Telstar Logistics

Drive-Thru: Bad Wagons, Good Airplane Bars, Star Wars Grilled Cheese, and a Mountain of Dead Streetcars

Here's a round-up of a few recent items that caught the fancy of the Telstar Logistics executive team:

The Worst Station Wagons Ever Produced (Hooniverse)

Five Airport Bars Made from Actual Airplanes (Jaunted)

Adventures in the Abandoned Ships of Suisun Bay (Bearings)

The Grillennium Falcon is a Star Wars-Themed Food Truck in Alabama (Eater)

A Mountain of Dead Streetcars in Los Angeles, 1956 (Los Angeles Times)

1979 Chevy Impala + Pabst Blue Ribbon = Battering Ram Music Video! (Jalopnik)

A Mariner's Guide to Waves (gCaptain)

Thunderbirds Meets 2001 in the Skylon Spaceplane Render Animation (YouTube)

 

Fly From San Francisco to Paris in Two Minutes

YouTube user nbolt produced a sweet little time-lapse video that compresses an Air France flight from SFO to CDG into just two minutes -- including a special cameo appearance by an aurora borealis. 

I shot a photo roughly every two miles between take-off in San Francisco and landing in Paris CDG to make this airplane time lapse.

It's fantastic. Enjoy! 

Hat Tip: John Scannell

Ferrari World: Inside Abu Dhabi's Absurdist Automotive Theme Park

Autombiles, architecture, and patent absurdity. Talk about Telstar Logistics-bait...

Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi bills itself as the world's largest indoor theme park. Dedicated to the worship and reproduction of all things Ferrari, the park officially opened last month. If you're inclined to go, the Wikipedia says these attractions will be there to amuse you:

Jack Rouse Associates, a Cincinnati based visitor experience design firm, is responsible for the design of most of the park's 20 rides[1][14]. On July 20, 2010 Ferrari World announced the names of all of the opening day attractions:

Bell'Italia (English: Beautiful Italy) - an exhibit showcasing recreations of famous Italian cityscapes, structures and racing venues. Guests can choose to drive a Ferrari 250 California Spyder throughout the exhibit or walk the 570-metre (1,870 ft) network of paths.
Carousel - Ferrari’s version of the traditional carousel featuring prototype cars.
Cinema Maranello - a theatre showcasing a film which takes guests back to the 1920's.
Driving with Champions - is an interactive 3-D show which follows the life of a Ferrari engineer
Fiorano GT Challenge  - a dual launched roller coaster manufactured by Maurer Söhne
Formula Rossa - a hydraulically-launched roller coaster manufactured by the Swiss coaster design firm Intamin AG. It is currently the world's fastest roller coaster reaching a top speed of 240 kilometres per hour (150 mph)
Galleria Ferrari - the world's largest Ferrari gallery outside Maranello.
G-Force - a spaceshot tower which launches riders over 62 m (203 ft) up and out of the building.
Junior Grand Prix - a racing school for budding Scuderia drivers who can driver child-sized Ferrari F1 racers
Junior GT - a driving school for children. Guests receive a training session before jumping in their own child-sized F430 GT Spider to navigate a network of streets
Junior Training Camp - a soft play area where children can paddle their own miniature Ferrari and play with a foam model of an F1 car
Made in Maranello - a virtual tour inside the Ferrari factory in Maranello giving guests a glimpse into the design, assembly and testing of a Ferrari GT
Paddock - a realistic recreation of the Ferrari team's set up at European F1 races
The Pit Wall - an interactive theatre which allows guests to call the shots on how a virtual driver is to race
Racing Legends - a journey showcasing significant moments in Ferrari racing history
Scuderia Challenge - a set of state-of-the-art racing simulators featuring authentic Ferrari F1 steering wheels and seats
Speed of Magic - A fantasy 4-D journey following the adventures of a boy as he travels through a kaleidoscape of natural and phenominal environments, where no Ferrari has gone before
V12 - a flume ride through the heart of a Ferrari 599 engine
Viaggio in Italia - a recreation of an aerial voyage over Italy

Images: Ferrari World on Flickr

How To Repaint a Boeing 777 in Under Three Minutes

This nifty time-lapse video shows the first United Airlines Boeing 777 (N222UA) being repainted in the airline's new combined United/Contintental livery.

Kindly refrain from huffing the fumes.

PHOTO: N222UA departing LAX, by Peter Spence

THANKS: @adamfritzler

A Virtual Ride on the Trans-Siberian Railway (with the Soundtrack of Your Choice)

Have you ever fantasized about taking a trip on the Trans-Siberian Railway? The longest railway line in the world, the Tran-Siberian crosses Russia in an 8-day, 5,753-mile journey that extends from Moscow to Vladivostock at the Sea of Japan.

