Knoxville's McGhee Tyson Airport is a typical regional airport with a notable exception. Tys' boasts two 9,000 foot runways, so it is capable of handling any aircraft

Albuquerque Municipal Airport opened in 1939 with two paved runways and this Pueblo Style terminal building designed by Ernest Blumenthal. It was replaced by the current terminal in 1965. The old terminal has been restored and currently houses offices of the Transportation Security Administration. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.

Images courtesy: David Zaccaria

Seattle/Tacoma International Airport opened in 1947 as commercial flights transferred from Boeing Airport. Sea-Tac has 3 parallel runways that run North/South. It has a Central Terminal building with 4 concourses (A,B, C, and D) and 2 satellite terminals (North and South) connected by an underground light rail. Sea-Tac is the primary hub for Alaska Airlines, whose headquarters is located near the airport, and its regional subsidiary Horizon Air. It is unusual for being the largest metropolitan area in the U.S. to not having a hub or focus operation by a major or legacy carrier. This is largely due to Alaska and Horizon´s dominance of the market which total almost 50%. Southwest, United, and Delta are distant runner-ups but Southwest can never be counted out.

The striking Hong Kong International Airport, IATA code: HKG, is colloquially known as Chek Lap Kok Airport being built on the island of Chek Lap Kok by land reclamation, and also to distinguish it from the overcrowded and capacity constrained former airport, Kai Tak in Kowloon. The new HKIA took six years and US$20 billion to build. When it opened on July 6, 1998 at 6:25 am, Cathay Pacific flight 889 was the first commercial flight to land at the airport. The architects of the striking terminal are Foster and Partners. However, on the first day of opening and for months afterword, the airport experienced almost crippling difficulties particular with cargo and flight information centers.

After that discouraging start, Hong Kong International Airport recovered and has won eight Skytrax World Airport Awards for customer satisfaction in eleven years. HKIA ranked second and third in 2009 and 2010 respectively for the Skytrax World Airport Awards, and has also won the Skytrax World Airport of the Year 2011. Singapore and Seoul are its closest competition in Asia in terms of being a world class connecting hub.

HKIA also operates one of the world's largest and most visually striking passenger terminal buildings. It was the largest when it opened in 1998. Terminal 1 of the HKIA is currently the third largest airport passenger terminal building in the after Dubai International Airport's Terminal 3 and Beijing Capital International Airport's Terminal 3, a title it held until 2006. In 2007, HKG began the construction of a two-storey North Satellite Concourse which opened in December 2009. This concourse was designed for narrow-body aircraft and is equipped with 10 jet bridges. There is a shuttle bus service between the NSC and Terminal 1 every four minutes.

Due to be finished by the end of 2015, A new 'midfield concourse' is being built between the two runways. This will include 20 aircraft parking gates, three of these will be wide enough to serve the Airbus A380 and serve for an additional 10 million passengers annually. Passengers will reach the concourse through an extension of the underground ‘automated people mover’ – a driverless train system which serves Terminal 1 and Terminal 2.

HKIA is the primary hub and headquarters for Cathay Pacific, Dragonair, Hong Kong Express Airways, Hong Kong Airlines and Air Hong Kong. As of December, 2011 about 90 airlines operate flights from the HKG to over 150 cities across the globe. It handled 50,348,960 passengers, making it the 11th busiest airport worldwide by passenger traffic. It also surpassed Memphis International Airport to become the world's busiest airport by cargo traffic. It has 2 parallel runways in operation, both measuring 12,467 feet long: 7LR / 25LR.

HKIA is noteworthy for its inter-city check-in halls in Hong Kong Central and Kowloon where passengers can check their bags before boarding the high-speed rail link that whisks passengers to/from the city center in under 25 minutes. Also, HKIA was the destination of the first revenue passenger flight of the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner on October 26, 2011.

ANA Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner and Singapore Airbus A380-800 at Hong Kong - 2011

HKIA was the destination and departure city of the first revenue passenger flight of the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner on October 26/27, 2011. ANA reportedly chose Hong Kong as this was ANA’s first international destination (charter service) back in 1983. The webmaster was aboard both flights between Tokyo Narita and Hong Kong International. The webmaster was also onboard the inaugural passenger flight of the Airbus A380 on October 25, 2011. This image of a Singapore Airbus A380 and the ANA Boeing 787 Dreamliner “meeting”, taken on October 27, 2011 at Hong Kong just before the 787s return to Tokyo Narita, took on special meaning. Though the 787 and A380 are not direct competitors, their respective manufacturers had very different visions of the future when they developed their next generation aircraft of the 2000s.

