American and United Airlines parallel approach into San Francisco
Posted by Twitter_2006@reddit | aviation | View on Reddit | 417 comments
Posted by Twitter_2006@reddit | aviation | View on Reddit | 417 comments
Stahi@reddit
Man, SFO's a good place to planespot.
I've stayed at the Hyatt Regency in Burlingame quite a few times and the view across the water's amazing, and it was so hilarious to see an A380 in line with other planes.
One time I saw a CRJ in front of one and I couldn't stop cackling.
WhoIsYerWan@reddit
I've been trying to watch an A380 take off! They send it to another runway because it needs such a long takeoff runway, so it gets hidden behind the terminal buildings when you're inside. But I love watching the big BA gal taxi out from the international terminal!
'She's a brick...house."
Stahi@reddit
Watching an A380 take off makes you go "....How?"
AntiFascistButterfly@reddit
I was raised atheist and un superstitious, but when I see the big jets take off, my whole body believes in magic and I stare in wonder, no matter how ancient I get.
WhoIsYerWan@reddit
“Sir, it appears as if a building is attempting to fly…should we intervene??”
Stahi@reddit
That's quite literally it.
From your perspective it's just lumbering along, and you question how the heck is it going to get airborne.
But then it lifts off.
Young_Jaws@reddit
Wacthing them land is on another level. Feels like it should just fall out of the sky from sheer size above you! Used to time thier landing in YYZ when they first flew over along the Humber Trail.
you-are-not-yourself@reddit
I live near the airport. My favorite thing to watch is a parallel takeoff. You see them rise together, then split apart, one north, the other south.
joyjose22@reddit
SFO airport has a viewing area in the domestic terminal
baby_monitor1@reddit
Funny. I've been on top of the Hyatt Regency in Burlingame, before. Never stayed there, though.
KipSummers@reddit
The restaurant/ bar area at the SFO Marriott in Burlingame is great too. Right across the water from the runways.
fresh_like_Oprah@reddit
outside the bar you can smell all the fuel from the planes waiting to go off the 1s
thomasbeagle@reddit
Why doesn't the bigger plane just eat the small one?
buffalostreaker@reddit
This is so dangerous! Much better like this....
Frozefoots@reddit
Off topic but fuck I love seeing the Shuttle Carrier 747s doing their thing.
Over-Juice-7422@reddit
My first day at college I was moving into the dorm at UCLA in 2012 and saw this do an overhead pass. It’s burned into my brain at the time I couldn’t understand what I was seeing.
deathrictus@reddit
When a mommy plane and a daddy plane love each other very... wait, sorry. Wrong explanation.
AntiFascistButterfly@reddit
Anyone else heard that in Dr Karl’s voice?
michiness@reddit
My apartment is along the route they took to get Endeavor to the Science Center; you can even see it in the film that they show there.
Too bad I moved in about a year after.
jakspy64@reddit
That was the final flight of the Endeavor. She was built just north in Palmdale. I was in highschool that day. They did several passes of the Antelope Valley in tribute before taking her to LA. Beautiful sight
fighterpilot248@reddit
Coincidentally, the Discovery also came to Udvar Hazy in 2012.
My dad pulled me out of school for a "doctor's appointment" so we could go watch the photo passes before it landed at Dulles.
One of my favorite memories by far. Still have a (super shitty) pic from a point-and-click digital camera on an old hard drive somewhere.
-Blackbird33-@reddit
Wild!
BigFatModeraterFupa@reddit
the sad part is that we will literally never see anything like it again
don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened🥲🥲🥲
buffalostreaker@reddit
I know. I lived in sacramento for a bit and worked in a high rise in 2012 when the Endeavour did farewell flyby of the Capitol. Special moment
The-so-what@reddit
Yet another reason that the 747 is GOAT
BornFree2018@reddit
Hey, get off her!
BotchedDebauchery@reddit
Space shuttle doggy style wasn't on my bingo sheet.
oxmix74@reddit
The attachment jig on top of the 747 has a sign that says "Place shuttle here, black side down."
tacomaloki@reddit
I call bullshit on overweight baggage fees!
