Send us a text Aired on April 25, 2021 Doug and Drew looked into our Avgeek cyrstal ball a year ago and forecast that we’d be at 75% of 2019 capacity by the summer of 2020. American Airlines announced that they would be at 80% this summer so we were close! Not so much on our forecast of travel bubbles which look to be overtaken by “Green” destinations. Topics covered: EVA Air repaints its Hello Kitty 777-300 back to normal Aer Lingus flew leased 757’s which were another casualty of COVID19 Would...
Apr 26, 2021•45 min•Ep. 74
Send us a text Doug is on his way home from DC where he met Drew at work for the first time. We talk about the visit as well as Doug flying Southwest and experiencing a “violent” go-around in Denver. We get way too AvGeeky on tail strikes and tail skids and we have some details on our trip to Alaska in May. Other topics on this episode: Is Southwest an LCC (low cost carrier)? The continued rise of domestic widebodies Australia and New Zealand created an aviation bubble American honors our vetera...
Apr 20, 2021•52 min•Ep. 73
Send us a text Aired on April 12, 2021 Will Norse Atlantic succeed where Norwegian didn’t with the same planes and leadership? Doug and Drew discuss low cost long haul and ideas to create a succeesful business model with a product attractive to business travelers. Doug is on a another business trip of his own on the episode but we take a moment to talk about how we would use expiring frequent flight miles for leisure travel. (cough) JFK-SIN on Singapore Airlines! Other topics discussed on the ep...
Apr 12, 2021•42 min•Ep. 72
Send us a text John, a flight instructor and long time listener tells us about surviviing during the pandemic. We discuss how cyclical the industry is and how we need to stay resilient and have an irregular ops plan. John talks about his path to becoming a flight instructor and gives some great advice to anyone interested in being a pilot. He also explains how he’s teaching Asian pilot cadets how to fly as well as speak English. Find John on Instagram at @jdebrey . Other topics discussed: New ai...
Apr 05, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 71
Send us a text Doug and Drew are circling back on our week with a look at Doug's work on his DC-10 simulator. How does it simulate acceleration, turbulence, and the G forces of flight? Spoiler alert - Drew learns you can't replicate rolling the DC-10 in the simulator. We also discuss the new routes airlines are launching and which ones we think are more than darts thrown at a board. Other topics discussed: Southwest resumes pre-pandemic boarding - is it too soon? Airlines lobby the Whi...
Mar 29, 2021•54 min•Ep. 70
Send us a text Yes! Amelia Rose Earhart is our VIP Guest who completed the round-the-world flight that her namesake inspired her to do. She tells us all about how she flew a Pilatus PC-12 on the eastward journey, stopping in Brazil, Africa, the Maldives, and Australia along with a high-drama stay in Papua New Guinea. Amelia also started Fly with Amelia , a foundation to help get more girls into aviation and she is an artist and soon-to-be author. In this episode we also cover: Air travel optimis...
Mar 22, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 69
Send us a text Surprise! Southwest goes with the 737 for an order for up to 300 planes. This time they choose the 737-7Max over the Airbus A220. Doug and Drew start the transition from Winter Ops talk to Summer and thunderstorms preparation. We take time to think about what we, including our listeners, have been through over the last year, and our ups and downs with COVID19 ravaging the aviation world. Other topics in this episode: Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr shuts down the A380 New York lifts t...
Mar 15, 2021•48 min•Ep. 68
Send us a text Doug and Drew found some domestic widebodies and tried out products on three different airlines in a whirlwind weekend of lie-flats, lounges, lobster mac-n-cheese, and Las Vegas. Sorry guys and gals, no Doug spreadsheets and no Drew deice procedures on this just pure avgeek fun! https://www.nexttripnetwork.com/ https://www.nexttripnetwork.com/...
Mar 12, 2021•59 min
Send us a text Things are starting to look up with rising TSA screening numbers, airplane orders, and more signs of people eager to fly again. Topics discussed: We kick off Women's History Month remembering Amelia Earhart Singapore Airlines will test IATA's Travel Pass mobile app verifying COVID19 tests If you can't beat em, use em to bring you passengers. Lufthansa joins with Deustche Bahn trains to connect customers with flights from Frankfurt Some states are lifting mask mandat...
Mar 09, 2021•48 min•Ep. 67
Send us a text Doug and Drew visit the TWA Hotel at JFK as part of a whirlwind avgeek coast to coast trip. COVID19 was definitely dampening the experience along with rain but we still enjoyed the mid-century modern architecture of Eero Saarinen. The rooftop pool was open and we had burgers and drinks with a Lockheed Connie as our backdrop. An avgeek mecca for sure. We also talk about: We close out Black History Month remembering aviatrix Bessie Colemean PW4000 Boeing 777 update and inaccurate me...