Hong Kong based Dragonair serves mainly mainland China and regional short-haul Asian routes from Hong Kong including Bangalore, Beijing-Capital, Busan, Changsha, Chengdu, Chongqing, Dhaka, Fukuoka, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Hanoi, Kaohsiung, Kathmandu, Kota Kinabalu, Kunming, Manila, Nanjing, Ningbo, Naha, Phnom Penh, Phuket, Qingdao, Sanya, Shanghai-Hongqiao, Shanghai-Pudong, Taipei-Taoyuan, Wuhan, and Xiamen. The partially Cathay Pacific owned carrier flies an all Airbus fleet of A320s, A321s, and A330s.

HAECO is a major maintenance provider at Hong Kong. It transferred over from Kai Tak when CLK opened. Cathay's Boeing 777-300 ERs are taking over for the Boeing 747-400 as the mainstay of the fleet.

In 2007, HKG began the construction of a two-storey North Satellite Concourse which opened in December 2009. This concourse was designed for narrow-body aircraft and is equipped with 10 jet bridges. There is a shuttle bus service between the NSC and Terminal 1 every four minutes.

Cathay has been Hong Kong's flagship airline since its founding in 1946. It is world renowned for the quality of its service. CX flies a fleet of Airbus A330-300s, Airbus A340s, Boeing 777-300ERs, Boeing 747-8s (Cargo), and Boeing 747-400s with a focus on long haul worldwide and medium haul Asian routes from Hong Kong such as Abu Dhabi, Adelaide, Amsterdam, Auckland, Bahrain, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Beijing-Capital, Brisbane, Cairns, Cebu, Chennai, Chicago-O'Hare, Colombo, Delhi, Denpasar/Bali, Dubai, Frankfurt, Fukuoka, Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta-Soekarno-Hatta, Jeddah, Johannesburg, Karachi, Kuala Lumpur, London-Heathrow, Los Angeles, Manila, Melbourne, Milan-Malpensa, Moscow-Domodedovo, Mumbai, Nagoya-Centrair, New York-JFK, Osaka-Kansai, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Penang, Perth, Riyadh, Rome-Fiumicino, San Francisco, Sapporo-Chitose, Seoul-Incheon, Shanghai-Pudong, Singapore, Surabaya, Sydney, Taipei-Taoyuan, Tokyo-Haneda, Tokyo-Narita, Toronto-Pearson, and Vancouver. CX owns part of Hong Kong based Dragonair.

Cathay Pacific, JetAirways, United, Dragonair, and South African Airways are represented on this ramp shot at Hong Kong International.

Tokyo International Narita

Tokyo Narita International Airport is 1 of 2 major airports serving Tokyo Airport. It is the #1 international gateway to Japan, but the competing Haneda, which is predominantly for domestic services is the busiest airport in Japan, and in the top 10 in the world. Narita was originally designed to takeover International long haul flights from Haneda. It opened in 1978 as New Tokyo International Airport to a storm of controversy. The fact that it is an hour from Central Tokyo wasn't the central issue, but riots from farmer's whose land was annexed to build the airport. This resulted in numerous deadly clashes and riots, which delayed the airport's opening for years. One farmer continues to occupy a small plot of land on airport grounds. NRT is the home base of ANA and JAL, though there is limited domestic service from here. Delta continues to base its Asian hub here. Close-in Haneda and the Shinkassen Bullet trains attract more attention from the domestic market. The limited domestic service here is mainly for connecting passengers as the immediate population area around the Narita Airport isn't that significant. Unlike most major cities in Japan, the domestic services are flown by narrow bodies with the widebodies at the closer in domestic airports. At one time, Narita was the unofficial "747 Capital of the World", but as a metaphor for airports across the globe, the 777 and A340s are becoming a more familiar site. Former major 747 operators of the Boeing 747, ANA and JAL, have discontinued the type Narita in favor of the Boeing 777-300, though ANA operates a few domestically. NRT was the location of the world’s first revenue passenger flight of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, though Haneda will be its initial base for long-haul and domestic flights.

