I've enjoyed layovers from Kalamazoo, Rochester and Nashville to Paris, London and Beijing and they all have something to offer. Well, maybe not Las Vegas. You just need to get out and explore.

With my good friend and former ANE pilot Wes Lundquist on Waikiki. Wes is a 747-400 captain. 1/8/07

I spent much time in Hawaii on the B-757. Here, on Waikiki with Diamond Head in the background, with my FO Chad Ringwald. Yes, he's Molly's cousin. 6/2/05

Kansas City at the Airliner Museum with author Walter Gunn and FO Eric Spicer. Eric's an A-320 captain now.

On Ford Island in Pearl Harbor. You may recognize this tower from the movie Pearl Harbor. It's not an aircraft tower but rather associated with deep sea diving and pressure. The Pacific Aviation Museum is located just to the right of this building. 4/10/07

On the Santa Monica Pier during an LAX layover. 1/30/06

A guided tour on a double-decker through London.

In the Christmas spirit during a B-727 layover in MKE. FO Dave Larson. 12/10/06

I got up early, rented a Jeep and drove to Charles Lindbergh's gravesite during a Maui layover. Very moving. I drove the coast rode, found out later rental car companies don't allow this. 3/1/06

Spent a lot of time on Waikiki during my B-757 days.

An AIRWAYS Magazine reunion. Lunch in Honolulu with John and Seija Wegg and Clayton Taylor.

Yup, more time on Waikiki.

If you're airline crew and have spent anytime in HNL you know these two photos well.

Moon rising over Dukes. Or over Waikiki and Diamond Head if you're unfamiliar with Dukes.

Touring the USS Midway at San Diago.
We'd taken in a Padres game the night before.

I'd gone to a Padre's game the night before but forgot my camera. I didn't forget it here though. 6/21/06 (3)

Welcome aboard the USS Midway in SAN. This is America's longest serving carrier, from 1945 until 1992.

More than 200,000 sailors served aboard her. To visit their site, click on the picture.

Visiting Arnhem Germany,
a short train ride from Amsterdam.

Took the train w/ Dave and Scott from Amsterdam to Arnhem. This is where "A Bridge Too Far" is.

With Scott in the Amsterdam Central Station.

Dave reading on the train to Arnhem.

We spent several hours touring Arnhem, beautiful place.

And finally dinner. Wienerschnitzel and Pomme frites. Regardless of the layover, dinnertime is my favorite time.

Exploring Amsterdam, ​BOS-AMS 8/11/07

Jim shows us how to fly from BOS to AMS.

Arriving at Schiphol (AMS)

Downtime in Amsterdam

There's nothing like a good crew!

The canals

Note the sign above us!

My FO, Linda and me on a canal tour, New Years Day

Still on the boat

It's New Years Day, very cold, but this Pub helped

Dinner later on

Join Paul, Bob and me on a Gatwick layover.

Crew planning in DTW (LGW)

Many hours later at LGW

Thru security heading for Crawley.

Gatwick layover, Crawley, England with Paul and Bob. Great food, people and atmosphere at the Jubilee Oak.

St Nicholas, Worth Parish

Enjoyed a chat with the local "Bobbies" at Harveys of Lewes. The church to the left, St Nicholas, Worth Parish is England's 4th oldest at 1,000 years.

Out and about in Beijing

Visiting the Forbidden City, Beijing. TAI HE DIAN, Hall of Supreme Harmony.

Still in the Forbidden City

The Pearl Market, Beijing. Lots of stuff cheap!

Info for the curious.

Dinner with a YUL based Air Canada crew at "The Brown Door," across the street from the Pearl Market in Beijing.

Tiananmen Square, Chairman Mao.

GREETINGS FROM......

You can probably guess where this is!

Amsterdam

Dusseldorf

London

Cologne

New York City

Frankfurt (Mainz)

Nagoya, Japan

Paris

San Francisco

China (Great Wall)

Bangkok

Philadelphia

Saigon

Taipei

Anchorage... at midnight!

San Diego

Las Vegas (My least favorite layover.)

