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Airplaneski! Documentary

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I saw this documentary a few months back and it was a sobering look into the state of Russian aviation after the break-up of the former Soviet Union. The documentary follows pilots, passengers, and stewardesses who fly the airline Aeroflot and details their struggles in transit, with crew training, in their personal lives, and financially. The video is pretty insightful... (www.youtube.com) More...

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s2v8377
s2v8377 3
This is a great documentary. It shows you the true state of Russia's commercial aviation during the 90's.

I imagine today is a mix of the past and the present as more and more of the Soviet built aircraft are retired in favor of Boeing and Airbus aircraft.
burlas00
Joseph Burlas 1
I agree and I don't necessarily know if the aging fleets are a bad thing. I'm more worried about the leeway in terms of regulations during such economic troubles. If you watch til the end you see how they conducted their medical boards for pilots (their AMEs). Sad ending to see a pilot lose their medical.

gorkov
gorkov 1
As an FAA-licensed pilot and a frequent flyer of Aeroflot, Emirates, BA and Lufthansa, let me offer this comment: this video may offer some insights into what Russian civil aviation may have looked like 15-20 years ago, but the reality today is different. The flag carrier, Aeroflot, has long retired its fleet of Tupolev's and Ilyushin's and relies on a mix of Boeing and Airbus aircraft that's one of very recent vintages. Average pilot age is also remarkably young, and knowledge of English a career must for pilots. Regional carriers are also actively ditching Soviet vintage equipment and leasing B737s and A310s. Transaero, a runner-up to Aeroflot, has just signed up a contract to buy 4 A-380s. Money is no longer a constraining factor in Russia, by way of generalization.

Operationally, there are still issues, and culture will take time to evolve. Once in a while, operational lapses lead to accidents, and worse (witness recent ATP-72 crash due to iced wings – mis-described by a commenter below as A320), but the overall stats are not bad. For my regular Moscow-NYC flight, I'd rather fly with Aeroflot than Delta.

(small print: I am not an employee, shareholder or beneficiary of any kind of Aeroflot or any other Russian carrier)
dbrooks84
David Brooks 1
Transaero also placed a recent order with Boeing for 4 new 787-8s too.
dbrooks84
David Brooks 3
One hope is the fast switch over to western airliners. The rest -- well they need work. One Russian airline, Transaero, uses mainly western airlines and tries, according to articles I have read, tries to operate like modern western airlines. They recently have been acquiring ex Singapore Airline early 747-400s, 777-200s and 777-300s non ER versions.
pilot0987
pilot0987 2
Yea the ending is sad. He was my favorite guy.
mookie5913
mookie5913 2
I love seeing some of the culture, I had to keep reminding myself that this is a different culture than where I live. Nevertheless some of the stuff was unacceptable in any airline. I could deal with hotter FA's in the US though...

[This poster has been suspended.]

burlas00
Joseph Burlas 2
No but they do talk about a delayed flight because another aircraft had crashed on the runway. I pray it improves beyond what it is, even still today.
fritzep
Paul Fritze 1
Honestly I feel so bad for the old pilot, he reminds me of my Dad that recently passed away. I just want to take a him home, feed him, take him to a movie and give him a warm bed to sleep in.
sparkie624
sparkie624 1
Nice Video.. Will have to watch the entire program when I have more time.
burlas00
Joseph Burlas 1
It's worth it, I promise!
sparkie624
sparkie624 1
You were right... Great Program... Watched all 5 parts.

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