it's more functional from a mechanical standpoint, then so be it. All of that said, it won't surprise me to see the final design change quite a bit from this initial rendering.
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Post by Kahloke on Feb 26, 2024 15:19:31 GMT -8
A bit off topic perhaps: When I read "new major vessels will carry up to 360 standard sized vehicles" I thought that's unfortunate as, for example, the Queen of Surrey's capacity is 362 so there's no improvement in capacity. However the current BC Ferries website (https://www.bcferries.com/on-the-ferry/our-fleet/queen-of-surrey/QSUR) lists the Queen of Surrey at "Car capacity 311" Pulling up the Wayback machine from ~2000 (https://web.archive.org/web/19991117122338/http://www.bcferries.com/fleet/profile-queen_of_surrey.html) it shows a capacity of 362. They no longer load the area adjacent to the internal intra-deck ramp system but surely that's not a 51 car capacity reduction...At some point did they redefine capacity based on today's larger vehicles? Or is this ferry shrinkflation? At some point in recent years, BC Ferries changed the AEQ size to 6 metres which drastically reduced listed capacity numbers. The Spirits, for example, used to have an aeq of 410 vehicles (w/o the platforms). Now, they are listed at 358 I think? Personally, I think the 6 metre standard is overestimating the average vehicle size, and I think the number of vehicles the boats actually carry are higher than what they list. Sure, there are some very large passenger vehicles out there, but there are also a lot of smaller vehicles, too.
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Post by Kahloke on Feb 17, 2024 18:07:49 GMT -8
She's in the Anacortes tie-up slip now. maybe she's going to Canada again Still at Anacortes tie-up slip as of 6:00 this evening. Is she going to Dakota Creek? Do they work on the Jumbo Mark II's there? Or maybe Fairhaven Shipyard?
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Post by Kahloke on Feb 15, 2024 18:42:14 GMT -8
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Post by Kahloke on Feb 9, 2024 6:53:12 GMT -8
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Post by Kahloke on Feb 7, 2024 19:34:58 GMT -8
That's a nice looking ferry.
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Post by Kahloke on Feb 5, 2024 11:09:42 GMT -8
moved the above post into this existing thread
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Post by Kahloke on Jan 22, 2024 16:32:42 GMT -8
I wonder how Hawaiian Airlines does go to a Boeing fleet if they are merged with Alaska Air Group. I could see Hawaiian narrow body fleet switching to the Boeing 737 MAX with long haul fleet will be B787. I wonder if Alaska Airline Group will order Boeing 787 for opening up long haul market with Alaska Airlines? I wonder how Alaska Air Group will deal with Amazon Prime Air for operating the freight AirBus A330: www.freightwaves.com/news/hawaiian-airlines-welcomes-new-amazon-revenue-streamMerger hasn't happened yet, so it's probably too early to speculate. I would hate to see Hawaiian lose the A321NEO's, though. Those are great planes and are still pretty new to the fleet. Before the merger talks, I always hoped the Airbus A220-300 would be the aircraft of choice to replace the aging B717-200's on the inter island flights. The problem, though, is the engines and the required cool-down time between flights. The 717 has smaller engines which is ideal for the short inter-island flights, and its quick cool down allows for 20 minute turns. I'm not sure either A or B can provide a future plane that can match that. 737's and A320's need more cool down time between flights, and because they are larger than the 717, they likely also need a little more time to load and unload. I'm not sure about the A220; it's size is closer to the 717, but I would suspect its engines will also need more cool down time than the 717. If the merger goes through, I do think the Alaska Air Group will try to push more for Boeing aircraft going forward. It wouldn't surprise me to see the 737 MAX-7 replace the 717's eventually. Of course the MAX-7 has yet to be certified so I'm jumping the gun a little. The new 787-9's are supposed to start sometime this year, and that will be a good plane for HA's long haul services. The Airbus A330's in the fleet aren't all that old, so I expect the shift to 787's will be a slow transition over time. FYI - here is HA's current fleet per Planespotters: (19) Boeing 717-200's - average age 22 years (18) Airbus A321 NEO's - average age 5.1 years (24) Airbus A330-200's - average age 10.7 years (1) Airbus A330-300 - 5.3 years old
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Post by Kahloke on Jan 21, 2024 19:27:41 GMT -8
Will be a-900ER, actually (they don't really specify the difference), and the MAX is basically interchangeable with the 739ER on routes like this anyway. I assumed it will be a 737-900ER. The article didn't make the distinction, and as this is primarily a ferry forum, not an aviation forum, I didn't feel it necessary to call it out differently. Alaska only has 12 of the older -900's. Most of their -900's are the newer extended range (ER) type.
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