Aircraft Aviation in Europe 5 years ago

When I first started Aircraft Aviation in Europe 5 years ago I couldn't believe it's already been that long. So as an honor of my 5 years being part of Aircraft Aviation in Europe, I'll explain how it started & why I have done this on Blogger, Facebook and YouTube.

I first opened a YouTube account in July 2012 called The Airline Spotter only based in Malta. The name was a bit cheesy for me after 6 months I left the channel abandoned so I decided to rename my Channel to Aircraft Aviation in Europe in January 2013 so my goal is to travel parts of Europe discover European airliners in different airports and Non-European Airlines that don't come for example here in the UK. When I booked couple of trips for Aircraft Aviation in Europe, in February 2013 I created a Facebook page because I know my blog won't have more views or not very active now & again. The name Aircraft Aviation in Europe also means airlines & aviation travelling across Europe in the European Union, European Economic Area, Switzerland and Non-EU countries in Europe. I also included long haul flight that comes to my next two paragraphs.

Aircraft Aviation in Europe on social media started in Summer 2012 originally started in August 2001 in Malta International Airport throughout 2007 when I temporary stepped out as an aviation photographer due to my education I decided in 2011 I wen't back to aviation photography slowly in process. After my 5 years of college studying different courses, I decided the way I'm doing my current college studying back on airline stuff I spent 5 years travelling different parts of the world studying in my own time to look at cabin crew because I was originally going to think of that in 2008 however I wasn't ready to move on to the next level after I finished Travel & Tourism. After that countries I have visited before Aircraft Aviation in Europe was born in 2012 I always went to Malta & back to the UK but something about my interests I should travel different countries. When I was a Travel & Tourism student, I went to Germany for the trip not to do with aviation; when I got home I thought to myself in my free time is I can do that as a plane spotter & aviation reporter etc. That's when in April 2013 I traveled Italy for the first time in Catania with my best full flight video featuring Mount Etna erupted. One year later I traveled two different EU countries to Republic of Ireland in Dublin and The Netherlands in Amsterdam followed by my trips home to Malta. Because I live in the United Kingdom I decided not to do spotting photos because I live pretty far when I live when it comes to transport because it is very expensive so I decide in the UK to make Full Flight videos & some airshows which I done in Farnborough International Airshow 2016 and Bournemouth Air Festival. Visiting Malta for Malta International Airshow is one of my biggest requests but due to planes not my thing, I decided not to go although I do wish Red Arrows come to Malta again when Air Malta flew with the  Red Arrows celebrating Air Malta's new livery in 2012; if the Red Arrows come to Malta in the future, I will book a flight when I can.

Continue with my travel movement, because I'm from Malta I always travel their a lot due to friends & family reasons I don't want my Facebook, YouTube and Blogger page to go on about Malta all the time when I mentioned I went different EU countries & some of my spotting in the UK. Travelling to Ireland, Italy and The Netherlands is good enough but I need to go long haul for some reason & that's when August last year, I went to Las Vegas, United States of America for the first time & flew US tour operator on a helicopter to the Grand Canyon. Before I went to Las Vegas my flight stopped in Glasgow, UK for more passengers to pickup so I was lucky to got photos from Glasgow. This year has been great for Aircraft Aviation in Europe yes I went to Malta few times I also went to The Netherlands again few weeks back it was good & new I'm a student studying airline stuff I'm exited for my career while I'm still young. As we come to the end of 2016 soon & few more airlines to go most are from Malta one is next month due to family related yet again & New Year 2017 so I can have a good time on New Years Day. My travel movement for 2017 I hope I go on a biggest adventure while I'm a student as I'm in my current progress of going long haul again after I finish & pass this course.

After all of your support for Aircraft Aviation in Europe, you've helped me putting my aviation photography to the next level. From all of your support for 5 years from around the world & some of my friends, I like to thank you once again & hope I get big in the long distant future. Feel free to email me if you have any questions or find me on Facebook.

