B747-8F White Tail

China Airlines B-747 B-18707

American Airlines Boeing 747 Inaugural Coin

Vintage National Airlines LAX

Vintage 2016.

LBBC.

Boeing Everett Flightline January 1981

I'm guessing PH-BUR, LV-OEP, and the infamous ZS-SAS. Not sure about the others. Photo by JW.

747 N744ST Global Supertanker Aerial Fire Fighting Tanker KCOS

Dumps at 1:35. Originally a JAL Sky Cruiser c/n 25308.
        

Lufthansa 747 Advertisement 1970's

American Airlines 747 Advertisement 1970's

G-CIVF British Airways Boeing 747 Lite

Spotted at LHR this morning by our European operative. Preparing to depart to George Bush Intercontinental.

Boeing 747 Aerial Refueling

 Dry hook-up test with SR-71 and F-111 chase plane.

Vintage LAX

Esther Hall and her granddaughter Erika watching a Pan Am 747. Photo by LA Times, September 27, 1973.

American Airlines 747 Freighter LAX

**Airplane Life Classics**

Stunning.

Boeing 747 City of Everett N7470

**Airplane Life Classics**

Hey, that's my old Thunderbird at Boeing Field!

Bid at the Bell Contest Taco Bell Hawaii

Just a note to the artist who designed the graphics for this promotion ...

Last time we checked, Air India doesn't fly to Hawaii.

Or maybe there is a new 747 nonstop between PHUP and VOHS?

Airplane Spotter

Today we pay tribute to the unsung hero of aviation, The Airplane Spotter.

Often branded as terrorists or labled as criminals, they continue their eternal mission to identify and document the movements of millions of aircraft around the world every day.

It is the fervid work of Airplane Spotters that has weaved the tapestry of aviation history as we know it, ever since the Wright Brothers first flew at Kitty Hawk.

The faceless and nameless spotter above is shown pointing out N663US (c/n 23818/715; 747-451); the very first Boeing 747-400 to enter service back in February 1989.

Today and forever, the Airplane Spotter will serve as a beacon of light against the tyranny brought about by tens of thousands of incompetent and maladroit rent-a-cops who are all chronically infected by severe and deeply entrenched personality disorders.

To all of the Airplane Spotters around the world, we offer a simple "Thank You."

Golden West Airlines Dash-7 LAX 1982

Golden West was once the largest commuter airline in California.

Pan Am is represented by a 747, DC-10, and TriStar. Also an Eastern 727, and a Pacific Express One-Eleven.

Rockford Files - Vintage Classic Old LAX Photos Images and Pictures

We happened to watch a couple episodes of the 1970's TV show, "Rockford Files."

Some screenshots  ...

Jim Rockford flew to Seattle. Departing LAX 25L on a Douglas DC-8 w/ full smoke ...

Note high altitude circuit in the background ...

That's the old National livery on the quad jet  ... 

For the cruise segment, editors chose to use the 747 prototype ... 

Landing Seattle on American ...  

Obviously TWA terminal 3 at LAX ... 

At least one satellite still has those same drinking fountains ... 

Flight Insurance machine ...

Note schoolkids picture on left.

Sharon Gless and James Garner.

Gless eventually became "Cagney" on "Cagney and Lacey;" a show we never watched. Her father was a big-time Hollywood lawyer who represented Howard Hughes. 

The famous red line ...

Rockford chased bad guy to the TWA hangar and shot him in a Tri-Star ...  

Beautiful United 747 Classic landing ... 

Just one parking structure ...

Nice United 727 and DC-8 action at T6. Plus Continental 707 Golden Jets at T5 ...

Vintage Classic Old LAX Construction Photos Images and Pictures

We saw something yesterday about how Delta is spending $229,000,000 to upgrade Terminal 5 at LAX. To you and me, that's the "Western" terminal. The news item made us think back to the old days ...

Delta coined the slogan, "Take 5 at LAX" when the T5 rennovations were completed in 1988.

We have more pictures like this in the vault, and will share them someday.

BTW if some of these look familiar, it's because they once appeared at the incredible Totally Jacked Up Aircraft Photos which is the blog that inspired the creation of Airplane Life . Small world, isn't it? 

James Bond 007 "Casino Royale" airplane - Skyfleet X570 prototype

This modified 747-236B appeared in the Bond movie "Casino Royale."

We extend a special thanks to our colleague n94504/jetphotos.net for allowing Airplane Life to display these images :

After 007, the same jet was in a VW commercial :

Rolls Trent 1000, GEnx, P&W JT8D

OK, we don't know which motors these 787 jets over at at Kilo North are fitted with.

Either way, what we don't understand is how those things are supposed to make any thrust !

It looks like they would just add drag ...

Same goes for this 747 with the rain gear on. It says 14,000 lbs of thrust, so we're assuming that must be a Pratt & Whitney JT8D on there.