TacTurtle@reddit
Is that how you get bebe X-37?
Beast_by_Dre@reddit
IC_1318@reddit
Exclusive picture of Nouvelair and Easyjet aircraft coming close to disaster
spamiam1024@reddit
It’s an Albino Humping Plane!
tesconundrum@reddit
"Why is it called that?"
strangelymysterious@reddit
“Because it doesn’t have any pigment”
ThePrussianGrippe@reddit
An Alaskan Bull Worm!
WiSoSirius@reddit
Maybe they're saving it for sweeps.
strangway@reddit
The Omicron Persei 8 perspective does make sense
Neo1331@reddit
Thank you!!!
Taricha_torosa1@reddit
Maybe they are saving that for the next red bull race?
OriginalZaphod@reddit
I am Lrrrrr, ruler of planet Omicron 8!
dkcyw@reddit
because they aren't friends.
testthrowawayzz@reddit
Yes! The initial perspective made it look like the bigger plane was trying to eat the smaller plane
doyouevenglass@reddit
I'm just waiting for the sora logo and for that big guy to start chompin
uggaduggawrench@reddit
It's true what they say, Boeing are from Omicron Persei 7,Embraer are from Omicron Persei 9
bigfoot_done_hiding@reddit
Aircraft hate carrying extra weight and thus avoid compulsive eating.
can_i_has_beer@reddit
those ERJ engines look so smol in this video
Scary_One_2452@reddit
Thats an E jet not an ERJ
buriedupsidedown@reddit
What’s the difference?
Scary_One_2452@reddit
Erj has the engines on the fuselage at the rear, like a private jet, but the E jet has engines under the wings. E jets are bigger than ERJs and positioned above them in Embraers line up.
Lemon_hawk@reddit
I’m an E175 pilot. My company, along with all other regional airlines who operate them in the US as far as I know, refer to the 175 as the ERJ. I have never in my life heard anyone seriously call it the E jet.
buriedupsidedown@reddit
I thought I was crazy for a sec. I used to work for a regioonal but was on the crj and I also thought everyone at the company referred to them as the erj.
Scary_One_2452@reddit
What about Embraer themselves?
https://www.embraer.com/e-jets/en/
https://www.embraer.com/erjs/en/
Lemon_hawk@reddit
Yes, Embraer technically refers to their fleets as such.
But correcting someone and saying they're wrong to call a 175 an ERJ is silly... It stands for Embraer Regional Jet, which is exactly what the E175 is.
All of my company's manuals, training documents, operations bulletins, etc, refer to the 175 as ERJ, as do most airlines along with pretty much everyone in the industry. It's not wrong.
wehappy3@reddit
ERJ is 130/135/145, whereas E-Jet is 170/175 and 190/195.
can_i_has_beer@reddit
you're right
RiteousRhino21@reddit
How far apart are they?
Economy_Link4609@reddit
About 750 feet center to center. That's how far apart 28L and 28R are.
gophergun@reddit
So that would make it about 600 feet from wingtip to wingtip. A bit tight, but not nearly as close as this perspective makes it look.
DoingCharleyWork@reddit
That's telephoto compression for you. Any time you see pictures or videos of things that look close together you should always question it.
Pooch76@reddit
So, 0.75 kilofoot. Got it.
Economy_Link4609@reddit
I prefer furlong and fortnight based measurements.
They'll land 1.13636 furlongs apart about 2.48016e-5 fortnights after the video starts.
Now how many rods to the hogshead does each plane get?
Radiant-Painting581@reddit
It’s really about time we started properly measuring altitude, in fathoms.
TrainerCommercial759@reddit
Please don't get political, David Cameron has nothing to do with this
devsmess@reddit
I prefer bananas lengths and they are 10 dollars each
well_shoothed@reddit
And for that matter, how many stone is each aircraft?
Economy_Link4609@reddit
Sorry, measuring things by some rock a guy tripped over outside London hundreds of years ago is a step to far.