It sounds romantic.

Kind of.

On the one hand, a ride on the Trans-Siberian would afford several relaxing days with nothing much to do but read, gaze out the window at the Russian countryside, and listen to the clickety-clack of the wheels rolling along the tracks.  On the other hand, no showers. Also, the trip entails travel in Russia which -- let's be honest here -- is not known as the most efficient or friendly place to explore.

So why not try before you buy?

Google and Russian Railways have partnered to create a site that offers a virtual ride on selected legs of the Trans-Siberian, including extensive videos that show the view from the train's window. For added authenticity, you can also select your preferred soundtrack, from that clickety-clack of the wheels on the rails, to a feed of Russian radio, to an audiobook version of Tolstoy's "War and Peace/" (Read in Russian. Seriously!)

Have a pleasant journey!

 

Construction Report: A Sneak Peek Inside SFO's New Airport Terminal

Late last week, Telstar Logistics was invited to explore the new Terminal 2 at San Francisco International AIrport, a structure that will soon serve as the local base for Virgin America and American Airlines.

Construction of Terminal 2 is proceeding apace, and the building is expected to open in April 2011. From what we saw, it should be a very nice place to take to the skies. Designed by the Gensler architectural firm, the new Terminal 2 has registered to achieve LEED Gold certification for its high energy efficiency and low environmental imact.

In no small part, that sterling green rating comes from the fact that Terminal 2 recycles a pre-existing building that is actually the oldest terminal at SFO.

First opened in 1954, the Central Terminal (as Terminal 2 was called then) was a giant leap forward in SFO's evolution as a modern airport, as it replaced a quaint but inadequate terminal from the 1930s. Here's how the Central Terminal looked when it was new:

During the 1980s and 1990s, Terminal 2 served as the departure and arrival point for SFO's international flights. But with the opening of the airport's new International Terminal in 2000, Terminal 2 was shuttered for almost a decade. Now it is set to reopen, and we got a preview of what's to come. 

For Sale on Ebay: A Japan Airlines Jacket That Maybe Possibly Perhaps Was Worn by The Beatles in 1966

This is a rare instance where Beatlemania crosses paths with the secret world of the airline collectibles subculture.

On eBay right now, a seller is offering a JAL happi jacket that was supposedly worn by the Beatles en route to Tokyo for their 1966 Japan tour. The inside of the jacket may have been signed by Ringo Starr.

The seller's item description says:

I Obtained this item many years ago from a photographer In The Hamptons. He was terminally Ill and gave it to me because he knew I loved the Beatles.

The story he told me was that in 1966 he was a photographer assigned to photograph the Beatles, and was on the Plane to Japan for the 1966 Concert.

He said the jacket came from the Beatles directly to him, and in his closet it sat.

It wasn't until a few years ago I noticed the Ringo Signatures, as they were INSIDE in 2 places, and I never noticed them when he originally gave them to me.

It had been presented to me neatly in a box.

I do not know if the signatures are real - You decide, or I am sure some ebay Beatles Expert Will tell me.

And the price? The bidding starts at $15,000. Caveat emptor.

Visualize and Drive: Musings on the Design of In-Vehicle GPS Mapping Systems

Telstar Logistics Senior Automotive Analyst Phil Patton has written an illuminating article about the visual design of in-car GPS navigation displays.

The visual systems used by different manufacturers differ widely, of course, which creates interesting  tensions between issues of visual appeal, useablity, safety, and vehicle brand-consistency. Patton mines that tension with his typical intelligence:

That danger created by the conflicting worlds of map and reality has increased, thanks to the very attractiveness and style of the improved screens. The problem lies in the possibility that, as Tom Vanderbilt put it in a recent piece in Slate, “drivers, lulled by the richness of the visuals, might begin to focus excessively on this detailed, unscrolling world to the exclusion of other events.”

The world seen on the screen risks becoming more attractive than the one seen out the windshield, but then that is the threat posed by all media if abused. “You can make the same argument about any technology,” says [neuroscientist Coliin] Ellard. “Television can be educational but it’s not good to watch it 16 hours a day.” TV brings us more sports to watch than ever -- and reduces the time we put into real sports. Audio guides in museums can distract from seeing the art before us. Our lives are full of technology like this. Navigational guides may be the same way. We build clever model worlds to help us figure our way in the real world, then we forget the difference between the two.

IMAGES: From top, nav systems by BMW, ???, and Cadillac. Photos by Phil Patton

Report Shows How and Why the Qantas A380 Engine Failure Almost Ended in Disaster

After sifting through Airbus's presentation to accident investigators, Ben Sandilands of Plane Talking has compiled a superb summary of damage caused recently when a Qantas A380 suffered an uncontained engine failure -- an incident which resulted in significant damage to the aircraft's wing, and which could have easily ended in tragedy for the 466 people who were aboard the stricken plane.

