Category: JC Wings

Unijet's Airline: Leisure International

2/8/2022

The UK charter market has always been volatile, with economic downturns and upticks providing opportunity and disaster. During the 1990s as the economy recovered several new carriers started up but many lasted only a short time as market consolidation of their tour operator owners took-off. One of these was Leisure International.

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Mistakes On A Plane: B-HNO Goes PACIIC

22/6/2022

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Cathay has had a torrid time of it in the past 5 years hit by storms on several fronts that have coalesced to make it a very different airline. One of the lighter moments however occurred in September 2018 when a standard paintjob took a wrong turn. A freak mistake or a symptom of a wider malaise?

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Shamrock 500s: Aer Lingus 737s Pt2

26/6/2021

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The 737 had proved the foundation for Aer Lingus' growth in the 1970s and 80s so it was natural that the carrier would look favourably on the new generation of the type. Nonetheless despite acquiring all three new variants the 737-300/400/500s would serve for a much shorter period of time than the series 200s.

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Obscure Russians 2: Transeuropean Airlines

26/11/2020

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During the mid-late 1990s there was a wide variety of rather obscure airlines being formed within Russia following the collapse of the Soviet Union and Aeroflot's iron grip on civil aviation duties. Some never acquired much in the way of their own identities however even some that did, like Transeuropean, appeared and disappeared quickly leaving little evidence of themselves.

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Cathay Cargo Pt2: 747-8Fs for the Future

17/8/2018

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Cathay Pacific Cargo was in a strong position in 2007 and in November placed its largest ever direct order with Boeing. This incuded 7 extra Boeing 777-300ERs but more importantly a commitment to 10 747-8Fs with 14 further purchase rights. At the time CX Cargo still had 6 747-400ERFs and a pair of 747-400BCFs on order. The idea at the time was to use the 747-8Fs for growth and to replace the 747-200Fs but the global financial crisis changed all that and instead the 200s were replaced largely by the 400ERFs.

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1:400 Review of 2017: JC Wings

4/1/2018

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JC Wings got something of a whipping in the review last year but how 365 days can change an opinion. In fact they are the only manufacturer that has actually changed much in the past year. They have gone from near last to one of the best makers in 1:400 scale. All credit to them and here are my thoughts about JC Wings releases for 2017.

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Bahamas Airways Pt2: Swire's Flamingo

19/9/2017

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Bahamas Airways had for many years been rather a thorn in the side of BOAC and by 1968 the British flag carrier was keen to extricate itself from the perenially loss making airline. It succeeded and initially the future looked, literally, bright, however the rebirth was ultimately only a short-lived affair and the Bahamian government was left to look for an alternative.

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Ansett's Last Props: The F50 Euroglider

28/5/2017

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The Fokker F27 had a long and distinguished career in Australia with the government airline, Trans Australia Airlines, and its private competitor Ansett. With the F27s reaching the end of their lives in the mid-1980s Ansett was casting around for a replacement and not surprisingly its modernised sister the Fokker 50 fitted the bill. Unfortunately the F50s were overtaken by events at Ansett and it wouldn't really be until they went out west that they found their raison d’être.

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Cramming Them In: HK Express' New Airbuses

9/5/2017

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HK Express has been a major factor in the infiltration of low cost travel options into Cathay Pacific's Hong Kong fortress. Operating from Hong Kong however has its problems namely high costs and restricted access to slots. HK Express is trying to combat both these problems and one way it has done this is to up capacity of its new aircraft.

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1/400 Review of 2016: JC Wings

10/1/2017

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I don't really understand JC Wings. On the one hand they are the mould factory for Gemini Jets and are pumping out probably the most new moulds and most innovative features of all the 1/400 manufacturers, whilst on the other hand they almost try and con people into pre-ordering ahead of time and have appalling quality control. They really are like Jekyll and Hyde. Here's what they've been up to in 2016:

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Rainbow E-Jets: Guizhou E190s

12/11/2016

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Of the many new startup airlines in China within the past few years rarely have they strayed from the usual pattern of 737 or A320 equipment. Few too have begun operations without some form of backing from one of the nation's established airlines. Colorful Guizhou has done both and has its eyes set on developing a beautiful but relatively impoverished part of China.

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Cathay A350s: XWB to AKL

28/10/2016

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Whilst this site is called Yesterday's Airlines you can I hope forgive me the occasional lurch into more modern material and it doesn't get any more modern than Airbuses' new A350. Today that aircraft began services to my home airport of Auckland, New Zealand and since I happen to own the JC Wings version of it in 1/400 Scale I thought I'd make a quick blogpost to mark the event.

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Regional Jets in China Pt3: 70-100 Seaters

12/7/2016

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Since 2000 the definition of a regional airliner has changed dramatically and the aircraft now vying for the regional market aren't far away from being what were considered mainline aircraft in the 1980s. Some like the new C Series are really pushing the definition, however for the timebeing it is Embraer and their E-Jet family that are the market leaders worldwide for RJs. In China it is no different.

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Aeronaves De México Pt1: Cuauhtli Takes Flight

27/6/2016

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Aeronaves De México was established on 15th September 1934, but it wasn’t until September 12, 1940, when Pan Am purchased a 40% stake, that it began to go places. At that point it still was a one route airline connecting Mexico City to Acapulco using a variety of single engined aircraft like Stinson Reliants. The Pan Am stake substantially increased the young airline's capital base and allowed the acquisition of a pair of Boeing 247Ds enabling the single route to go daily from September 30, 1941.

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Looking West: Transaero in the 90s

29/4/2016

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Following the collapse of the Soviet Union the various Aeroflot directorates splintered into a diverse array of obscure airlines operating the fragments of the Aeroflot fleet. One airline however started fresh becoming the first truly new scheduled airline in Russia. This was Transaero which would grow into one of the most important and respected airlines in the country with an unusually modern fleet and a fresh image.

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<<Previous

Unijet's Airline: Leisure International

Mistakes On A Plane: B-HNO Goes PACIIC

Shamrock 500s: Aer Lingus 737s Pt2

Obscure Russians 2: Transeuropean Airlines

Cathay Cargo Pt2: 747-8Fs for the Future

1:400 Review of 2017: JC Wings

Bahamas Airways Pt2: Swire's Flamingo

Ansett's Last Props: The F50 Euroglider

Cramming Them In: HK Express' New Airbuses

1/400 Review of 2016: JC Wings

Rainbow E-Jets: Guizhou E190s

Cathay A350s: XWB to AKL

Regional Jets in China Pt3: 70-100 Seaters

Aeronaves De México Pt1: Cuauhtli Takes Flight

Looking West: Transaero in the 90s

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