Almost_human-ish@reddit
Somewhere around 5120 averaged over an entire journey.
Altitude, weather, temperature, engine type and aircraft load will all effect the actual number.
A_Crazy_Hooligan@reddit
I'm here from r/popular, but am a civil engineer. It was super amusing to me i school to learn about the unit "Kip" (kilo pound), and this comment took me back to that moment.
Ard-War@reddit
Kip (kip?) itself isn't that cursed. The problem is that it's often take a plural form as kips: kilo pound, uh, second??
Proof_Fix1437@reddit
Just the way your mother likes it. Suck it Trebek!
Pooch76@reddit
TIL! Thank you. My comment came to me as i pondered why 1000-foot units aren’t a thing :)
WorknForTheWeekend@reddit
About two football fields (Freedom™ Football that is)
Proof_Fix1437@reddit
Brought to you by Carl’s Jr
rejin267@reddit
Actually closer to 3.6 roentgen, not great, not terrible
IWorkForTheEnemyAMA@reddit
What’s the max of that counter you’re using btw?
Mekroval@reddit
You've managed to irritate both metric-users and Americans both in one fell swoop, impressive!
Pooch76@reddit
Lol
libmrduckz@reddit
for the record, americans get confused with fractions when they’re in decimal form…
tyfung@reddit
They don't get confused in fractions form? Americans thought 1/3 is smaller than 1/4.
https://www.awrestaurants.com/blog/memories-history/the-truth-about-aws-third-pound-burger-and-the-major-math-mix-up/
el_vient0@reddit
1 ^.3/4 of an inch is a perfectly reasonable measurement
squirrel-gladiator@reddit
wait, what? is this real?
SquarePegRoundWorld@reddit
I'd say seven out of eight Americans get confused, the other .125 of us got it.
12_nick_12@reddit
Idk, I think it’s more of 0.5/4ths get it.
Officer412-L@reddit
The units of HVAC research in the USA can drive you nuts. The unit kBTU (1000 British Thermal Units) exists alongside MBTU (also 1000 BTU, but sometimes 1 million BTU).
morningisbad@reddit
I actually kind of love it.
theanointedduck@reddit
Had to report him to admin!
Repulsive_Client_325@reddit
You got a phone number for him to call?
Psychological-Scar53@reddit
I read that and became very confused....
12_nick_12@reddit
How many AU is that for reference?
rkmvca@reddit
That's kilofeet, doofus.
TacTurtle@reddit
Kilodongs, sir
Adabar@reddit
A kilodong is equivalent to .5 kilofeet
Feminist_Hugh_Hefner@reddit
are you sure? would you bet half a pizzas?
nopostergirl@reddit
Hahahaha. I’m going to start using Kilofeet as a unit of measurement. “Today, my hike had about 5 kilofeet of elevation gain.”
Pooch76@reddit
Yes!
danmarce@reddit
This is one of the funniest things I've ever read here.
scoro27@reddit
750x10^-3 kilofeet
Onair380@reddit
How much planck lenght is it ?
scoro27@reddit
ChatGPT tells me it is also 110 IKEA MALM dressers stacked unsafely
scoro27@reddit
1.414×10\^37
newiphon@reddit
Checkmate world
BB_210@reddit
shoopadoop332@reddit
That’s really not a particularly long distance. Is this standard procedure?
obviousoctopus@reddit
228 meters?
IsraelZulu@reddit
So, roughly the length of two and a half American football fields (excluding endzones).
MangoAnt5175@reddit
The football fields thing always confuses me ; how many bananas is that?
Adjective-Noun-nnnn@reddit
Gros Michel or Cavendish?
skoormit@reddit
Two refrigerators of bananas.
halfbarr@reddit
PSA: don't (or do, depending on your primary source) put your bananas in the fridge
sageinyourface@reddit
They do they so often at SFO I am convinced it’s some kind of game between ATC and/or the pilots
sb5060tx@reddit
/r/anythingbutmetric
JohnDoee94@reddit
So 750ft center to center. B777 wingspan is 212ft (106ft from center) and E175 is 94ft (47ft from center). So tip to tip they were about 750 - 106 - 47 =597ft apart! Or two football fields for US Americans!!
