The End of Super Rangers - The story of Malaysia Airlines' Boeing 777

          On 26th January 2016, Malaysia Airlines marked the end of their scheduled services to Paris and Amsterdam. It also marked the end of the airline's entire fleet of Boeing 777s. For me, it was emotional to hear Malaysia Airlines' decision to retire its remaining Boeing 777s of what used to be the airline's long-haul flagship fleet. My first account of Boeing 777 began on the night of 6th March 1997, when I heard about the aircraft for the first time. I still remember that night, as a young nine year old boy, I was in the living room with my parents watching the local evening news when the next story in our little but bulky television box began with a clip of a gleaming white coloured aircraft with distinctive blue and red cheat lines slowly coming out of a massive hangar at night. Then another perspective showed the aircraft being moved slowly by tow truck in full view with starry lights of taxiways as if a new-born was welcomed to the world. Later on, the reporter told the viewers that Malaysia Airlines had just officially received the key from Boeing Company for the airline's first ever Boeing 777. On the next day at school, I told my friends about it with immense fascination and told them of how big the aircraft is. My school mates were equally fascinated too. They too knew about the news. Since then my dream was to get inside the Boeing 777 when most people would dream to fly on the bigger and more iconic Boeing 747s. That was how Boeing 777 has become one of my all-time favourite airplanes.

 9M-MRA came out of the factory as Malaysia Airlines' first ever Boeing 777. Dubbed the 'Super Ranger', it later broke the Great Circle Distance Without Landing record. -Photo Source-

9M-MRA, the first Super Ranger for Malaysia Airlines. -Photo Source-

           The story of Malaysia Airlines' Boeing 777 began back in 1996, more than one year after the airline was privatised by the government of Malaysia to a holding company headed by one visionary man by the name of Tajudin Ramli. As the production of the Boeing 777 gained full steam, the aircraft began to garner considerable interests from major airlines in the Asia Pacific. In 1995, Chicago based United Airlines was the first ever customer to acquire the newest model from Boeing. Soon after, it won orders from major airlines around the world. The aircraft's main selling point was the huge cabin space relative to other twinjets at that time and its ability to fly almost 14,000 km non-stop using only two engines, thereby saving the airlines countless of dollars on fuel and maintenance. The then newly privatised Malaysia Airlines saw opportunity to rapidly expand non-stop long haul international services particularly to Europe and North America. In November 1996, Malaysia Airlines announced an order of 15 Boeing 777s - 10 units for improved version of -200 series (later known as Boeing 777-200ER) and another 5 units for the longer -300 series. An option for two aircrafts of the same model were added. For a privately owned company, the cost of acquiring new but expensive piece of flying machines can be challenging without proper financial planning and backup. Towards the end of 1996, doubts were already raised about how the airline might finance the huge cost of acquiring the biggest twinjet in the world which at the time was priced at $130 million each (RM325 million). Furthermore, prior to the order, the privatisation of Malaysia Airlines cost Tajudin Ramli some RM6 billion in debt. Months before the first delivery of the first aircraft, the airline finally secured a variety of financing sources that comprised of creating new shares, equity, bonds and loans totalling RM3.27billion. The financial proceeds would go towards financing the purchase of the initial batches of the Boeing 777s and 747s while the rest would go towards preparing the airline's shift to the newly built Kuala Lumpur International Airport at Sepang.

The earliest Malaysia Airlines Super Ranger crew gathered in front of 9M-MRA before the journey home. -Photo Source-

New Straits Times published a full two page coverage of Malaysia Airlines' new Super Ranger on 2nd April 1997. -Photo Source-

