Aviation Memorabilia Newsletter

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|\^/|
_| TCA |_            B E T W E E N   Y O U R S E L V E S
_|\| AIR |/|_                   N E T L E T T E R
>  CANADA   <
>_./|\._<                   for Air Canada retirees
|
Your crew is: Chief Pilot  - Vesta Stevenson
Co-pilot     - Terry Baker

number 237     date Feb 15th 1998

Published since October  1995.
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.News from the Districts -

From the Pionairs - USA Winter Newsletter -

The Semi-annual meeting held in Miami Nov 12th was attended by
23, rather a disappointing turnout for the organisers.
Chaired by Ina McMurray, Director Pionairs USA Chapter. Speakers
included Doug Lovat Director, Pensions & Employee Benefits -
Air Canada, Olie Moore, our National Pionairs President &
wife Mary, our National Secretary, and Pam Monk, Great West Life
represewntative.
Irene Vaszalinskas was unable to attend, but passed on some
information of concern to the USA Pionairs with regard to the delay
in processing charges for travel passes, which was due to a major
system problem.
Olie Moore provided more details on the Reduced Rate Travel
Committee, chaired by Bob Robbins, supported by Don Demeza and
Ron Vigars representing the USA. Current plans are to publish a
preliminary summary of the travel policies, along with forms
and instructions, prior to the Toronto AGM.
Doug Lovat explained to two new options introduced in July 1996,
for active employees. During March a mailing will be sent to all
retirees outlining options similar to those offered the active
employee. It was explained that the options are strictly voluntary
and retirees may choose to remain in the existing indemnity Plan.

Effective Jan 1st, Pionairs USA are now included in the commission
agreement with both Dargal Interline Cruises & Tours and Canadian
Interline Travel.
Similar to the agreement which exists with the National
Pionairs, where 1% of the cost of each tour or cruise will be paid
to the Pionairs. For USA Pionairs using either of there Interline
Groups, it is essencial the booking agent enters 'Air Canada
Pionairs - USA' on your file.

--=o0o=--

. Found on the Internet.

SAAB Aircraft of Sweden announced in 1997 that it would cease its
Regional Airliner production at the end of 1997. During the recent
DUBAI '97 air show, orders for (19) SAAB340B+ were received from
Meseba Airlines of the US and (14) SAAB2000 from Crossair, the Swiss
regional. The production line will now continue until the 2nd quarter
of 1999. - Never say never again!

Farnborough International Air Show 98 will see the Tupolev TU204-120
fitted out as an executive version for Sirocco.

New UK charter Air Scandic will operate (2) Airbus A300 from
Manchester and Newcastle to European holiday destinations.

Central American National Carriers form an alliance called
Grupo TACA -
TACA - El Salvador
TACA - Honduras
Nica Airlines of Nicaragua
LASCA the Costa Rican National carrier
Aviateca of Guatemala.

Our own Air Canada has confirmed an order for (5) Airbus A330-300
and (3)A340-300 for delivery in mid 1999, to be the first North
American carrier to operate the A330-300.

Continetal Airlines will inaugurate a daily non-stop New York
to Glasgow starting in July.

Emblazoned on the whole length of each aircraft in the fleet of
UK low cost carrier Easyjet is the airlines reservation phone
number.

BA will ban smoking on all flights from Mar 29th.

Are Canadi>ns fares fair to Canadians?
Air fare lunacy has struck again on the West Coast. Some YVR
business travellers are saving money by busing, driving or flying to
Seattle in order to catch the Canadi>n Airlines flight to the
Orient. The round trip airfare to Manila from YVR is CA$4,036, bt
the passenger originating in Seattle pays CA$2,542 for the same
destination. Ironically the flight from Seattle lands in Vancouver      for
an aircraft change. Some passengers who bought the lower fare       and
tried to board in Vancouver were charged the difference between     fares.

--=o0o=--

. Interline stuff.

Celebration Cruise
Hosted by Gerry Philbrook (ex Air Canada Pass Bureau Manager)
14 day Spring Transatlantic on the Norwegian Crusie Line.
Departs Apr 18th from Miami, 2 days at sea, St,Marteen, 5 days at
sea,Madeira, Malaga, Marseilles.
Cost pp dbl: US$798 upper/lower, US$999 inside, US$1098 outside
US$1196 Deluxe.