Well, ya see, the line at Customs was long... so Ed said...

Fenway Park, Boston. Built in 1912 the same year the Titanic sank.

The Airliner Museum, Kansas City.

Gettysburg, PA, That's Tom Helwick.

The sign by an old motel near MSP.

The Rum Boogie Cafe, Beal Street, Memphis

The Ford Museum, Dearborn, MI

BB Kings on Beal Street, Memphis.

Air & Space Museum, Washington DC

Madison, Wisc. drove to the EAA.

Manila

Saipan

A Dusseldorf layover with a train trip to nearby Cologne, Germany.

DTW to DUS, 757-200 ETOPS. Doug will takeoff and I'll land at DUS.

8 hours later, landing 23L at DUS

Crew assembled at train station. We've made some new friends.

On the train to Cologne, about 45 minutes. I won't mention how long it took us to figure out how to purchase tickets from the dispensing machine!

Cologne Cathedral, Germany's most visited landmark, built from 1248 to 1880 (they weren't in any rush) attracts 20,000 people per day. At 515 feet it's northern Europe's second largest church.

The cathedral survived heavy bombing during WWII.

And back in Dusseldorf at one of my favorite outdoor restaurants. This layover was very high on my bid list. Located on the Rhine River, this northern, Roman military outpost is an ancient "walled" city.

Cologne train station or "bahnof." No matter where I am in Europe I seek out the main train station. The architecture is fascinating, restaurants good and there's always an ATM.

The public square in front of the Cologne Cathedral. Cologne is situated on the Rhine River and there is much to see and learn here. We barely scratched the surface on this day trip.

A beautiful warm autumn day. In fact we're only a couple of weeks early for Octoberfest. That's mine in Doug's left hand!

I could spend the day simply looking at the intricacies of this building. The interior is even more compelling with catacombs, crypts and stained glass.

Dusseldorf was one of my favorite layovers. We stayed just outside of Dusseldorf in Neuss, a beautiful Roman walled city that dated to 16BC, located on the west bank of the Rhine River.

I'd made the takeoff from DTW and Gary lines us up for our landing here in DUS.

The crew de-boards onto the ramp to wait for our ride to the hotel. Does anyone know why the bottom of the word DUSSELDORF is chopped off? It appears this way on all signs I could never discover the reason.

This was one of the few airports that used a "follow me" vehicle to guide us towards our gate. I'm pretty sure we could have found it on our own.

And here we are, looking pretty chipper after an eight hour flight from DTW. Air Berlin dominates DUS.

Our hotel treated us wonderfully with orange juice and coffee upon arrival. They also featured a superb restaurant and beer garden where they offered us a very generous discount.

A ten minute stroll downtown through a beautiful public garden, ended at this bakery where I would always start my day.

Wes and me at the bakery with a young Sophia Loren look alike.

Just a couple examples of their wonderful pastries. Directly across the platz is a gelato stand that I can't walk past either. I don't know why I don't weigh 300 pounds.

London Layover: Part 1, arriving at Heathrow (LHR/EGLL)

We've left DTW and are now oceanic. This is our North Atlantic Oceanic plotting chart. Feet wet at SCROD and feet dry at BILTO. Our two 180 minute ETOPS points are Goose Bay, Labrador and Keflavik, Iceland.

The sun rises over the horizon at fifteen degrees west longitude. Looks like we killed a few high altitude bugs last night

It's a lousy morning at LHR/EGLL so London Control clears us to OGK to hold as depicted.

Over OGK and we've started our right turn for a teardrop entry. Our EFC (expect further clearance) time is only 25 minutes so fuel won't be a problem.

Out the FO's window we spotted this American B-777 in the hold with us. Let's see, how do I configure the computer to exit the hold??

Out of the hold, (we figured it out) we've flown the arrival procedure and are on short final to 9L.

Parked at gate 414, we grab our gear and head off to downtown London for a long layover. I have a city tour planned for tomorrow morning.

But before we go, one last look out the FO's window as we see this British Airways 747-400 climb out off runway 9R. Don't wander too far though, Part 2 will be our London City Tour in a double decker bus and a river cruise.