Thank you

9/11 15 years later

Today is September 11th 2016 marks 15 years of America's worst terrorist attack in American History. The 9/11. Let's look at the airlines.

United Airlines Flight 175

First airline was United Airlines flight 175 N612UA a 1983 Boeing 767-200 on a domestic flight from Logan, Boston to Los Angeles, California carrying 51 passengers & 9 crew most nationalities were Americans others were Canadian, German, British, Israeli, El Salvador, Indonesian and Nepali. After takeoff from Logan at 08:14am, there were 5 hijackers some are American Citizens, Egyptian Citizens and Saudi Citizens I won't mention their names if this is a high security risk from the United States knowing the information. During the flight 2 hijackers got into the cockpit while the others moved the passengers to the back of the Boeing 767 aircraft. Air traffic control try to respond Flight 175 but the hijackers fail to respond & turned off the flight following meaning disappeared off radar still in flight. During the collision in New York, the terrorists descends quickly over New York's airspace in 5 minutes & 4 seconds, for an average of 5,000 feet per minute for a Boeing 767. At 09:01am Flight 175 was on collision to the World Trade Centre in Lower Manhattan then few minutes later it crashed into the South Tower between 77 and 85 floors with the aircraft nose hitting building at 590 mph & 10,000 gallons of fuel on board. With deaths of 51 passengers on that flight also counting with roughly 900 deaths at the World Trade Centre makes it 951 deaths roughly some in the World Trade Centre actually fallen off the building then died while some wear killed during the explosion & collision of the aircraft.

United Airlines Flight 93

I'm not going into full details

Two terrorist attacks in one day was a disaster in America so we come to United Airlines Flight 93 that happened on the same day as Flight 75. United Airlines Flight 75 was a 1996 Boeing 757-200 N591UA on a domestic flight from Newark, New Jersey to San Francisco, California with 37 passengers & 7 crew on board. Most nationalities were Americans some other nationalities were German Citizen, Japanese Citizen and New Zealand Citizen. Flight 93 left Newark at 09:38am by the time Flight 175 crashed into the World Trade Centre, four members of Al-Qaeda hijacked Flight 93. 10:03am, Flight 93 crashed near Indian Lake and Shanksville, Pennsylvania killing everyone on board at around 563 mph at a 40-degree nose-down and inverted attitude. 

My Highlights

Back in 11th September 2001 I was only 10 years old started my final year at children school when I heard when I came home from school two planes exploded I don't think I watched it in school assembly it was a nightmare for America. And now I'm a grown young man I still can't get over my head about 9/11 around that time of the year... When I got into aviation in August 2001 & my dream is to travel across the world, this is also why after 9/11 I learn how to do Martial Arts so the training I'm currently studying back on planes I can defend myself protecting my future passengers & my future crew with the airline at very high/low attitudes or on the ground even as a passenger if I travel with friends and families or myself. However my Sensei passed away 5 years ago I was one belt to become 1st Dan Black Belt I will never forget that he said to me before he died "When you travel as a cabin crew, you must think back of your loved ones. Imagine your passengers are your friends and family, release your anger when the hijacker comes to you with a gun or a knife always focus of your thoughts but always think what the body movement is. If you are thinking to become a cabin crew, train your friends how to defend themselves the way I taught you." I still never forgotten his wish before he died so I'll do my best from his heart. 

As for America, my travel movement when it comes to 20 years from 9/11, I'll try to visit New York to support the American people who lost their loved ones. From Aircraft Aviation in Europe I like to pay my respects for the American people & the United States of America from the bottom of my heart. Rest in Peace who died on September 11th 2001.

Russian jet airliners

This top I'm going to show my photos of Russian  narrow-body jet airliners none of my friends & tutor in college might never heard off for the course I'm studying. 

Rossiya Airlines RA-86467 Ilyushin IL-62 new to Aeroflot in 1992 ex CCCP-86467 seen in Malta taken 17th August 2004.