Royal Olympic Cruise Line.
12 day Panama Canal - Stella Sollaris cost from US$750 pp dbl.
Mar 5th from Galvaston return.

Affordable Egypt tour.
9 days/8 nights with Nile cruise
Departs weekly on Sun & Thurs to Sept 20th.
Cost: CA$1119 pp dbl.
includes: 5day/4 night 5-star Presidential Nile Cruise,
2 nights at Flamenco Hotel,
2 nights sleeper train Cairo/Luxor - Aswan/Cairo,
Tour of Pyramids, Sphinx, Museum, Citadel & Bazaar,
All transfers & entrance fees,
19 meals.

Still chasing the sun? How about Tunisia - Africa.

Prices are pp based on half board for 2 people sharing, bath and
balcony, roundtrip airfare from Gatwick. Friends welcome -
7 days      14 days
Feb 26 - Mar 27     CA$712       CA$1025
Mar 28 - Apr 03     CA$801       CA$1185
Apr 04 - Apr 08     CA$937       CA$1421
Apr 09 - Apr 12     CA$1008      CA$1409
Apr 13 - Apr 23     CA$937       CA$1291

OR how about Tenerife - Canary Islands - same deal

7 days      14 days
Feb 26 - Mar 27     CA$848       CA$1249
Mar 28 - Apr 03     CA$889       CA$1333
Apr 04 - Apr 08     CA$1114      CA$1510
Apr 09 - Apr 12     CA$1114      CA$1421
Apr 13 - Apr 23     CA$937       CA$1362


Call 1-800-690-3223 for details and mention Pionairs.

--=o0o=--

. Smilie.
Sent to us by Gordon Dalziel.
Heard over the Southwest Airlines PA system -

"Welcome aboard Southwest Flight XXX,  to XYZ . To operate your seat
belt, insert the metal tab into the buckle, and pull tight.
It works just like every other seat belt, and if you don't know how
to operate one, you probably shouldn't be out in public unsupervised.

In the event of a sudden loss of cabin pressure, oxygen masks will
descend from the ceiling. Stop screaming, grab the mask, and pull it
over your face.  If you have a small child traveling with you,
secure your mask before assisting with theirs. If you are traveling
with two small children, decide  now which one you love more.

Weather at our destination is 50 degrees with some broken clouds,
but they'll try to have them fixed before we arrive.

--=o0o=--

.  That's it for this time, please we need your input, send
comments and email addresses of any others who may be
interested to Vesta with a copy to Terry.


/------------------------\               |--\_____/--\__  |
|  Between Yourselves     |______________ \______====== )-+
|       NetLetter         |                      ---|/--  |
\------------------------/                         ()

~Between Yourselves-Netletter~
mailto:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
mailto:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.         


...................................................
.                 GREETINGS FROM                  .
.                Vancouver Island                 .
.              BEAUTIFUL B.C. CANADA              .
................................................... 

==================================================================
|\^/|
_| TCA |_            B E T W E E N   Y O U R S E L V E S
_|\| AIR |/|_                   N E T L E T T E R
>  CANADA   <
>_./|\._<                   for Air Canada retirees
|
Your crew is: Chief Pilot  - Vesta Stevenson
Co-pilot     - Terry Baker

number 236     date Feb 12th 1998

Published since October  1995.
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. Welcome to Claude Fournier who can be emailed on
asterix.axionet.com
Bob Troup retired from Maintenance Planning and living
in Windsor Ont. Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

--=o0o=--

. News from the Districts.

From: Rhonda Manore email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Subject: London, Ontario Spring '98 Pionairs Meeting

The spring meeting for the London, Ontario area Pionairs is
tentatively planned for Sunday, May 24th, however, this year, to
increase attendance, we are planning to combine it with a reunion
of any employees who have worked or are working for Air Canada/TCA
in London, Ontario.  Since Al Croome, our local Chairperson, will
be away and unable to plan this event, I, along with my partners
Mary Lou MacAlpine and Louise McLean had our first meeting this
evening. Details will follow when finalized.
In the meantime, we would like to produce a flyer for mailing and I
was wondering if anyone knows where I might obtain a diskette
containing the Air Canada/TCA Logo for use with MS Publisher.