Sandilands says that A380 engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce was aware of the problem well in advance of the Qantas incident. Yet as a result of maintenance contracts that also designated Rolls-Royce as the primary service provider for the engines, the engine-maker felt little urgency in performing the modifications that might have prevented this:

Sandilands writes:

Reviewing these images makes it clear why Qantas was quick, and correct, in grounding its A380 fleet.

The wing  of the jet shows remarkable structural strength in sustaining damage that might have destroyed the airliners of earlier decades, but the questions as to whether control system revisions are necessary to deal with some of the consequences in terms of failed hydraulics and fuel imbalance are said to be very actively under consideration.

And the questions concerning the timeliness of the Rolls-Royce responses to a known problem, and its capacity and willingness to share them with the airlines concerned will not go away. If the engine maker doesn’t address them its customers will.

Indeed. The entire post is a sobering read.

IMAGES: Top, AP. Report photos via Plane Talk

Life Without Logistics: Data-Visualizing the Most Remote Places On Earth

If you had to travel only by land or on water, what are the hardest places on Earth to reach? By correlating ground travel times with population density, the map above highlights the planet's most logistically remote locations. (Darker = More remote.)

The map was created by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre and the World Bank:

The maps are based on a model which calculated how long it would take to travel to the nearest city of 50,000 or more people by land or water. The model combines information on terrain and access to road, rail and river networks. It also considers how factors such as altitude, steepness of terrain and hold-ups like border crossings slow travel.

Globally, less than 10 percent of the world's land is more than 48 hours overland from the nearest city. Then what's the most remote place on Earth? That honor belongs to the Tibetan plateau, where it's a three-week journey to reach the cities of Lhasa or Korla (and most of the traveling must be done on foot). Here's a fiery and fabulous closeup:

(New Scientist via our maritime mates at gCaptain.)

 

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Traveling to New Zealand on a Container Ship

Telstar Logistics recently received electronic mail from Mr. Justin Watt informing us that he was traveling with his girlfriend Stephanie as a passenger aboard the Cap Cleveland, a container ship making the passage between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New Zealand.

Phillly and NZ are not in any way close together, so Justin and Stephanie's journey took a month. Along the way, the two updated their Internet weblogs with tales of nautical experience — which had the effect of making us feel very, very jealous.

Justin explains why and how he booked the trip. (Executive Summary: "Why not?!") We learn about basic architecture of the ship, how to steer it, the itinerary of a typical day, what's up in the engine room, delicious onboard barbeque parties with the crew, Abandon Ship drills, and much much more.

Here's Justin, enjoying his morning coffee in a rather civilized fashion:

And here's a photo Justin took while passing through the Panama Canal:

Stephanie wrote a must-read Container Ship Passenger FAQ that explains both the basic mechanics and spiritual logic of their voyage:

6. What are amenities like?
Our cabin has a double bed, a couch, a coffee table, TV, DVD player, our own bathroom with toilet, shower and sink, a small fridge, a desk and a closet. It’s actually quite spacious.

7. What will you eat? Do you have to bring your own food?
We have a cook! Well, the crew’s cook, but we’re eating in the officers mess. The food is actually not bad at all. It’s not gourmet but it’s well balanced (each meal has some type of meat, some type of vegetable, some type of starch and fruit). They even have Nutella on the table! If anything, the portions are too big, so most of the time, Justin and I split a meal… we figured that out after stuffing ourselves a couple of times.

We did however bring few comfort foods and drinks, like nuts, pretzels, cheese, dried fruit, some beer and wine. On that topic, we can buy beer and wine on the ship at a reasonable price in case we run out.

8. What will you do with all that time?
Well, a whole lot of nothing. When do you ever have time to just hang out, let your mind wander for any length of time, nap as many times as you want, meditate. But that would get old, so we brought plenty of books, our computers, painting supplies and yarn for some crochet projects.

Justin and Stephanie are back on dry land, but wannabe container ship travelers (like -- ahem! -- us) will enjoy going back to reread their blog archives from September and October 2010 to learn everything you ever wanted to know about traveling to New Zealand on a container ship.

LINKS:

Justinsomnia (Justin's blog): September 2010, October 2010

La Vie Soleil (Stephanie's blog): September 2010, October 2010

Images: Justin Watt

Virgin Galactic's VSS Enterprise Spacecraft Completes Maiden Glide Test

Virgin Galactic's VSS Enterprise, the world's first commercial passenger spacecraft, felt the wind under its wings for the first time today as the spacecraft completed its maiden glide test.