This is Ilyushin IL-62 it first flew in 1963 & introduced in 1967 with Aeroflot, LOT Polish Airlines, Cubana de Aviacion and Air Koryo it was finished production 1995. Back in the day, there were so many airliners are interested to have this Russian built airliner with four engines at the back two on each side & can handle short & medium haul. You may think it looks like a Vickers VC-10 because the look is almost the same but not quite because IL-62 is a bit larger than a VC-10; the tail looks the same, this has eight emergency exits two on the fuselage and four over the wings. One interesting feature of the IL-62 it has another wheel hidden at the back because when the aircraft parks, this long stick comes out has a wheel to keep the aircraft balanced encase of high winds shakes the aircraft or losing balance on the ground. IL-62 has now limited of limited service of IL-62 only use for Governments and one airliner Air Koryo from North Korea has two for VIP flights.

Atlant-Soyuz Airlines RA-85736 Tupolev TU-154 new to Vnukovo Airlines in 1992 seen in Malta taken 20th August 2005.

Then we come to my favorite & loudest engine I have ever herd! This is a Tupolev TU-154 first flew in 1968 & introduced in 1972 with Aeroflot. Most TU-154's was ordered to the Middle East and Communist countries like Russia, Cuba, China North Korea for example. These planes wear marked to be used for short & medium haul commercial use. If your a spotter like me back in the day, when I first experienced when I was 14 2005, my ears started to hurt when it landed & take off it felt like the engines sounded like a child scream but 100 times worse for this aircraft I really did enjoy the sound when it taxied. The start up engines sounded beautiful. TU-154 was marked to compete with Ilyushin IL-62 most Russian built airliners don't normally compete with Boeing, Airbus, Bombardier and Embraer. TU-154 is now very limited when it ended era for passengers, it's now been used for Government use only in Russia, China and North Korea. Depending on the age of  the TU-154M, they are banned from the European Union due to noise regulations they can't modified when the plane is too loud & a lot of smoke than the Boeing 737 Classics and McDonnell Douglas MD-80's. For example when I took this Atlant-Soyuz Airlines in Malta from 2005 the airline announced when the EU starts to ban the TU-154 to the EU Airspace; Atlant-Soyuz ordered a Boeing 737-300 in 2006 & Boeing 737-800 in 2010 before it was ceased operation.

Aeroflot RA-86079 Ilyushin IL-86 new Aeroflot in 1985 seen in Malta taken 22nd August 2003.

Is it an Airbus A340? No this is Ilyushin IL-86 first flew 1976 & introduced in 1980 with Aeroflot till it's retired from passenger use in 2011 now use for military after the followup of the IL-96. When you go inside the cabin it looks like a Boeing 747 look but without an overhead bin in the middle which is strange because this is use for short & medium haul imagine in Summer period more passengers with their carry on luggage on board. Il-86 has their own stairs like some Boeing 737's and Boeing 727's for example, this aircaft has one underneath the fuselage at the front like MD-80's & Boeing 727's located at the back. Il-86 stairs reminds me of the US Air Force One had the similar thing before.

Red Wings RA-60403 Tupolev TU-204 new to Red Wings in 2008 seen in Malta filmed 15th July 2012.

A Boeing 757? it's not. This is a Tupolev TU-204 from 1989 & introduced in 1995. To me this is a next generation from Tupolev because the aircraft is very quiet I have never heard from a Russian plane. When TU-204 first introduced to commercial use, Tupolev decided to replace the TU-154 with modernized computers on the flight deck, hydraulic and environmentally friendly. As I mentioned it looks like a Boeing 757-200 because the fuselage looks identical but it has lower rage and playload meaning the TU-204 can only be used for short haul flights compare to Boeing 757's can be used for short, medium and long haul flights up to 8 hours or less. TU-204 is the first Russian Airliner to to used for freight (TU-204-100C) with Aviastar-TU operating for DHL Express between Moscow Domodedovo, Russia to The Middle East and some European Union countries such as East Midlands, UK for example. TU-204 do fly within the EU so I recommend checkout Red Wings while they fly within that area of the European Union countries. When I was in Malta before I opened my YouTube Channel, I manage to take a photo but my SD Card was corrupted so lucky I manage to film it. Click the video to see it arrived in Malta 4 years ago. That includes my photos of the Russian Airliner planes; soon I will make an Antonov blog in the future & mention more detail about the main cargo plane I see regularly. When the upcoming Irkut MC-21 comes in service & spot one, I'll include that. 