1668553684@reddit
I find it hilarious how you only use American units in your comment, then convert it to football fields for Americans
aqaba_is_over_there@reddit
Shots from far away with a long focal length like this one can often make objects appear closer together.
Arammil1784@reddit
Not often, but always. Focal length directly affects depth of field and perception of sizes and distances.
--Dirty_Diner--@reddit
Is that why it looks like AI? I don't even see the plume of dust/smoke that landing wheels always kick up.
Yo_soy_roger_wilco@reddit
at least 3.50
thehotshotpilot@reddit
Tree fitty
MelancholyDick@reddit
Damn you Loch Ness Monster
LordHamsterWheel@reddit
Wingtip to wingtip? Would be closer to 600ft
ajeleonard@reddit
About 400ft, same as the separation between the runways
21five@reddit
Centerlines are 750ft apart.
MandalorianBeskar@reddit
“The layout of the parallel runways (1L/1R and 28R/28L) was established in the 1950s, and have a separation (centerline to centerline) of only 750 feet (230 m)”
GameonSilver@reddit
Really gives an amazing perspective of size. Beautiful
Simon-Says69@reddit
What amazes me is that the MUCH larger aircraft is only going marginally faster for landing. That big boy really floats well.
Ahsokatara@reddit
For a moment I thought the small plane was a plane the same size as the other one behind the camera.
throw_me_away3478@reddit
777s hide their size well, such a well proportioned aircraft
freneticboarder@reddit
The engines could easily eat that ERJ170 fuselage.
NateAP31@reddit
The GE90’s fan diameter is roughly 10-11 feet. To imagine the scale more easily, the CF34 (the engines on that ERJ) is about 4 1/2 feet (average arm span length). I’ve stood inside a GE90 fan, truly something to behold.
freneticboarder@reddit
IIRC, it's about the size of a 737 fuselage, right?
leebird@reddit
Larger.
PapasGotABrandNewNag@reddit
Cute.
Well built.
Yummy_Crayons91@reddit
777s especially the 777-300ER and 767-400ERs are perfectly proportioned in my mind. The A340-500 is another one that has a good length, to width, to wingspan ratio as well.
snugglezone@reddit
What about girth?
newtomovingaway@reddit
A380 has entered the chat.
Shill4Pineapple@reddit
Land that baby low and slow.
broberds@reddit
That is the tempo.
hongooi@reddit
I mean, it's a cylinder
Obvious-Hunt19@reddit
Nobody ever asks: “how is the inner cylinder”
eyeseeewe81@reddit
Can definitely overcome length.
Stardust_808@reddit
It’s mostly water weight lol
Kvass-Koyot@reddit
The big plane's gunna eat the little plane.
RickMuffy@reddit
Pretty sure the fuselage diam of the American is the size of the engine cowling on united.
Foggl3@reddit
That's a E170/175, not a 737
brown_wagon@reddit
Judging from the winglet angle, I'd say it's a 175.
Mediocre_Gur9159@reddit
Yup been on them. Quiet, nice. Faster and smother than the old Q400s Horizon Turbo Props.
Foggl3@reddit
I've never worked on them, I just prefer them to the rest of the domestic fleet lol
brown_wagon@reddit
It's been a while since I worked on them, so I'm going off of dusty memories, lol. And I don't know if they fitted the 175 tips to the 170 in that time. Like I said, it's been a minute. What I do remember (with a deep, loathing hatred), is the wing to body fairings, and the stupid amount of sealant at the horizontal stab
ender42y@reddit
Yes, that's why I said "Smaller" and "ERJ"
ender42y@reddit
smaller, a 777's engines are about the same diameter as a 737, a bit bigger than an ERJ.
ffomgffong@reddit
The 777's engines are massive, easily dwarfing a 737's fuselage in comparison.