NRT is under assault from a number of factors: Haneda has built an additional runway and new Terminal to attract more long haul international traffic; It is becoming less and less of an Asian hub as long haul aircraft are able to overfly it to their destinations such as Singapore and Shanghai; and Japan's emerging gateways such as Kansai. However, cargo traffic remains strong. The airport is served by 2 massive passenger terminals and an impressive cargo operation. Terminal 1, the original terminal, is the domain of ANA and most Star Alliance airlines while Terminal 2, which opened in 1992, is now the home of JAL and most One-World Alliance carriers. They both used to share Terminal 2 until 2007. Terminal 2 is divided into a main building (honkan) and satellite, both of which are designed around linear concourses. The two are connected by the Terminal 2 Shuttle System, which was designed by Japan Otis Elevator and was the first cable-driven people mover in Japan. Terminal 1 uses a satellite terminal design. The landside of the terminal is divided into a North Wing, Central Building, and South Wing. Two circular satellites, Satellites 1 and 2 are connected to the North Wing, Satellite 3 is a linear concourse connected to the Central Building, Check-in is processed on the fourth floor, and departures and immigration control are on the third floor. NRT has 2 parrallel runways 16R/34L (13,123 feet long) and 16L/34R (8,202 feet).

ANA

ANA is now the number one carrier in Japan, surpassing JAL. The Boeing 777 200ERs and 300ERs; and Boeing 767-300ER are now the backbone of the fleet with the Boeing 787 Dreamliner joining with 40 expected. ANA was the launch customer of the 787. There are also A320-200s and Boeing 737-700s in the fleet. The Boeing 747-400s were final retired in 2010 with only a few 747-400D's remaining in operation. ANA moved from Narita Terminal 2 to Terminal 1, along with most fellow Star Alliance carriers in 2007.

United, now merged with Continental, operates an Asian hub at Tokyo Narita with flights to Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Chicago-O'Hare, Guam, Honolulu, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle/Tacoma, Seoul-Incheon, Singapore, Taipei-Taoyuan, and Washington-Dulles. United is at Terminal 1 with fellow Star Alliance member, ANA. United operates the 747-400s and 777-200s on Trans-Pacific and Intra-Asian flights and the 737-800s to Guam in support of Continental’s former Continental Micronesia flights.

At one time, Narita was the unofficial "747 Capital of the World", but as a metaphor for airports across the globe, the 777 and A340s are becoming a more familiar site. Former major 747 operators of the Boeing 747, ANA and JAL, discontinued the type in 2010 internationally favor of the Boeing 777-300, though ANA operates a few domestically. The “Whale Jet” was beloved by the Japanese flying public. There is an interesting display honoring the Boeing 747 in the lower level of Narita Terminal 1.

Even after over 15 years of production, the Boeing 777 continues to be an incredible success and world-beating aircraft. Indeed, Boeing started work on the 1000^th example in November, 2011. Over the last few years, the assembly process at the Everett Factory has undergone massive changes to increase manufacturing output and efficiency. Boeing first started portions of the 777 moving line in 2006, after several years of planning. But progress toward making the entire final assembly line ready to move was interrupted by the introduction of the 777 Freighter in 2008. During planning and preparation, 777 managers looked at lessons learned on the 737 program, which launched its moving line in 2002. Since the 777 program’s moving line officially started upon Jan. 12, 2006 it has moved an average of 1.6 to 1.8 inches (4.1 to 4.6 centimeters) per minute. This has reduced the 777 final assembly process—the time it takes between the arrival of initial fuselage sections into systems installation to the day the completed jetliner rolls out the factory doors—from 26 days to 17 days. The 777 line is believed to be the most extensive moving production line used to build a commercial airplane. To make its 777 assembly line move during final assembly, Boeing uses a tug that attaches around the front landing gear of the airplane and pulls it forward. The tug has an optical sensor that follows a white line along the floor. During final assembly, mechanics install items such as seats, overhead stow bins and other items on the interior of the airplane. In addition, functional testing is performed on the various systems in the airplane and the engines are attached.