          On 4th March 1997, the first production of Boeing 777-200 Extended Range (ER) destined for Malaysia Airlines came out of the Boeing Factory in Everett, Washington. Nicknamed the 'Super Ranger', this aircraft also bears the official registration number of 9M-MRA, signifying the country where the aircraft will be based for the next 19 years. The Super Ranger was a special aircraft to both Boeing and Malaysia Airlines. Not just the Super Ranger logo being glued proudly at the front section of the fuselage, but both parties especially Boeing wanted the world to know that its latest product can fly farther than any other commercial aircrafts at that time can do. For Malaysia Airlines, it meant a cool and prestigious marketing campaign promoting its latest product to the international market. On 2nd April 1997, that Super Ranger flew to its home base at the then Kuala Lumpur International Airport at Subang from Boeing Field in the opposite 'long way' direction - non-stop in an attempt to break the Great Circle Distance Without Landing record. Inside the aircraft during its extra-long, world record shattering journey were only 23 passengers instead of full 278 passengers. Executives from Boeing and Malaysia Airlines, members of the press, flight technicians and seven pilots readied up their stamina to endure the long journey to Kuala Lumpur. Instead of shorter westerly route over the northern Pacific Ocean, the aircraft flew eastwards passing over eastern Canada, the Atlantic Ocean, southern Europe, the Middle East, India and finally towards Malaysia, covering a distance of 20,044 km, or half the earth's diameter.

9M-MRA, the first Super Ranger touched down at Kuala Lumpur's Subang airport on 2nd April 1997, after flying for 21 hours 23 minutes non-stop from Seattle.  The aircraft broke the Great Circle Distance Without Landing record which remained unbroken for the next 8 years. A documentary was made to dedicate the achievement. -Photo Source-

          After clocking 21 hours 23 minutes in the air non-stop, it arrived at Kuala Lumpur's Subang Airport, then home base of Malaysia Airlines. The aircraft was greeted with Malaysian cultural performances, invited VIPs, airline employees and officially received by Tajudin Ramli, the airline's chairman in time for the celebration of the airline's 50th anniversary since its founding in 1947 (Note: Malaysia Airlines and Singapore Airlines were born from the same company, Malayan Airways Limited long before the airline was split into two different entities we see today). The arrival of the aircraft presented a whole new paradigm shift for Malaysia Airlines in terms of product offerings at that time. It was the first aircraft in the airline's fleet to have all seats to be equipped with personal entertainment screens. Each entertainment console in the seat armrest - even in the Economy class section doubles as a payphone - just swipe your credit card inflight and you can make inflight calls to your loved ones on the ground. Passengers can even ordered flowers while on-board using the aircraft's communication system. Even until today one legacy of Malaysia Airlines' Super Rangers that remain intact was that its widely spacious 34 inches of seat pitch in the economy class sections is rivalled only by few. Malaysia Airlines even reserved a space inside its brand new Super Ranger for businessmen to conduct their transactions. Dubbed the Business Centre, the area inside the aircraft was equipped with mini library, computers and printers for businessmen on the go. The world shattering record journey conducted by 9M-MRA didn’t end at Kuala Lumpur. It would then broke another world record by flying back to Seattle at a record cruising speed and flying time, thereby completing the record round the world journey the aircraft is operationally can capable of.

          Tajudin Ramli's quest of making Malaysia Airlines a global player in long haul commercial aviation services didn’t stop at Boeing 777-200ERs and Boeing 747-400s that would be the airline's flagship fleets for the next decade. On the same day Malaysia Airlines received its first ever Super Ranger, the airline also announced an intention to buy a future variant of the aircraft, the Boeing 777-200X. The aircraft would be utilised by the airline to launch non-stop services from Kuala Lumpur to major North American cities of New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, taking full advantage of the Open Sky Policy between Malaysia and United States that would eventually took effect in 1998. 9M-MRA entered commercial service on 3rd May 1997, just two months after its birth and subsequent prominence as a world record holder. It's first commercial flight was to Singapore as a familiarisation for the newly trained 777 crews. Later on, the aircraft also performed its first ever domestic service to the eastern Malaysian city of Kota Kinabalu, although it is only a one-off return flight providing Malaysians the experience of taking Malaysia Airlines' newest wide body at a significantly lower cost. By 1998, another nine Super Rangers joined the airline's growing list of long haul fleets. The aircraft enabled the airline to open up more international routes to cities including Vienna, Zurich, Zagreb and Rome. In Australia and New Zealand, the Super Rangers already replaced the airline's older Boeing 747s and DC-10s for routes to smaller cities like Perth, Auckland and Brisbane. All in all, the Super Rangers enabled the airline to enter markets where a Boeing 747 considered too big. Service to New York using the Super Rangers began in 1998, soon after the Open Sky Policy between Malaysia and United States was ratified. Routed via Dubai, it was then touted as one of the world's longest one stop route, completing the journey in just over 20 hours. The opening of Dubai - New York sector by Malaysia Airlines also marked the first time the rapidly growing Middle East city was directly linked to North America, some ten years before Emirates plies the same route. 

