Odd and Unusual Jumbo Hostel (12 Pics)

Want to spend the night onboard a real jumbo jet? Go to Jumbo Hostel. Brainchild of Swedish entrepreneur Oscar Dios, Jumbo Hostel is a hotel built on a real Boeing 747-200 jumbo jet and is parked outside Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport. he Jumbo Hostel have total 25 rooms and 85 beds. There is also a luxury suite in the converted cockpit with a panoramic view of the airport.


The original airplane was a decommissioned Boeing 747-200 jumbo jet built in 1976 for Singapore Airlines. The plane later served with Pan Am and Swedish airline Transjet. For more information about Jumbo Hostel visit: http://www.jumbohostel.com. In the meantime, take a look at some more pictures of the Jumbo Hostel plus a video in the end.

read more “Odd and Unusual Jumbo Hostel (12 Pics)”

Fuel-saving Aircraft designed by Students

NASA announced last week the results of 2008 Fundamental Aeronautics Student Competition. This year students were asked to think about a revolution in aircraft, a vehicle that could become a next generation DC-3 type of transport vehicle. A team of 8 students from Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta won the graduate student section of the competition. And the Undergraduate team awards went to a team of 6 students from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg.

The contest asked students to create a future subsonic transport aircraft that could carry up to 50,000 pounds, operate on runways between 1,500 and 3,000 feet long, and cruise at speeds between 595 and 625 mph - about the average speed of airliners today. The competition also stressed that the concept planes should be powered by alternative fuels and be quieter and more environmentally friendly than present commercial aircrafts.

The above picture shows the concept energy-efficient aircraft designed by the winning team. This concept plane will use battery power during take off. It will reduce noise and the electric propellers used for an initial boost would fold into the plane after takeoff to reduce drag. Definitely, we need some fuel-saving aircrafts, that are both eco-friendly and powerful.

read more “Fuel-saving Aircraft designed by Students”

GEN H-4 Helicopter - World's Smallest Helicopter

Take a look at the GEN H-4 helicopter, the World's Smallest Helicopter. It is a perfect helicopter for personal use! The GEN H-4 helicopter was developed by Gennai Yanagisawa, 75, of Japan, in the late 1990s. It has two rotors turning in opposite directions to maintain stability, and four engines that enables a 30-minute flight with a top speed of about 56 miles per hour. Japanese Gen Corporation sell fit or about 6 million yen (US$57,140). Watch the video at the bottom, to see it in action.

read more “GEN H-4 Helicopter - World's Smallest Helicopter”

Aeroplane Splits in Half

Earlier this week, a Boeing 747 aeroplane split into two pieces while trying to take off from Belgium's Brussels Airport. Take a look at the picture above. Luckily the plane did not catch fire and the four crew members escaped without any major injuries.

The plane is owned by Kalitta Air, a cargo carrier based at Willow Run Airport near Ypsilanti, Michigan, and was on a scheduled flight to Bahrain. It was not yet clear what caused the crash.

read more “Aeroplane Splits in Half”

Virgin Atlantic's Biofuel Demonstration Flight

Virgin Atlantic set an aviation milestone on Sunday, by flying the first commercial aircraft powered by biofuel. The Boeing 747 of Virgin Atlantic made the 90-minute journey from London to Amsterdam with one of its four main fuel tanks filled with a blend of coconut and babassu oil.

Biofuels, which are mostly derived from crops such as grain, sugar and vegetable oils, are seen by proponents as a good way to cut carbon emissions while also reducing dependence on fossil fuels. This flight of Virgin Atlantic proves that Biofuels is feasible in aeroplanes and can produce less carbon dioxide than normal jet fuels. link

read more “Virgin Atlantic's Biofuel Demonstration Flight”

Landing at the St. Barth's airstrip

Take a look at the picture. Plane landing at a road? It shows a plane swoops in to land at one of the world's most dramatic airstrips. The motorists on the road misses the plane just by inches!

This airstrip is situated on the island of Saint-Barthélemy, or St Barts, in the French West Indies. At 2,133ft, its runway is one of the shortest in the world and equivalent in length to five football pitches. Pilots needs a special licence to land on this small airstrip.

The landing, especially on a windy day, is an adventure in itself. But, despite the apparent dangers, there have been only two fatal accidents at the airport over the years. via DailyMail

read more “Landing at the St. Barth's airstrip”

Model of SpaceShipTwo unveiled

On Wednesday, British billionaire Richard Branson and the aerospace designer Burt Rutan unveiled a model of the SpaceShipTwo, the vehicle they hope will be able to take passengers on space rides. It will be able to carry six passengers and two crew members into the space. The test flights of this spaceship will begin this year.


Speaking to reporters at the American Museum of Natural History, Branson also showed off a model of the big, four-engine jet that will help launch the craft into space. The twin-fuselage airplane, called the White Knight Two, will carry SpaceShipTwo high into the sky beneath it's140-foot long wing. The spacecraft would then separate from the plane and rocket into suborbital space. SpaceShipTwo passengers would get about 4 1/2 minutes of zero-gravity time before returning to earth. Link

read more “Model of SpaceShipTwo unveiled”

Smallest passenger helicopter!

Think about a flying helicopter for one, that can be folded down and carried by just one person. Is it possible? Look at the images. It is Ka-56 “Wasp” helicopter. Developed by Russia in 1971, it is fully functional and could be used to carry one man.