Mar 01, 2021•38 min•Ep. 66
Send us a text Doug and Drew have a packed show for you this week so get ready to enjoy your commute, workout, or avgeek Zen moment with us. Topics we discuss: - Who knew the C5 Galaxy and 747 competed head-to-head for military and airline orders? - Two aircraft had engine failures this week. Doug talks about how crews handle engine failures and Drew discusses how the station addresses overweight landings - We can’t get enough about the Boeing NMA and all the possibilities a small widebody would...
Feb 22, 2021•53 min•Ep. 65
Send us a text Drew flies on United's relaunch of the 737MAX and Doug dusts off his spreadsheets with an overview of airline financial performance for the last few quarters. We're continuing to see signs of an improving aviation industry but is it fast enough to save jobs? Join the conversation as we ponder the results and go over a few other topics: Flying a domestic 787 Drew now loves the Hello Kitty livery Sriwajaya 737 crash update and thrust imbalance recovery Cathay Pacific crew ...
Feb 15, 2021•57 min•Ep. 64
Send us a text Doug and Drew love airports and we have another airport employee and civilian turned avgeek, Jenn, or @Jenn_Niffer on Twitter. Jenn works in airport finance but loves the operations side and will come out and help, when they let her. Jenn runs a fun blog called Tales From theTerminal ( www.talesfromtheterminal.com ) where you can read about her airport adventures. Other topics covered: Its the law - TSA mandates masks in the airport and onboard aircraft JetBlue introduces an updat...
Feb 08, 2021•57 min•Ep. 63
Send us a text Doug and Drew start February - Black History Month - remembering the Tuskegee Airmen. Will the Washington Football Team pick an AvGeek nickname "The Red Tails" as Drew and Doug hope? We love widebodies, but force each other to discuss the business reasons for Singapore and Cathay Pacific using narrowbodies for the first time in decades. Other topics on this show: Boeing reports $12 billion loss and delays EIS 777X to at least 2023 (if ever) American and Southwest post re...
Feb 01, 2021•53 min•Ep. 62
Send us a text What is snarge? To find out you gotta listen to the whole episode with our special guest, airport operations supervisor, Francis (Twitter - @foxtrotcola). We discuss what the 3 of us, a pilot, airline ops manager, and airport ops supervisor do to respond to bird strikes and emergency landings. Other topics covered: Public vs. private airports, which works better? Update on the Sriwajaya 737-500 crash United Airlines 4th quarter results IATA Travel Pass may streamline COVID19 trave...
Jan 25, 2021•50 min•Ep. 61
Send us a text Doug and Drew live on location... in Camden, NJ! Despite the winter winds, it was actually a great recording location. In this episode: - Doug's unexpected work trip to the East Coast - Delta is the first airline to report 2020 annual numbers, have they turned a corner? - Norwegian pulls the plug on low-cost long-haul flying in a bid to save the company - Best NFL charters of the weekend - Simulator training for flight crews Honorable mention: we recorded a segment on Southwe...
Jan 19, 2021•32 min•Ep. 60
Send us a text VIP Guest Justin Yarbrough joins us to talk about his Runway Girl Network article about changes in airline emotional support and service animal acceptance. We discuss a poll one of listeners Ryan posted on Twitter about where to sit on a 777-200, and our own poll, asking you which of this month’s football charters you would fly on. (Spoiler alert, always bet on the 747). Topics discussed: Will any of the Big 4 (United, American, Delta, Southwest) merge in 2021 Sriwajaya flight 182...
Jan 11, 2021•49 min•Ep. 59
Send us a text Doug and Drew have their first episode of 2021 with a look at their last flights and a forward look at an airline traffic recovery. Drew gets to talk about his concern about eyebrow windows on older planes and Doug tells us all the ways he can navigate without using a sextant and the stars. Topics discussed: Drop in traffic in 2019 Domestic Asian routes are busiest Only 21 A380's currently in service Ryanair CEO talks about growth opportunities with airlines dropping service ...
Jan 04, 2021•38 min•Ep. 58
Send us a text Doug and Drew usher out 2020 by reminiscing about nostalgic AvGeek trips from decades past on planes no longer in service. https://www.nexttripnetwork.com/
Dec 31, 2020•49 min
Send us a text BoardingPass 57 is live with VIP Guest Isaac Alexander, Editor in Chief of aviation and space news outlet Jet City Star. We get Isaac's in depth analysis of Mitsubishi's MRJ90 Space Jet program and his overview of SeaTac airport. Isaac makes some bold 2021 predictions with us which we'll revisit 12 months from now. Other topics on this episode: - Alaska 737 MAX order - a much needed shot in the arm for Boeing - Canada imposes fines for anti-maskers - Congress approv...