A local aviation enthusiast, Carlos Borda took this photo of the Super Ranger as it landed at Newark's Liberty Airport, one of the airports servicing New York City. Malaysia Airlines began using the Super Rangers for its New York route via Dubai. It was then touted as among the world's longest one-stop flight. It also marked the first time Dubai was directly connected to North America. -Photo Source-

          However, Malaysia Airlines' appetite for international expansion almost went into the brakes beginning 1998, as looming effects of Asian Financial Crisis dampened air travel in the region. There were still six undelivered Super Rangers and with dwindling share price, the airline began struggling to pay off its debts and began having trouble financing securely the remaining Super Rangers it ordered. The airline was in imminent danger of bankruptcy. Faced with the prospect of political fallout towards Malaysian public that still viewed the airline as a national flag carrier despite its privatisation, in 2001 the government decided to buy back 32% of shares it sold to Tajudin Ramli with a price of RM8.00 per share, the same share price it sold to the man with a towering vision for the airline seven years earlier. However, critics argued that the amount of shares bought back by the government was severely inflated and didn’t reflect the true share price at that time.  The new majority owner of the airline began conducting management shakeup. Tajudin Ramli was by then already out from the airline's top post. The orders for the remaining Super Rangers remained intact. However, the government decided that the airline's original order of including the longer -300 series be converted to all -200ER series to manage cost efficiently. An original option for two aircrafts of the same model would be converted to confirmed orders, making the combined orders and deliveries of Super Rangers for Malaysia Airlines to seventeen aircrafts. Some of the Super Rangers were sold and leased back to the airline via a newly created government owned aircraft leasing company to reduce the airline's financial liability. By early 2000s, the worst of financial issues affecting Malaysia Airlines emanating from the fallout of Asian Financial Crises was over. Helmed under the new management post-Tajudin Ramli era, the airline continued expanding internationally with greater focus on Asia Pacific, South Asia and the Middle East. In 2004, the two remaining Super Rangers were finally delivered to the airline. The 17th and the last of the two, registered as 9M-MRQ flew direct from Boeing Field to Kuala Lumpur via a shorter route over the northern Pacific Ocean, passing through Alaska and Japan.

The Super Rangers became Malaysia Airlines' long haul international work horse along with the Boeing 747-400s. -Photo Source-

          In 2005, Malaysia Airlines embarked on a product overhaul programme, in an effort to offer competitive product on par with other established carriers in the region. The Super Rangers which by then all delivered to the airline was overhauled as the previous product offering was inferior and outdated despite the aircraft itself still relatively new on the market. The change was obvious - the three class cabin (First, Business and Economy) was reduced to just two (Business and Economy). The airline stripped of the Super Rangers its first class cabin to fit more Business class seats. The much praised Business Centre which graced the fleet's interiors were also scrapped as technology improves which make printers and mini libraries redundant and space consuming. Business class seats too were revamped to give it sleeker look and enable passengers to sleep in a lie-flat position. Meanwhile, the entertainment system was updated across all cabins to enhance passenger inflight experience. To promote the overhaul programme to the travelling public and aviation enthusiasts alike, Malaysia Airlines decided to paint one of its Super Rangers, 9M-MRD in a special bluish livery to signify the refreshed international product the airline executed. With a tagline 'Freedom of Space', it soon became a byword for luxury and elevated the airline on par with the likes of Singapore Airlines. The specially painted aircraft itself was dubbed the most beautiful Boeing 777 ever painted. Despite the successful overhauling of the airline's international product offering, months later the airline again fell into financial difficulty. The impact of high oil price put a red mark on the company’s balance sheet dearly. Despite having a respectable international presence in major markets of Europe and Australia, the airline's domestic network continue to suffer financial losses. The second financial difficulty in less than 10 years saw the airline's management change heads. Even during those trying times, the Super Rangers continue to be the main long haul international work horse of the airline, despite being operated so in an increasingly diminishing financial returns. In the next two years, facing with further losses in international operations, beset in part by rapidly expanding Middle Eastern carriers, and more intense competition in the Kangaroo route, some of the destinations serviced by Super Rangers began disappearing from the airline's network - Zurich, Vienna and Stockholm was by then gone in 2008. Services to New York, which began in 1998 was also terminated owing to poor returns. The original route which went via Dubai, since then was routed via Stockholm before being terminated altogether. 

