When I mean "BIG," it means I got a whole lot more out of this spotting trip than I originally intended! After my last spotting trip to Eugene to catch Avelo Airlines earlier this year, I've been meaning to come back to catch more of their still small fleet of 737s. Since then, they've acquired three Boeing 737-700s, which will be based at New Haven, Connecticut to serve several routes to Florida come November. In the meantime, their shorter 737s have been subbed in quite frequently on the west coast routes, and I've been wanting to get out and photograph them while they're still out west! And I did manage to get one. But as mentioned, I got a lot more out of this spotting trip than I intended!
For starters, I ended up photographing not one, not two, but THREE U.S. Navy Boeing P-8 Poseidons, a maritime patrol version of the Boeing 737-800 that is currently replacing the venerable Lockheed P-3 Orion. As it turns out, Eugene Airport has been the frequent go-to airport for Navy pilots based out of NAS Whidbey Island to practice approaches and landings due to the airport location being away from populated residential areas and urban build-ups compared to other airports like Portland or Seattle; this is probably the case because the Navy presence up in Whidbey Island and the aircraft noise associated with it doesn't sit well with many locals there (don't even get me started on NIMBY-ers complaining about aircraft noise after THEY chose live near an airport or airbase that's been there long before they have!). So it would make sense that the Navy exercises due-diligence to avoid anymore negative public relations than they already have, especially with regards to aircraft noise. And Eugene Airport is a good place to practice because it has times of lull in terms of commercial traffic due to it's status as a regional airport, so the Navy doesn't add anymore to potential air traffic congestion if they were to go to busier places.
American Airlines' mainline flights as well as Southwest Airlines is also a new sight for Eugene and I happen to see both there for the first time today. American Airlines inaugurated once-daily flights between Eugene and Dallas/Fort Worth March 4th of this year. Initially, service was operated with Embraer E-175s operated by in-house subsidiary, Envoy Air. American upgraded this route to Airbus A319s on June 6th, which has kept going to this day even though mainline service was supposedly a summer-seasonal upgrade. And Southwest Airlines began service to Eugene in August of this year (much to everyone's delight!) from their focus cities of Las Vegas and Oakland, which now directly competes with Allegiant Air's offerings.
I'm also planning on returning to Eugene in November to see the inaugural flight of yet another new airline, or rather a resurrected one operating a new, independent brand.
Eugene (EUG) 6
Preview:
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| United States Navy Boeing P-8A Poseidon (169348) airborne off 16R as "Marlin 17" following a touch-and-go. My first time seeing a P-8 Poseidon! Assigned to Patrol Squadron 40 (VP-40), the "Fighting Marlins" out NAS Whidbey Island. |
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| United States Navy Boeing P-8A Poseidon (169009) airborne off 16R as "Dragon 05" following an Instrument approach and touch-and-go. A quick look at the tail logo showed that I was seeing two P-8s working the pattern and shooting approaches at the same time! Assigned to Patrol Squadron 4 (VP-4), "The Skinny Dragons." |
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| "Marlin 17" on another pass. I'd be seeing the P-8s work the pattern throughout this spotting trip. The P-8's civilian designation is the 737-800ERX. It is designated as the 737-800A by Boeing. |
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| Oregon Air National Guard McDonnell Douglas F-15D Eagle (86-0181) executing a low-approach over 16R as "Ape 02." Assigned to the 173rd Fighter Wing (173 FW), 114th Fighter Squadron (114 FS) out of Kingsley Field Air National Guard Base in Klamath Falls. It's certainly been a while since I've seen anything from the Eagle's nest in K-falls! And this would be my first time seeing some Eagle action in Eugene! |
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| Apparently, Eagle pilots out of Klamath Falls like to do low approaches at Eugene and they've been known to set off car alarms! |
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| "Dragon 05" executing a low approach. I got the red anti-collision beacon in this shot! |
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| SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a United Express) Embraer ERJ-170-200LR E-175LR (N114SY) clearing 16R after arriving as SKW5969 from San Francisco. |
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| Allegiant Air Airbus A319-111 (N317NV) clearing 16R after arriving as AAY1413 from Los Angeles. Formerly G-EZIJ with EasyJet. Note the mismatched engine cowling. |
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| "Marlin 17" airborne off 16R following another touch-and-go. They would return to NAS Whidbey Island after this pass. |
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| "Dragon 05" airborne off 16R following a touch-and-go. Unlike normal 737-800s, the P-8 Poseidon uniquely features the raked wingtips (like the ones seen on the 767-400ER) instead of the blended or split-scimitar wingtips. |
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| Avelo Airlines Boeing 737-7H4 (N701VL) airborne off 16R as VXP118 for Burbank. My first time seeing one of Avelo's 737-700s! |
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| As the old Boeing customer code indicates, this airframe previously flew for Southwest Airlines. |
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| Eventually, the -700 fleet for Avelo will be based at New Haven, Connecticut to fly to several routes to Florida starting next month. |
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| Until east coast services start, Avelo has been making good use of their three 737-700s to fly some of the lower-demand routes on the west coast. |