In 1971 Communist government of Soviet Russia has order a development of the smallest possible passenger helicopter in the world that could carry one person and can be folded in the tube that can be carried also by one person. They had plans to use it on the benefit of Soviet Army and Russian intelligent service.

And the result was this Ka-56 “Wasp” helicopter. What you think? Want to take a risk to fly it? Link

read more “Smallest passenger helicopter!”

Lightning emerged after 65 years of crash

A P-38 Lightning aircraft has re-emerged from the crash-landing area, after 65 years! Thanks to freak weather conditions, that caused the sands of North Welsh beach to shift and expose its rusting frame. The U.S. aircraft was spotted by a family in July, but the location is being kept secret in case it is targeted by looters.

The Lightning has been identified using its serial number and other records. It was built in 1941 and reached Britain in 1942 before flying combat missions along the Dutch-Belgian coast. It was flown by Second Lieutenant Robert F. "Fred" Elliott, 24, from North Carolina. During a gunnery practice mission on September 27, 1942, a fuel supply problem forced him to make an emergency landing on the Welsh beach. That crash-landing in shallow water sheared off a wingtip, but he escaped unhurt.

The recovery group plans to collaborate with British museum experts in recovering the nearly intact but fragile aircraft next spring. The Imperial War Museum Duxford and the Royal Air Force Museum are among the institutions expressing interest in it. Link

read more “Lightning emerged after 65 years of crash”

Singapore Airlines bans sex in double beds

No sex in Airbus! Singapore Airlines, the first operator of the new Airbus A380, has dashed the hopes of sexual thrill-seekers planning to engage in amorous activity aboard the world's biggest jumbo jet.

Singapore Airlines said it would ask passengers on the A380 to refrain from sex while ensconced in one of its 12 first-class suites, which boast the world's first airborne double beds. While private, the double cabins are neither sound proofed nor completely sealed.

'All we ask of customers, wherever they are on our aircraft, is to observe standards that don't cause offence to other customers and crew,' the company told Reuters in a statement. Link

read more “Singapore Airlines bans sex in double beds”

First commercial flight of Airbus A380

The world's largest passenger plane, the giant Airbus A380 superjumbo, has finally completed its first commercial flight. A total of 471 passengers were on today's flight of Airbus A380 which belongs to Singapore Airlines. It started the journey from Singapore's Changi airport and touched down at Sydney airport around 8.25am UK time.

The oldest passenger aboard was great-grandmother Eileen Gower, from Sevenoaks, Kent. She was accompanied by her banker son, Gary, 42, who was selected by the airline from thousands who had taken up the airline's offer to bid for tickets on eBay.


The unique bidding process has raised more than £600,000 for charity. Julian Hayward, 38, from UK paid £50,000 to be in one of the luxurious first-class suites on this first flight. Link

read more “First commercial flight of Airbus A380”

Airbus A380 with double beds

A dream journey begins! Finally, after delay of two years, Airbus delivered its first A380 superjumbo on Monday, to Singapore Airlines. The delivered Airbus A380 contains luxury suites equipped with ultra-comfortable double beds.


The A380, as configured for Singapore Airlines, will have 471 seats which are divided into 399 economy seats, 60 business seats and 12 first-class suites. Two luxury suites will have an actual double-sized bed complete with regular pillows and covers. A sliding door and fabric screen will provide some privacy from peering passengers.

Singapore Airlines will start the A380 on trips between Singapore City and Sydney Australia on October 25th. The one-way price on the double beded suits will be approximately $7160 USD. Link

read more “Airbus A380 with double beds”

Some Old Pictures of Concorde

In 1956, Britain started working towards a supersonic aircraft. France was also working along similair lines at the same time and in 1962 the two countries decided to join forces towards building aupersonic aircraft. This partnership led to 20 Concordes being built - each country manufactured one prototype, one pre-production and eight production aircraft.

Concorde was subjected to 5,000 hours of testing before it went into commericial service, making it the most tested aircraft in aviation history. Its maiden passenger flights took place on January 21, 1976, with British Airways flying from London Heathrow to Bahrain and Air France from Paris to Rio. Link

As a result of her only crash on 25 July 2000, world economic effects arising from the 9/11 attacks and other factors, operations ceased on 24 October 2003. The last "retirement" flight occurred on 26 November that year. Concorde remains an icon of aviation history.

read more “Some Old Pictures of Concorde”

Sukhoi SuperJet 100

Today, Russia rolled out its first new passenger jet - 'Sukhoi Superjet 100', since the collapse of the Soviet Union, marking a milestone in President Vladimir Putin's drive to revive an aircraft industry that was once one of the world's most prolific. OAO Sukhoi Aviation Holding Co.'s 95-seat SuperJet was unveiled before more than 1,000 foreign and domestic officials and executives in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, eight hours east of Moscow.

Sukhoi, better known for warplanes, Tuesday doubled its sales forecast for the $28 million SuperJet to 1,800 over 20 years and said it will build a larger version to compete with Airbus and The Boeing Co. The bigger variant will hold 120 passengers.

"This marks Russia's re-entry into the global pool of commercial aircraft makers," Industry and Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko said at the SuperJet plant in Komsomolsk.

Russia is spending $1.4 billion on the SuperJet in an effort to make its aviation industry internationally competitive. Sukhoi and Italian partner Finmeccanica SpA have received 73 firm orders, plus 39 options, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov said at the factory Wednesday. Link

read more “Sukhoi SuperJet 100”