Ho Hum... another Honolulu layover

FLYINGWITHRAND.COM is an LLC that I created to promote my writing and photography. It's worked as I've had more than 100 articles, with photography published in just a few years.

While other crews are out running around, here I am on Waikiki with my camera and computer, slaving away at my trade.

Just a few more Waikiki pics to show how hard I work when out here. 4/13/06

Tom Helwick and I descending into Washington Dulles (IAD) for a 30 hour layover in a DC-9, 1993.

We rented a car and drove to Gettysburg on 3 July to see the 130th re-enactment of this great battle. Tom is an Air Force veteran who flew Gooneybirds in Vietnam. You couldn't ask for a better guy to fly with.

Tom, by a T-38 where his USAF career began. He's visiting the Pima Air Museum in Arizona. His airline career started with North Central Airlines in 1977.

The Great Wall of China.   11 June 2010

It's June 10th, a drizzly, foggy evening here in Narita as we prepare our 757-251 for our flight to Beijing. (NRT - PEK) Not a long flight, only 2.5 hours or so to cover 1,325 miles that will see us fly over the Sea of Japan, South Korea, The Yellow Sea and finally in to Chinese airspace. We'll arrive late into the evening, go to our downtown hotel and arrange through our concierge for an 0800 pickup for a tour of the Great Wall. Aircraft 539US, MSN 26486, mfg 3/96.

An overview of this trip.

There are many places to begin a tour of the Great Wall, this is where we started. The red sign says, "Purchase tickets here for the Great Wall." (6/11/10)

From the base area we rode this double-chairlift to the wall. I was amazed at the density of the flora, I never saw the ground.

This is where we are. There is so much history here I wouldn't know where to begin. Suffice it to say it was built over hundreds of years and totals some 31,000 miles in length.

To think that this was built without machinery is astounding. How did they even get the building material here?

The small section that we'll visit was built during the Ming Dynasty, (1368-1644) and has been restored and well maintained for tourists. Basically it's a fortification with tower houses, battle stations and cold drink vendors.

I thought this thing was level! I was wrong.

Left: John from inside one of the fortifications. These are very large with interior stairways and many levels from which to do battle. Above: we ran into this fellow doing an around the world tour and he selected us to help display his Brazilian flag from the Great Wall. It was a great day, relatively inexpensive and I can now "check off" the Great Wall.

And this is how you return to the base station. An alpine slide. It was a ball, went like hell and was unencumbered by all of the "safety" features required by US regulatory agencies.

When you get off the slide prepare to be approached by these Mongol warriors seeking to be in your photo. You guessed it... they'll want a good tip. I advised them not to play the horses!

Now you have to walk the gauntlet back to the tour guide where everyone and their brother is trying to sell you something. They're VERY persistent/aggressive and most speak English. I replied in German and they quickly moved on to the next tourist.

At one time I loved SFO layovers, but the panhandling became so bad and the city grew increasingly dirty that I'd avoid it. When I was there though I'd visit with my son.

Duncan Cooper and I taking the BART from Burlingame to downtown, trying to help this German tourist. None of us could figure out how to buy/use our tickets.

Then I jumped a cable car to the Embarkadero...

where I met Ian.

We then took the ferry over to Sausalito...

The ferry ride over to Sausalito with a good view of San Francisco and Alcatraz. Downtown Sausalito

and enjoyed a great afternoon out of the city. Now married with a son of his own, Linda and I work on him to return to Boston. I want my grandson!!

SOARING HAWAII  4/19/07
I had my normal Hawaiian routine but decided to shake things up today, rented a Jeep and headed for Oahu's North Shore in search of adventure.

Meet captain Ron at SOAR HAWAII at Dillingham Field.

...we're off and flying through the very mountainous terrain of the islands north shore. There's also a skydiving facility at the end of this runway. I think that I'll skip that.

Moments after strapping me in and giving me the safety brief....

After Ron learned that I was an airline pilot, he let me fly and threw in a few loops. Yes... this was fun!