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| Avelo has yet to receive three more 737-800s, presumably for expansion here on the west coast. |
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| "Dragon 05" executing a missed approach over 16R. Following a 1980s study to replace the Lockheed P-3 Orion (which has been in service since 1962), the United States Navy initially awarded a fixed-price contract to Lockheed to develop the P-7, a modernized version of the P-3 in 1989, which was cancelled the following year. Following a second competition for a replacement program in 2000, Boeing was eventually selected as the winner on May 14, 2004 after pitching their design based off the 737-800. |
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| "Dragon 05" on another touch-and-go off 16R. Designed to replace the Lockheed P-3 Orion, the P-8 was officially launched by Boeing in 2009, with the first flight taking place on April 25, 2009. It was introduced into U.S. Naval service in November 2013. |
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| SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a Delta Connection) Embraer ERJ-170-200LR E-175LR (N262SY) arriving on 16R as SKW4117 from Seattle-Tacoma. |
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| SKW4117 clearing the active and taxiing to the terminal. |
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| Embraer EMB-545 Legacy 450 (N55NG) airborne off 16R for Naples, Florida. |
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| "Dragon 05" on another pass. Because of it's role as an anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, and ship interdiction aircraft, the P-8 has a strengthened fuselage for low-altitude operations. |
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| N317NV airborne off 16R as AAY1418 for the return-trip to Los Angeles. |
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| N114SY airborne off 16R as SKW5838 for the return trip to San Francisco. Departed 40 minutes behind schedule due to flow-control in effect for SFO. |
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| United States Navy Boeing P-8A Poseidon (169547) airborne off 16R following an approach as "Marlin 57." This marks my third P-8 airframe photographed. As indicated by the call-sign, this airframe is also assigned to Patrol Squadron 40 (VP-40), the "Fighting Marlins" out NAS Whidbey Island. |
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| Mesa Airlines (d/b/a American Eagle) Bombardier CL-600-2D24 CRJ-900ER (N946LR) arriving on 16R as ASH5996 from Phoenix Sky Harbor. My photographing Mesa Airlines as well as my first time seeing a CRJ-900 in the American Eagle livery! |
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| Previously flew for Air One as EI-DUK. |
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| ASH5996 clearing the active. |
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| ASH5996 taxiing to the terminal. American Airlines has shuffled around some of their regional flying to different partners to the point where Mesa has been a common sight in Eugene, with SkyWest doing a few occasional rotations. |
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| It is quite refreshing to see another CRJ-900 operator after previously seeing nothing by SkyWest CRJ-900s in Delta colors! |
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| Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-7CT (N7823A) clearing 16R after arriving as SWA379 from Oakland. It was bound to happen sooner or later! We've all been saying it for years that the second Oregon destination Southwest would eventually put on their map would be Eugene! |
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| "Marlin 57" airborne off 16R after a touch-and-go. |
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| N262SY airborne off 16R as SKW3912 for the return trip to Seattle-Tacoma. |
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| "Marlin 57" on another pass over 16R. |
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| SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a United Express) Bombardier CL-600-2B19 CRJ-200ER (N259PS) arriving on 16R as SKW5509 from San Francisco. My second time photographing a CRJ-200 in the new United livery! |
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| Airframe formerly belonged to PSA Airlines, operating in the colors of US Airways Express and later American Eagle. |
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| SKW5509 taxiing to the terminal. 50-seat regional jets have become a rather rare sight for me these days! |
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| SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a Delta Connection) Embraer ERJ-170-200LR E-175LR (N243SY) taxiing to the terminal after arriving on 16R as SKW3576 from Salt Lake City. |
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| "Marlin 57" executing a missed approach. |
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| N946LR taxiing out for the return-trip to Phoenix retaining the same flight number of ASH5996. |
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| ASH5996 airborne off 16R for Phoenix Sky Harbor. |
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| N7823A airborne off 16R after a quick turn-around and continuing on as SWA379 to Las Vegas. |
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| SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a United Express) Bombardier CL-600-2C10 CRJ-702 (N788SK) taxiing to the terminal after arriving on 16R as SKW5719 from Denver. It's been a while since I've seen a CRJ-700! |
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| N259PS airborne off 16R as SKW5257 for Denver. |
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| Pilatus PC-12/47E (N11NY) airborne off 16R for Petaluma, California. |
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| American Airlines Airbus A319-112 (N769US) clearing 16R after arriving as AAL1467 from Dallas-Fort Worth. |
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| Once-daily flights between Eugene and Dallas-Fort Worth began earlier this year with Envoy-operated E-175s and now an A319! |
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