9M-MRD was briefly painted in a special 'Freedom of Space' livery to promote the airline's new inflight product. Sadly, the aircraft met its fiery end over eastern Ukraine some 8 years after this photo was taken. -Photo Source-

          Suddenly, the product offered by the airline inside the Super Rangers was again seemed dated and fast outdated as other airlines had, since then upgraded their international product offering. By 2010s, the airline seemed to be on a slow road to recovery. In an effort to focus on medium haul routes covering regional cities, the airline began renewing its fleet of Boeing 737s and Airbus A330s, the latter of which just prior to 2011 had inferior product to the more superior Super Rangers. However, the Super Rangers continue to work tirelessly, being operated to cities at half the distance of its true potential. However, in 2011 another financial turbulence faced the airline which prompted another management shakeup. More international destinations were cut - including Rome, Johannesburg and Buenos Aires. The role of Super Rangers began to be in doubt. The aircraft's longest route, the loss making of the airline's remaining North American route to Los Angeles was slated to be terminated, putting more certainty that perhaps some of the seventeen fleet of Super Rangers in the airline were no longer needed as they once were. The long haul international network, in which the Super Rangers were originally acquired for never reach the critical mass and profitability for further expansion. And the initial order of Boeing 777-200X (now known as Boeing 777-200LR) for further non-stop international expansion was quietly cancelled long before that.

Malaysia Airlines unveiled its newest Business Class product fitted aboard its Boeing 747-400 and Boeing 777-200ERs back in 2005. The upgrade includes updating the inflight entertainment system across all classes including the economy. -Photo Source-

Despite physically unchanged since the first aircraft was delivered in 1997, the economy class remained valued by air travellers as its 34 inches seat pitch provided a comfortable legroom and is rivalled by few airlines. Most airlines these days have increase their Boeing 777s' seating density to increase revenue, but at a cost of passenger comfort as seat pitch is reduced. -Photo Source-

          By 2013, the fleet of Super Rangers, once the flagship of Malaysia Airlines was slowly reduced one by one. Some were finally retired and scrapped with its iconic Malaysia Airlines logo and titles withdrawn. Some were returned to lessors. The remaining Super Rangers continued to be deployed to regional routes which are also plied by the airline's newer Airbus 330s and Boeing 737-800s. However, it was clear that Malaysia Airlines identified that it can make more money out of flying to regional cities, a feat which can easily be achieved by those two newer aircraft types, and may found Super Rangers to be too big, too old and perhaps too costly for that same operation. However, despite being older, The Super Rangers continue to fly as far as Japan, New Zealand and major European cities of Paris and Amsterdam. Its operational prominence briefly came after the retirement of the airline's entire Boeing 747-400s as it replaced some of the routes that used to be plied by the Jumbo jets. The addition of Airbus A380 to the fleet did not really affect the Super Rangers as the former was too big to serve the cities where the Super Rangers still had the upper hand. Despite having an older product, many passengers especially in the Economy class still value the legroom the airline offered, which at 34 inches of seat pitch, has become spaciously rare as most airlines are now fitting their newer Boeing 777s with more seats than ever before to increase revenue.

          Despite multiple financial difficulties and slow recovery, Malaysia Airlines had a profound excellent safety record. Its last fatal incident occurred way back in 1995 involving a small turboprop aircraft owned by the airline, although it was ruled as a human error. It had a slew of incidents, though it is minor in nature and such minor incidences also do happen at any airlines. For the airline's Super Rangers, a slew of incidences never really got the media attention lasted for more than a few days. In 2004, 9M-MRJ suffered tail strike damage after a take-off attempt at Zurich. In 2005, a software glitch blamed on a manufacturer caused a sudden dive of 9M-MRG, although it was finally put back in control and made emergency landing in Perth. Other incidents involving the Super Rangers also involved engine fire and wing damage, though none cause any injuries. However, it was the beginning of 8th March 2014 that put the fate of Super Rangers in Malaysia Airlines in a hard bind altogether. The sudden loss and presumed crash of 9M-MRO, while on its way to Beijing as flight MH370 has everyone around the world bewildered. Presumably crashed in the southern Indian Ocean, not a large trace of the plane has ever been found so far apart from a wing section found on a remote island. Then, on 17th July at that same year, 9M-MRD, once adorned the Freedom of Space livery was destroyed, presumably by military missile while cruising as MH17 at 33,000 feet from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. The double tragedy befalling Malaysia Airlines involving the loss of two of its remaining Super Rangers and 537 lives in them severely damaging the airline's reputation. Since the termination of Los Angeles, Paris, Frankfurt and Amsterdam has become the Super Rangers' longest routes. The terrible incidents of 2014 caused severe damage to the airline reputation resulting in dwindling international passengers to Europe. And the airline suddenly realised that the end of Super Rangers' service was nearing.