45 minutes later Ron turns downwind, it's time to land.

This is his idea of a base leg. Look at all of the people at the beach!

What a beautiful day. Dillingham by the way was a B-24 auxiliary field during WWII.

Just another great Hawaiian layover....

Through the years we've stayed in several locations during our Frankfurt lay overs including Wiesbaden, but my favorite spot was MAINZ, a northern, Roman, military outpost settled in the first century BC on the west bank of the Rhine River.

On board our B-767-300ER in DTW with Steve and Eric as we prepare to pushback. Next stop Frankfurt. RIGHT: After a 3-hour nap we met in the lobby and set out to explore Mainz. It's a large, bustling town, but our interests lie in the Old Town section with it's splendid architecture and gastronomic delights. Ship 190, 190DN, MSN 28447, mfg 3/97. (8/8/10)

On the main Plaza with refreshments. The Germans enjoy their afternoons people watching and we joined right in. "Guten tag, wie gehts? Drei Bier bita." (8/9/10)

Of all the restaurants I've enjoyed in Mainz, this is the best.

We met the rest of our crew in the "Kirschgarten" or Cherry Orchard section of town. Mainz was heavily bombed during WWII so much of this is post-war reconstruction.

We invited the owner to sit with us. Ready for this? He's a retired DAL L-1011 captain.

Mainz offers endless exploration adventures, but the next day we pose for our crew shot before getting down to business. This will be Eric's takeoff and Steve's landing back in DTW. (8/10/10)

Steve and Eric survey our wiener schnitzel und pommes frites. It was a delicious as it looks.

8/11/10: Frankfurt Main while Eric starts our engines and we head back to DTW. B-767-332ER, N180DN, MSN25985, mfg 4/92.

DTW to PHL (Layover) then to CDG   9/12/10

It's a short flight over to PHL were Dave and I will enjoy an historic layover before heading to the City of Light.

Landing on 27R at PHL.

Dave and me at the Liberty Bell

In front of Independence Hall

We spent the entire day exploring "Independence National Historic Park," home to our pre-Revolutionary history. Independence Hall, built in 1753 as the Pennsylvania State House, housed our Second Continental Congress, the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and where our Constitution was debated and finally adopted. The Liberty Bell, one ton of bronze, cast in London and hung at Independence Hall in March 1753, cracked when struck the very first time. Citizens removed the bell in 1777 when the British occupied the city, knowing that they would melt it down to create a cannon and other ordnance. Later this evening Dave and I leave for the "City of Light" and will enjoy a delightful day in Paris.

See you in Paris!

Pearl Harbor: Photos from three visits. 11/19/06, 4/10/07 and 1/15/09
There's a lot to see. Ford Island, Pacific Aviation Museum, USS Missouri, USS Arizona Memorial, USS Bowfin. But before we visit Pearl, follow along as we descend and configure for landing on 8L.

We're on vectors for a downwind to 8L at HNL. Here you can see HNL, the Pearl Harbor Channel and the Harbor as we descend westbound and configure for landing. 8/24/09.

On downwind we spotted CV-74, the USS Stennis steaming out of Pearl. She's 1,092' long, just like the Ronald Reagan that you'll see later. 6/11/09.

On final for 8L, you can see both runways clearly as we go to flaps 30 approaching the Pearl Harbor Channel. 8R is the "reef" runway, a space shuttle abort facility. 6/20/09.

Over the Channel, looking out my left cockpit window towards USS Missouri and USS Arizona. Tomorrow we'll get up early and visit Pearl Harbor.

Taken from a DeHavilland Beaver on Floats, this is Ford Island aka Luke Field, during WWII. Amelia Earhart took off from here on her first around the world attempt in 1937. To the right you'll see the USS Missouri and Arizona Memorial along "Battleship Row." The Pacific Aviation Museum is near the red/white tower.

Beneath the Beavers wing, clearly seen is the Missouri, Arizona Memorial and pylons that define "Battleship Row." The USS Bowfin is located near the bridge on the shore side. OK, let's land and start our tour at the Bowfin Museum.