--=o0o=--

. Ron Munson from LHR Pionair group keeps us uptodate -

Swissair is to acquire a 10% stake in Air Portugal when the carrier
is privatized later this year, or 1999, following the signing of a
partnership deal.

Cathay Pacific is axing 21 jobs from its British operation. Six
posts are already vacant and 15 voluntary redundancies are being
called for from staff working at Heathrow, Manchester and London.
The cut represents about 15% of its UK workforce. A total of 760
Cathay jobs world-wide are being axed - 460 of them in Hong Kong.
This "painful measure" is to boost competitiveness says the company.

BAA's Heathrow Express rail link service has now started, even
though the final section of track has still to be completed. This
requires the last 5 minutes of the journey being by bus transfer
from just north of the airport. The media tested three alternatives
of reaching LHR from the centre of London and results were: - By
underground it took just over 1 hour with serious baggage carrying
problems in the rush hour traffic. - By taxi it took 40 minutes and,
even though this provided door to door service the cost was £35 as
against UKP5 on the Express (final fare will likely be fixed at around
UKP15. The taxi driver did admit that he experienced less road traffic
than normal and thought 50 minutes would seem a realistic average. -
By Heathrow Express it took 35 minutes but this will be reduced when
track completed. BAA have launched an interactive web site
www.heathrowexpress.co.uk showing photos, construction details and
relevant details. There is also facility to e-mail for info.

Heathrow Airport staff are being urged to help prevent the
abolition of duty free shopping to save jobs at Heathrow and
Gatwick. The loss of duty and tax free sales, scheduled for 30th
June next year will put more than 1,200 jobs at risk at Heathrow
alone, and over 30,000 throughout the U.K. An entire £4 billion a-
year industry will be closed down with a total loss of 140,000 jobs
across Europe.
Ron Munson  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

--=o0o=--

. Found on the Internet.

BALLOON ATTEMPTS DEFLATED...
This round-the-world balloon thing is becoming a comedy of errors.
One of the latest attempts to be the first to circumnavigate the
world in a light-than-air craft ended with both Dick Rutan and Dave
Melton being forced to parachute from their craft when its helium
envelope tore, imperiling the pair only an hour after takeoff from
Albuquerque.
Rutan and Melton bailed from their balloon at about 11,000 feet,
landing some 13 miles southeast of Vaughn, New Mexico.  Both were
injured, with Melton, 39, landing on the only fence around for miles
and being hospitalized with a dislocated hip and injured ankle.
Rutan, 59, came to earth on a cactus and was reportedly pulling
needles from his face several hours afterward.

HOT DATE IN HAWAII?
Kenneth Castor, 39, was arrested with $50,000 worth of marijuana
last Saturday at San Francisco International Airport, on his way
home to Hawaii.  Castor refused inspection of two duffle bags,
saying they contained a "sex toy" and headed back to the ticket
counter to check them as baggage.  Officers caught up with him and
eventually found the dope -- but no toy.

EASY VIRGIN?
What would happen if Fairchild and Honeywell merged?  The
new company would be called Farewell Honeychild, of course.
Well, European regional carriers Virgin Express and EasyJet recently
met to discuss the possibility of doing things together.
Wags immediately labeled the proposed cooperation "Easy Virgin."

COMING SOON TO A BEER CAN NEAR YOU:
The UAL 747 that was involved in an encounter with CAT last month
is presently parked in the desert near Las Vegas. United
apparently  will not repair the bird, which was scheduled for
retirement soon.  After it is fully inspected by the FAA/NTSB,
it may be sold for scrap.

--=o0o=--

. Interline Stuff.

Airline Club of Thailand hosting the Thailand Excursion 98
Mar 14-24th. Price US$690 pp dbl includes 10 nights with breakfast,
7 lunches and 7 dinners,
airfare Chiangrai-Bangkok.
Itinerary - Bangkok,Pitsanuloke, Sukhothai, Changmai,
Chiangrai, Pattaya, Bangkok.
Deadline Feb 14th 1998.

