Puuh… It took some time, but here the are: The first couple of photos of the maiden flight event of Ethiopian Airlines’ Boeing 787 in Frankfurt! I was blessed to be very close to the aircraft the whole time and the pictures aren’t too bad in my opinion. Only a handful of photographers was allowed and I had the chance to be among them. Other photographers I met were Mario Aurich that I also spent some time with until we had to fly home again and Konstantin von Wedelstaedt (who had the idea of using the stairs for shooting the water cannon salute – great!).
The day started at the Ethiopian Airlines check-in counter, where everybody met and we were soon taken to the apron and further to runway 07R. Heat haze was a really a problem and the angle of the sun wasn’t perfect, but we all managed to find a good spot.
Only few minutes later did we spot the Dreamliner on final and everybody get ready. It seemed like the landing was a bit difficult and the pilot flared well into the runway, giving us the chance for a better shot of the landing! With a big cloud of smoke the Boeing 787 touched-down and it was time for us to pace down the runway and to the other side of the airport, where the fire brigade was already waiting. The driver gave everything he could, but a minibus fulled loaded with photographers and equipment will never go as fast as a Ferrari… But the aircraft was holding on the taxiway to let some aircraft pass first and we had enough time to take our places. There were masses of people waiting, many abandoning their regular work stations to take a quick look at the ET 787. It was the first time that I was seeing the fire brigade do a water salute and I really enjoyed the show! Here is the Dreamliner, just as the cockpit passed the wall of water:
The aircraft passed us again and taxiied down to its parking position at the B pier. We went there really fast, but the gangway was already connected when we got there and only allowed for limited photo opportunities. Nevertheless we were presented some great angles and had enough time to take as many photos as we wanted. Once finished we headed back to the terminal for a short coffee-break, as the passengers deplaned the aircraft and the cleaning staff prepared it for the press event and flight back to Addis Abeba. This will be part 2 of my story…
Great pictures, thanks for posting them. I was lucky enough to see the ET 787 when it visited Nairobi last month. Very handsome airplane.