Flying the Ukraine International Boeing 737-500

October first, a Thursday almost like every other but with one small difference. The long awaited trip to Iran is beginning! Two sectors with Ukraine International Airlines are ahead and a 6 hour stopover in Kiev, just enough to have a quick view on a couple of attractions downtown.

01 October 2015
PS802 (1045-1315) WAW-KBP
UR-GAT Boeing 737-500

More or less at 8:30am I take a bus to the airport. As I've previously checked-in already so I just need to drop off my bag for my next two flights: PS802 (WAW-KBP) and PS751 (KBP-IKA). There is a queue at the economy class check-in of UIA that I don't have to stand in. So I quickly drop my bags and proceed to the security control. Meet up with a couple of friends, eat breakfast and finally around 10:30 am board the plane. STD is 10:45. Meanwhile, a friend with whom I'm gonna go on the trip inside Iran is going to fly 5 minutes later to Doha with QR, but he will get earlier to IKA having a more convenient connection. My choice of flying UIA was not only time-based. Let's get back to the flight. We taxi to runway 29 and depart smoothly passing beside the QR A320. A great panorama of the city center is visible before we make a turn to the left and head for Kiev. STA is 1315LT. During this one hour and couple of minutes flight there is no free service, not even water. If you want anything, you have to pay for it. Luckily prices aren't sky high. Anyway I have no need for a single thing so I pass on the occasion. Today's ride is a 1993 Boeing 737-500 UR-GAT, previously operating for Air France (what you can see by some french writings inside the plane). The plane has been retrofitted with winglets but inside it still is the same good, old 737 that I expected. With the yellowish light, characteristic overhead bins and a classic cockpit :) Always leading to a smile :) Landing in Kiev is on time and you can see some true soviet metal classics outside. After my quick cockpit visit I go through emigration and head for a quick visit in the city (did not feel like waiting 6 hours at the airport). To shortly sum up the flight:nothing really above the standard. The crew was there, did their job, absolute zero catering for free is s small minus, but that flight was short, on my longer flight a meal was given. The price is good and it is pretty easy to get a status with UIA frequent flier program. I give them a decent 3+ (on the school scale, but tending to a 4). They got me safely to where I wanted in a reasonable price for my routing (OW to IKA on not exactly a long notice). Video review of the plane at the bottom.

After departure with a nice view on the city

Belgrade Aviation Museum

During my stopover in Belgrade on the way back to Poland from the UAE after sightseeing in the city center I have planned to visit the Belgrade Aviation Museum before the final flight. The museum is located near the airport. During shorter stopovers (~4h) you can easily go out of the terminal, visit the museum and return back on time for your next flight. All the details about prices and opening hours can be found on the website of the museum. The place itself isn't very big but has a lot of planes both inside and outside the building. Including shot down fighters from the past. There is also a section dedicated to JAT, the national airline of Yugoslavia and later Serbia. Historical routes, photos, information, plane models and more. In a different part you can find the history of Belgrade Airport together with a small model of it.
From the trip, see also the flights with Air Serbia and spotting in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

China Aviation Museum - Datangshan

During my short stay in Beijing the China Aviation Museum in Datangshan was a must see. After leaving the airport and arriving at my hotel where I left my luggage I headed north. Getting to the museum is quiet easy although time consuming. By public transport take the subway line 5 all the way to Tiantongyuan North station then change to bus nr 643 where people will surely help you get out at the right stop (easier to achieve if you have a paper with the museums name written down in Chinese) . From my hotel it took me around 1,5 hour and cost 3 yuan one way. Additionally you have to walk around 10 minutes from the bus stop to the museum itself.

The first thing that grasp your sight is a collection of planes flown by Mao Zedong. Four of them. You can even enter the Ilyushin 18 for 10 yuans. From that spot you can see numerous fighters both soviet and Chinese ones. Basically wherever you look you'll see a plane and it won't be all. There is a cave part to which the entrance fee is around 20 yuans. Unluckily I was out of funds so I didn't enter. From video and photo footage I saw, it is worth going in.

The display has been renewed recently, planes repainted and cleaned and a couple new additions added. Plane description under each photo and you can find a full list of planes being displayed at the end of the entry together with full museum details.

Mao's fleet