TUI Airliner change

This was a bit of a new discovery I just found out in college. Recently we had a guest from a British Airways cabin crew when I heard that Thomson Airways (British Airliner) will be changing names for the 3rd time because it had Thomsonfly, Thomson Airways & now TUI. Thomson Airways is not the only one that's changing, it's every TUI operator will be changing their airliners names.make the most of your aircraft shots as you can.

TUI Airlines Netherlands PH-TFB Boeing 737-800 seen in Amsterdam, The Netherlands taken 27th August 2016.

Before we go to the list of TUI operators when will they be changed I like to show you this photo I took recently. TUI Airlines Netherlands was the first one to be introduced in October 1st 2015 formally Arkefly from The Netherlands. All TUI operators will come across this look of their fleets only with big TUI logo on the fuselarge and the website on the engine. I think that might include Thomas Cook one day as their livery will do the same.

TUI Airliner re-change:

• Arkefly now changed as TUI Airlines Netherlands 1st October 2015.
• Corsair International is unknown due to TUI AG to sell the airline.
• Jetairfly is set to change anytime this year.
• Thomson Airways is set to change by 2017
• TUIfly is now part of TUI Airlines marked by Air Berlin
• TUIfly Nordic will keep their name & just changed their callsign.

Callsigns: 

With callsigns from pilots & air traffic control I'm not sure if all TUI airliners will give a new name or not. So here is the current callsign list: 

Not including TUIfly Nordic due to new callsign changed.

• TUI Airlines Netherlands - ORANGE
• Corsair International - CORSAIR 
• Jetairfly - BEAUTY
• Thomson Airways - THOMSON  
• TUIfly - TUI JET

Amsterdam, The Netherlands August 2016

Welcome back to Amsterdam, The Netherlands for the 3rd time. I have quite a few of my photos I like to share during my last trip some are taken from my phone during my arrival.

This will be my last time I will mention to this after my last blog. Last Friday I flew on KLM Cityhopper in SkyTeam livery PH-EZX & my first experience on Embrear I enjoyed it.

Then we come to a group of Fokker F70's from KLM Cityhopper so make the most shots as you can before the retirement starts next year they are next on my travel movement.

Austrian Airlines OE-LBJ Airbus A320-200 new to LTU in 2001 ex D-ALTF taken 26th August 2016. 

It's been a long time I took a photo of Austrian Airlines because when I was a teenager in 2005 I saw it in Malta a lot during the Summer period somehow it's now forgotten & I haven't took a photo since. As we across the Schengen Area OE-LBJ Airbus A320 bound for Vienna, Austria I hope to see more in the future.

Vueling EC-KRH Airbus A320-200 new to Vueling in 2008 taken 26th August 2016

One last photo before I headed to passport control I manage to get Vueling outside Malta because I keep seeing them every Summer period. Vueling now also operate from Amsterdam,The Netherlands to Portugal, Italy and the UK other than Spain I think it might compeat with Norwegian Air Shuttle and Ryanair if Vueling keeps it up. EC-KRH Airbus A320-200 seems to be getting ready for push back where ever it's going.

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines PH-BHD Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner new to KLM February 2016 taken 27th August 2016.

I'm not going to go crazy with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines for now maybe in the future. Still got that baby smell from Boeing! Yes my first shot of KLM's Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner PH-BHD brought to KLM February this year. I remember I first saw 787 from Thomson Airways the 8 series when I use to go mad now I saw the 9 series I'm glad I saw it.

