John Travolta gifts his 707-138 to HARS
SkyGod
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. Some bus drivers have four bars. Some ships captains have four bars. JT with his own fleet, he can wear what he wants to.
On the pictures however he appears to sport a Qantas Captain's uniform, flying a vintage Qantas aeroplane with the text saying he is fully qualified, blah, blah.
A guess a small correction on qualifications have struck a raw nerve with the Aussies. Sorry about that mate.
Last edited by TowerDog; 30th May 2017 at 20:42.
So how about a bit of more positive comment? Who still remembers working on QF B707-138 aircraft? (I never did.) I reckon HARS needs to hear from those who have the time, resources and motivation to travel to the USA to bring this one home.
SkyGod
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Id rather a batman costume than the white hat
Nananananananachecked.
Nananananananachecked.
He is fully qualified isn't he? To fly his B707 on private ops. As for the Qantas uniform, I suspect that would be because he is an ambassador for Qantas and some PR person thought it would look good.
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I guess if I put up a story about John "Cat's Eyes" Cunningham, long tine Chief Test Pilot of DeHavillands (think Comet and Trident) some miserable and narrow minded sod here would say: "He wasn't a real pilot, he only had a PPL".
Which was the only full civil license he ever had.
Which was the only full civil license he ever had.
--- retired airline pilots still using the term "Captain" when they are no longer flying. Both are equally irrelevant.
However, it is still used with varying degrees of politeness in the Middle East and Asia.
A famous Marine over at Delta 25 years ago had the initials of W.O.W. and insisted that his 727 crew members address him as 'Captain WOW'.
One of my friends used to fly with JT on the Gulfstream 2 in the early 1990's when he was at Spruce Creek near Daytona and speaks highly of him. I think the G-2 had a charter operation which Travolta could not fly with so there were two sets of paychecks to keep the feds happy.
JT donated the G-2, N492JT, to the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame in Warner Robins.
PRESS RELEASE
John Travolta’s Boeing 707 Aircraft
It gives me great pleasure to make this exciting historical announcement that my beloved Boeing 707 aircraft has been donated to the Historical Aircraft Restoration society (HARS) based in the town of Albion Park, approximately 90 miles (140 km) south of the city of Sydney in Australia.
As many of you will know, flying is a passion of mine and I am just so grateful to be fortunate enough to count many hours flying such a beautiful aircraft.
The aircraft was originally delivered to Qantas Airways in 1964 and was converted for private use after it finished its life with “The Flying Kangaroo”.
I was honoured to have the 707 repainted in the original Qantas colours when I became the ambassador for the airline, and it’s so fitting that many of the volunteers at HARS are retired Qantas employees.
The aircraft currently requires a lot of work to be restored to a safe flying state and having seen first hand the dedication and passion of people at HARS, I have no doubt this beautiful and historical aircraft will be flying again.
HARS have an impressive track record of restoring historical aircraft and I have personally flown in a Super Constellation that they restored to flying condition from almost nothing.
I am hoping to be part of the crew to fly the aircraft to Australia, supported by well qualified and experienced pilots and engineers.
In making this announcement, I would like to mention the significant support given by the Bendigo Bank Oak Flats and Shellharbour Community Bank Branches who as a local organization, have been very supportive of HARS’ efforts in aircraft restoration.
Thanks must also go to QBE Insurance (Australia) Limited Services for their significant support as well.
I am truly excited by this project and am just so pleased that this beautiful aircraft, for which I obviously have very fond memories, will continue to fly well into the future.
Thank you
For further information, please contact:-
Captain John Dennis
HARS Project Manager 707 Restoration
This is the guy who gave him the B747 400 endorsement .
John Travolta’s Boeing 707 Aircraft
It gives me great pleasure to make this exciting historical announcement that my beloved Boeing 707 aircraft has been donated to the Historical Aircraft Restoration society (HARS) based in the town of Albion Park, approximately 90 miles (140 km) south of the city of Sydney in Australia.
As many of you will know, flying is a passion of mine and I am just so grateful to be fortunate enough to count many hours flying such a beautiful aircraft.
The aircraft was originally delivered to Qantas Airways in 1964 and was converted for private use after it finished its life with “The Flying Kangaroo”.
I was honoured to have the 707 repainted in the original Qantas colours when I became the ambassador for the airline, and it’s so fitting that many of the volunteers at HARS are retired Qantas employees.
The aircraft currently requires a lot of work to be restored to a safe flying state and having seen first hand the dedication and passion of people at HARS, I have no doubt this beautiful and historical aircraft will be flying again.