USS Bowfin, launched one year to the day after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1942. There is an extensive museum so plan on visiting it for at least an hour.

Boarding the Bowfin with a digital audio player that will enlighten you as to her WWII exploits. Constructed in Portsmouth, NH she's 311' long, displaces 2,415 tons, carries 24 torpedoes with a max speed of 20 knots.

Standing on the conning tower looking aft with the USS Missouri and USS Arizona Memorial in sight. To the right you can see the bridge to Ford Island.

The USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) was in port today, 4/10/07. Launched in 2001 she's 1,092' long and 252' wide, has a crew of 3,200 and a top speed of 30+ knots. The launch here is manned by US Navy personnel and is your ride to the Arizona Memorial.

Approaching the Arizona Memorial with "Big Mo" in the background. Arizona, BB-39 was launched in 1915 and entombs 1,177 sailors and marines who died on 7 December 1941 when she was sunk during the battle. Standing on the pier that straddles the wreckage, watching oil droplets rise to the surface is a very moving event.

On the bridge of "Big Mo" (BB-63). Launched in 1944 from the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the 887', Iowa class battleship retired (for the final time) in 1992. We're standing on the bridge looking over her 16" guns towards the USS Arizona Memorial. This is "Battleship Row" where the heavy iron was moored on the morning of 7 December 1941.

The round object that you see here on the deck is where General Douglas MacArthur sat and accepted from the Japanese the instrument of surrender from WWII on 2 September 1945.

Dusseldorf, Germany
This was one of my favorite layovers. We stayed in the beautiful little town of Neuss which dates to 16 BC and is a Roman walled city along the Rhine River. The town was small and the hotel and towns people couldn't have been nicer.

This is one of the few places in the world where we landed and had a "Follow Me" vehicle guide us in. I never saw anyone else receive this service here though. Maybe they thought the NWA pilots couldn't find the gate by themselves.

After the driver led us to the gate, he jumped out and guided us in by hand. RIGHT: Just one of the crews I flew this layover with. Interestingly, they crewed this leg with 2 captains and 1 FO.

This was a 757 trip from DTW.

Our hotel had its own "biergarten" that was very generous to its layover crews. Their biergarten borders the city's botanical gardens which are a must to stroll through.Their morning buffet was second to none and again came highly subsidized. After meeting in the biergarten, crews would pass through this ancient passageway in the city's wall to head downtown. The gardens, architecture and abundant bake shops along this stroll severely impeded our progress.

"Obertor" or upper gate, dates to 1200.

In one of the towns secondary, cobblestoned squares stands this Glockenspiel that strikes every evening at 5 p.m. with an NWA crew in attendance.

This is Munsterplatz at Neuss and the pub/restaurant pictured below the glockenspiel is wonderful.

A close up of the glockenspiel and its bells. At 5 p.m. the little doors open and the figures pass in review to the music created by the associated bells. It's great fun and I wish that I'd taken a video.

And now we get down to the serious business of eating. Your choices of spectacular and affordable restaurants (don't forget I'm on per diem) are endless.

I admit my tastes may be narrow, but when ever I'm in Germany it's wienerschnitzel und pomme frites.

And no meal in Neuss (or anywhere else for that matter) is complete without a visit to the gelateria located in Marketplatz near the rathskeller. Go ahead ask for a sample... point if you don't speak Deutsch. Pickup isn't until 1100 the next day so exploration here is nearly unlimited.

Bangkok Thailand (4/20/09)
This was a 757 interasia flight/layover from Narita.

This was my 2nd attempt to experience Bangkok. On the first, the Red shirts and the Yellow shirts, two political factions, were shooting it out downtown and we wisely stayed out at the airport hotel when a state of emergency was declared.

One of the many Buddha's that we saw from our "long tail" boat as they're called.

The state of emergency still existed during this trip but the government allowed limited tourist accessibility. There was much military personal visible with automatic weapons and they frowned upon photography.

One of the thousands of markets along the river that sells anything that you can imagine.

Working our way downtown on the Chao Phrata River. We'd pass by magnificent opulence one moment and gut wrenching poverty the next where old women would paddle out in small prams selling their wares.