Airline Club of Thailand hosting China Capital Tours.
Mar 24-31st. Price US$800 pp dbl plus US$225 for airfare
Bangkok-Peking return.
Itinerary - Bangkok, Beijing, Xi-an, Beijing, Bangkok.
Price includes 3 meals daily.
Deadline Feb 14th 1998.

WACA 23rd Annual Ski Race & Viking Festival.
Apr 14-19th at Fleischer's Hotel, Voss, Norway.
Price US$530 pp dbl includes 5 nights accommodation,
5 Norwegian buffet breakfast, 5 dinners,
welcome drink, folklore evening, 5 days
liftpass, transfer Bergen airport - Voss -
Bergen, hot soup on the slopes.
Deadline Feb 22nd 1998.

Contact your local Interline club for more details.

South Pacific - Fiji.
Includes 4 star hotel, positive air from YVR or LAX, transfers.
Meal plan available - half board.
Cost pp dbl. Valid until Mar 21st 1998, travel completed by
Mar 31st.
With air -
9 nights CA$1849, 10 nights CA$1911 or 13 nights CA$2099.
Land only -
9 nights CA$595, 10 nights CA$657 or 13 nights CA$845.

OR Cook Islands with 3 nights free in Hawaii - 11 nights at
Edgewater Resort CA$585 pp dbl.

Call 1-800-690-3223 for details and mention Pionairs.

--=o0o=--

. Smilie.

A student became lost during a solo cross-country flight.
While attempting to locate the aircraft on radar, ATC asked,
"What was your last known position?"
"When I was number one for takeoff," replied the student.

--=o0o=--

.  That's it for this time, please we need your input, send
comments and email addresses of any others who may be
interested to Vesta with a copy to Terry.


/------------------------\               |--\_____/--\__  |
|  Between Yourselves     |______________ \______====== )-+
|       NetLetter         |                      ---|/--  |
\------------------------/                         ()

~Between Yourselves-Netletter~
mailto:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
mailto:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.         

...................................................
.                 GREETINGS FROM                  .
.                Vancouver Island                 .
.              BEAUTIFUL B.C. CANADA              .
................................................... 

==================================================================
|\^/|
_| TCA |_            B E T W E E N   Y O U R S E L V E S
_|\| AIR |/|_                   N E T L E T T E R
>  CANADA   <
>_./|\._<                   for Air Canada retirees
|
Your crew is: Chief Pilot  - Vesta Stevenson
Co-pilot     - Terry Baker

number 235     date Feb 8th 1998

Published since October  1995.
---------------------------------------------------------------------

. Welcome Aboard:
Allan McKenzie who retired in 1995 from
Customer Service in Halifax after 35
years service.
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

--=o0o=--

. We welcomed G.A.Smith in NetLetter nr 234, here is a bio -

George A. Smith was Regional Manager of Properties and Facilities
at Vancouver from 1976 to 1981, back in the days when Van. had a
fully operational regional office.  Dunc Laing was Vice-President
of Western Region then.  Before that, George worked at Headquarters
in Montreal for about 30 years.  He retired in 1981.
I'm his wife, Florence Nelson-Smith.  We lived in White Rock, and
moved to Calgary in 1994 where we are now, where there is little
rain and lots of sunshine.
We enjoy your newsletter.
cheers, Florence

--=o0o=--

. Ron Munson from LHR sends us some more doings in the UK -

British Airways is entering the low cost airline market with the
launch of a new carrier called Go. The airline says the service,
based at Stanstead in Essex, will charge lower fare prices than its
rivals EasyJet, Debonair and Virgin Express. It will fly to European
destinations, using 144 seater B737 aircraft, and the operation is
expected to commence in the Spring and will have 8 aircraft by the
end of this year. However EasyJet is calling for a CAA probe into
B.A.'s low cost carrier.It is concerned that, if the project gets
the go-ahead BA will "buy" European air space for its own private
domain. The feeling is that BA is willing to lose money and
resources on the project in the hope it can eliminate smaller
carriers such as EasyJet. BA, however, claim that the new no-frills
carrier is being run as a completely separate company