HARS have an impressive track record of restoring historical aircraft and I have personally flown in a Super Constellation that they restored to flying condition from almost nothing.
I am hoping to be part of the crew to fly the aircraft to Australia, supported by well qualified and experienced pilots and engineers.
In making this announcement, I would like to mention the significant support given by the Bendigo Bank Oak Flats and Shellharbour Community Bank Branches who as a local organization, have been very supportive of HARS’ efforts in aircraft restoration.
Thanks must also go to QBE Insurance (Australia) Limited Services for their significant support as well.
I am truly excited by this project and am just so pleased that this beautiful aircraft, for which I obviously have very fond memories, will continue to fly well into the future.
Thank you
For further information, please contact:-
Captain John Dennis
HARS Project Manager 707 Restoration
This is the guy who gave him the B747 400 endorsement .
Folks,
In my experience the title "Captain" is quite formal and a required form of address by all other airline company staff, when addressing the "pilot in command", particularly when customers are present ---- all about PR.
Indeed, in one pommie mob I worked for in B707 days, it was even full uniform and "Captain" even in the simulator. At one stage, with this mob, the Director of Flight Operations, appearing as a witness in an Employee Appeals Tribunal, advised the court his name was CAPTAIN David XXXXX, the retort from the bench was: "Why is the holder of a Queen's Commission working as a civilian --- or is yous name David XXXXX??". That even made the local newspaper, but he was too thick skinned to be embarrassed.
At another mob, I recall a brand new Captain, on his first trip, introducing himself, telling us that relaxed informality was the order of the day, Christian name on the flight deck, and his Christian names were "Captain" or "Sir", our choice --- he was ex-RAN and not joking.
For my money, if you were/are dependent on titles and/or uniforms for authority, you had/have already lost the game.
Tootle pip!!
In my experience the title "Captain" is quite formal and a required form of address by all other airline company staff, when addressing the "pilot in command", particularly when customers are present ---- all about PR.
Indeed, in one pommie mob I worked for in B707 days, it was even full uniform and "Captain" even in the simulator. At one stage, with this mob, the Director of Flight Operations, appearing as a witness in an Employee Appeals Tribunal, advised the court his name was CAPTAIN David XXXXX, the retort from the bench was: "Why is the holder of a Queen's Commission working as a civilian --- or is yous name David XXXXX??". That even made the local newspaper, but he was too thick skinned to be embarrassed.
At another mob, I recall a brand new Captain, on his first trip, introducing himself, telling us that relaxed informality was the order of the day, Christian name on the flight deck, and his Christian names were "Captain" or "Sir", our choice --- he was ex-RAN and not joking.
For my money, if you were/are dependent on titles and/or uniforms for authority, you had/have already lost the game.
Tootle pip!!
Last edited by LeadSled; 31st May 2017 at 07:31.
Captain Captain is an odd name indeed
Well and accurately stated, Sir !! :-)))
my fat fingers made a typo.
It would be a fine gesture if HARS invited every man and woman, they could locate , who crewed the seven-oh with Qantas, to a function welcoming the new arrival.
Ten years ago I went to the war vets at Narrabeen to see Ron Roberts (retired off 747s in '79.) He was for many years with check and training at Avalon on the 707. The visit was part of an oral history project. Ron spoke for 90 minutes onto the tape about his RAAF wartime on Cats. With Qantas on Sandringhams and then lastly the routine of a weekly commuter from Sydney to Avalon in the 707 days. He was particularly amusing talking about being checked on the Sandringham by John Solly.
Danny Kaye did not like single engine aircraft so learnt to fly in a twin. Went solo after 10:25. I do not know the type but know he owned an Aztec. Ended up with a reasonable number of Lear hours.
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. . .. the merest quibble .. . . (forensically speaking , in a sense) . .. if you say you spelt Qantas, Quantas, due to the width of your finger tip(s) then you either have a non-standard key board or you are being a "little economic with the truth."
Fat fingers is analogy for spelling something wrong.
I bow my head in shame and trust you are never wrong Sir Superior.
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I was flying once on a company-issued ticket that had me down as Captain Chuks when someone spotted that ... and asked me if I was perhaps in the Army.
Great for the ego, being taken for a guy in his mid-fifties who has never got beyond O-3! I just laughed and said that, no, I was a professional pilot on a company ticket, that was all.
In my opinion it's one thing to don a costume and act in a movie. It's understood then that John Travolta never killed anyone, even though we've seen him do that. To be there in a real aircraft; wearing a real Captain's uniform; being taken by many for being "fully qualified" even though you can read "B707 SIC PRIVILEGES ONLY" right there on the FAA page ... that is taking dressing up and playing Captain a bit too far.