Think this boat has enough horsepower? This is a large truck engine that's modified for these boats.

We engage a "tuk tuk" driver for the day I asked what his services would cost and he replied with, "what ever you want to pay." Eight hours later I handed him a dollar and he was thrilled. Really! Then I handed him a $20 and I thought he was going to fall over.

He took us everywhere and his English was very good. Beware though, they try to bring you to friends businesses where they are paid to do this. I let him take us to two such places only, collect his bounty and we left to explore the city.

Inside the Royal Palace started in 1782 and completed, more or less, in 1882.

My FO, Wolfgang, admiring the fine architectural details of the palace. You could spend a week in this place and not even make a dent.

After a tough day of wandering about we hit this highly recommended massage parlor. This was not a relaxing message but a real honest to goodness, bone jarring experience. We each lasted about 25 minutes. left and headed for the hotel bar to meet the rest of our crew for dinner. This is probably the cheapest layover that I've ever experienced. Their currency is the 'baht" and there's a zillion of them to the dollar and everything is negotiable.

Earlier I'd mentioned the women that paddled out to sell their wares. Her's one enterprising river merchant showing her vast array of goods to Wolfgang. He bought a bottle of water and before we knew it we were surrounded by dozens of entrepreneurs. I think our boat captain was their cousin!

0234 and my wake up call has just arrived for an 0330 pickup and 0530 departure back to Narita.

Wolfgang and I very much enjoyed the layover, it was different from other Asian experiences, but I'm not in any rush to bid this again.

Visiting the Colonel. 
7/18/06:  NWA 95, SEA-OGG, Ship 5815, Fuel 63,100#, Distance 2,350nm, PTOG 260,000#
We left SEA on 7/18/06 and the next day I rented a Jeep and drove the southern route to Hana to visit Colonel Lindbergh... I found out later, rental vehicles weren't allowed on this road! This part of Maui is beautiful and my pilgrimage was moving.

My FO Todd and I met our crew by door #2 on our B-757-351. It's 18 July 2006 and we're off to Maui.

We're next for departure, holding short 34R at SEA.

A left turn out over SEA and Puget Sound, it's a short distance to intercepting the Pacific Tracks.

Our Flight Release for NWA 95.

Our Track chart from SEA to OGG.

Five hours after leaving SEA we've descended to land at OGG. The runway lies in that valley ahead.

Lined up on runway 2 in OGG, the airline ramp is to the left. This runway is only 7,000' long.

These four pics show the south route to Hana which is were Col. Lindbergh is buried. from the time I got off the main road, I never saw another vehicle.

The road is poor, there's no cell phone connection and you're out in the middle of nowhere. For the last ten miles I never exceeded 15 mph.

We're far from the T-shirt shops and other Hawaiian tourist traps out on this lonely road, which is why Lindbergh chose it as his burial site.

Palapala Hoomau Chapel, built in 1857 near the gravsite. This is not easy to find.

The inside of the chapel.

The Colonels gravesite with the chapel behind.

Another view of the road to Hana.

I read my contract when I turned the Jeep in at Maui Airport and learned that my contract forbid the use of this road!

Colonel Lindbergh's grave. You may be wondering about the wings.

NWA captain Steve Richardson, when he learned that I planned this trip, asked me to leave his NWA wings on his stone.

Narita to Saigon(Yes.. I know.)
Two day layover, 3/25/10 with Big Mike Griffin.

Preparing to leave NRT for SGN.

Flight 285 covers nearly 2,500 miles in 4.5 hours. From Tokyo we fly the length of Japan to the East China Sea, past Shanghai, Taipei, Hong Kong, The Philippines and finally over the South China Sea into Vietnam.

Our crew, waiting for a table at the hotels afternoon buffet. The hotel lobby; this is another five-star Asian hotel located about 100 yards from where the US evacuation of Saigon occurred in April 1975.

The War Remnants Museum

Once known as the Museum of Chinese and American War Crimes, today it goes by the name of "War Remnants Museum."

