I fly the inter gulf routes a lot,mainly OBBI-OTBD which is around 20mins (80nm) I can tell you these aircraft are packed with people going shopping for the day in Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi & also a lot of business travelers. can also tell you the flights are very cheap.

 

Could say a lot about how some of these gulf carriers work and it's no secret that they work the flight crew to the limit, but when it comes to price,fleet and amount of flights they can't be beat. Most of the Gulf Carriers 777 & A330/340's used on shorthaul routes are configured for max capacity, Luxury pods etc are for the aircraft used on the ultra longhaul routes

 

 

Thanks for that insight. I was kind of kidding, but not entirely. As you no doubt know, the economics of that region are somewhat unique, and I could see that applying to air transport as well.

Can't wait for some Middle Eastern Turnarounds :-)

Had a look online the other day since I wanted to travel from Heathrow to Scotland for the day, looked at BA's website, me and my girlfriend just laughed and then closed the browser.

 

Perhaps you want to look at the unfair tax, navigation fee's, landing charges, navigation charges and passenger duties levied in the UK against all airlines before laughing too much. Oh add to that the huge subsidys the UK Government doles out to train operators for their 'green' input whilst the operators continue to fleece the fare paying public for tickets.

 

Level playing field with the Gulf states? I think not.

 

UK Domestic aviation is a dying breed sadly whilst the Gulf states fly large numbers in and out of, potentially, 'restrictive' regeimes into more moderate ones daily due to the inability of either travelling by rail or car. Different markets I'm afraid.

Perhaps you want to look at the unfair tax, navigation fee's, landing charges, navigation charges and passenger duties levied in the UK against all airlines before laughing too much. Oh add to that the huge subsidys the UK Government doles out to train operators for their 'green' input whilst the operators continue to fleece the fare paying public for tickets.

 

Level playing field with the Gulf states? I think not.

 

UK Domestic aviation is a dying breed sadly whilst the Gulf states fly large numbers in and out of, potentially, 'restrictive' regeimes into more moderate ones daily due to the inability of either travelling by rail or car. Different markets I'm afraid.

 

 

Dude relax! I agree with most of what you said 100% I own property in London, was born here and have paid UK taxes and put up with the govt like everyone else. Believe me you either laugh or cry when it comes to certain things here, fortunately we just laugh now, £10 for a day travel card I packed my bags long ago for a better lifestyle and visit the UK to see friends.

 

not sure about the last bit of your post regarding regeime's cars and trains?

 

Anyway, back on topic, interesting thread.

not sure about the last bit of your post regarding regeime's cars and trains?

 

Try driving from Doha to Bahrain! Alot longer than a 25 minute flight! Not much in the way of comfy rail travel either!

As to 'restrictive' regeimes the amount of times I've been asked on the flight deck 'are we out of Saudi airspace yet' is quite amazing, then, pop, the bars are open!

 

Never got above 'chilled' ^_^

 

Personally I like to visit the Gulf and will be down there next month. It's just a different place, certainly somewhere I wouldn't choose to live but,hey, horses for courses.

Saudi is umm.. just Saudi, will say no more!

 

Well your more then welcome to come hang out with me and my friends in Bahrain, I guarantee it will change your view, each gulf state is very different as I'm sure you know. don't believe everything you read in the news

Boeing 777-200 / 200ER.

Long - Short - Short - Long.

 

Paris CDG - Douala, Cameroon (@6.5 Hours)

Douala, Cameroon - Malabo, Equatorial Guinea (@1 Hour)

Then In Reverse.

 

Or the Older Route, Douala, Cameroon - Yaounde, Cameroon (@1 Hour, then back again).

 

Especially good if you like wet, hot, and stormy weather in rainy season (coming to an end now)

Air New Zealand fly Auckland - Sydney - Auckland with 772's on some flights.

 

About 2.5 hours each way, give or take a bit for the winds.

 

That's pretty comfortable for simming.

I just browsed through the route database of my VA, which is fed with the real world routes of 711 airlines at the moment.

 

In the database there are over 700 B772 routes under 3 hours, though some are duplicates (either multiple airlines flying the same route, or one airline flying the same route with different flight numbers)

Some highlights that haven't been mentioned yet:

 

VABB-VIPD; Air India; 2:15

FGSL-FKKD; Air France; 0:40

EGKK-EGLL; BA; 0:45

EGLL-EGCC; Biman Bangladesh; 1:00

LIRF-LIMC; Biman Bangladesh; 1:15

VHHH-RPLL; Cathay; 2:00

WSSS-WIII; Singapore; 1:35

KORD-KDEN; United; 2:31

 

There's also another 200 odd for the B773, including:

 

LIMC-LFPG; PIA; 1:20

KATL-KIAH; Qatar; 1:15

 

and many many others.

That's pretty interesting. The BA EGKK - EGLL route is for repositioning so flown empty.

That's pretty interesting. The BA EGKK - EGLL route is for repositioning so flown empty.

 

Makes sense. Still as long as it's in the VA database I get to fly it. (Obviously I could still fly it otherwise, but I wouldn't get credit with the VA).

 

Does BA also maintain their T7s in Cardiff, like they do the 747s? Because then you also hop over to Cardiff for a nice 30-45 minute flight.

Does BA also maintain their T7s in Cardiff, like they do the 747s? Because then you also hop over to Cardiff for a nice 30-45 minute flight.

 

Indeed! :-)

The routes involving China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan are also quite popular with larger aircraft.

 

The VHHH–RCTP routes are served by A330s, A340s, B747s, and B777s. I have had the pleasure of riding and filming trips involving the latter two aircraft, trips which last a little more than one hour.

 

Also, you have VHHH–ZSPD, ZSPD–RCTP, and ZBAA–ZSPD.

 

Of course, Japan and the Middle East are generally "more extreme" when it comes to these high-density, short-haul flights.

The routes involving China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan are also quite popular with larger aircraft.

 

The VHHH–RCTP routes are served by A330s, A340s, B747s, and B777s. I have had the pleasure of riding and filming trips involving the latter two aircraft, trips which last a little more than one hour.

 

Also, you have VHHH–ZSPD, ZSPD–RCTP, and ZBAA–ZSPD.

 

Of course, Japan and the Middle East are generally "more extreme" when it comes to these high-density, short-haul flights.

 

Yeah pretty much any big city pair in Japan can be realistically* flown in a T7 (Jal or ANA) and the same goes for Saudi and the Gulf States (Saudia, Emirates, Qatar, Etihad).

 

*In the sense that there is an airline using a T7 on that route in the real world.

Can't wait for some Middle Eastern Turnarounds :-)

 

Sadly no scenery... Default FSX is a no go for me.. I'll pretend to fly "realistic" Emirates short haul in Europe instead hehehe