I have had people tell me in great detail about how Travolta has an ATPL and a CFI and an FE, and, and, and ... when I suspect that Travolta's publicist is happy to see that happen. Travolta himself has never bothered to correct any mistakes about his qualifications, and that suggests that he's happy to use aviation for publicity purposes.
I remember once catching a bit of an Oprah broadcast where she told her select audience that they were all to be flown to Oz in an A380 piloted by John Travolta himself, so what about that? There was no need for that "APPLAUSE" sign that time, I can tell you. Travolta must have been on the jump seat saying "Oz is that way, Boys, so give her the berries!" Piloting ... without ever touching the controls, one assumes.
Great for the ego, being taken for a guy in his mid-fifties who has never got beyond O-3! I just laughed and said that, no, I was a professional pilot on a company ticket, that was all.
In my opinion it's one thing to don a costume and act in a movie. It's understood then that John Travolta never killed anyone, even though we've seen him do that. To be there in a real aircraft; wearing a real Captain's uniform; being taken by many for being "fully qualified" even though you can read "B707 SIC PRIVILEGES ONLY" right there on the FAA page ... that is taking dressing up and playing Captain a bit too far.
I have had people tell me in great detail about how Travolta has an ATPL and a CFI and an FE, and, and, and ... when I suspect that Travolta's publicist is happy to see that happen. Travolta himself has never bothered to correct any mistakes about his qualifications, and that suggests that he's happy to use aviation for publicity purposes.
I remember once catching a bit of an Oprah broadcast where she told her select audience that they were all to be flown to Oz in an A380 piloted by John Travolta himself, so what about that? There was no need for that "APPLAUSE" sign that time, I can tell you. Travolta must have been on the jump seat saying "Oz is that way, Boys, so give her the berries!" Piloting ... without ever touching the controls, one assumes.
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I found this history of the JT 707 in a blog post from several years ago:
John Travolta's Boeing 707 at Flightstory.net - Aviation Blog
Another chronology with other details and some wonderful pictures of the plane here:
VH-EBM Boeing 707-138B
After writing my last blog post about John Travolta’s 707, I became interested in the history of this classic airliner.
So, here it is. Ladys & Gentlemen fasten your seatbelts, the history of the John Travolta Boeing 707.
His 707-138B was built in 1964, constructed at Boeing Seattle and has Boeing Construction Number 18740 Line 388.
1964 John Travolta was 10 years old. Travolta first became enamored of aviation as a child. He observed the flight paths of the nearest airports, read books on aviation, and took special interest in Constellations, DC-6s and DC-7s. Attesting to his early charisma, he persuaded the girls in his neighborhood to don their Brownie uniforms to play flight attendants as he “captained” his backyard airliner.
On September 10, 1964 first owner became Qantas. It’s registration number became VH-EBM “City of Launceston”.
It was primary used for routes from Sydney to Asia and North/South America.
Since November 1, 1968 it was withdrawn from use and stored engineless at Sydney Airport. The same year in June it was already cancelled from the Australian Aircraft Register.
On June 7, 1969 new owner became Braniff International Airways. It’s registration number changed to N108BN.
From February 24, 1972 till 1975 it was owned by Frank Sinatra.
During this time, on October 20, 1973, it was again withdrawn from use and stored.
In June 1975 it was sold to Boeing.
In September 1975 it was again sold, this time to Kirk Kerkorian / Tracy Investments Corp (Tracinda / TIC).
Since September 26, 1977 it was owned by TAG Aviation, a holding company based in Luxembourg.
During this time it was also leased to Saudi Arabian Sheikh Akram, for short time.
On August 25, 1981 the 707 was again withdrawn from use, stored at Newark and ferried to Le Bourget for further storage in August 1983.
In December 1983 our 707 returned to service.
In November 1987 it has been sold to Trans Oceanic Aviation.
1988 - 1989 it was out of service again. During this time VIP interior was installed and it was modified with hush kits which converted it to a 707-138B(Q).
In July 1990, with a changed registration number to N707XX it returned to service.
In 1995 the ownage changed again to “Aviation Methods” and was ferried to Istanbul for storage on 29 October 1995.
In September 1996, with only 27,682 of total flying hours, it was offered for sale.
On May 20, 1998 it was finally registered to Jet Clipper Johnny LLC (John Travolta), sold on May 25, and changed registration on December 13, 1998 to N707JT “707 Jett Clipper Ella”. Named after his children “Jett” and “Ella”, Clipper in homage to legendary airline Pan Am, which used/uses “Clipper” in all their aircraft names.