It's full of abandoned US military hardware like this Huey, tanks and field guns. Inside the museum are "graphic" photos, depicting, as you might expect, a North Vietnamese view of the world.

Our hotel concierge set us up with a guide to visit Cu Chi, about 40 clicks north of the city. This is the southern end of the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

The first and mandatory stop on site is the "propaganda hall" where a government official "sets the scene."

A demo of the Cu Chi tunnels...

The next day, departing SGN for NRT. This was an NWA route and this is Delta's penultimate flight as we've turned it over to Air Vietnam.

... where'd he go? This area is laced with miles of tunnels.

New Flight Attendants join us for the flight back to NRT.

And here's one for the tourists to experience. Big Mike didn't fit and I barely did as I crawled 50 yards underground to the exit. It is literally an underground city.

An early morning departure.

The "release" for flight 284, SGN to NRT.

The Tan Son Nhat International terminal building. This is the same airfield we utilized during the war that we called Tan Son Nhat Airbase.

Some may recognize these alert hangars.

Philadelphia to Paris:  September 2010

This was an unusual trip as our first layover city was Philadelphia. Dave Larsen and me at the Liberty Bell.

We met our 3rd pilot the next day and we're off to Paris.

We just landed at CDG

First things first, the Eiffel Tower.

Then the Arc de Triomphe at the top of the Champs Elyses.

It's a beautiful day, time to sit, have a beer at a side walk cafe on the Champ Elysees and watch the world go by. With practice I've gotten very good at this!

Then it's off to the Louvre

Enjoy the Seine River.

Dinner in the Latin Quarter is the best!!

Looking for Quasimodo at Notre Dame.

These are just the highlights. Paris is a beautiful city with endless exploration opportunities. Bring comfortable shoes and get out and walk.

One more quick stop at the Invalides to visit Napolean's Tomb.

The Eiffel Tower is lit up as we head back to our hotel.

 Nagoya to Saipan September 2006

Gate 20 Nagoya

The reversal departure, leaving Nagoya.

Our route to Saipan passes nearby Iwo Jima.

Arriving at Saipan.

ANE friend and 757 captain Wes Lundquist arrived the night before from Narita.

Museum displaying WWII artifacts and maps.

Memorial Park with names of the fallen from the battle of Saipan, June and July 1944.

Armor, fixed guns and bunkers from around the island.

Our hotel and its beach. Saipan accommodations are wonderful. The town center is very nearby with excellent restaurants and watering holes. Great layover!

Seattle to Maui and our trek to the top of Haleakala, 7/3/07

Leaving SEA, only 2,300 nm to go.

Sam showing me the way.

Approaching Maalaea Bay and OGG

Approaching runway 2, OGG, 6,995'.

At the top of the crater, 10,023 feet. The worlds largest dormant volcano.

This is a shot I took months earlier looking down into the Haleakala crater enroute from LAX to HNL.

The observatory, above 1/3 of our atmosphere, houses the worlds largest solar telescope.

Inside the Haleakala Crater.

The observatory from the observation area.

It has a moon like appearance.

Back to Honolulu   SEA to HNL, June 2007
I rented a Jeep and returned to Dillingham Airfield, a WWII auxiliary field on the north shore of Oahu.

6/7/07: We're number two for departure at SEA behind this Hawaiian B-767 bound for HNL as well. Some 5 hours later we're crossing over the Pearl Harbor channel on final to runway 8L at HNL. Tomorrow I'll meet Bruce, a Hawaiian Airlines 767 captain to spend the day in his Stearman.

Bruce owns two Stearmans (PT-17's) that he bases at Dillingham Airfield on the North Shore and operates a very busy business showing tourists Oahu form the air. His most popular destination? Yes, Pearl Harbor. To learn more about Bruce and his aerial business, click on the pic above to the far left.

Overhead Schofield Barracks at Wheeler Army Air Field, one of the first sites attacked by the Japanese on December 7th.

Waianae Mountain Range, west side of island. The western attack route into Pearl Harbor.

Approaching Pearl Harbor, Diamond Head visible in the distance.