9M-MRD was decimated above eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 passengers and crew whilst operating as MH17 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. -Photo Source-

More than one year after the disappearance of 9M-MRO, operating as flight MH370 carrying 239 passengers and crew, a piece of aircraft wing was found at an Indian Ocean island of Reunion which later confirmed to be from the flight. -Photo Source-

          By May 2015, the old Malaysia Airlines was finally put to rest and be replaced by a newly privatised company, also known as Malaysia Airlines. The new company was established with leaner workforce and may focus heavily in the Asia Pacific Region. It will partner with airlines for passenger connections instead of using long haul aircrafts such as Super Rangers, as it was by then was already too big to transport fewer passengers for profit. The fate of Super Rangers under the newly privatised company was finally sealed. In December 2015, Malaysia Airlines announced that Paris and Amsterdam, the last remaining long haul route serviced by the Super Rangers will be terminated and the entire fleet of the once flagship aircraft in the airline will be retired by the end of March 2016. The incidents involving the airline's Super Rangers, how bad that may be, has put the aircraft in a more emotional limelight especially among aviation enthusiasts. The last flight out of Frankfurt after nearly 40 years of service saw 9M-MRG being fare welled with a water cannon salute. On 26th January 2016, the last flight out of Amsterdam saw an emotional farewell as well where  9M-MRL and its crew were escorted by the ground crew towards the Schiphol Airport's runway for take-off one last time to mark the end of Malaysia Airlines' 36 years of long service to this great European city.

Emotional farewell as 9M-MRL performed the last flight to Amsterdam after 36 years of service. -Photo Source-

          As for me, I still remember when my parents took up their first ever visit to Australia, it was also their first ever trip aboard the Super Ranger back in 1999. On their return home, they bought me a scale model of 9M-MRA. I was so overjoyed that I even displayed it in our family car just for anyone to see. I sometimes dreaded whether I will ever have a chance to board her. Even seeing her at the airport where I live is a rarity. Opportunity finally came in 2002, when my dream of flying on-board Super Ranger finally came true, while on our way to Brisbane. Upon entering the aircraft, I was amazed on the presence of individual TV screens. Unfortunately though, I underestimated the conditions of my first long haul journey in the plane. Perhaps I was too overjoyed, the TV screen froze (prior to that, I never operated an inflight entertainment screen before inside an aircraft) and I began to have stomach-ache soon after eating. So, that whole experience of me on board my first ever Super Ranger wasn't a very good one, but memorable nevertheless. During the years of Super Rangers in operation, I had the opportunity of being in the aircraft no less than 5 times. Despite the introduction of the airline's newer aircrafts, the Super Rangers never ceases to amaze me. Despite having an older product, I find it rather comfortable. My last flight in the Super Ranger was on 5th June 2015 aboard 9M-MRF. I later found out the aircraft was already out of service and retired from the fleet some two months later. It was a sad moment for me to see an aircraft that once grace the airline's international network alongside their Boeing 747-400s to retire at a time when the airline's international operation is winding down while others have expanded rapidly, making orders for dozens or even hundreds more of newer version of the aircraft model. In the 19 years of service, Malaysia Airlines' Boeing 777-200ER a.k.a. the Super Rangers had worked tirelessly despite went through turbulence and tribulations since the year the first aircraft was acquired by the then privatised Malaysia Airlines System. Now, the remaining Super Rangers are finally destined to retirement for good by the newly formed privatised company, Malaysia Airlines Berhad.

