TANKS Travel Tales - a travelogue.......

On a recent trip, I was at the Plaza Premium Lounge at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) waiting for my flight when I spotted this beautiful Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner in its special livery featuring the Manchester City Football Club (MCFC). The rich blue colour combination made this aircraft literally stood out amongst all the others that were parked around it. What a beauty! Spotting this aircraft in-person was one of those rare occasions when a plane with special livery appeared right in front of my eyes. 😀 Etihad Boeing 787-9, with MCFC livery, reversing from the Boarding Gate, Kuala Lumpur International Airport (IATA: KUL, ICAO: WMKK), Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia (2022)

I took this photograph of an Asiana Airlines A330-323 plane at Incheon International Airport in November 2019 while walking to the boarding gates to board my flight from Seoul to Singapore with Singapore Airlines. I have never flew with Asiana before. Maybe I will get a chance to do so when I next visit South Korea. 😊 Asiana Airlines Airbus A330-323 at Incheon International Airport, Incheon, Seoul, South Korea (2019) Asiana Airlines Airbus A330-323 at Incheon International Airport, Incheon, Seoul, South Korea (2019)

Prior to the current pandemic and the resultant international border restrictions to combat the spread of infections, my most recent flight was from San Francisco to Singapore via a stopover in Hong Kong. I arrived at the airport early, which was my standard norm to ensure that I had everything in order and plenty of time to navigate through passport control, customs and security screenings. After having completed all the usual administrative matters that were required of all passengers, I finally reached the airside of the airport.  Upon boarding my flight, I looked out of the window from my seat and took this photograph of a United Airlines 787-9 Dreamliner parked at the adjourning Gate to my flight. While I could not really get a clear photograph of the plane because of the glare and not-so-clean window panes next to my seat, I liked this photograph because I could see the port-side engine of the plane that I was in as well as the amount of airport equipment and vehicles on the grou

While waiting for the aircraft to pushback for my flight from Singapore to Seattle on a pleasant November morning, I took a photograph of this Singapore Airlines' Airbus A350-900 (also designated as A350-941). This plane was parked at the Gate adjacent to the aircraft I was seated in, allowing me to photograph its entire length. The Port side engine of the Airbus A350-900 close to my window seat at 19A in the J Cabin is clearly visible in the foreground of this photograph. I did not crop out the engine from the photograph because I wanted to share the actual view that I was seeing when I took this photograph.  Singapore Airlines' Airbus A350-941 at the Gate, Terminal 3, Changi International Airport, Singapore (2019)

The photo of this Singapore Airlines' Boeing 777-300ER with Star Alliance Livery was taken in June 2019. The plane was scheduled to service the route from Los Angeles to Singapore via a transit stop-over at Japan's Narita International Airport at the time this photo was taken, showing it at one of the boarding gates of the Los Angeles International Airport. I am particularly attracted to planes with special liveries painted on them because they were definitely not common. The special liveries were  also usually interesting, artistic or simply awesome. More often than not, these planes only carried the special livery for a period of time before reverting back to the standard livery of the airlines. Thus, seeing a plane with special livery can be an exciting experience akin to a bird watcher spotting a rare bird species. :-) Singapore Airlines' Boeing 777-300ER with Star Alliance Livery, Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles, California, United States

Serving more than 20 destinations in China alone, Hebei Airlines debuted their first international flights outside of China in Match 2017 with flights to Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport. In October of that same year, the airline started flying to Singapore. This photo of a Hebei Airlines' Boeing 737-800 was taken at Terminal 1 of the Changi International Airport in Singapore in October 2018. A Hebei Airlines' Boeing 737-800 at Terminal 1, Changi International Airport, Singapore (2018)

I was at Singapore's Changi International Airport Terminal 1 in the late afternoon of 26 October 2018 and walking towards the boarding gate to board my flight to Bali when I saw this Air France plane parked at one of the gates. Taking out my mobile, I took a couple of photographs of the plane. Subsequent research online reveals that this is a Boeing 777-300ER with the registration number F-GSQF. It has been years since I last flown with Air France. I can still remember that it was a working trip to Paris. But I could not recall much details of that flight other than I was flying in Economy Class and the service from the crew was excellent. Maybe I shall plan a vacation to France soon. :-) Air France Boeing 777-300ER, Changi International Airport, Singapore (2018)

Of all modern wide body airliners, none is arguably more impressive than the Airbus A380-800.   And its not just the aesthetics that made the A380 the favourite airliner for most travellers. The interior of the plane is spacious and grand. More importantly, it does not gives one the claustrophobic feel. Take offs and landings are usually smooth and turbulences encountered in-flight are typically  less disturbing to the passengers, probably due to the size and bulk of this massive aircraft. The cabin is also relatively quiet as the plane cruises to its destination, providing a good ambience for the passengers to rest or catch up on some sleep, especially on those red-eye flights. Personally, the A380-800 is my number one choice when it comes to flying. This is especially so during long haul flights. Whenever possible, I usually try to select flights serviced using the A380 when booking my flight tickets. I will even go as far as to give up the so-called premium flight schedules