Overhead Pearl Harbor, Ford Island in the center of the harbor. The USS Arizona Memorial, USS Missouri (Big Mo) and Battleship Row on the left/top of the island. Honolulu and Diamond Head in the distance.

Returning to the North Shore and Dillingham Airfield. This is the same field that I visited for my glider ride, a few posts back.

After our tour over Pearl Harbor we exercised Bruce's Stearman with a few loops and rolls. On final to runway 8 at Dillingham. If you have the time on your HNL layover I HIGHLY recommend that you contact Bruce and tour the island in one of his Stearmans. This was a great experience.

Detroit to London, (DTW-LHR) 8/23/08
I'm not big on guided tours but I walked over to Victoria Station, which is worth the visit itself, and bought a combo, double-deck bus and boat tour. Great experience and I even got an airline discount!

Leaving DTW shortly.

ETOPS airports tonight are Shannon, Keflavik and Gander.

Sunrise at N52W20.

Trafalgar Square.

House of Parliament

Tower Bridge from the DoubleDeck Bus.

Admiral Nelson monument at Trafalgar Square.

Parliament and the Parliament Clock. Big Ben is one of the bells inside the tower.

Tower of London.

Tower Bridge from the boat.

Tower Bridge and HMS Belfast on the Thames.

Parliament, Parliament Clock and the boats that are used on this tour.

London Eye aka Millennium Wheel is the tallest Ferris Wheel in Europe at 443 feet tall.

A good tour guide makes all the difference and this guy was great.

Manila, The Philipines and the American Cemetery. 4/11/12
​The most moving layover of my career.

4/10/12, NRT, Fraser and I preflight ship 6312 in prep to leave for MNL.

Loading the computers.

U.S. Army Museum, Fort DeRussy, Waikiki Beach, Honolulu.
3/15/07: NWA 217, 757-351, PDX-HNL, 2,297 nm, 5:16, 59,600 pounds of fuel.
​Bring your military ID and enjoy cocktails by the beach. The cheapest alcohol on Waikiki!

Preflighting at PDX.

Loading the computer.

Arriving HNL.

Sunset on Waikiki.

The next morning Eric and I walked over to Fort DeRussy on Waikiki to visit the Museum. I'm former Army enlisted and Eric is a retired Major and helicopter pilot.

Gun emplacement. Battery Randolph.

105 mm Howitzer, M3 and tank.

Eric was qualified in these Bell Cobra, attack helicopters.

Admission is free and the inside displays are excellent too, but too dark for decent photography.

LAS layover 1/19/07 and my visit to the Hoover Dam.

Photo of Lake Powell and Hoover Dam on a flight from LAX to DTW. 2007.

I bought a tour of Hoover Dam while on this LAS layover, it was a 45 minute bus ride to the dam and it got me out of Las Vegas.

Approaching the Dam. Since this visit there's a new bridge that bypasses the dam but has spectacular views of it.

Water enters the facility from Lake Powell.

This was a WPA project that created this artwork or the dams construction.

The dam.

The generator room.

And after powering the generators exits from this side of the dam. Since 911 the interior tour of the dam has been vastly scaled back due to terrorism concerns, but was nevertheless a wonderful experience.

The dam tour was wonderful but I really disliked the LAS layover so did my best to bid around it. The best part of the LAS layover was leaving... we're number two behind SWA on our way back to DTW to finish this trip.

Nagoya Layover, 8/18/11
There's not a lot to do at NGO but we found something interesting.

Arriving at NGO. Although NRT was our Japanese hub, we did a tremendous amount of flying in/out of NGO. Not a lot to do here though.

After a 13 hour flight from DTW Dave and I wait on the ramp for our gate to open.

After speaking with our concierge we took the subway to the Nagoya Dome.

Built in 1997 this geodesic dome seats 38,000 fans.

Home to the Chunichi Dragons, we had a ball with all those sitting around us.

Somebody won.

The Airliner Museum, Kansas City, 1998.

The Airliner Museum, Kansas City, 1998.

Washington DC, 1990

New York City 2000