A flight crossing the North Atlantic has, for the first time, been
tracked simultaneously by countries on both sides of the ocean using
satellite surveillance. This ground-breaking milestone for the
development of world-wide air traffic control was carried out by the
UK's National Air Traffic Services (NATS) and the Canadian air
traffic control body, NAV Canada. The aircraft, a British airways
B747-400, flying last month from Los Angeles to Heathrow,
transmitted data to and from the NATS centre at Bournemouth and NAV
Canada's base in Ottawa, using a system known as automatic Dependent
Surveillance (ADS). It is said that quote"by using ADS, air traffic
controllers will be able to monitor aircraft movements
automatically. This will avoid the need for pilots to report their
aircraft's position regularly by voice, and it will also provide
controllers with the information they need to manage aircraft more
efficiently. ADS will maintain and potentially enhance safety
standards, and will increase airspace capacity by supporting the
reduction in the large separations now required between aircraft"
unquote. NATS and NAV Canada are jointly investigating the use of
satellite communications systems for air traffic control to meet
expected traffic growth across the North Atlantic.

A saddened Sir Freddie Laker is now evaluating the future of Laker
Airways services from Britain and flights from Gatwick to Florida
have been suspended. At his home at Freeport in the Bahamas, the
pioneer of low fares across the Atlantic is considering his next
move. This is because a glut of airline frequencies from London to
Florida, with charter operators offering rock-bottom prices - hit
Laker's target market. Sir Freddie launched a business class Regency
service last March, with hopes pinned on holiday travellers prepared
to pay upgrade on flights to Miami and Fort Lauderdale. Research had
shown that the market was there, but in practice it failed to
materialize. Out of Gatwick his flights to Miami suffered from poor
slot times which hampered passengers travelling on to US domestic
destinations and points in South America. He took B.A. to court in
America, alleging it was blocking his attempts to secure better slot
allocation. A judge found in favour of B.A., but Laker is appealing
against the decision.
Ron Munson    This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

--=o0o=--

. Spandex ban.
Canadi>n Airlines employees may be able to fly cheaply, but they
had better not wear form-fitting clothing when taking advantage of
this perk. The airline stipulates that leggings and Spandex are
unacceptable attire for female staff travelling in economy class.
So are miniskirts, dresses which are 'unreasonabley short' and no
bare midriffs. Male staff will not be allowd to sport those
tasteless aloha shirts.
(The newsletter mentions economy class only - hate to think what
they allow in first class - eds)

--=o0o=--

. INTERLINE STUFF

*** SPECIAL FAMILY AFFAIR SELLOFFS ***

THESE SPECIAL FARES ARE OFFERED TO ALL PERSONS WHO ARE
ELIGIBLE FOR THE FAMILY AFFAIR PROGRAM AS PER CONDITIONS
LISTED IN CIC*85.

SEATTLE SELLOFF ** EFFECTIVE 04FEB98'
BC/AB TO SEA.....CA$115
SK/MB TO SEA.....CA$165
ONT TO SEA.......CA$240.....VIA YYZ NON-STOP AC697/AC698
QUE TO SEA.......CA$249.....VIA YYZ NON-STOP AC697/AC698
MARITIMES........CA$305.....VIA YYZ NON-STOP AC697/AC698

FOR TRAVEL COMMENCING ON/AFTER 04FEB98. LAST TRAVEL COMPLETED
BY 31MAR98
CALL 1-800-413-1113 Winnipeg Call Centre for details.

Chasing the sun? - visit Portugal's Algarve region
Prices are pp based on half board for 2 people sharing, bath and
balcony, roundtrip airfare from Gatwick. Friends welcome -
7 days      14 days
Feb 26 - Mar 27     CA$612       CA$948
Mar 28 - Apr 03     CA$612       CA$1008
Apr 04 - Apr 08     CA$712       CA$1173
Apr 09 - Apr 12     CA$801       CA$1055
Apr 13 - Apr 23     CA$653       CA$1055

How about Costa Del Sol - Spain - same deal

7 days      14 days
Feb 26 - Mar 27     CA$582       CA$848
Mar 28 - Apr 03     CA$612       CA$996
Apr 04 - Apr 08     CA$759       CA$1114
Apr 09 - Apr 12     CA$830       CA$1067
Apr 13 - Apr 23     CA$642       CA$919

Call 1-800-690-3223 from details and mention Pionairs.

