Remembering Alaska Airlines flight 261

ALASKA AIRLINES EMBRAER E175LR N641QX (MSN 17000761)

Alaska Airlines flight 261, traveling from Puerto Vallarta-Gustavo D. Ordaz Airport (PVR/MMPR) to San Francisco International Airport, CA (SFO/KSFO) crashed into the Pacific Ocean on the 31st of January 2000, roughly 2.7 miles (4.3 km) north of Anacapa Island, California, following a catastrophic loss of pitch control, killing all 88 on board: (5 crew and 83 passengers.) 

The flight was a scheduled international passenger flight from Licenciado Gustavo International Airport in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, Seattle, Washington, with an intermediate stop at San Francisco International Airport.

The subsequent investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that inadequate maintenance led to excessive wear and eventual failure of a critical flight control system during flight. The probable cause was stated to be "a loss of airplane pitch control resulting from the in-flight failure of the horizontal stabilizer trim system jackscrew assembly's Acme nut threads." For their efforts to save the plane, both pilots were posthumously awarded the Air Line Pilots Association Gold Medal for Heroism

Aircraft Information:

Airline: Alaska Airlines

Code: AS/ASA

Aircraft: McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83)

Registration: N963AS

Serial Number: 53077/1995

Engines: 2 x PW JT8D-219

First Flew: 11th April 1992

Age: 32.9 Years

We’re keeping the families and friends in our thoughts as they honor and remember their loved ones today.

Airbus farewells its last BelugaST

Airbus’ last operating BelugaST (“Super Transporter”) took to the skies for its final flight yesterday, (the 29th of January 2026,) marking the end of more than thirty years of service.

This iconic cargo plane, the A300-600, had been specially modified to transport oversized loads like wings and other aircraft parts between Airbus production sites across Europe.

AIRBUS A300-608ST BELUGA F-GSTD (MSN 776)

Its distinctive bulging shape comes from cutting off the top of an A300-600 and merging it with the upper part of another fuselage. Cargo is loaded and unloaded through the aircraft’s upper front section, which swings open upward, right above the cockpit.

Airbus once operated a fleet of five of these aircraft, which in 1994 took over from the Super Guppy, a heavily modified Boeing 377 Stratocruiser. Which, one of those is on display at the Airbus Aeroscopia museum in Toulouse, France. 

Since 2020, the BelugaST has been gradually replaced by the BelugaXL, which keeps the same design concept as its predecessor but is built on the more modern Airbus A330. The BelugaXL offers Airbus 30% more space and range than the ST for similar missions.

AIRBUS A330-743L F0GXLN (MSN 2027)

I believe Airbus attempted to give its aging BelugaST fleet a new lease on life by offering them to third-party cargo operators. Unfortunately, the plan didn’t pan out as hoped. In 2025, Airbus shut down Airbus Beluga Transport (AiBT), the cargo-focused subsidiary created for this very purpose, marking the end of the road for the BelugaST fleet.

The final BelugaST flight was carried out by the fifth aircraft in the series, registered as F-GSTF (MSN 796). Before making its last landing at Hawarden (CEG/EGNR), the airport serving the Airbus Broughton factory, it treated spectators to a low-level fly-by over the airport.

UPS officially retires their MD11 fleet.

UPS McDONNELL DOUGLAS MD-11F N257UP (MSN 48451)

United Parcel Service (UPS) have officially retired its entire McDonnell Douglas MD-11 freighter fleet, following a tragic crash in November 2025. The announcement was made on the 27th of January 2026 as part of the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report.

The MD-11, a three-engine widebody freighter introduced in the late 1980s, has been a long-standing workhorse for UPS on long-haul international cargo routes. At retirement, around 26 MD-11s – roughly 9% of UPS’s fleet – were in service, valued for their heavy-lift capacity and long range.

Rising maintenance costs, fuel inefficiency, and the challenges of operating an ageing trijet design had already made the MD-11 less economical compared with modern twin-engine freighters.

The crash on the 4th of November 2025 of UPS Flight 2976, departing from Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport (SDF/KSDF), which killed 15 people including three crew, accelerated the decision to retire the aircraft. In the immediate aftermath, UPS grounded its MD-11s on FAA guidance, with FedEx and other operators temporarily halting their MD-11 operations.

