Car Life/757s

[Fred W. Schneider III]

TODAY, THE ONLY GOOD FLIGHT IS A SHORT FLIGHT. I always seem to get a
screaming baby next to me, or a 7 foot "gentleman" in front of me who
reclines into my dinner.  Airbus? My experience was similar to that of
George Drury who remarked that bus was an appropriate name.  I liked
flying before they tried to put 300 sets into a 150 seat fusilage. And
back when a senior stewardess for Pacific Southwest was all of 23 years
old.  Oh, yes, I did try flying once but I never got the certificate ...
gave up with 55 hours to pay the property taxes on the house. 

Greg King wrote:
> 
> Hi Ed,
> 
> My comments (except about the DC3) were tongue in cheek, you are absolutely
> right, though I do enjoy the 757 for short haul, the 777 is a beautiful
> aircraft to fly in, flew from Frankfurt to Chicago in one and it beat the
> 747 hands down for comfort. One of the best international aircraft is the
> A340.
> 
> I agree with you on the DC9-30, in fact, they were so good, the new 717 is
> an updated series 30 with BMW engines, got a real treat in 98 when I flew
> out of Boston for Philly in a US Air (chasing PCC's to keep it on list) in a
> series 30 DC9 and lo, it was an ex-Ansett machine from home, it still went
> bullistic! Another fine and oft maligned aircraft was, the DC10/MD11, of the
> three original wide bodies, the pilot's prefered in order, DC10, L1011 and
> last was the 747.
> 
> Now, back to streetcars, it was mentioned about mono-motor problems, we have
> basically the same motors in our Z3, A and B class cars, they have been
> pretty good, occasionally you get noisy gearboxes and you get real "hunting"
> of the tracks and braking problems if the wheels don't match from one side
> to the other, unfortunately, since our system was split in two and
> privatised, the standard of maintenance has plunged and they are nowhere
> near as good as they where, the old story, when the government ran them,
> they had to answer to the people, the private companies have to answer to
> the stock holders, though they are upgading the bodies of some with new
> interiors and new paint schemes etc., the sow's ear is still the sow's ear
> underneath all the tarting up.
> 
> Greg
> Motorman Melbourne
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Edward H. Lybarger <twg at pulsenet.com>
> To: <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
> Sent: Friday, December 29, 2000 1:56 AM
> Subject: RE: Car Life/757s
> 
> > When the 757 was new with Eastern in the early '80s, I thought it was a
> > treat to fly.  That was before the carriers raised the seats and squeezed
> > them together to maximize the sardine effect.  In the past year or so,
> I've
> > become acquainted with Airbus Industrie through short hops on 319s/320s, a
> > transcontinental round trip on 319s, and two trans-Atlantic round trips on
> > 330s.  For me, at least, they absolutely blow away anything Boeing has to
> > offer (I haven't tried a 777, so that's excluded).  The pressurization
> > system is the smoothest, most continuous I've ever experienced, and the
> > wider narrow-body cabin makes for much more comfortable seating.  And US
> > Airways' 330s, with 60 fewer seats than the same -300 model that Aer
> Lingus
> > flies, is the most comfortable long haul craft I've been on.  I'm hoping
> > they don't disappear into Untied, but am not holding my breath.  The
> latter
> > is incapable of managing itself, let alone taking on the integration of a
> > major acquisition.
> >
> > Boeing makes great airplanes.  They're just stuck with a narrow-body
> > fuselage that dates from the mid-'50s, and the competition has made hay
> with
> > that.  I go out of my way to avoid the 757 or MD-80 out of Pittsburgh,
> > though I am fine with a DC-9-30!  My best flight of 2000 was on the C-54
> > (DC-4) that visited the Washington County Airport in late July.  I trust
> > they'll come back next year!
> >
> > Ed
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: owner-pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> > [mailto:owner-pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org]On Behalf Of Greg King
> > Sent: Wednesday, December 27, 2000 6:20 PM
> > To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> > Subject: Re: Car Life
> >
> >
> > By the way,
> >
> > I'm also an aviation entusiast and a private pilot, I rather like the 757
> > but, love the DC-3 (have 5 hours on type) and would go anywhere on one
> > (especially if I was driving!) but if I had get somewhere in a hurry, I'd
> > prefer a 757 over all else Mr Boeing or Mr Airbus has to offer! Sorry
> that's
> > a wee bit off list!
> >
> > Greg
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: Edward H. Lybarger <twg at pulsenet.com>
> > To: <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
> > Sent: Thursday, December 28, 2000 4:48 AM
> > Subject: RE: Car Life
> >
> >
> > > If you've ever been in the middle seat in the last row on a full 757,
> > you'll
> > > understand why I'd opt for the DC-3!
> > >
> > > Ed
> > >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: owner-pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> > > [mailto:owner-pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org]On Behalf Of Kenneth
> > > Josephson
> > > Sent: Wednesday, December 27, 2000 3:27 AM
> > > To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> > > Subject: Re: Car Life
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Derrick J Brashear wrote:
> > >
> > >
> > > > But, just because it had longevity, don't assume it was necessarily
> > > "better" than
> > > > today.
> > >
> > > True. You may have noticed several prominent coach manufacturers were
> left
> > > out of
> > > my little rant. A Boeing 757 is certainly "better" than a DC-3 though
> the
> > > latter is
> > > well known for its longevity. (This last statement is guaranteed to get
> a
> > > reaction
> > > from Bob Rathke or Ed Lybarger.) Anything can be made to last for
> decades
> > if
> > > one
> > > throws enough money at it. But Marmon, Brill and postwar Pullman trolley
> > > coaches
> > > were noted for their longevity as well as providing generally trouble
> free
> > > service
> > > for over three decades when given the chance. While our favorite
> traction
> > > system is
> > > well known for being a predominently Westinghouse equipped system, most
> > long
> > > term
> > > trolley coach operators seemed to prefer GE equipped trolley coaches
> over
> > > Westinghouse equipped units when all other things were equal. There were
> > > several
> > > notable cases where the Westinghouse equipped half of a GE/Westinghouse
> > > split order
> > > of identical trolley coaches were retired or sold off  before the GE
> > units.
> > >
> > > My point is that a guaranteed subsidy to a fat and sassy public agency
> > will
> > > not
> > > inspire the same call for longevity and serviceability that the private
> > > transit
> > > industry and its suppliers needed when the PCC concept was born.
> > >
> > > I heard a rumor that people living between Mattapan and Ashmont were
> more
> > > worried
> > > about the possibility of receiving hand-me-down Boeings from the Green
> > line
> > > than
> > > losing their PCCs to bustitution or a Red Line heavy rail extension. Ken
> > J.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> >