Good bye Super Rangers… -Photo Source-

==THE END==

From Mirabel to Miserable - Is the Mirage Being Repeated Elsewhere?

4th October, 1975 - Canada recorded a place in aviation history as the country officially opened a vast $500 million airport ($2.2 billion in year 2014 value) to welcome expected millions of passengers that would pass through its gates in time for the 1976 Summer Olympics and subsequent years. One estimate put that Montreal, then the foremost city in Canada may be forced to handle 50 to 80 million air travellers in the next century in its increasingly cramped Dorval airport if nothing was done to improve aviation infrastructure in that city. Believing that demand for air travel would picked up, it was decided that a new replacement airport be built at a site 55km to the northwest of the city at a sparsely populated area settled by farmers. 98,000 hectares of farmlands were expropriated to Canadian government, more than the size of Montreal city itself. The airport's original masterplan features six passenger terminals and six runways. That huge amount of land where the airport sits also act as a considerable noise buffer zone. Residents of Montreal's then (and still is) international airport complained of excessive aircraft noise. With the anticipated entry into service the likes of high-tech, but super noisy supersonic jets such as the Concorde, the urge to build land consuming aviation facility far away from densely populated area become a matter of practice even until today.

Montreal-Mirabel International Airport officially opened in 4th October 1975 with much fanfare - and a hope that Montreal and wider Canada can compete with other emerging cities in North America. -Source-

In this brochure published by Transport Canada, Mirabel airport was envisioned as a premier aviation hub. -Source-

Montreal-Mirabel International Airport - as it is officially known,  initially opened with two runways and a single passenger terminal. The terminal itself was something of a state-of-the-art facility in the 1970s. All international flights were moved to the new airport. Domestic and regional (including USA destinations) largely remained at the old Dorval airport until a planned closure at a later date. However, the planned closure of Dorval never materialise as air travellers were beginning to find that the old airport is conveniently near to downtown Montreal. A planned highway and a high speed railway line connecting Montreal to Mirabel's passenger terminal too never materialise, further eroding the mega airport's attractiveness to air travellers as they find it as being too far and too time consuming to reach. As more Canadian cities were opened to international flights and longer range aircraft came to the market, there is no longer a justification to stop by at Montreal. Adding the socio-political issues in the city (and in the wider province of Quebec), the city began a long and slow decline in international prominence. The effect? Mirabel airport failed to sustain traffic. The passengers that passed through its gates barely surpassed 3 million. Over the years it has garnered reputation as a white elephant and a poster child of wasteful public spending.

The only passenger terminal ever built stood abandoned and frozen in time until a final decision was made to demolish it in year 2014 citing losses to Montreal to maintain the unproductive facility. -Source-

The last passenger flight occurred on 31st October 2004. Over the next 10 years, the only passenger terminal ever built stood abandoned and frozen in time as various plans were mooted to put it to useful purpose. Some quarters want it transformed into a convention centre, some wanted a theme park and even an aviation museum. For a brief moment, the terminal was alive as filming location. Among the well-known was the Hollywood production of 'The Terminal' starring Tom Hanks and Catherine Zeta-Jones where the terminal is partly portrayed as JFK airport in New York City. After that, the terminal was in disused again. It was finally decided that the terminal be torn down as the cost of upkeep represented a loss to the city. Mirabel airport's two runways remain operational as a cargo airport and also as test beds for new aircraft. But, one can hardly forget that the primary purpose of the airport, which is to welcome 50 to 80 million passengers per year never materialise.

Dubai World Central or officially known as Al Maktoum International Airport has been developed in phases to ease increasing congestion at Dubai International Airport which is recently surpassed Heathrow as the world's busiest international airport (excluding domestic passengers). -Source-

While Mirabel closes a chapter as a passenger airport, other cities around the world are experiencing air travel boom. Among them are Dubai, Denver, and even Sydney. Vast, sparsely populated lands are opened for new mega airports, reminiscent of the practice shown during planning of Mirabel. Dubbed Dubai World Central, the newest airport in this major aviation hub in the Middle East may eventually hosts five runways and four terminal buildings - capable of handling 160 million passengers and 12 million tonnes of cargo per year. So far, only few airlines operate there and it is now mainly a cargo airport. The airport is built to entice Emirates to move its operation there as it has more space for the airline to continue its global expansion. However, Emirates has yet to decide on shifting to the new airport for at least until the next decade.

