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What about AK's 700's? Not sure if they're ETOP's but the 700's do have the most range of the NG's pre-900ER.
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The 700s are not ETOPS equipped and probably won't ever be. It's quite the convoluted process from what I understand. It seems to me that the 800 provided the best compromise for size and range. I'm not sure the 900ER was an option when they started this whole ETOPS/Hawaii planning years ago.
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True, but on the ANC-ORD and SEA-MIA flights if you get that additional winds, you can decide were to stop for fuel. Not exactly the same on the HNL routes (can you land on on an aircraft carrier??)  |
Part of our enroute duties is tracking actual vs. planned fuel burn. If the winds were too much we'd know we were under on our gas before getting to the point of no return. If it didn't look like we were going to make it, just turn around and go back! That would be extreme. I would
think the flight planners would know ahead of time what the winds are like and would plan accordingly. Canceling or delaying the flight would be much better than letting us sweat it out over the Pacific.