Random Stuff!

[Jon Dempsey]

Would that have been pre 1975?

Probably stopped going around '75/'76. I remember the last time I saw it at Birmingham, it was in NorthEast livery on a diverson.

 

[Jon Dempsey]

Would that have been pre 1975?

Probably stopped going around '75/'76. I remember the last time I saw it at Birmingham, it was in NorthEast livery on a diversion.

 

[wolfheze]

Sounds like you stopped as I started going. Would have been nice to see a northeast trident, that was the yellow scheme?

 

[Jon Dempsey]

Sounds like you stopped as I started going. Would have been nice to see a northeast trident, that was the yellow scheme?

That's the one.

 

[wolfheze]

Bit of old film of a trident eventually getting airborne. And this is a trident 3 with the fourth booster engine to improve take off performance! Pity there is no sound.

 

[Jon Dempsey]

There's a hell of a time between rotation and being airborne.

 

[IanFarquharson]

Our newest aircraft arrives in the ACMI sub-charter market


A second surge fleet aircraft from the Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft programme is set to impress following its entry into service within the commercial ACMI market.


Following AirTanker’s debut ACMI lease with Thomas Cook Airlines in 2015, this journey now sees the company offering further A330 capacity in the ACMI (Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance and Insurance) sub-charter market. Using an additional aircraft from its surge fleet, AirTanker have increased their commercial footprint and are looking forward to the future.





Director of Aircraft Leasing, Tony Carder, said:

“The ACMI sub-charter operation is a brand new and exciting step for us and one that we are delighted to have reached and now be delivering. With the Aircraft (G-VYGM) now operational and based at Birmingham International Airport (BHX), this next step demonstrates the adaptability of our capabilities. We will establish further lease opportunities and continue to develop our product in the ACMI market.”





The FSTA contract was awarded to AirTanker in 2008 by the Ministry of Defence and provides 14 aircraft in total; a core fleet of nine Voyager A330 aircraft with optional surge capability rights on a further five A330’s. Leasing Operating aircraft from the surge fleet in the civil market provides greater efficiency and flexibility for the MOD whilst embedding commercial market best practices into the organisation.




The final aircraft of the FSTA programme was delivered on time to AirTanker in July this year, completing the fleet of 14 aircraft. With the development of further leasing opportunities, these aircraft are set to soar in the commercial market as they have throughout the programme so far.




The programme remains on track to achieve full service delivery in autumn of this year and the programme continues to provide support to both the RAF and civilian operations.

 

[Kevin Farnell]

There's a hell of a time between rotation and being airborne.

They weren't called the 'Ground Gripper' for nothing!

Kevin

 

[Kevin Farnell]

I'd just like to mention and thank the Great British Olympic team for their phenomenal success at the Rio 2016 Olympic games.
They really have put the 'GREAT' back into Great Britain.
Well done, not only to all who competed, but also those behind the scenes for their support!
I've just seen mentioned on the news, that they will be returning on flight BA 2016 - a BA 747-400 (LHR, I assume) with a specially painted gold nose!

(Photo credit - BBC)

Kevin

 

[Ray Finkle]

Went for a drink and a bite to eat at the Black Boy Public House in Knowle this evening.

We spent a few hours sat in the beer garden watching a constant stream of departures, it really was great to see BHX so busy. Even my wife, who has no interest in aviation whatsoever, commented on how many aircraft were taking off. There were also quite a few incoming being routed directly overhead which added to the interest.

It's been a while since I've sat in that beer garden but when RWY15 is in use it's a cracking spot to sit and watch them with a cold beer

 

[Jon Dempsey]

It's been a while since I've sat in that beer garden but when RWY15 is in use it's a cracking spot to sit and watch them with a cold beer

Made a change from watching them with a camera I suppose!!













I'll get my coat !!

 

[snagsanger]

Nikon cameras, I have three Nikon's film cameras that sit redundant in my camera bag.

Cannot get the film, and even if, cannot find processing services.

I have FE, FM, and F3 bodies in working order and lenses that connect well.

I love film as opposed to digital. Film photography requires work whilst digital is so autonomous that the result is sterile.

Hi Jenny,

Maybe I misunderstood your post, but 35mm film is still widely available, as are film processing services.

I still shoot regular on 35mm Fuji Superior, and medium format with Ilford 120 Pan.

For processing I use AG Lab in Birmingham. Excellent quality prints and drum scans, great customer service.
http://www.ag-photolab.co.uk/

You are so right about the subtle nuances between analog and digital. Digital offers instant gratification for the impatient, while film is all patience and acquired knowledge.

Best wishes.

 

[Ray Finkle]

Made a change from watching them with a camera I suppose!!

Maybe I had it with me?