Dec 28, 2020•46 min•Ep. 57
Send us a text Merry Christmas and happy holidays from us to you! Enjoy this bonus AvGeek episode. We'll be back with our normal format on Monday. https://www.nexttripnetwork.com/
Dec 23, 2020•27 min
Send us a text Doug and Drew are back for another On Time Departure of the The Next Trip. This week was rough with passenger loads rising before the Christmas holiday. Add in East Coast snow storm Gail and we have an airline irregular operation on top of the holiday rush. Just perfect! We also discuss: - the Great Conjunction - aircraft safety issues as they come out of storage - will business traffic come back? - improved airline satisfaction during pandemic - JAL offering customers the ability...
Dec 21, 2020•49 min•Ep. 56
Send us a text VIP Guest Tom Pallini, transportation writer for the Business Insider, joins us for a fun and information filled episode! Tom tells us how he got into aviation and shares his avgeek pilgrimage to Maho Beach in St. Maarten for airplane spotting. Doug and Drew then go through a litany of topics including a few of Tom's recent articles.: The things flight attendants say Remembering Chuck Yeager Pfizer vaccine deliveries start Hawaiian adding flights to the mainland in 2021 Jetbl...
Dec 14, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 55
Send us a text Drew flies Delta (specifically the MD-95)! Thanksgiving TSA numbers Airline cash burn climbing again Southwest announces possible furloughs 737 MAX topics Ryanair places new order GOL to operate first MAX flights in the world Will Delta order the MAX What should the plane be called? U.K. approves first use of COVID vaccine AA getting rid of high-premium A321T? Ops topic: takeoff power https://www.nexttripnetwork.com/...
Dec 07, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 54
Send us a text Doug and Drew talk about record TSA checkpoint traffic during the Thanksgiving travel week despite health warnings. They discuss other positive news stories including Delta avoiding pilot layoffs, IATA working on a “Health Passport” to open up international travel, and United starting charter flights to transport vaccines. Hear our thoughts on our recent domestic widebody flights and your responses on whether you would take the vaccine as soon as it’s available. Don’t miss Doug’s ...
Nov 30, 2020•44 min•Ep. 53
Send us a text Are we turning the corner? The virus is still raging around the world but two vaccines are about to be approved and we may be on our way back to the “old normal”. Doug and Drew discuss several positive stories this week: TSA numbers are gradually rising The 737 MAX recertification QANTAS turns 100 Korean plans to buy Asiana We end with some day job deicing stories with Doug laughing at Drew’s deice coordinator names. Spoiler alert, take IceMan before all that’s left is Snowflake. ...
Nov 23, 2020•50 min•Ep. 52
Send us a text Doug and Drew are joined by Paul who just retired after flying everything from the Piper Warrior to the Boeing 777. We discuss our thoughts on the vaccine announcement and how it will affect aviation and our choice for the most iconic airplane/airline combination. Paul then regales us with stories from his aviation career including: - Bringing a Bonanza back to life - What does a 2nd officer do - Airbus or Boeing, which did he prefer - Crew rest on a transatlantic flight - What do...
Nov 16, 2020•51 min•Ep. 51
Send us a text Doug and Drew are excited to be doing our 50th episode almost a year after we started. We always say this is your show and for our 50th we invited 3 of our listeners to join us in some avgeek fun. In this episode we: Choose our favorite widebody Debate our favorite liveries Share our favorite aviation experiences Join the conversation! Send us comments at: https://www.nexttripnetwork.com/ https://www.nexttripnetwork.com/...
Nov 09, 2020•49 min•Ep. 50
Send us a text Doug regales us with his story about his trip on Delta’s final revenue 777 flight from JFK to LAX on Saturday. We talk about American Airlines putting the 737Max on the schedule this year and their plans to make passengers feel comfortable about flying on it. Find out what our listeners thought about the chances of it flying this year Can the aviation industry be carbon neutral by 2050? The EU thinks so. Hear our thoughts Doug and Drew’s Halloween costumes were the Incredibles and...
Nov 02, 2020•47 min•Ep. 49
Send us a text We're joined by a return VIP guest, fringe avgeek, and frequent flier, Dale. He just happens to be Doug's dad too! We go over several topics on this high energy episode: Updates on US Airline losses and daily cash burn Dragonair out. Flybe back in? AA puts 737Max back on the schedule for December Boeing looking at new 757-size aircraft Dale asks about how airlines get international overflight approval https://www.nexttripnetwork.com/...
Oct 26, 2020•55 min•Ep. 48