UPS plans to replace the MD-11 with more efficient aircraft, including the Boeing 767-300F and 777F. Over the next 15 months, 18 new Boeing 767 freighters will be delivered, 15 of them in 2026. The move is expected to cut fuel and maintenance costs and support long-term operational efficiency.

The end of MD-11 operations marks the close of an era for the distinctive trijet, while signaling a wider industry shift toward modern, fuel-efficient twin-engine freighters optimised for global supply chains

FedEx plans to have its entire fleet of MD-11 cargo planes back in service by the 31st of May, coinciding with the close of its fiscal fourth quarter.

FEDEX McDONNELL DOUGLAS MD-FFF N573FE (MSN 48769)

I couldn’t find any details about when Western Global plans to return their MD-11s to service.

WESTERN GLOBAL McDONNELL DOUGLAS MD-11F N781SN (MSN 48781)

A 'dual input' alert sounded during go-around

JETSTAR AIRBUS A321-251NX VH-OYF (MSN 11529)

A Jetstar Airbus A321 flying from Denpasar (DPS/WADD) to Sydney (SYD/YSSY) performed a late go-around in Sydney after a crosswind approach caused a brief loss of cockpit coordination, according to an Australian safety report.

The ATSB explained that the incident was caused by surprise and a sudden spike in workload during a last-minute go-around, showing how quickly stress can throw off cockpit coordination in critical moments of flight.

On the morning of the 26th of June 2025, JQ038 was approaching Sydney’s runway 16R after an overnight flight from Denpasar. With turbulence making for a bumpy arrival, the first officer, acting as pilot flying, set the aircraft for a ‘flap 3’ landing, a configuration suited to rough conditions.

Passing 500 ft, the captain, as pilot monitoring, confirmed the approach was stable, and air traffic control advised of an expected right crosswind component of 8 kt for landing. 

The first officer initiated the flare at 50 ft and later recalled they ‘over flared,’ with the captain observing that the first officer’s flare technique was consistent with landing with flap full.

“The aircraft floated for a prolonged period above the runway, and, subject to a right crosswind, drifted to the left of the runway centreline,” ATSB Director of Transport Safety Dr Stuart Godle explained.

Observing this deviation, the captain commanded the first officer to conduct a go-around.

“While this decision was a consistent response to the aircraft’s lateral deviation, it took place right when the flight crew was focused on landing,” Dr Godley noted.

“In response to the rapid increase in pitch attitude, engine thrust and airspeed that followed the go-around initiation, the captain instinctively and inadvertently manipulated their sidestick controller while the first officer was flying, resulting in a dual input alarm alert.”

The captain then took full control by engaging their sidestick push-button, and announcing “I have control”, at which point the first officer assumed the role of pilot monitoring.

“A consequence of the control handover during the initial stages of the go-around was the momentary interruption of sequential crew actions during the go-around procedures and, as a result, some of the procedural items were completed out of sequence,” Dr Godley said.

The report details that the first stage of flap was retracted out of sequence, after gear retraction, but there were no associated flight envelope exceedances or negative effects on aircraft performance.

The crew then continued the missed approach and landed soon afterwards without further incident.

Aircraft Information: 

Airline: Jetstar
Code: JQ/JST
Aircraft: Airbus A321-251NX
Registration: VH-OYF
Serial Number: 11529
Engines: 2 x CFMI LEAP-1A32
First Flew: 17 April 2024
Age: 1.8 Years

Singapore Airlines A350 suffers tail strike at Changi Airport

SINGAPORE AIRLINES AIRBUS A350-941 9V-SHW (MSN 485)

A Singapore Airlines Airbus A350-941, traveling from Manila (MAN/RPLL) to Singapore (SIN/WSSS), as SQ917 has been grounded at Singapore Changi Airport after suffering a tail strike during a go-around maneuver on Saturday.

Images circulating on social media show visible damage to the aircraft's tail section, confirming the severity of the incident. The tail strike reportedly occurred as the aircraft aborted its first landing and initiated a go-around, a maneuver typically performed due to unstable approach conditions or runway-related factors.

