who will fly with him on a two month trip
Posted on 06/25/2002 1:06:50 PM PDT by Asmodeus
John Travolta has got his "wings" and is celebrating by flying his family on a 35,000-mile trip across the globe.
Travolta with wife Kelly and daughter Ella, 2
who will fly with him on a two month trip
The Pulp Fiction actor has qualified to fly a 747 jumbo jet following intensive training and he is taking wife Kelly Preston and children Jett, 10, and Ella, two, on a lavish two-month holiday.
Travolta will pilot his own 707 jet to 10 countries and to 13 cities including London, Hong Kong, Rome, Tokyo, Sydney and New York.
The jet - bought from Australian airline Qantas in 1998 - has been gutted and fitted with leather couches, a double bed, shower, kitchen and private cabins. Travolta's own back-up crew and stewardesses will accompany him on the trip.
The 48-year-old star announced his holiday plans after emerging from his jet dressed in full pilot uniform in Los Angeles airport, where he was presented with his 747 wings.
After bursting into a rendition of Come Fly With Me, he said: "It is going to be great. I'm really looking forward to taking to the skies with my whole family. I cannot think of a better way to celebrate getting my wings. Not many people can say they have flown around the world.
"Getting my 747 wings is one of the proudest moments of my life. It is right up there with my two Oscar nominations.
His wife Kelly added: "The most important things I'm taking are suncream and my bikini. We are going to see some wonderful places and nice weather."
John Travolta waves from the controls
of his customised private jet
Travolta has been flying since 1970 and also owns a Gulfstream II. "I guess you could say I am an airline geek," he said. "I think the Grease sequel should be Danny and Sandy meeting at the airport and everyone thinking Danny is a 747 pilot.
"I have named my son Jett and wanted to name my daughter Qantas, but my wife was not having any of it." As if to show that he still retained a sense of proportion, he added: "I'm not going to buy a 747. The 707 I have already got is big enough. There are limits to these things." The star has painted the exterior of the plane - named Jett Clipper Ella - in the original livery of Qantas, after being named the airline's "ambassador-at-large".
He said: "I said that if they let me paint my plane with Qantas colours I would love to fly around the world promoting the company. Then they offered to help me become a 747 pilot." During his trip, Travolta will promote the company to local businessmen.
Travolta said: "When you fly you are responsible for a machine that's going through the air at 600mph.The sensation is thrilling and there is a beauty and an art to it."
Yet his love of flying means Travolta has no intention of giving up his successful movie career. He said: "I can't give up acting. The movie business is what gives me the kind of money I need to do this type of thing."
There's a reason for that.
Not considering he is of a religion that feels humans evolved from claims and an evil galactic emperor killed minions of aliens with nuclear weapons near volcanos after disabling their re-incarnation function I don't.
I pointedly ignore movies with Scientology member leads in them. And I certainly would not fly in a plane with one of them at the controls.
Or he'll crash it into Mount St. Helens in an attempt to unleash Xenu on the world. "I am Xenu, destroyer of worlds! Prepare to be audited!"
That's it---on a 707?This sounds like a colossal waste of fuel to me. At least Vinnie Barbarino isn't an envirowhak.
Did this evolution occur in a small-claims court? Do you mean clams? (Not that that makes much more sense...)
Right on. It's his money and he should enjoy it anyway he wants. Besides, percentage-wise, it is probably less of his income than a new $35,000 pickup truck is of mine. I hate to think how irresponsible I would be if I had some really big bucks. At least he did not do a Ted Turner and give a bundle to the UN.
I was in the cockpit of a Qantas 747 for 400 miles over the South Pacific. Sorry John, those guys were bored out of their heads. They were thrilled to have someone different to talk with.
Now, an F-16 would be a different matter entirely.
Boeing 707 (Data for 707-320C) TYPE: Medium to long range airliner and freighter. In RAAF service as VIP and strategic transport and tanker. COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States ENGINES: Four Pratt & Whitney JT3D-3 turbofans of 18,000 lb thrust. DIMENSIONS: Wing span: 145 ft 8½ in / 44.42 m. Length: 152 ft 11 in / 46.61 m Height: 42 ft 5½ in / 12.94 m. WEIGHTS: Empty: 146,400 lb / 66,407 kg Max. loaded: 333,600 lb / 151,321 kg PERFORMANCE: Max. cruising speed: 525 kt / 972 kph Range cruise: 464 kts. / 859 kph Initial climb: 3,550 ft / 1082 m. per min. Service ceiling: 38,500 ft / 11,735 m Max. range: 5,000 nm. / 9,260 km. CAPACITY: Up to 189 passengers or 54,000 lb / 24,494 kg. of freight.
A little Australian and Quantus 707 history......
