A few weeks ago I was transiting Chicago enroute to Europe for the Austrian GP and had a 5-hour layover that gave me the chance to watch a few birds come and go. With my flight being on LOT, I had no choice but to go to Terminal 5 to catch my flight which in turn gave me a great angle of the Southern East-West runways that most international arriving and departing flights use due to the proximity to the terminal.
For those of you inclined, the best vantage point tends to between Gates M13 and M15 due to their angle to the runway which gives you a wide perspective for arrivals and departures. I spent the bulk of the 5 hours there (with visits to the SWISS, Air France/KLM, and SAS lounges along the way). Yes AF/KLM because LOT contracts with KLM for their Business Class passengers. But take my word for it, you can skip the AF/KLM lounge. SWISS is much better primarily because of their food offerings (Oreos!).
Anyway, here are a few favorites from Terminal 5……
Bound for Delhi, Air India’s 777
A 787 wears the AA livery beautifully….
Another nice 787 moment….
Sporting the refreshed Austrian livery, their 777 arrives from Vienna
Next stop, Hong Kong
China Eastern 777 arriving from Shanghai
Korean 777 climbs towards Seoul
My ride to WAW
LH’s 747-8i has a way to sniff me out every time I’m in ORD……
Qatari arrival from Doha
Speedbird photobombed by Air India.
Though not a heavy, when’s the last time that you’ve seen a TWA livery?
Eurowings, Lufthansa’s Low-Cost-Carrier unit, today unveiled a sponsor relationship with Borussia Dortmund of Germany’s Bundesliga.
As part of the relationship, Eurowings will be the official carrier of ‘BVB’ and will transport the team to their matches aboard one of their A320 aircraft that will be painted to honor the team.
Here’s a peek of what the new livery will look like:
Courtesy: Eurowings
Here is the news conference on May 19 announcing the sponsorship details:
I finally had the time to sort through my photos from a trip a month ago to Germany, Austria and Slovakia. As part of the trip I had an 8-hour layover in O’Hare which was spent mostly in Terminal 5 which provided a great view of the arrivals and departures taking place on runways 28R and 28C. In my opinion, I believe that Terminal 5 offers the best vantage point for plane spotting at the airport. The only knock on it is the fact that most of the aircraft, most of the time, will be back lit thanks to the sun’s path and orientation of the runway. You’ll see that play out in the photos.
For this post, I focused on unique carriers that visit O’Hare. I figure most of you have seen American or United Airlines short and medium haul aircraft so I’ll spare you photos of their A320s, 737s and regional jets.
Russia’s AirBridgeCargo 747-8F VQ-BRH entered service for the carrier in September 2013.
American’s 3rd oldest 787, N802N, delivered in May 2015.
ANA’s 777-300, JA735A, entered service in June 2006.
Speedbird’s 744, G-CIVF, entered service in April 1995.
Cargolux’s 747-400F, LX-VCV, entered service in December 2005.
Cathay’s 777, B-KPW, was delivered in August 2011.
Etihad’s 777-300, A6-ETQ entered service in September 2013.
Eva Cargo’s 747-400F entered service in July 2012.
Not a heavy, but Frontier’s tails always makes for a nice photo. N229FR (Airbus A320) was delivered in April 2015.
Iberia’s A330, EC-MAA, was delivered in April 2014.
JAL’s 777, JA731J, was delivered in June 2004.
Korean’s 777-300, HL8006, was delivered in July 2015.
Lufthansa’s 747-8i, D-ABYI, entered service in June 2013. Seen here in her ‘Siegerflieger’ livery.
‘YI’ arriving at her gate in Terminal 5.
NCA’s 747-8F, JA12KZ, entered service in January 2013.
Qatar Cargo’s 777, A7-BFE, was delivered in June 2013.
TNT’s 777, OO-TSB, was delivered in April 2012.
United’s 747-400, N127UA, was delivered in August 1999.