 

[Kevin Farnell]

You are so right about the subtle nuances between analog and digital. Digital offers instant gratification for the impatient, while film is all patience and acquired knowledge.

My first SLR, was a Russian built Zenit E. I think it was made of cast iron, as it weighed a ton. Everything on it was manual (and I mean everything). Even after setting the aperture with the ring on the lens, the diaphragm would not operate with the shutter button. Instead, another ring on the lens barrel had to be turned to do this.
Also, the light meter was read from a needle through a window on top of the camera body. Having set the ISO (ASA as it was then), a further ring was turned to align a circle over the light meter needle. From this, one could read off a selection of suitable shutter speed/aperture combinations. These then had to be set up manually.

It didn't make for rapid operation of the camera, but it did teach a full understanding of the relationship between ISO/aperture and shutter speed.
I still have the camera, but unfortunately the flash bracket has broken off. I also had (and still have) a Fujica STX-1 and a Nikon F80.
I now use an ageing Nikon D200 and other than for nostalgia, I would not go back to film. Digital is so much cheaper and easier to process without having to go to the expense of a processing room and all of the chemicals.
I shoot RAW files as this gives much better control over the final image but is not 'instant' as JPEG's are. It can take me several hours to work through a batch of photos before them being ready to view or post.

Anyway, each to their own.

Regards

Kevin

 

[Seasider]

Fond memories there Kevin, my first SLR was a Zenit E in 1974. In fact there is a photo in the LBA Nostalgia Gallery that I took with the Zenit.

 

[Kevin Farnell]

Fond memories there Kevin, my first SLR was a Zenit E in 1974.

Oh, definitely! it was a beast of a camera. Best to have had a few sessions in the gym, prior to trying to use it. But somehow, you knew it was never going to break.
Mine was the all black version and amazingly, the lens was F2. In 1974, I would have been 10, so I probably got mine a couple of years later. I certainly had it aged 16, as I took it to school for the final day of term.
As I said, it was completely manual and that is the only way to fully understand the principles of any technology.

In fact there is a photo in the LBA Nostalgia Gallery that I took with the Zenit.

Can you post a link? I found several of your photos in the LBA Nostalgia Gallery, but was unsure which photo was taken with the Zenit.

Regards

Kevin

 

[snagsanger]

Digital certainly wins for convenience and compatibility with the current generation.

Give one of them your Zenit and ask them to take your photo and you would be greeted by the blankest of looks.

Mention "rule of thirds" or "the golden ratio" and the look would get blanker.

The digital revolution has astounded and thrilled me, I am excited to see what further advances are made in my lifetime.

But please, PLEASE let it be more than the cellphone "selfie"

 

[JENNYJET]

SNAGSANGER, I owe you a big THANK YOU. Had thought retail 35mm Film Processing had died since the demise of Max Speilman and the Boots in-store service, but your link to AG Lab of Aston has given me hope for my elderly Nikons.

I recall my Zenith TTL, all black with F2 prime lense. Built for military service or so I had thought as I once dropped it from a second floor hotel balcony in Sri Lanka and it worked perfectly after retrieval, the glass in the lense undamaged.

It has gone to camera heaven now since I graduated to professional equipment just before my first Stroke.

I also noticed a Film developing shop on the Dudley Road, near Wilson Green yesterday as I was being driven home from my PIP/DWP interrogation.

On another matter, I was stunned as to how the wonderful buildings of Victoria Square were in the sunshine amongst the remains of the modern library.
I also had my first real glimpse of the new library and thought it was horrific!! A municipal incinerator next to Hall of Memory?

 

[Brum X]

New 20,000sqft Apple store to open next month replacing the current 5000sqft store located in the Bullring. The great thing about this move is that a massive retail name is moving people out of the Bullring shopping centre and bringing people back to the streets. New street hopefully will start to thrive again.

 

[Ray Finkle]

Such a fabulous building, I hope that the internal alterations are as sympathetic as the outside works.

The Spectator have an interesting article about Birmingham, primarily focused on the new Chief Conductor of the CBSO but well worth a read.

There were one or two lines that stood out to me

and that you’ll never see the words ‘Birmingham premiere’ on a Symphony Hall programme. Birmingham doesn’t really do self-promotion, and when it does it tends to be about the wrong things.


Birmingham’s energy comes from a very un-English willingness to live in the moment: and then to push on to the next big thing. New is good. Tastefully repurposed heritage building, or shiny new shopping centre? No contest. Birmingham has always been about commerce, progress, change: the values embodied by 18th-century innovators like Matthew Boulton and James Watt, whose statues, coated in dazzling gold bling, stand across Broad Street from Symphony Hall. It doesn’t yell about how tolerant, lively and diverse it is: it just gets on and does it. Birmingham has had three Muslim mayors.


Birmingham can be maddening – but culturally it has a lot to teach London