Singapore Airlines has not yet released detailed information regarding the cause of the incident. 

The aircraft remains out of service as inspections and repairs are carried out in accordance with Airbus and regulatory procedures.

Tail strikes are taken seriously in aviation, as they can involve structural damage requiring extensive checks before an aircraft is cleared to return to service.

Aircraft Information: 

Airline: Singapore Airlines
Code: SQ/SIA

Aircraft: Airbus A350-941

Registration: 9V-SHW 

Serial Number: 485

Engines: 2 x RR Trent XWB-84

First Flew: 9th December 2021

Age: 4 Years 

Two killed in light plane crash South of Brisbane.

Two men have died when their light plane crashed and erupted in flames near a regional airfield on the Gold Coast just seconds after take-off, triggering a fierce blaze. The aircraft was reportedly en route to Barraba Airport (YBBA), located in New South Wales, 89kms / 55 miles northwest of Tamworth.

Emergency crews raced to a private airstrip at Jacobs Well, after a two-seater Van’s RV-8A crashed shortly after taking off from runway 28 at Heck Field Airport (YHEC) in Norwell, Queensland, around 6 a.m. yesterday. (Norwell is 50 kms / 31 miles southeast of Brisbane City)

Water bombers were brought in to help tackle a massive bushfire that burned for hours after the fully fueled plane went down, tragically killing its two occupants.

A 73-year-old pilot from Beenleigh and a male passenger, thought to be from Sydney, lost their lives when the plane went down shortly after leaving the runway, according to police. Transport safety investigators arrived at the scene on Tuesday afternoon, and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau was informed that the crash happened soon after take-off.

The bureau said it would gather evidence and examine the site and wreckage over coming days, recovering “aircraft components of interest” for further examination.

Investigators will also conduct interviews and collect relevant recorded information including flight tracking data and CCTV footage along with pilot and aircraft maintenance records

A large plume of smoke could be seen kilometres from the crash site late on Tuesday morning, while about 50 emergency services personnel were on the scene.

Aircraft Information:

Owner/Operator: Private

Aircraft: Van's RV-8A

Registration: VH-MKX

Serial Number: 82025

First Flew: 2006

Age: 20 Years

Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of the deceased during this difficult time.

The world's most beautiful airport has been named for 2026

For many of us, airports are just the gateways that get us from point A to point B when we travel. Most of the time, we’re too busy rushing around to stop and truly appreciate the terminals we pass through. Some airports are just as famous for their stunning design as they are for their efficiency. This year, one airport in the US has earned the title of the “most beautiful” in the world.

Each year, the Prix Versailles architectural competition honors the best airport terminals, and in late December, San Francisco International Airport was named the ‘most beautiful in the world.’ 

Harvey Milk Terminal 1 stood out for its excellence in sustainability, innovation, cultural significance, passenger experience, and architectural design. The terminal recently underwent a multi-billion-dollar transformation, featuring redesigned departure gates, updated facades, and modernized ticket counters.

Prix Versailles highlighted efforts to cut the carbon footprint by 79 per cent and reduce energy use by 59 per cent. It’s also the world’s first airport terminal named after an LGBTQ+ leader, featuring museum galleries dedicated to Harvey Milk, the trailblazing American politician who became the first openly gay man elected to public office in California. Prix Versailles praised Terminal 1’s 25 new boarding gates as the result of an ambitious transformation, highlighting its soft natural light and calming atmosphere for travelers. 

Other honorees included Marseille Provence Terminal 1 in France for its interior design, and Roland Garros Airport Arrivals Terminal, noted as the world’s first tropical bioclimatic airport.

 China’s Yantai Penglai International Airport Terminal 2 was recognized for its coastal design and abundant natural light, while Japan’s Kansai International Airport Terminal 1 earned praise for architectural excellence. 

Since 2015, the awards have been held annually at UNESCO, honoring outstanding contemporary architecture across categories like airports, campuses, passenger stations, sports facilities, museums, emporiums, hotels, and restaurants.

Australia Day 2026

 Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi! Oi! Oi!

