June 19, 201511 yr A couple times recently I've seen an unmarked 747 taking off from CVG. Anyone know what it is?
June 19, 201511 yr Does he have that kind of coin? Aren't the Redlegs still paying him? Plantmanky is probably right, test plane.
June 19, 201511 yr Could be a recently purchased plane (e.g. for DHL) from another airline that is undergoing a paint job. They do it in stages. First, paint it all white. Then, paint it in the colors of the new airline.
June 19, 201511 yr CVG has 747's daily for cargo through the DHL hub. Polar Air Cargo and Kalitta Air come to mind. They may have used a "wet" lease for an extra flight or did a charter due to demand. I can 100% guarantee it wasn't a passenger flight. Did it look like a "short" 747? The Crown Prince of the United Arab Emirates has his own 747SP (no longer made), a shorter version of the 747. Perhaps he was in KY looking for horses. The plane would have to be light and probably 1/3 or less fueled to be able to take off from LEX. Side bar: you know how you always see in the news a plane had to make an emergency landing, but they had to circle and dump fuel first? That's not done to reduce the risk of fire/explosion, it's to reduce the weight - planes, especially on long flights, take off too heavy to land, assuming they will burn off the fuel (and weight) during the flight.
June 19, 201511 yr CVG has 747's daily for cargo through the DHL hub. Polar Air Cargo and Kalitta Air come to mind. They may have used a "wet" lease for an extra flight or did a charter due to demand. I can 100% guarantee it wasn't a passenger flight. Did it look like a "short" 747? The Crown Prince of the United Arab Emirates has his own 747SP (no longer made), a shorter version of the 747. Perhaps he was in KY looking for horses. The plane would have to be light and probably 1/3 or less fueled to be able to take off from LEX. Side bar: you know how you always see in the news a plane had to make an emergency landing, but they had to circle and dump fuel first? That's not done to reduce the risk of fire/explosion, it's to reduce the weight - planes, especially on long flights, take off too heavy to land, assuming they will burn off the fuel (and weight) during the flight. This is all spot on, good post @dallaslaredo.
June 20, 201511 yr I never knew that about dumping fuel. I've never been a big fan of commercial flying. Too many people, too much crap to deal with, and you don't get an enjoyable travel experience. No thanks, I'll drive.
June 21, 201511 yr Author I've seen the Polar 747 and even a dual marked 747 with DHL and Polar both I believe. The one I've seen (maybe 3 times in a month) appears to be solid white, with the bottom maybe having a slight grey tint to it. Looks like a standard size 747-400.
June 22, 201511 yr Here's a pretty good article on fuel dumping. Trust me it is something that airlines don't want to do unless they have to. My brother in law is a flight dispatcher. Basically he does flight plans, calculates weight, fuel, weather. He says the only time they dump is if there is an emergency shortly after takeoff. Do airplanes routinely dump their fuel before landing? - HowStuffWorks Also, I'm pretty sure only wide body planes like 747s and 777s have fuel jettison capability.
June 22, 201511 yr I never knew that about dumping fuel. I've never been a big fan of commercial flying. Too many people, too much crap to deal with, and you don't get an enjoyable travel experience. No thanks, I'll drive. I can leave my Ky house and be at my St Pete house in 3 hours and 45 minutes by flying. If I drive, it takes 14 hours. To each their own but, IMO there's a whole lot more to put up with on a 14 hour drive then there is on an hour and 45 minute flight.
June 22, 201511 yr I can leave my Ky house and be at my St Pete house in 3 hours and 45 minutes by flying. If I drive, it takes 14 hours. To each their own but, IMO there's a whole lot more to put up with on a 14 hour drive then there is on an hour and 45 minute flight. I can stay in my own bubble and world when I drive. I get to visit towns that I normally wouldn't, and see places I would never have though about driving through. I don't really have to deal with anybody outside of my car, and I can control what goes on in my car. No screaming babies, no air sickness (which has been a problem with me before), no random people around me being gross, no kids kicking the back of your seat when you are desperately trying to sleep off that hangover. Not all of those are universal, I'm assuming. I don't have a fear of flying, I just feel like it can cheapen the travel experience. And I understand that it is so much quicker, especially if someone lives close to an airport. If it's a business trip, I'll take flying. But if I can drive to my vacation destination, I'm doing that and enjoying the scenery.
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