Travel report: ARN-AMS-ARN with SAS, 25 pics

I’ve just returned after having spent two days in Amsterdam for the Zomerfeest at LHS and some aeroplane viewing at Schiphol. A very nice getaway, great weather albeit a bit windy. Here are some impressions from the trip:

Stockholm Arlanda – Amsterdam
Thursday 20 May 2004, dep 15:20, arr 17:20
Scandinavian Airlines SK1555 – Boeing 737-683 LN-RCW

Viewing the former ‘A’ pier at Stockholm-Arlanda, mainly used by SAS and Star Alliance partners – in this case, two 737s and an MD-80 together with a Spanair A320 carrying Alliance livery. Note the mismatching engine cowling on the closest 737! My 737 is the one farthest away.

Taxying to rwy 19R, one passes a Caravelle 10B hulk used for fire practise. It is the former Transwede SE-DEC which slid off the runway during takeoff in January 1987.

SAS uses stands B13 and B15 at Schiphol for most of the time. This pal was pushing back just as we taxied onto the apron – Transavia 737-8K2 PH-HZV. I like their livery!

LN-RCW being unloaded at stand B15, just as another Star Alliance partner is rolling by. In this case, Tyrolean Canadair RJ OE-LCI.

Went straight to my hotel, the Radisson SAS Amsterdam Airport which I chose only for its location. With the Luchtvaart Hobby Shop only a 10min walk away and a window view like this of the airport, wouldn’t you too?

After some great bargains at the shop (paid €160 for goods worth €360!) I took the courtesy bus back to the airport for some good old-fashioned spotting from the superb roof terraces…

Not a lot of people out on Friday as it was very windy, but the terrace is one of the best I’ve visited. Great views and no hassles from anyone!

One nice surprise (to me at least, I know they are common here!) was the attendance of two Northwest DC-10-30s. Haven’t seen a DC-10 in a long time.

Don’t know what this was doing at Amsterdam, Air Finland normally only operates charters from the Nordic countries to the best of my knowledge. Their 757-2K2 OH-AFI is the 717th built.

Traffic was not very busy when I was there, but at least I got to see some planes I don’t see at home.

Being a huge fan of the 737NG series, I keep a lookout for them everywhere. Here is Transavia once again, with 737-7K2 PH-XRX taxying for departure.

A taller brother of the -700, PH-HZD is a 737-8K2…

Back to the widebody world now, with Japan Airlines 747-446 JA8088 coming in to its stand.

KLM still has a lot of planes to repaint in their new livery. 747-406 Combi PH-BFS is one of them.

Another first for me – China Southern‘s 777-21B B-2055. Never seen them in Europe, never seen their 777 before. Great surprise!

Proudly displaying that their 777 is certified for Transpacific ETOPS flight!

NWA (nee Northwest) uses their A330-300s quite a lot to Europe. With Amsterdam being their European hub though, all their biggies can be seen here; A330, DC-10 and 747-400.

This was a bit strange, a repainted 747-400 still carrying the KLM Asia titles. I thought European airlines gave up their “Asia” subsidiaries several years ago as China allowed them in even though they also had routes to Taiwan?

Finally! At last I got to see a 737-900, in this case KLM’s 737-906 PH-BXS. Beautiful bird, almost as long as a 707-120 was/is…but much slimmer.

Strangely enough I didn’t see as much of Martinair as I had expected. Their cargo terminal had three freighters in attendance though; an MD-11F, a 747-200F and a 747-300F, seen here on Saturday morning as I waited for my flight back to Stockholm.

Just a few minutes before boarding, I discovered another gem! Saudi Aramco DC-8-72 N728A just stood there, unfortunately in the distance but at least I got a photo of it…

Amsterdam – Stockholm Arlanda
Saturday 22 May 2004, dep 10:00, arr 11:55
Scandinavian Airlines SK556 – Boeing 737-683 LN-RPB

So, time to go home. Again at gate B15, another 737 will fly north.

If you’re lucky, the runway in use for takeoff is the new 36L…which means a 20 min taxi into the countryside. This doesn’t look like it’s in the vicinity of one of Europe’s largest airports, does it?

Cruising over Denmark, I tried to take a stylish photo like a pro. But the windows were dirty and I’m an amateur, so…

…and after 1h 45min in the air, a familiar sight comes up on the left hand side. This is Stockholm-Arlanda Airport, with runway 01L and 01R clearly visible. Our runway was 26, though (just north of 01R), so we went round the airport from the south, descending through some interesting turbulence, and landed on schedule. And a nice two-day vacation had come to an end!

Hope you enjoyed this photo report – at least I enjoyed snapping away. As I work with the airline in question I shouldn’t be trusted to give an unbiased opinion of its services, etc, but I can honestly say I was surprised by the cheerfulness of the crew (especially on the way home). Food consisted of a sandwich, a piece of chocolate, soft drink and alcohol if desired. All in all, spirits are up again after the toughest times are over in SAS and whether I want to or not, I’ll be flying this airline again! 😉