Boeing began development of the design which became the 707 to exploit jet power plants in a military tanker design which could adapt to the airliner role. The prototype flew on 16 July, 1954, and the USAF ordered the aircraft as the KC-135 tanker. The KC-135 was sufficiently successful to inspire civilian interest, and the first production 707-120, with slightly longer and wider fuselage than the military tanker, flew on 20 December 1957, with deliveries beginning in August 1958 to Pan American. The 707 developed through a number of variants, and remains in service worldwide mainly as a freighter or corporate transport. Australian airline Qantas was looking for a replacement for its Super Constellations, and had shortlisted the De Havilland Comet 4, a long range version of the Lockheed Electra, the Douglas DC-8 and the 707. The Comet had less passenger capacity than the Cuper Constellation, and the turboprops were being superseded by jets in fleets world wide. The final contest was between the DC-8 and the 707. In September 1956, Qantas announced an order for seven of the short-bodied 707-138 version, the only airline to order that model. On 2 July 1959, the first of the aircraft, VH-EBB, arrived in Sydney. All the remaining aircraft had arrived by the end of September. All aircraft were upgraded by Boeing in 1961 to 707-138B standard, after which they became known as V-Jets, and wore an appropriate fin logo announcing the title. Qantas placed a series of orders for the higher capacity 707-338C from February 1965 to September 1968, the first, VH-EBN, arriving in Sydney on 15 February 1965. The 707-138Bs were phased out between 1967 and 1969. Deliveries of the 747 began in 1971, and the 707-338Cs were phased out between 1972 and 1979. VH-EAG made the last scheduled 707 flight from Auckland, NZ to Sydney, Australia on 25 March, 1979. Ansett operated one 707 freighter, VH-HTC, which served Ansett Air Freight in TNT colours between October 1988 and December 1990. It was sold overseas in January 1992. Qantas' VH-EAG was next used by the RAAF for crew training, prior to the air force taking delivery of the 707. The RAAF took delivery of Qantas' VH-EAD and -EAG during 1979, allocating serials A20-624 and A20-627 respectively. They were flown by 37 Sqn., Richmond, then 33 Flight from 1981. This became 33 Sqn. in 1983. Two more 338Cs were delivered in June 1983, becoming A20-623 and -629. these were former Qantas aircraft, but had served in the interim with overseas operators. Three 707-368Cs were delivered in March 1988. Two were serialled A20-103 and A20-261. The third did not carry RAAF markings or its allocated serial (A20-809), being used as a source of spares for the others in the fleet. The four former Qantas 707-338Cs were converted to tanker aircraft. The 707-368Cs remained as transports; A20-103 was lost in a training accident in October 1991
What is Travolta's 707 tail number?
Jumbo
If Scientology didn't suck up to him and other actors to use them as a lure to sucker others into the roach motel of their church, he would have written them off a long time ago.
Dude! This jumbo jet course was just so rad! I can't wait to get like, airborne, and party down at 35,000 feet. Ho, I'm like, halfway there already dude! And I ain't comin' down for a long time. School days are over and Mr. Hand can kiss my ass.
A: He'll tell you.
I think those were Amelia Earhart's last words.
He thought to himself, "Wow, she's so gorgeous she must be a flight attendant. But which airline does she work for?"
Hoping to pick her up, he leaned towards her and uttered the Delta slogan: "Love to fly and it shows?"
She gave him a blank, confused stare and he immediately thought to himself, " ooh sh!t, she doesn't work for Delta".
A moment later, another slogan popped into his head.
He leaned towards her again, "Something special in the air?"
She gave him the same confused look.
He mentally kicked himself, and scratched American Airlines off the list.
Next he tried the United slogan: "I would really love to fly your friendly skies?"
This time the woman turned on him and screamed "What the hell do you want?"
The man smiled, then slumped back in his chair, and said... "ahhh, Qantas"
N707JT
A: He'll tell you.
The Truth is: Show me a pilot and I guarantee we shall be looking at a man who failed at what he set out to be!
Ha! After 24 years of commuting from Newhall (past Van Nuys airport on the 405) to the People's Republik of Santa Monica, I quit my job on May 31 and am now in La Quinta...Haven't been on a freeway since we moved!
QANTAS - Queensland And Northern Territories Air Service.....great, great airline - have taken it to Oz twice; but I really don't want a 'hobbyist' at the wheel....
This could have been you, dork.
Now now, don't speak so ill of our father and son President Bushs. Last time I looked, they were pilot's who don't seem to have too much failure to them.
Yes I sound a bit touchy here as I am a pilot, and my father was a naval aviator in WW II. The truth is more like there are people who either love or hate pilots.
And I can guess which camp you hail from. ;-)
As for butting in, I ment my observation in a lighthearted manner, therefore don't let me raise the short hairs on the back of your neck. I am an easy going person who had heard that truism before.
My favorite flying truism though is; "If you want to make a million dollars in aviation, spend ten million."
I was a private pilot in high school, (my family had a Cessna 140 taildragger.) My mother was Connecticut's youngest female aviator in the early fifties, and my Dad used to buzz our home in the company Cessna 310 several times a week when I was a boy.
I was a helicopter crew chief in the Army, and if my eyes had been better, I might of been flight school material like you were.
I love aircraft, and if I had this guy's cash, I wouldn't waste it on large commercial jetliners. I would buy them fast, with an ample flight envelope, and unconventionable a craft as possible.
Until one of them did me like John Denver's new toy did him that is.
I guess your saw on what one sets out to be struck a cord in me in that I would have deeply loved to be a military and then a commercial pilot. If I could do one thing I once set out to be and didn't do, that is what I would change in my life.
For sure, every MD I've ever established a friendship with spends a half hour every six months [While he convinces himself and 'the authorities' that my heart and lungs are still contained within my ribcage] telling me how much he always wanted to be a pilot.
[Funny -- I'd rather have been a medico]
FReegards -- Brian
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.