Boeing completed a continuous, one-bay moving assembly line for the 777, which will include systems installation, final body join and final assembly for the airplane in 2008. This is the most extensive moving production line used to build a commercial airplane. In 2009, Boeing revealed plans to increase 777 production from 5 aircraft per month in 2010 to 7 aircraft per month by mid-2011, and 8.3 per month by early 2013. Complete assembly of each 777-300ER requires 49 days. A new, empty 777 weighs 366,940 pounds (166,441 kilograms) and includes about 3 million parts. Though tours are allowed at the Everett Facility, photography is expressively prohibited. These images were taken on a special press tour of the factory in September, 2011 during the Boeing 787 Dreamliner Handover Event to launch customer ANA.

Boeing 787 Final Assembly Line at Everett

These images were taken on a special press tour of the factory in September 2011 during the Boeing 787 Dreamliner Handover Event to launch customer ANA. Even though it was a Sunday, a crew on the floor was busy attending to the 4 787s on the “pulsing” assembly line. In positions 1-4 respectively were ANA’s 16^th aircraft, Ethiopian’s 2^nd, United’s 1^st, and an almost complete powered up Air India example. We were frankly told that Boeing is currently producing 2 Dreamliner’s per month but that this will ramp up to 12 per month by the end of 2013. Once the new Charleston plant comes online, up to 288 aircraft will be built per year which means it will take up to 5-6 years to complete the back ordered 800 plus Dreamliners. On the floor, we were able to fully appreciate that Everett had become more of a final assembly facility for the 787 as we saw individual components from outsorced suppliers in position 1 awaiting mating: virtually complete Section 41’s forward fuselages and flight deck (from Boeing/Spirit in Wichita), Mid/aft bodies (from Vought/Alenia now Boeing in Charleston), wings from Mitsubishi in Japan, tailcones from KAL in Korea, etc. The outsourcing was a key factor in the program delays, so much so that Boeing purchased two suppliers 787 operations: Vought and Alenia and pledged that future new aircraft won’t be outsourced to this extent.

Everett 787 Factory Final Assembly Line – 2011

The Boeing Everett Factory is an enormous airplane assembly building owned by Boeing. Located on the northeast corner of Paine Field, it is the largest building in the world by volume. Reportedly when it was built it was so massive that its own weather systems such as rains and clouds were created inside. It is where Boeing 747s, 767s, 777s, and the new 787 Dreamliner are built. It began operation building Boeing 747s before it was even complete. There are numerous models on display for benefit of the public tours. Photography is not normally allowed except for select press visits and events.

Ship 801 was the first 787 delivered to launch customer ANA on September 27, 2011 and the first to enter passenger revenue service a month later.

ANA's Boeing 787, JA 809A seen outside Boeing's Everett Final Assembly Building in September, 2011 is line number 14 of the 787 program.

During approach to Laredo, Texas during flight tests in November, 2010, this ZA002 / N787X, airplane lost primary electrical power as a result of an onboard electrical fire. Backup systems, including the deployment of the Ram Air Turbine (RAT), functioned as expected and allowed the crew to complete a safe landing. This led to a 3 month pause of the 787 Flight Testing Program. Despite its ANA livery promoting launch customer ANA, this is one of the 3-6 787’s that will never be sold to an airline customer.

From a press release: Lufthansa's first Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental with the future registration D-ABYE ("Yankee Echo") completed its first flight on Tuesday, 26 April, 2011. The plane took off from Everett Airport on the site of the Boeing manufacturing plant at 9.26 hours, local time. During its three hours and 20 minutes in the air, the new jumbo jet climbed to an altitude of 8,534 metres and flew at 509 kilometres per hour on the clock. The first flight marks the start of a five-month flight test programme, during which Boeing will rigorously test the cabin configuration. The air-conditioning, oxygen supplies for passengers and crew, the in-flight entertainment system or the robustness of the cabin cladding are just a few of the points the US aircraft manufacturer will tick off in around 300 flight hours. Manoeuvres, that take the aircraft to the limits of its operating capacity as part of certification, are no longer in the programme. Such tests were successfully completed by the B747-8F freighter version and the red-painted B747-8 Intercontinental prior to the official unveiling of the new jet on 13 February 2011. After the flight tests, the "Yankee Echo" will return to the Boeing hangar in Everett, about 50 kilometres north of Seattle to be readied for delivery in early 2012. All four engines, the brakes and tyres as well as the complete cabin cladding, carpeting and washrooms will be renewed. Lufthansa was the first airline customer to opt for the passenger version of the Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental. In December 2006, the airline placed orders for 20 of the new jumbo jets and secured options on a further 20 of the type. The fuselage of the new jumbo has not only been lengthened by 5.6 metres, the aircraft is also equipped with newly designed wings and state-of-the-art engines from General Electric (Type GEnx – 2B67). Fuel consumption is well below the level of previous long-haul aircraft. Compared with the "classical" B747-400, the new jumbo jet reduces operating costs by 30 per cent. The B747-8 International reduces CO2 emissions by 16 per cent and is 30 per cent quieter.