Australia Day is the day to reflect on what it means to be Australian, to celebrate being Australian and to acknowledge our history.

Australia Day is the official National Day of Australia. Celebrated annually on the 26th of January, it marks the anniversary of the 1788 arrival of the First Fleet of British ships at Port Jackson, New South Wales, and the raising of the Flag of Great Britain at Sydney Cove by Governor Arthur Phillip. Australia is surrounded by the Indian and Pacific oceans. Its major cities – Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide and Darwin – are coastal cities, while its capital, Canberra, is inland. The country is known worldwide for its Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Great Barrier Reef, a vast interior desert wilderness called the Outback, and unique animal species like kangaroos, koala's and the platypus. Australia Day is the official National Day of Australia. In present-day Australia, celebrations reflect the diverse society and landscape of the nation and are marked by community and family events, reflections on Australian history, official community awards and citizenship ceremonies welcoming new members of the Australian community. The meaning and significance of Australia Day has evolved over time. The date marked the proclamation of British sovereignty over the eastern seaboard of Australia (then known as New Holland). Although it was not known as Australia Day until over a century later, records of celebrations on the 26th of January date back to 1808, with the first official celebration of the formation of New South Wales held in 1818. 

• Australia’s population was 27,614,411 people as of the 30th of June 2025.

Below is a state-by-state breakdown of attractions

New South Wales (NSW)  New South Wales is Australia's most populous state. The Harbour City of Sydney is Australia's largest city. The coast of New South Wales is lined with beach side communities, each one offering experiences for the traveler. A little inland are the mountain ranges of the Blue Mountains and Snowy Mountains.  Further inland still expect sweeping plains, turning from agriculture to desert the further inland you venture. NSW currently has a population of 8,593,000.

Queensland (QLD)  Here in Queensland, we have a saying "Beautiful one day - Perfect the next" and that is exactly how Queensland is. Queensland has endless beaches with golden sand and crystal-clear waters, clear blue skies and lushes rain forests. Famous for its sunny warm weather, Queensland offers coastal exploration from the vibe of the Gold Coast to the tropics of the Great Barrier Reef to the bustling city of Brisbane. It is also home to tropical rainforests of the Daintree National Park, and the island resorts of the Whitsundays. Inland lies the ranges of the hinterland, and further on the vast expanses and beauty of outback Australia. They might call NSW the cockroach state, but cockroach races are one of Brisbane’s biggest Australia Day events — The Story Bridge Hotel in Kangaroo Point has been hosting an annual cockroach race for 44 years and counting. Queensland currently has a population of 5,669,000

South Australia (SA)  Renowned for the fine wines of the Barossa Valley, the beauty of the Flinders Ranges and the outback, the wildlife and nature on Kangaroo Island and the beaches and events and culture of the City of Churches, Adelaide. South Australia currently has a population of 1,902,000

Tasmania (TAS)  Proud to say this is my home state. Tasmania is separated from the mainland by Bass Strait, Tasmania has rugged beauty of Cradle Mountain and the west, the beaches of the east, and the complete wilderness of the south. Hobart was the site of the second European settlement in Australia, and many historic sites like Port Arthur and Richmond are well preserved. Tasmania currently has a population of 576,000

Victoria (VIC)  Small, vibrant and with something for everyone, Victoria has dramatic surf beaches along the southwest and central coast, green rolling farmland and photogenic national parks. The diversity of rural Victoria is very easy to access due in part to its size and well-maintained roads. Australia and Victoria's sporting, shopping, fashion and food capital is Melbourne. Victoria currently has a population of 7,074,000

Western Australia (WA)  A vast state. The south-west contains the state capital and major city of Perth closely surrounded by the wildflower, wine growing and scenic destinations of Margaret River and Albany. In the far north are the tropics and the beach side destination of Broome. Small townships, roadhouses, mining communities and national parks scattered around the long distances between. Western Australia currently has a population of 3,043,000 Northern Territory (NT)  From the red deserts surrounding Ayres Rock and Alice Springs up to the tropics of Darwin and Kakadu National Park, the Northern Territory is stunningly beautiful. Northern Territory currently has a population of 2,644,000. Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Located within New South Wales, featuring Canberra and a coastal area at Jervis Bay. Known as the "Bush Capital" with landmarks like Parliament House and Lake Burley Griffin It is a Self-governing territory with a Legislative Assembly. It is well known for specific traffic fines, such as $249 for having an arm outside a window. Australian Capital Territory currently has a population of 484,000.