OnTheEveOfWar@reddit
I was recently on a small plane in Munich. We had to walk onto the runway to get on a bus to the terminal. An Airbus 380 passed by us when I was boarding the bus. God damn that thing made all the other plans look small.
NetworkDeestroyer@reddit
Imagine being the pilots American making this landing next to a beast of an aircraft parallel to it going a tad faster. That perspective of landing I would love to see from the cockpit
Xamont@reddit
Why don't they stagger them?
Euro_Snob@reddit
In good weather they usually use the other two runways (that cross these two runways) for takeoffs - and in high traffic they alternate landings and takeoffs. So staggering landings would make it difficult to fit in all the traffic that want to take off.
round-earth-theory@reddit
They are not as close as they appear. There's very little risk of collision. It would take one of the pilots intentionally veering hard and accelerating to smash into the other.
Coomb@reddit
staggering the aircraft would lose about 50% of capacity and the visual operation is acceptably safe. when weather is bad, they do stagger them because you can no longer rely on pilots being able to see and avoid.
bitemy@reddit
Because they don't need to. They're parallel runways. Staggering would slow things down for no appreciable benefit.
No_Appointment_8966@reddit
They have take offs waiting too cross using 1L/1R, so need a clear slot.
busting_bravo@reddit
Having been in this situation hearing TA's all the way down, you for sure as shit notice. It adds a level of stress for sure but you definitely trust the other pilots are going to do their thing properly.
Just-Yogurt-568@reddit
Wouldn’t a 777 into SFO be an auto land?
busting_bravo@reddit
Probably not, no. Why do a Cat III approach in VFR? We get the job because we like to fly, not because we like letting the computer do all the fun stuff.
Just-Yogurt-568@reddit
Interesting. Figured autoland would always be used when available.
Rainebowraine123@reddit
Nope, only used when necessary (or to test it).
aqaba_is_over_there@reddit
I thought the TA's turned off close to the ground?
No_Pattern_2190@reddit
I guarantee you they did not even notice. A) the camera focus makes them seem a lot closer together than they are and b) no one in the American cockpit (or United) is looking out the window to the side.
RevvCats@reddit
The first time I landed in SFO it was a double landing like this and looking out the window the other plane is close. Wingtip to wingtip these were just over 600 feet apart.
KCPilot17@reddit
In SFO, you are absolutely cross checking your partner traffic. Extremely close runways, high RA trends.
So yes, you do look at them.
No_Pattern_2190@reddit
I mean, different SOPs for different folks or however it goes, and I’ll admit I don’t have much experience at SFO I’m east coast based. But there are plenty of PRM approaches out there and no, I would not want either crew member looking out the side thing to monitor the other aircraft instead of focusing on what we’re doing. I would hope the other aircraft is doing the same. Unless it was some drastic obvious move I doubt you’d even be able detect faster that the RA alert, which is what it’s for.
flightist@reddit
This isn’t a PRM and it’s hard to get an RA when you’re in TA-only.
atomatoflame@reddit
Who's in TA only here? At least the United jet shouldn't be anymore.
flightist@reddit
Well they’ve both been for a while whether they wanted it or not, based on altitude, but you guys are turning it back on?
atomatoflame@reddit
Responding all around. I wasn't thinking in terms of altitude. There was an allowance to turn RAs off on visual approaches to reduce nuisance alerts. Obviously that can be an issue, so changes to approaches were made and that guidance has changed. But you are right, altitude here would do it.
flightist@reddit
Still in our guidance. How recent was the change?
atomatoflame@reddit
I think within the last year or so. There is a note that could allow the practice for a specific fleet, MEL, etc if needed.
yourlocalFSDO@reddit
TCAS reverts to TA only below ~1000ft radar altitude varying slightly based on aircraft type.
atomatoflame@reddit
I get what you're saying now. Sorry, I was confusing that statement with prior guidance that allowed, in the captains judgement, turning off RA's during SFO visual approaches
yourlocalFSDO@reddit
They are both 100% on visual approaches. SFO will refuse you anything but a visual if the field is not IFR. This spacing also would absolutely not be allowed running PRM approaches
KCPilot17@reddit
This isn't spacing for a PRM. It's spacing for a visual approach. Completely different things and requirements.
metalder420@reddit
Not in the soup you are not.
flightist@reddit
In the soup they aren’t there.
