Quote:
Originally Posted by ghYHZ
KLM had scheduled 747 service between AMS and YHZ beginning in the late 1980’s. (It was actually a AMS-YHZ-YOW routing.) Scheduled service lasted until the mid ‘90s but in the final couple of years flights were operated by Martinair 767s on behalf of KLM.
CP Air also operated scheduled 747s between Halifax and Amsterdam.
And I’ve been on an Air Canada 747 from Gander to Halifax.
We were scheduled to fly out of YYT (Torbay) on a Sunday evening after a hockey tournament in March 1984. But the fog rolled in and after two days, with the back-log of passengers it was decided to bus us to Gander to a waiting 747. And I remember that bus trip well.....not on a CN Roadcruiser.....but on a St. John’s city transit bus! Climbing those long grades in 1st gear......I never thought we would get there!
Also have photos of BA, TWA & NWA 747s at YHZ too.
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I forgot that KLM had the 747 but that's right. I remember taking the LHR flight with AC and we ended up on an L1011 that stoped in YYT (that was the normal routing). They put such a big plane on what was an empty flight because we had to go up and around the north pole due to a storm - so we needed a long range plane since it was going to add at least 4 hours to what was normally a 5 hour flight from YYT. I used an entire middle section to sleep - I don't remember much about it.
I think because Cargo 747's typically carry a heavier load than a typical 747 - in the case of a MKA fenwick is probably right - a longer runway would've been helpful. But no one can really say for sure that if there runway had been longer they could've gotten off the ground. They could easily have still crashed.
I remember being at the airport during operation yellow ribbon (On 9/11) but I don't recall seeing 747's. I thought there was though - I know there were a lot of 767's, 777's and A330/340's.