When next in the UK with some spare days, check with your host and,
if they subscribe to InterText or Prestel on their TV service, check
the vacation pages - a couple of goodies we heard about for
Portugal's Algarve area -
Two weeks in a 4 star hotel half board which is all you can eat at
breakfast &  Dinner (includes a bottle of wine) and airfare to and
from the UK with health insurance - all for UKP149 pp.(CA$350)
Another was a 4 day/3 nighter at Nice, half board and airfare
for UKP25 pp.(CA$60)
A 1 bedroom with kitchen facilities, lounge and balcony over
looking the beach can be had for CA$550 per month.
_______
|
|
/O\
-------<((o))>-------
O O

.  That's it for this time, please we need your input, send
comments and email addresses of any others who may be
interested to Vesta with a copy to Terry.


/------------------------\               |--\_____/--\__  |
|  Between Yourselves     |______________ \______====== )-+
|       NetLetter         |                      ---|/--  |
\------------------------/                         ()

~Between Yourselves-Netletter~
mailto:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
mailto:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.         





...................................................
.                 GREETINGS FROM                  .
.                Vancouver Island                 .
.              BEAUTIFUL B.C. CANADA              .
................................................... 

=================================================================

|\^/|
_| TCA |_            B E T W E E N   Y O U R S E L V E S
_|\| AIR |/|_                   N E T L E T T E R
>  CANADA   <
>_./|\._<                   for Air Canada retirees
|
Your crew is: Chief Pilot  - Vesta Stevenson
Co-pilot     - Terry Baker

number 234      date Feb 6th 1998

Published since October  1995.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

. We welcome Aboard:
Patrick Leung:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
retired Technical Specialist,
living in North York, ON.
Walter and Donna Moran
email them at:   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Mary Wolf, still hard at work in the P & F
Dept, YYZ. email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
G.A.Smith retired Manager Facilities, Western Canada
living in Calgary. email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

--=o0o=--
. NEWS FROM THE DISTRICTS.
From the Sentinel the magazine for the Montreal Pionairs -

Pionairs bowling league started Jan 20th and scheduled for every
Tuesday at the Valois Lanes, 62 Donegani in Pointe Claire.
Cost CA$5.50 for 3 strings, call Mary Timmons 626-3263 for info.

Apr 3rd is the Italian lunch at Lachine Curling Club.
Start at 12.00 for 1300. Cost CA$7.00 includes door prize draw.
Register with Russ Reynard 631-7165 or Bill Sim 631-1435 before
Mar 27th. Visiting Pionairs most welcome.

Apr 23rd is a planned Spring buffet at the Royal St. Lawrence
Yacht Club. Cost CA$18.00.

Jun 7/8th is a planned trip to Quebec City.

October is a planned trip to Paris.

From the London England monthly newsletter -

Planned events -

Feb 17th    ACRA theatre trip 'Smokey Joe's Cafe' at the
Prince of Wales theatre. Cost UKP32.00 includes
coach which departs LHR 1800. Call Jack Morath
01276-500918 for reservations soonest.
Mar 29th    Visit to Petticoat Lane in the morning and then
the B.B.C. headquarters to view the exhibition to
celebrate its 75th year. Cost UKP9.00. Coach leaves
LHR 0900 returns 1700.
May 2nd     Visit the Spalding Flower Festival Parade in
Lincolnshire to see lots of floats and millions
of flowers. Cost UKP9.00. Coach leaves LHR 0830
returns 1730.
Oct 17/18th ACRA Belgian Beer Festival organized by the ACRA but
Pionairs most welcome. Cost UKP79.00 includes the
coach to and from LHR, shuttle/ferry across the
channel, one night in the hotel, continental breakfast
and admission to the beer festival. Deposit UKP20.00
required by May 31st to Jack Morath 01276-500918.