From the Virgin Galactic press release:

Virgin Galactic, the US company developing the world’s first commercial manned space flight system and tourism business, is delighted to announce the successful completion today of the first piloted free flight of SpaceShipTwo, named the VSS Enterprise. The spaceship was released from its mothership at an altitude of 45,000 ft (13,700 metres).

During its first flight the spaceship was piloted by Pete Siebold, assisted by Mike Alsbury as co-pilot. The two main goals of the flight were to carry out a clean release of the spaceship from its mothership and for the pilots to free fly and glide back and land at Mojave Air and Space Port in California.

Other detailed objectives of the flight were successfully completed, including; verification that all systems worked prior and following the clean release of Enterprise; initial evaluation of handling and stall characteristics; qualitative evaluation of stability and control of SS2 against predictions from design and simulation work; verification of performance by evaluating the lift-to-drag ratio of the spaceship during glide flight; practice a landing approach at altitude and finally descend and land.

And hot from the edit booth, here's the video:

Extra Bonus! More photos of today's flight, and the spacecraft itself, on Virgin Galactic's Flickr site.

Tip of the space visor: BoingBoing

Images: Virgin Galactic

Video: Dancing Flight Attendants on Cebu Pacific Airlines Do Lady Gaga Safety Demonstration

The pre-flight safety video from Virgin America is clever, but this Lady Gaga-fueled safety presentation on Cebu Pacific Airlines does a far better job of, uh, capturing your attention. Go ahead... just try to keep reading your magazine:

Even better, it's not a hoax! The Daily Mail reports:

Candice Iyog, vice President of Marketing at Cebu Pacific Airlines, told GMANewsTV: 'Cebu Pacific has always been known as a fun airline, we wanted to get the message across to our customers that flight safety doesn't have to be boring.

'This was an experiment that we hope to repeat and also a chance to showcase the talent of some of our cabin crew staff.' She said that the airline had hired professional choreographers to compose the steps. 'We knew that the performances would be well received, but we didn't expect them to be this popular,' she added.

But just in case they were criticised for not taking safety seriously, the cabin crew preformed a normal safety demonstration before take-off.

 

Boeing Plans to Build a Spaceship for Tourists

Air and Space magazine has the story about Boeing's plan to move ahead with its seven-seat Crew Space Transportation-100 (CST-100) capsule, which may be used to carry space tourists to destinations such as the planned Bigelow Space Hotel.

Air and Space writes:

The new spacecraft, scheduled to be operational by 2015, is designed to be used not only by NASA astronauts but by any other potential customers Space Adventures can line up for a trip to the ISS. That includes individuals, companies, and other U.S. government agencies. No price per seat has been set, but the cost will be “competitive” with the $40 million Russia charged last year for a Soyuz ride, Boeing and Space Adventures officials said September 15 at Boeing’s offices in Arlington, Virginia.

Here's the promo video from Boeing that presents all phases of a CST-100 flight, complete with an appropriately pornophonic soundtrack:

IMAGES: Boeing

Via BoingBoing

Full Moon at the Proud Bird Restaurant

The Proud Bird Restaurant in Los Angeles is not likely to earn any gold stars in the Michelin Guide anytime soon, but for a certain kind of aviation aficionado, it may be one of the best restaurants in the world.

Located on patch of flat land just a few hundred yards east of Runway 25L at LAX, the Proud Bird offers a full bar, country club-style cuisine, and awesome views of planes decending toward the runway on final approach. The big jets plunge past the restaurant's massive wall of windows so low and so close they could practically stir your cocktail.

As an added bonus, the Proud Bird also has an impressive collection of vintage warbirds on the grounds. Most are from the World War II era, some are jets, but most all, apparently are hollow fiberglass replicas. No matter, though; They're 1:1 full-size replicas, and very well executed, so only the most ardent airplane geek is likely to care.

We sure didn't.

Telstar Logistics stumbled upon the Proud Bird while heading back to our room at the glamorous Travelodge at LAX Airport during a recent business trip. It was late in the evening, and the Proud Bird was preparing to shut down for the night, so we went on a self-guided tour of the grounds. The evening was warm, the air was still, and a full moon bathed the collection of old airplanes in a spooky yellow light.

Lots more of our photos from that enchanted exploration at our Proud Bird Photoset.

TIP: If you decide to try something other than the aviation fare at the Proud Bird, our sources tell us the "garlic bread next to the pasta and roast beef section is BOMB!" and that the kitchen prepares "the best pasta EVER!!!!!!!!" The Proud Bird also hosts weddings, graduations, retirement parties... and presumably bar mitzvahs.

Images: Telstar Logistics