OLD but GOLD!! Pratt & Whitney engine spool up! Corsair International operates the last three Boeing 747s in France, as Air France retired its own Jumbo Jets in 2016. The aircraft that operated my flight (reg: F-HSEA, previously owned by United, N188UA), which was a 25-year old baby at the time, just returned from China where it underwent a Check D in order to extend its lifetime beyond 2020. Corsair International does not seem to have plans to replace the three 747, and it's very good news for us, avgeeks!!

Flying in a Boeing 747 and hearing its melodious engines (Pratt & Whitney PW4000 here) is always an inestimable pleasure, even more now that these birds are getting rare. French West Indies airports are lucky to see the 747 still operated, as Corsair primarily sends them to Point-à-Pitre and Fort-de-France, along with Saint-Denis (Reunion Island) and Maurice.

It's not difficult to see (or hear) the age of this aircraft. For example, the material around the windows is getting a yellow tint, just like the ceiling. Or the absence of mood-lighting. In this video, you will hear some weird noises as well when the aircraft is turning, surely caused by friction somewhere in the nose wheel steering mechanism. The age of the aircraft might also be the reason behind the late departure. In addition to late passengers, we also faced technical issues in the ECS (a failed component in the cabin temperature regulation system).

Despite the delayed departure (2h40 delay, not the airline's fault tbh), I've had a good flight, mostly due to a nice and friendly crew. The drawback is that I missed my following flight to Fort-de-France, Martinique, and that I've been transferred on a later flight, which had itself a 1h30 delay. I was not very lucky this day. Good point is that the delay was enough for a sunset approach is PTP, as you'll see in the next video.

Enjoy!

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MORE DETAILS:
Airline: Corsair International
Aircraft: Boeing 747-422 (ex-United Airlines)
Registration: F-HSEA (ex N188UA)
Flight No: SS926
Origin: Paris Orly - ORY
Destination: Pointe-à-Pitre - Pole Caraibes - PTP
Time of departure: 2:00 pm (2h40 late)
Time of arrival to the gate: 3:00 pm local time (2h05 late)
Flight duration: 8h05
Seat: 25A - Economy

Camera: GoPro Hero 5 + Suction Cup, Nikon D3100 + 18-55mm lens

Thanks for watching!
© FERNOUSDU972, 2018

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