Nov 3/4th   Annual trip to Boston - 'Boston Bonanza'

From the USA Pionairs -

We regret that we have no news from the USA Pionairs group on
their meetings or any report of their AGM.
(Hint hint - eds)

--=o0o=--

. Ron Munson of the UK Pionairs sends us this information -
A JOURNEY INTO THE PAST.
Last December Qantas celebrated 50 years on the London-Sydney
route known as the Kangaroo route. Today a B747-400 can fly the
12,000 miles non- stop in 20 hours 9 minutes, whilst a one-stop
service takes 23 hours.
In 1947 the journey time was 94 hours by prop-driven Lockheed
Constellation with the actual time in the air being 56 hours
cruising at 18,000ft. This first flight carried 11 crew, 29
passengers, 34,000 letters and food parcels, including 500 Xmas
puddings. The 60 seat, four engined aircraft had reclining seats.
bunk beds and, for the first time, a pressurized cabin. The 1st
class return fare was UKP525 - at a time when wages in Australia
were UKP7 per week and when a house cost UKP600.
The plane needed three pilots because of a 30 hour duty period, two
flight engineers, a navigator and radio officer who used Morse code
for all communications. Three cabin staff looked after the
passengers. Crews were 'slipped' between flights in Singapore and
Karachi, with others turning round at London. The staff staying in
hotels could wait for up to four days between flights.
The original route to London was Sydney,Darwin,Singapore (overnight
stop), Calcutta, Karachi (overnight stop), Cario (overnight) and
Tripoli. The Kangaroo route, the world's longest regular air route,
was first established as a link between Australia and the 'mother'
country. Symbolic of the relationship between the two nations at
the time was 2,000 lbs. of food parcels donated by Qantas for
Britain, which was still experiencing serious post-war shortages.
More than 1,000 people waved off the first flight from Sydney on
1st December and it arrived then, in London, on 5th December.
Today, if a Constellation and a B747-400 left Sydney at the same
time, the jumbo would be landing in Heathrow as the Constellation
was touching down in Bangkok.
Just think - if Airline staff wanted to spend just a week-end
shopping in London they would have to use up two weeks of
their annual vacation allowance.
From:  Ron Munson    E-mail    This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

--=o0o=--

. Vesta found this schedule for you Air Show buffs -
--===Blue Angels - 1998 Schedule===--
-===1998 Performance Schedule===-

March 14        NAF EL CENTRO, CA           Air Show
March 21-22     DAVIS-MONTHAN AFB, AZ       Aerospace Arizona Days
March 28-29     NAS KINGS, TX               Air Show
April 4-5       MCAS BEAU FORT, SC          Air Show
April 18-19     BARKS DALE AFB, LA          Open House
April 25-26     NAS NORFOLK, VA             Air Show
May 2-3         FT. LAUDERDALE, FL          Air and Sea Show
May 9-10        CHATTANOOGA, TN             Air Show
May 16-17       ANDREW AFB, MD              Dodo Open House
May 20          US NA, Annapolis Md.        Air Show
May 22          US NA GRADUATION FLY-BY
May 24          NAS MERIDIAN, MS            Air Show
May 30-31       NAS JOB FT. WORTH, TX       Air Show
June 6-7        CONEY ISLAND, NY            Air Show
June 13-14      EAT CLAIRE, WI              Air Show
June 20-21      GRUESOME A RB, IN           Air Show
June 27-28      NIAGARA FALLS ARS, NY       "Thunder over Niagara"
July 4-5        TRAVERSE CITY, MI           National Cherry Festival
July 11         PENSACOLA BEACH, FL         Air Show
July 18-19      DAYTON, OH                  Air Show
July 25-26      LATRINE, PA                 Air Show
August 1-2      HANS COM AFB, MA            Air Show
August 8-9      SEATTLE, WA                 SEA FAIR Air Show
August 14-16    MCAS MIRAMAR, CA            Air Show
August 22-23    CHICAGO, IL                 Air  Water Show
August 29-30    OUT AFB, NE                 Open House
September 5-7   CHESTERFIELD, MO            St. Louis Co. Air Show
September 12-13 HALIFAX, CANADA             Nova Scotia Air Show
September 19-20 WARNER ROB BINS AFB, GA     Open House
September 26-27 READING, PA                 Redding Aero feast
October 3-4     STOCKTON, CA                Air Show
October 10-11   SAN FRANCISCO, CA           Fleet Week Air Show
October 17-18   HOUSTON, TX                 Air Show
October 24-25   NAS JACKSONVILLE, FL        Open House
Oct. 31-Nov. 1  NAS NEW ORLEANS, LA         Air Show
November 7      NAS PENSACOLA, FL           Open House

