T7 in TNCM?

psolk · Post by **psolk** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 11:39 am

Hey everyone,
More of a general question than anything but why don't you ever see the T7 at TNCM? Is there some sort of limitation with the a/c?
Just curious...
Thanks in advance,
-P

Robin.B · Post by **Robin.B** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 10:54 am

Sorry for my ignorance, but what is the T7?

psolk · Post by **psolk** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 10:59 am

No ignorance in not knowing

It is the acronym for the Boeing 777 or Triple 7 otherwise known as the T7,
-Paul

Robin.B · Post by **Robin.B** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 11:53 am

Alright, it's my brain going wacko again. I thought you had said "why don't you ever see the T7 at TFFJ", which I gathered could not possibly be the triple 7

Thanks for clearing my mind up anyway.

TJC · Post by **TJC** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 4:54 pm

psolk wrote:Hey everyone,
More of a general question than anything but why don't you ever see the T7 at TNCM? Is there some sort of limitation with the a/c?
Just curious...
Thanks in advance,
-P

I heard once it got to do with the power of the 2 engines.
I'd well believe it since its coming out of 2 huge fans instead of the 4 on the A340's or 747's.

psolk · Post by **psolk** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 7:53 pm

Thanks TJC
I thought it was something to do with that or insufficient climb for the Departure from TNCM. I did find a single picture on A.net of an Air Europe 777 at TNCM in 2001. i can't find a record of any other 777's visiting TNCM though.
How much fun would it be to try and hold onto the fence as those GE-90 engines spool up though

-Paul

ChrisKSDF · Post by **ChrisKSDF** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 11:39 pm

http://web2.jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=22972
http://web2.jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=22973

Certainly, there's no aircraft limitation that prevents the 777 from visiting SXM. Air France was rumoured to be switching the current 343X equipment to a 773ER at some point, but I guess in the end it all comes down to economics, and airlines fly the equipment they feel will be most profitable into TNCM.

Arnaud · Post by **Arnaud** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 7:50 am

ChrisKSDF wrote:Certainly, there's no aircraft limitation that prevents the 777 from visiting SXM.

You might be right, and wrong at the same time. Actually there are structural limitation for aircrafts such as the 77W on such small airports, but it's not due to the aircraft performance itself, it's due to the runway and tawiways own limitation, their endurance.

Although the whole plane is lighter than an A340 or B747, the main gear is the culprit on the 77W, because it has only to sets of boggies, versus 4 for the 747 for instance, so the total weight isnt applied the same way on the runway.

If the 77W normal MTOW is 344.5tons, it's limited for instance at 321.t in Pointe-a-Pitre(TFFR) and Fort-de-France (TFFF) where Air France operates the 777s, for same exact reasons. Runway and taxiways limitations.

Spader · Post by **Spader** » Fri Apr 27, 2007 10:31 pm

psolk wrote:How much fun would it be to try and hold onto the fence as those GE-90 engines spool up though
-Paul

Wouldn't it burn/rip your skin off, and then some?

a319mech · Post by **a319mech** » Wed May 02, 2007 7:48 am

The 777 cannot be used from Europe due to ETOPS (Extended Twin-Engine Operations). It is due to its maximum diversion time of 120/180 minutes (time depending on governing rule). Since most of the flight is over open ocean, 4-engined aircraft are being utilizied. Rules may be changing soon due to a recent law that will allow 2-engine aircraft to operate if they can prove they have an inflight shutdown rate of 1 in 100,000 hours. Right now, to qualify for a 180 minute diversion they must have an inflight shutdown rate of 2 in 100,000 hours. Just an interesting tidbit of info.

_Dre_ · Post by **_Dre_** » Wed May 02, 2007 11:39 am

a319mech wrote:The 777 cannot be used from Europe due to ETOPS (Extended Twin-Engine Operations). It is due to its maximum diversion time of 120/180 minutes (time depending on governing rule). Since most of the flight is over open ocean, 4-engined aircraft are being utilizied. Rules may be changing soon due to a recent law that will allow 2-engine aircraft to operate if they can prove they have an inflight shutdown rate of 1 in 100,000 hours. Right now, to qualify for a 180 minute diversion they must have an inflight shutdown rate of 2 in 100,000 hours. Just an interesting tidbit of info.

That's not quite correct. British Airways uses the 777 to Jamaica and that's further away than TNCM.

a319mech · Post by **a319mech** » Wed May 02, 2007 9:42 pm

Interesting. I did not know that. Maybe they take more of a northerly route and come down the atlantic routes offshore of the US but that would require alot more fuel burn. If they don't, that is a lot of water between the Azores and the Carribean! I'll have to do some research.

_Dre_ · Post by **_Dre_** » Thu May 03, 2007 9:30 am

The BA flight is a Gatwick to Kingston flight which lasts around 9 hrs so I doubt they use any route other than the norm. The Air Jamaica(A340) flight to Heathrow is about the same time (flight time-9hrs) and they use the regular route, so I assume BA does as well. I also see a BA777 at montego bay, Jamaica but I'm not sure if it's the same flight.

Mage · Post by **Mage** » Thu May 03, 2007 11:45 am

a319mech wrote:...allow 2-engine aircraft to operate if they can prove they have an inflight shutdown rate of 1 in 100,000 hours. Right now, to qualify for a 180 minute diversion they must have an inflight shutdown rate of 2 in 100,000 hours. Just an interesting tidbit of info.

Err, do you have that the right way around? Moving a shutdown rate from 2 permitted per 100,000hr to 1/100,000hr is surely making it twice as strict.

T7 in TNCM?

T7 in TNCM?

Re: T7 in TNCM?