Spotting at Singapore's Seletar airport

I’d like to start by asking, how many of you can honestly say that if your wife and daughter went overseas without you, they would go plane spotting on your behalf while you stayed home? 

Well, I can proudly say mine did exactly that. I’ve mentioned before that my wife and my daughter went to Singapore for a concert, but on Thursday they toured Singapore’s upcoming Terminal 5. 

Then the next day, they spent over two hours at Seletar Airport taking photos.

Despite not having a ladder or finding an elevated position for photos, I am extremely grateful for the photos they took.

Seletar Airport (XSP/WSSL) is a civilian international airport that serves Singapore’s northeast region. It sits about 16 km (9.9 miles) north of the main commercial city center.

The airfield first opened on the 28th of February 1928 as RAF Seletar, a British Royal Air Force military base, and was handed over to Singapore in 1971. The Singapore government planned for Seletar Airport and its surrounding areas to serve as the operating aerodrome in their vision to grow the country into an industrial aviation hub, now known as Seletar Aerospace Park.

Seletar Airport mainly handles turboprop aircraft, smaller private planes, and business jets. It acts as a secondary gateway to Singapore for turboprops, easing congestion at Changi Airport, which is dominated by heavy airline traffic. The airport can accommodate aircraft up to the size of a Boeing 757. Situated 11 meters (36 feet) above sea level, it has a single main runway, designated 03/21, measuring 1,840 meters (6,023 feet) in length.

SINGAPORE YOUTH FLYING CLUB DIAMOND DA40 9V-YFM (MSN 40.1089)

SINGAPORE YOUTH FLYING CLUB DIAMOND DA40 9V-YFJ (MSN 40.1093)

BOMBARDIER CHALLENGER 3500 VT-AOS (MSN 21035)

 DIAMOND DA 40 N29MT (MSN 40.NC185)

BOMBARDIER GLOBAL 5000 VP-CDP (MSN 9690)

LEARJET 60 VP-BCY (MSN 60=215)

VISTAJET BOMBARDIER CHALLENGER 605 9H-VFH (MSN 5979)

VISTAJET BOMBARDIER GLOBAL 600 9H-VJN (MSN 9662)

VISTAJET BOMBARDIER CHALLENGER 350 9H-VCR (MSN 20920)

SELETAR JET CHARTER HAWKER 800XP VH-RIO (MSN 258594)

BOEING 737-8LX (BBJ2) VP-CVP (MSN 39899)

BOMBARDIER GLOBAL 7500 VP-CCQ (MSN 70085)

QANTASLINK AIRBUS A319-132 VH-8NR (MSN 2485)

DASSAULT FALCON 7X T7-AMY (MSN 165)

FIREFLY ATR 72-500 9M-FYH (MSN 934)

On the 13th of June 2022, Firefly resumed flights to the airport from Kuala Lumpur, ending the suspension of commercial services that had been in place since the pandemic began.

Be sure to check back soon for more photos from Seletar Aerospace Park.

Big thanks to my wife and daughter for doing an awesome job with this.

Tour of Changi Airport's new 5th terminal

Before my wife and daughter headed off to Singapore last week, they discovered that Singapore Airport were offering terminal 5 tours free of charge on Thursday the 15th of January. So, to do this you just had to register, which they did.  

The new Changi Airport Terminal 5 (T5) is a huge “mega-terminal” in the 1,080-hectare Changi East development. It will be built to handle 50 million passengers a year in its first phase, boosting the airport’s total capacity from 90 million to 140 million annually. Planned to be as big as Terminals 1 through 4 combined, it will feature human-scaled spaces that blend nature and technology for a smooth travel experience.

The grand opening is expected to be in the mid-2030s.

A huge shout-out to my wife and daughter for not only attending on my behalf but also capturing these amazing photos.