EL AL is the flag carrier of Israel. The airline began its inaugural flight from Geneva to Tel Aviv in 1948 and today flies to more than  50 destinations worldwide. Its main hub is at Ben Gurion Airport  (IATA: TLV, ICAO: LLBG) in Tel Aviv. The airline operates an all Boeing fleet including the 737-800, 747-400, 767-300ER and 777-200ER. Newer planes such as the 787-9 Dreamliner model have started to enter service with the airline since the second half of calendar year 2017.  I have personally not flown with EL AL before although I frequently saw EL AL planes at the Z ü rich Airport (IATA: ZRH, ICAO: LSZH), Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport (IATA: BKK, ICAO: VTBS) and Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok Airport (a.k.a. Hong Kong International Airport) during my business and leisure travels. Here are a few photographs of an EL AL Boeing 777-200ER plane I spotted at the Hong Kong International Airport (IATA: HKG, ICAO: VHHH) taken in Dec 2015 while I was on transit returning  to Singap

While on transit at Frankfurt International Airport in February 2017, I spent the relatively long layover time between my flights admiring the planes parked on the tarmac and the gates. This is a picture of a handsome A340-300 plane at the gate. The photo was taken from the McDonald's restaurant (B Concourse) with my trusty phone camera while I was enjoying my breakfast on a cold morning on 19 February 2017. On business trips, I seldom bring along my DSLR  camera as I prefer to travel light for work.  This particular Lufthansa plane bears the registration D-AIGN and is an Airbus A340-313 decorated with the Star Alliance livery. Lufthansa Airbus A340-313 at Frankfurt International Airport, Frankfurt, Germany (2017) Zoom-out view of the Lufthansa Airbus A340-313 at Frankfurt International Airport, Frankfurt, Germany (2017)

Air Seychelles switched to its current livery in 2011. Today, its fleet consists of one Airbus A330-200, two Airbus A320-200 and six DHC-6 Twin Otter (in a combination of the Otter-300 and Otter-400 Series aircrafts). While waiting for my flight from Hong Kong to Singapore at the Hong Kong International Airport on 22 August 2016, I spotted the Air Seychelles A330-200 at one of the boarding gates. It was the first time I had seen the "new" Air Seychelles livery in person. Definitely one of the most impressive and best livery on any aircraft today. Air Seychelles A330-200 with its impressive livery of bright red, green and blue colours with two white terns, Hong Kong International Airport, Hong Kong SAR, China (2016) Close-up photo of the tail wing of the Air Seychelles A330-200; the two white terns standing out in the burst of red, green and blue colours, Hong Kong International Airport, Hong Kong SAR, China (2016)

While vacationing in the Maldives in August 2014, I had to take an unplanned domestic flight from the island of Mahibadhoo to Malé to catch an international flight home to Singapore. This was due to bad weather resulting in rough seas which ruled out the usual boat transfer from Mahibadhoo to Male. The nearest domestic airport to Mahibadhoo is Maamgili Airport located in Alifu Dhidhdhoo Atoll (a.k.a. South Ari Atoll). A 25-minute speedboat ride from Mahibadhoo brought our travelling party to Maamgili Airport and we were booked on Villa Air's flyme for the short 30-minute domestic flight to the Malé s International Airport. The relatively low-altitude flight route treated those of us seated in the window seats to exhilarating views of the beautiful atolls of the Maldives. An awesome sight-seeing experience from the air which was totally unplanned. Villa Air's flyme operates the ATR 72-500 twin-engined turboprop aircraft and I was thrilled to take this picture of the arr

Scoot is a low-cost carrier which specialises in medium and long haul flights. Scoot is owned by Singapore Airlines and operates out of its home base at Singapore's Changi International Airport. While walking to one of the boarding gates at Changi Airport's Terminal 2 on 2 July 2016, I spotted this beautiful and brand new Boeing 787-8 painted in Scoot's full livery.  Boeing 787-8 from Scoot, Changi International Airport, Singapore (2016)

Returning from Orlando to Singapore during my recent trip to the United States, I had two transit stops  These transits were at the Denver International Airport in Colorado (IATA: DEN, ICAO: KDEN) and Narita International Airport in Tokyo (IATA: NRT, ICAO: RJAA). I don't usually have the habit of photographing the same plane that I was about to board for my trip probably because I was always busy walking around the airport taking photos of other planes as well as photos of planes taking off and landing at the runways. Thus this photo will probably count as the first time I did take a photograph of the plane I was about to board. This was also only the third time I had flew or about to fly on a Boeing 787 and my very first time on the 787-9 variant of the Dreamliner. My previous two Dreamliner flights were both on the 787-8 base model on All Nippon Airways (a.k.a. ANA) and United Airlines respectively. United Airlines Boeing 787-9 preparing for departure from Gate B32

Airplanes are synonymous with today's notion of traveling. Whenever I am at any airports waiting for my flight, I always enjoyed watching planes took off and land. During such moments, I have never failed to marvel at the incredible engineering feat that enabled such big machines to literally lift off almost effortlessly from the ground and into the air! Amazing isn't it? As part of my aircraft watching past time, I usually took photos of these planes; using my iPhone as that is the most convenient camera that I have on hand. Here is a picture of a Thai Airways Airbus A380-800 taxying along one of the runways of the Hong Kong International Airport (IATA: HKG, ICAO: VHHH). Thai Airways Airbus A380-800 at the Chek Lap Kok Airport, Hong Kong, China (2012) See also other  Airplane Pictures  in this travel blog