In Denver, despite having an airport 40km away from the city, Denver International Airport has been ranked as the world's 18th busiest airport in year 2014 where it handled more than 53 million passengers. Located on a roughly 140 sq. km of land, the airport has plenty of room for expansion. Unlike Mirabel, Denver International Airport is able to accumulate passengers because when the airport opened in 1995, the closer and more space constrained Stapleton Airport was closed down soon after. The site of the former airport is now a mixed-use neighbourhood development. The plan for a second international airport at Australia's largest city, Sydney has been going on and off since 1960s. The Australian government has identified a vast site some 50km to the city's west as being suitable for a second airport. In subsequent years, the land has been purchased and reserved by the government. However, at some point the proposal for the second airport didn’t gain momentum. An alternative plan was to link the city and its present airport to Canberra airport via high speed rail - but the plan never pulled through.

Without fast, efficient and reliable transit network, there is a risk of another Mirabel to any airports that are located far-away from the cities that these intended to serve -Source-

As passenger and aircraft traffic continue to expand at present Sydney Airport, the room for expansion is becoming more limited. Adding to the challenge is that the airport is subject to night time curfews, thereby the number of take-offs and landings cannot be spread more evenly throughout the 24 hour period. Critics of the second airport began comparing it with Mirabel. Initial phase of the development may not include high speed railway link to Sydney CBD, prompting some to argue that the strategy would be a mistake. There is also no clear indication whether present airport would be closed indefinitely. Proposed access improvement to the new airport might carry more traffic to existing highways thereby causing more congestion.

Mirabel airport has become a symbol of what to-do and what not to-do when dealing with public spending. It has become synonymous as an output of egoistic "built it and they will come" psyche without giving due thoughts on alternative scenarios that could change whatever is envisioned. In an era where every public spending, whether spent or still on the drawing garnered constant check and balance, plenty of factors play their part whether such spending is worth the investment or may see shadows of white elephant looming ahead. So, again is mirage being repeated elsewhere? Yes and no (or a bit of both).

Is the End of an Icon Nears?

Previously, I wrote about Airbus A380's emergence as an icon for international long haul air travel. While Boeing 747 has long been known as the 'Queen of the Skies', advances of technology and consumer and industry wide preference for point-to-point, thinner routes meant even planes as big as Airbus A380 may not be able to rule the sky - in big numbers for years to come.

The sales of Boeing 747 is partly hampered by advances in technology that enable smaller, more efficient planes to fly as far and as dense as the iconic jet. -Source-

Sales of Boeing's latest 747, the -8 series has been flagging. A latest order of 18 units of this iconic jet was announced back in June 2015 by Volga-Dnepr Group, a Russian based freighter company. The company is best known as a major operator of Antonov AN-124-100 Ruslan planes, the largest jet engine aircraft in the world (Yes, certainly bigger than A380 though it is used exclusively for non-human cargo).

Boeing Co. said that the order will extend the life of 747 program to year 2022. By that time, Boeing will also schedule to produce the newest version of Boeing 777, which now currently being marketed as Boeing 777X. With a flying range of more than 8,500 nautical miles and seats up to 400 passengers (and more depending on airlines) - all with using two engines, Boeing 777 certainly has become a favourite and will be a favourite for major airlines.

And the Boeing 747?  - It is a plane designed in the 1960s where quad power plants were still needed to ensure reliability of long haul transoceanic flights. Over the years, as technology improves, subsequent models have become leaner and two engines has become more standard for long haul, 14-16 hours non-stop flight. As symbolic it may be, I think the iconic Jumbo Jet may still be around, but only used ones. When? I don't know.

Is Airbus A380 Already A Long Haul International Air Travel Icon?

Whilst reading the Malaysia Airports's Convergence magazine (Vol. 32 2015), I came across two pages dedicating about the launch of Air China's scheduled commercial service to Kuala Lumpur International Airport. What struck me in writing today's blog is that the page also shows an (obvious) outline of Airbus A380 with Air China logo prominently displayed in its tail - which got me thinking, is Airbus A380, dubbed unofficially as 'Super Jumbo' already an icon for international long haul air travel? 