TUI Airlines Netherlands PH-TFB Boeing 737-800 new to Arkefly in 2009 taken 26th August 2016. 

This is a lucky on because at the Viewing Terrence pilots do often wave to us & this is one of them! TUI Airlines Netherlands PH-TFB taking to the gate where this pilot give me a smile to the camera. If you want to know about TUI Airlines Netherlands? Arkefly decided to change the rename the airline to TUI Airlines Netherlands last year. 

Dutch Dakota Association PH-PBA McDonnell Douglas DC-3 new to Dutch Government 1944 taken 26th August 2016.

We go back in time during World War 2! This aircraft is a 1944 McDonell Douglas DC-3 registered PH-PBA former Dutch Government. The aircraft is owned by Dutch Dakota Association from Finland. This classic plane seems to be doing a flight test across Amsterdam or some kinda event I'm not too sure these days their not airworthy.

Cathay Pacific B-KQA Boeing 777-300 new to Cathay Pacific 2012 taken 29th August 2016.

Cathay Pacific is also on my my spotting requests till I saw it before I headed to my flight as B-KQA Boeing 777-300 stands as the gate waiting for a flight to Hong Kong, China. 

WOW Air TF-GPA Airbus A321 new to WOW Air 2016 taken 29th August 2016.

This airline I never seen in person but I seen on the internet. WOW Air is an Icelandic low-cost airliner based from Keflavik, Iceland. This 20126 Airbus A321 TF-GPA was standing at the gate for 25 minutes then taxied out for Keflavick, Iceland.

EL AL 4X-ELA Boeing 747-400 new to El Al 1994 taken 29th August 2016.

El Al as been on my request for so many years & now I finally spot one! normally EL AL sends out Boeing 737-800's to Europe somehow they send out heavy aircraft like my photo of a Boeing 747-400 4X-ELA. According to El Al, they will be retiring their Boeing 747-400's as well as Boeing 767-300ER's as they will be replaced by Boeing 787 Dreamliners in 2020 so try & make the most of 4 years. This was my lucky day.

XiamenAir B-2761 Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner new to XiamenAir 2015 taken 29th August 2016.

And finally a Chinese Airliner I never herd off till today. XiamenAir is a Chinese Airliner based from Xiamen, China & only couple airliners in Europe to fly from Amsterdam to Xiamen, China like XiamenAir and KLM. B-2761 Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner on flight to Xiamen, China I never seen any Chinese airliners before apart Cathay Pacific, China Southern Airlines, Eva Air and Air China.

Now we come to an end of my Amsterdam, The Netherlands trip. Hope to visit again.

Southampton, UK 26th August 2016

It's been 2 years I last visited Southampton, UK after my Dublin, Ireland & Amsterdam, The Netherlands trip. Nothing has changed apart Flybe's mixture of old & new liveries and some new airlines into Southampton so let's take a look some of my aircraft shots.

Long time no see G-JECH. Yes in 8th February 2014 I was on that flight from Dublin, Ireland to Southampton, UK if you want to see my full flight video, click the link of my Flybe G-JECH Full Flight video it was a decent flight back in 2014 I give it an 7/10. 

This is already in my special livery blog I'll mention this one last time, This Flybe special colour of G-FEBM is for Cancer Research UK for Kids & Teens when children suffers from cancer so Flybe supports Cancer Research UK. There are two Flybe special liveries for Embrear 190 one is my latest photo & second is G-FBEJ Welcome to Yorkshire livery.

And of course we have a brand new livery for Bombardier Dash 8 Q400. This aircraft G-PRPA is ex Colgan Air N187WQ operated for Continental Connection from 2008-2010 & then operated for United Express from October 2010 till July 2012 when it was Republic Airlines same registration till it came to Flybe last year. There are few second hand aircraft from Flybe for the Dash 8 you might need to check out some registrations are different.