The U.S. Navy Blue Angels will perform at 35 events in 22 states and
Canada. The annual demonstration season begins in March and
concludes in November. Almost 200 requests were received for the
Navy and Air Force jet demonstration teams. The number of
supportable requests is limited by the length of the season, travel
and training requirements, operational considerations, and seasonal
meteorological conditions.
Demonstration sites are selected to support the objectives of the
Department of Defense and the interests of the Armed Services with
safety as the primary consideration. Performances greatly assist the
recruiting and retention goals of the Services, enhance esprit de
corps among uniformed men and women, and demonstrate the
professional skills and capabilities of the U.S. Armed Forces to the
American public and U.S. allies.

--=o0o=--

. F.Nelson-smith and G.A.Smith sends us this tidbit -
Being a new recipient of your newsletter, I'm not sure whether
you have heard of this wonderful web site related to travel for women.
It's jam-packed full of travel tips and advice; like safe cities for
lone travellers, what to wear, the best fish and chip shop in London,
shop til you drop, and why Rotterdam is a good place to travel in
winter.
You can even subscribe to a free newsletter.
This is the only travel magazine for women on the web.
http://www2.journeywoman.com/journeywoman
Try it out!

--=o0o=--

. FOUND ON THE INTERNET.

BACK TO THE FUTURE?
If you boarded a red-eye from LAX to JFK on the evening of December
31, 1999 your airplane would land 99 years earlier, on the morning of
January 1, 1900 -- at least that is how some fear that the FAA's
less-than-state-of-the-art computers might see it.
The New York Times reports that IBM, manufacturer of the antique main
frame host computers used by ATC, says there isn't enough time to
debug them before December 31, 1999.  Nor will IBM offer software
upgrades, even though some Center computers are running 20-year old
programs.  Meanwhile, the FAA says not to worry, they're making good
progress on their Y2K problems.  Perhaps they'll finish work by 1900
-- oops, 2000.

SHADES OF ALFRED HITCHCOCK:
Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport will shut down every
afternoon between 1300 and 1500 daily as a result of thousands of
birds attracted by a nearby garbage dump.  Ten to fifteen flights a
day will have to be rescheduled.  The government has promised to move
the dump, but it has not yet found suitable site.

--=o0o=--

. INTERLINE STUFF.

The Air Canada schedule from their web page is effective Jan 24th
and is sized at 435k.

Rocky Mountaineer RailTours, contact 1-800-690-3223 for these
exciting rail tours through the Canadian Rockies.

From the LHR newsletter -
When filling out your 'trip pass', be sure to 'void' any unused legs.
Make sure you indicate the correct travel zone, or you will be
charged for the highest.
If you need to change your plans en route, use a 'stopover coupon',
obtainable from the checkin desk upon deplaning. Do NOT use another
'trip pass' as this will incur another charge. Ensure you cross
reference the original 'trip pass' ticket number on the 'stopover
coupon'.
Example:
'trip pass' routing London UK/Toronto/Vancouver/Toronto/London UK
On returning, you decide to visit Montreal; use a 'stopover' coupon
Toronto/Montreal. Avoid using a 'stopover' coupon on the final leg.
Remember though, if you reverse your direction, you will need a
second 'trip pass'.

--=o0o=--

. Smilie.

Approach:  Beech 998, you're showing two thousand feet and
intermittent Mode C.  Say altitude.

Beech 998: Beech 998 is intermittently at two thousand feet.

--=o0o=--

.  That's it for this time, please we need your input, send
comments and email addresses of any others who may be
interested to Vesta with a copy to Terry.


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