The picture in question (taken by me) - As of December 2015, Air China does not operate or having A380 in its order book.

Some years ago, I watched a documentary featuring the history of Boeing 747. It also featured Joe Sutter, the man behind the development team of the well-known Jumbo Jet. But, more interestingly, one of the persons involved in the latest development of Boeing 747-8 (I can't remember his name) was skeptical about A380 trumping the B747, saying that the latter is far well known among the public due to its iconic 'hump' compared with a more conventional looking A380. 

Since introduced in 1969, Boeing 747 a.k.a. Jumbo Jet has been an enduring figure of international long haul air travel. -Source-

Since entering service more than 8 years ago, the public perception of A380 remains high - it is bigger and quieter than B747. But, cumulative sales of the Super Jumbo is still lagging behind the Jumbo (except when comparing to Boeing 747-8 which has even lower sales). Most airlines are increasingly into point-to-point network, helped by developments of smaller, but more efficient long haul planes such as Boeing 787 and Airbus A350, bypassing busy airport hubs, where A380 is designed for. 

Sales of A380 has been somewhat tepid and may not match with those cumulative numbers of Boeing 747s in production for some years to come. -Source-

But image is still matters despite the reality. Just the other day, I notice a travel agency uses an outline of A380 in its marketing. Not sure whether the untrained (note: non-avgeek) eye would notice straightaway it is clearly a Super Jumbo. But it actually is - higher (or thicker) than usual fuselage height, rounded nose, four engines underneath the expansive wing (and not forgetting those sharklets - no quad Airbus jets have those other than A380) and the slightly taller tail section than the competitor.

So, it begs the question, is the perception of A380 as a long haul international air travel icon among the public already persists? Probably yes. But, does that reciprocally accepted by general travel agencies or companies as mascots in their marketing? That depends. My somewhat myopic view suggests that it is certainly picking-up. 

Linking the Two Malaysias

Inspired by Kristen Grady in her interactive map of flights over New York City, I have the idea of creating a roughly similar map of flights connecting two regions that made-up Malaysia. Obviously, I am yet to apply and master some of her methods in creating the smooth visual image. But, I just give it a try using my own way for now.

The map above was produced by obtaining coordinates of all domestic flight routes that occurred between the two regions of the country on Wednesday, 22nd July 2015. The flight routes coordinates were obtained from flightaware.com. I compressed the flight routes happening within 24 hours into just 60 seconds, revealing patterns of how important air travel is in linking both regions. 20 years ago, perhaps a similar map like this may show significantly less flights. Air travel can cost a fortune in 1990s. A one-way airline ticket for a 1,600 km, 2.5 hour flight from Kota Kinabalu to Kuala Lumpur was RM600 one-way. That easily cost a month of salary for many back then.

Unlike the neighbouring archipelagic nations of Indonesia and the Philippines, sea travel between two regions of Malaysia is not a viable option. The distance covered is just too great and that requires traversing the waters of Indonesia. But, that is not to say that alternative option wasn't tried. Ferry services was promoted starting in 1986 as a cheaper alternative for the masses to travel between two regions. It was part of a national integration strategy that was (and still is) an increasingly important agenda for the federal government.

The sea travel service was popularly known as 'Feri Malaysia' using a Finnish made ferry vessel that can accommodate up to 650 passengers and 240 cars. The one-way service took 7 days if the journey began from Kota Kinabalu to Port Klang. The service lasted until 1997 owing to losses and unpopularity with the public due to long duration endured during journey. Four years later, AirAsia became the first low cost airline in the country and in Asia to offer cheaper air travel to the masses. The entrance of low cost airlines in connecting both regions in the country is proven to be more successful in enabling millions to travel between two regions than travel by ferry, where it is cheap enough for the masses to travel on air at almost the speed of sound.

Scenic Road Views in Sabah

I have to admit that I am quite thrilled to sample the Street View feature in Google Maps in my home state. Below are some of my most memorable views of Sabah as I would behind a vehicle's windscreen. There are many others, but the timing (the weather) wasn't good enough by the time these shots were taken by those 360-degree camera mounted cars.

The best weather, in my opinion to visit Sabah is from February to March as the weather is dry and sunny. Visitors are most likely to experience the views like some of these during that period. Though, any day of the year will do.