This one is unknown the reason why I like to share this because I never seen a registration that started with number if it's based in the UK. 2-PLAY landed in Southampton I'm not sure if it's for flying across the Solent region (Portsmouth, Isle of Wight, Fareham, Gosport, Southampton and Bournemouth. Or also checkout out traffic across the motorway in the South Coast. Some of these planes can also be used as Sea Patrol across the English Channel some are controlled by the Coast Guard, Royal Navy and UK Border Force.

And finally we come to my last week flight. I already mentioned this in my last blog. This is not actually a photo, it's a screenshot from my phone for my upcoming Full Flight video when I started boarding my KLM Cityhopper flight PH-EZX. Primary from KLM Cityhopper they send out Fokker F70 however it was Embraer 190. When KLM Cityhopper retires Fokker F70 it will be 100% Embrear's I might of Fokker F70 before retirement.

Airlines in Special Liveries

As we continue from my previous blog about my photo shots of Retro Airline liveries, this time this is special liveries that includes sponsorship's, events and memberships i.e. OneWorld and SkyTeam so let's take a look at my photos.

BEFORE!

9H-AEO Airbus A320-200 seen in Malta taken 29th January 2013.

Fist off I mentioned this a lot on my blogs I'll do one more. This was Air Malta previous livery of 9H-AEO in special livery called Valletta European Capital of Culture 2018 to promote our capital's best culture in 2018 now I heard my country is almost the safest country in the world to travel & live. The livery was first shown off in March 2012 6 months before our airline showed off a brand new livery. I always mentioned why did Air Malta introduced this livery before the new livery was shown. 2 years later...

AFTER!

9H-AEO Airbus A320-200 seen in Malta taken 3rd July 2016.

We have our current livery from Malta still in special colours. In general I love the livery it's not my taste compare to the previous Air Malta livery I'm more into retro or previous look of the livery. The paint of Valletta seems to be a little bit darker than the previous look unless that was my camera picking it up. Overall, it's not bad looking I still like the old livery.

Turkish Airlines TC-JPE Airbus A320-200 new to Turkish Airlines in 2012 seen in Malta taken 7th January 2015.

Next we have Star Alliance livery this is from Turkish Airlines. I think Star Alliance livery is the worst livery I have ever seen because all it is is black tail with a start on it with by Star Alliance test on the fuselage. The reason why I uploaded this, is because in April 25th 2015 this aircraft TC-JPE Airbus A320-200 crashed landed in Istanbul, Turkey when the right wing & engine contacted the runway, go around & the landing gear collapsed now classed as written off so this is a bit of a tribute from the crash. 

British Airways G-DBCD Airbus A319 new to BMI in 2004 seen in Dublin, Ireland taken 8th February 2014.

I never thought I see British Airways in special liveries until I came across G-DBCB Airbus A319 painted in Olympic Dove colours before the London 2012 Olympic Games started. This aircraft was ex BMI. It was an very early, cold & windy morning in Dublin, Republic of Ireland around 8am roughly to London Heathrow, UK  British Airways has roughly 4 Olympic liveries from their Airbus A319's some of their engines repainted back to blue.

American Airlines N714AA Boeing 757-200 new to American Airlines in 2002 seen in Dublin, Ireland taken 7th February 2014.

One of the main request I want in special liveries is OneWorld until out of nowhere I saw American Airlines on final in Dublin, Republic of Ireland with OneWorld livery lucky it's not like Star Alliance. OneWorld livery is mixed between American Airlines full livery with OneWorld text &logo next to the cockpit most airlines have that like British Airways's Boeing 747-400 in different position for example. American Airlines have a couple of fleets in OneWorld livery one is my photo of N174AA a 2002 Boeing 757-200 and one Boeing 777-200ER N791AN in American Airlines new livery. It's lucky I have American Airlines in old livery for now because we don't know the future of their Boeing 757's it might stay in the US for domestic flights if Dublin & Shannon counts as it has US Pre Clarence.

KLM Cityhopper Embraer 190 new to KLM Cityhopper in 2012 seen in Southampton, UK taken  26th August 2016.