Many of Boeing Commercial Aircraft's Sales, Marketing, and Engineering supporting the 747, 767, 777, and 787 programs are headquartered adjacent to the Everett Factory at Paine Field. The Division's main offices are located at the Renton Factory where the 737 is built.

Concourse D is LAS’ most modern domestic terminal. It is connected via train to Terminal One. The first gates of Concourse D (SE and SW wings) opened in 1998. Additional wings followed in 2005 (NE) and 2009 (NOW). Together, these 4 wings boast nearly 50 gates. This concourse is home to Alaska, American, hub carrier Allegiant, Delta, Frontier, JetBlue, Sun Country, and United.

LAS Terminal 2 is used for all international as well as most charter flights into Las Vegas. It was built between 1986 and 1987 where the PSA and American terminals once were located. It contains eight gates, four of which are equipped with facilities for international flights. The dated and cramped Terminal 2 serves Aeromexico, Air Canada, Arkefly, British Airways,Condor, Korean, Omni Air International, Phillipine Airlines, Sunwing, Thomas Cook, Virgin Atlantic Airways, Viva Aerobus and Volaris of Mexico, and XL Airways France.

Upon completion of Terminal 3 in 2012, Terminal 2 will close permanently and all international flights will move to Terminal 3.

Houston Hobby Airport

Hobby Airport, named after former Texas Governor William P. Hobby, is Houston's oldest commercial airport and was the city's primary airport until Intercontinental Airport, now known as George Bush Intercontinental Airport, opened in 1969. Hobby is located fairly close southeast of downtown while Intercontinental is located further to the North. Hobby has a similar story to Dallas Love Field, albeit much less controversial. When IAH opened in 1969, there was no commercial service here until Southwest began operations in 1971 between Dallas, San Antonion, and Houston. Hobby has evolved into the low cost carrier airport of choice for Houston. Southwest controls over 75% of the emplanenments here, making Hobby its 7^th busiest destination after Denver and Southwest’s busiest station in Texas. As of 2011, there were 133 Southwest departures from Hobby to 33 cities nonstop that is not gate and slot constrained in the same way as Dallas Love. Southwest controls 19 of the 26 gates at HOU. This will only increases as AirTran is merged into Southwest. Other airlines here include: American Eagle, Delta, Delta Connection, Frontier, and JetBlue who all serve their main hubs. Vision Airlines serves Gulf-Coast gambling mecca Gulfport/Biloxi. Developments at Hobby in the 2000s include a new Central Concourse to serve Southwest Airlines and the upgrade of Runway 4/22. A terminal renovation project is now in progress that will update the ticket counters, lobby area, and baggage claim.

In a survey among travelers in the United States by J.D. Power and Associates for an Aviation Week traveler satisfaction report, passengers have selected William P. Hobby Airport as the number one airport in the country for customer satisfaction in 2006 and again in 2007. Hobby ranked #2 in 2008.

Photography courtesy: David Zaccaria.

Corpus Christi International Airport, CRP, serves its namesake city and the nearby resort area of North Padre Island. The small, but attractive terminal, The Hayden W. Head Terminal opened on November 3, 2002, with a theme of "When the Sun Meets the Sea" replacing a very old and compact facility. Even though it is titled as an “International Airport” has no international scheduled flights. It is served by American Eagle to Dallas/Ft. Worth, Southwest to Houston Hobby, and United Express to Houston Intercontinental from 6 gates.