In June 2002, the 707 finally returned home to Qantas, since Travolta participated in the Qantas “Spirit of Friendship” tour, because it was always his dream to be involved with a major airline in some way. He was piloting his own Boeing 707 on a thirteen city, 35,000 mile tour. He continues as Ambassador-at-Large for the Australia based Qantas Airways. For this campaign the plane was repainted in full classical Qantas “V-Jet” livery. The same livery that was used for the 707’s first flights, back in the old days.
John Travolta is a pilot with a life long passion for aviation. Since earning his wings in 1974, he has logged close to an astounding 5,000 flying hours. Literally every cent of his first paychecks went to flying lessons. He achieved qualification as a captain in the Gulfstream II, Learjet 24, Hawker 1A, Citation 1 and 2, Tebuan and Vampire Jet. He owns the type rating for the Boeing 707 and is certified for SIC privileges (Second In Command). Travolta keeps his skill up-to-date through continual refresher courses, training at American Airlines, SimuFlite and others.
So, here it is. Ladys & Gentlemen fasten your seatbelts, the history of the John Travolta Boeing 707.
His 707-138B was built in 1964, constructed at Boeing Seattle and has Boeing Construction Number 18740 Line 388.
1964 John Travolta was 10 years old. Travolta first became enamored of aviation as a child. He observed the flight paths of the nearest airports, read books on aviation, and took special interest in Constellations, DC-6s and DC-7s. Attesting to his early charisma, he persuaded the girls in his neighborhood to don their Brownie uniforms to play flight attendants as he “captained” his backyard airliner.
On September 10, 1964 first owner became Qantas. It’s registration number became VH-EBM “City of Launceston”.
It was primary used for routes from Sydney to Asia and North/South America.
Since November 1, 1968 it was withdrawn from use and stored engineless at Sydney Airport. The same year in June it was already cancelled from the Australian Aircraft Register.
On June 7, 1969 new owner became Braniff International Airways. It’s registration number changed to N108BN.
From February 24, 1972 till 1975 it was owned by Frank Sinatra.
During this time, on October 20, 1973, it was again withdrawn from use and stored.
In June 1975 it was sold to Boeing.
In September 1975 it was again sold, this time to Kirk Kerkorian / Tracy Investments Corp (Tracinda / TIC).
Since September 26, 1977 it was owned by TAG Aviation, a holding company based in Luxembourg.
During this time it was also leased to Saudi Arabian Sheikh Akram, for short time.
On August 25, 1981 the 707 was again withdrawn from use, stored at Newark and ferried to Le Bourget for further storage in August 1983.
In December 1983 our 707 returned to service.
In November 1987 it has been sold to Trans Oceanic Aviation.
1988 - 1989 it was out of service again. During this time VIP interior was installed and it was modified with hush kits which converted it to a 707-138B(Q).
In July 1990, with a changed registration number to N707XX it returned to service.
In 1995 the ownage changed again to “Aviation Methods” and was ferried to Istanbul for storage on 29 October 1995.
In September 1996, with only 27,682 of total flying hours, it was offered for sale.
On May 20, 1998 it was finally registered to Jet Clipper Johnny LLC (John Travolta), sold on May 25, and changed registration on December 13, 1998 to N707JT “707 Jett Clipper Ella”. Named after his children “Jett” and “Ella”, Clipper in homage to legendary airline Pan Am, which used/uses “Clipper” in all their aircraft names.
In June 2002, the 707 finally returned home to Qantas, since Travolta participated in the Qantas “Spirit of Friendship” tour, because it was always his dream to be involved with a major airline in some way. He was piloting his own Boeing 707 on a thirteen city, 35,000 mile tour. He continues as Ambassador-at-Large for the Australia based Qantas Airways. For this campaign the plane was repainted in full classical Qantas “V-Jet” livery. The same livery that was used for the 707’s first flights, back in the old days.
John Travolta is a pilot with a life long passion for aviation. Since earning his wings in 1974, he has logged close to an astounding 5,000 flying hours. Literally every cent of his first paychecks went to flying lessons. He achieved qualification as a captain in the Gulfstream II, Learjet 24, Hawker 1A, Citation 1 and 2, Tebuan and Vampire Jet. He owns the type rating for the Boeing 707 and is certified for SIC privileges (Second In Command). Travolta keeps his skill up-to-date through continual refresher courses, training at American Airlines, SimuFlite and others.
Another chronology with other details and some wonderful pictures of the plane here:
VH-EBM Boeing 707-138B
Interesting that back then, Qantas would operate a new aircraft for as little as 4 years and then retire it?
Why did they operate the 707's for so little time?
morno
Why did they operate the 707's for so little time?
morno