And finally we come to my recent flight from last Friday. KLM Cityhopper in SkyTeam livery In my opinion SkyTeam has the best liveries with a purple coloured tail with SkyTeam logo, purple ribbon look at the back of the aircraft, big SkyTeam logo on the fuselage and by the flight deck is shows this aircraft is operating by KLM Cityhopper & a big KLM logo by the first door. When I saw my plane on final approach in Southampton, UK I thought it's Flybe till I zoom my camera that's SkyTeam look. KLM Cityhopper PH-EZX Embraer 190 my previous flight is the only aircraft that has SkyTeam livery and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has two SkyTeam liveries PH-BVD Boeing 777-300 and PH-BXO Boeing 737-900.

If I see nore special liveries in the near future, I will do an update blog.

European Airliners in Retro Livery

This took me a long time to find European Airlines in Retro livery at least I found 4 of them in different years so let's take a look at my photos shots of retro liveries.

Aer Lingus EI-DVM Airbus A320 new to Aer Lingus 2011 seen in Dublin, Republic of Ireland taken 7th February 2014.

Here we go! A blast to the past that I did not exist. This aircraft Aer Lingus EI-DVM Airbus A320-200 brand new to the fleet in 2011 painting in 1960's livery called Aer Lingus-Irish International it was introduced to the new Boeing 720 at the time. This was seen on final runway 28 in Dublin, Republic of Ireland in a very cold & windy afternoon.

Air Malta 9H-AEI Airbus A320 new to Air Malta in 2004. Seen in Malta taken 26th June 2014.

Air Malta our Maltese airline in 1970's livery registered 9H-AEI new to Air Malta in 2004 named Rabat - Citta Vittoria. Air Malta started in 1974 in that livery you see the photo now the fleet started off with Boeing 720 & Boeing 707. The 70's livery was taken down & replace by a new generation of Air Malta in 1990 one of my favorite livery as I mention before until it was replaced again in 2013. 9H-AEI has a history, in 2010 it was out of Air Malta & transferred to Interjet in Mexico ex XA-SOB for 4 years it returned to Air Malta in April 2014 & it was requesting to fans of Air Malta to change to 1974 Air Malta livery marking 40th Anniversary. It was amazing video I saw when it arrived in Malta.

Lufthansa D-AIDV Airbus A321 new to Lufthansa in 2012. Seen in Malta taken January 2013.

This is one of my first airlines I saw in retro livery for a long time. Lufthansa has 1 Airbus A321 D-AIDV in retry livery from 1954 until when the jet liners came to the market from 1960 the Boeing 707 with a new livery. I seen this aircraft many times in Malta until at the time I bought a new camera this was taken at a stormy weather conditions so I decided to take a photo because I might not see it for a long time. I'm, happy to took this photo. 

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines PH-BXA Boeing 737-800 new to KLM in 1999. Seen in Amsterdam, The Netherlands taken 27th August 2016.

And finally let's talking about my recent photo of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. When I went to an event in Amsterdam, The Netherlands I decided to do a bit of spotting in the early evening before I head to the hotel till I came across PH-BXA a 1999 Boeing 737-800 once of KLM's first ever 737 Next Generation in the KLM fleet. This aircraft was fitted with Winglets in November 2007 & then painted in Retro Livery in Christmas 2008 marking KLM's 90th Anniversary. I understand now some older planes with retro livery retires their service before putting to scrap or freight for example Alitalia's EI-IXI Airbus A321 from 1994 painted in retro livery in March 2012 then withdrawn from service in January 2015 & scrapped in October 2015. And British Airways G-CPET Boeing 757-200 from 1998 painted in 1970's livery in October 2010 & then withdrawn 1 month later marking the end of an era of BA's Boeing 757 fleet; the aircraft is now turned intro Freight with FedEx N956FD. I havea feel KLM's PH-BXA is next in the withdraw list so we have to wait & see hope they can last for another 5-10 years. If I do see more retro liveries in the future, I will make an update blog for Europe & worldwide. Next blog is special liveries.