Valuable-Speaker-312@reddit
As a pilot, I can guarantee you are checking your partner traffic. You scan things just like you do while driving a car. It is a bold pilot that doesn't do that. There are no bold old pilots.
busting_bravo@reddit
I've been wingtip to wingtip with other landing traffic at SFO and I guarantee you, we notice.
Yo_soy_roger_wilco@reddit
the hell do you know lmao
airfryerfuntime@reddit
He was there man, he was there.
DisbarredCoast@reddit
He was in the cockpit. I know this because I was in the cockpit too.
No_Pattern_2190@reddit
lol
NetworkDeestroyer@reddit
Aren’t wrong about that, I guess I need to reword my comment. Cause I know landing pilots are laser focused on the touchdown zone and getting the bird down. But a camera in the cockpit would be a cool perspective of this
No_Pattern_2190@reddit
That makes sense, thank you!
buriedupsidedown@reddit
I’m based in sfo, you are for sure visually identifying your partner aircraft and they’re probably getting TA’s down to 500 feet and looking over their shoulder to say “in sight”.
lawdjesustheresafire@reddit
Imagine just waking up at the end of your flight and seeing a giant plane 30m away 🤣
BuffaloJEREMY@reddit
This needs the music from Top Gun.
taken_my_username_is@reddit
Great video capture! When I first started watching this I was thinking those planes are way too close and then I realized the telephoto lens creates that cool flattening. Which brings up the question what is the distance between parallel approaches?
SeaGlass4728@reddit
United American Eagle... A beautiful scene to watch
carterpape@reddit
black phoebe chirping in the background
zayaisabitch@reddit
Are they dating?
CriTIREw@reddit
Fun fact: you can tell the weight of the aircraft by the number of wheel axles on the main gear. Each axle is good for around 100,000 lb of max weight.
So the 777 weighs in about 3 times the E175.
slash_n_hairy@reddit
Why doesn't the larger jet just eat the smaller one?
marxman28@reddit
"United, traffic at your 10-o'clock, less than 1 mile, an Embraer E-170. Report the traffic in sight."
"United has the light twin in sight."
Jkmi8231@reddit
Airbus is going to continue on improving that aircraft? Oh man.
Substantial_Tap_2493@reddit
That’s not an Airbus
Jkmi8231@reddit
No way, what is that then?
Fluffy-Gazelle-6363@reddit
777 baybeee
Jkmi8231@reddit
The 747 that had so many bad publicity a few years ago?
Fluffy-Gazelle-6363@reddit
No, the 747 is a different plane than the 777. The 787 and the 737 Max both had crashes. The 777 is a different plane. You can tell by how 747, 747, and 777 are all different numbers. They are all Boeing planes. Hope this helps.
Jkmi8231@reddit
Thanks for the heads up, saved me a trip on Google!
SeatpitchbyKate@reddit
Cool video
bernfranksimo@reddit
*American Eagle
rygelicus@reddit
People on the right side of the Eagle are getting an amazing view.
AlexNachtigall247@reddit
Is it just the camera angle or is this as unsafe as it looks like?
CaptainsPrerogative@reddit
Positions match and speeds match — brought to you by highly skilled and long-suffering NorCal TRACON air traffic controllers!
jamgar@reddit
Nice work!
UW_Ebay@reddit
Gotta be so hard not to look over in you’re flying the ERJ lol
Animal_Opera@reddit
It doesn’t look real to me. Maybe MS flight simulator or something?
sageinfinite@reddit
777 😍😍😍
diamondedg3@reddit
Thrust reverser nacelle so secksy
chuckop@reddit
I thought the 777 was gonna have, uh, relations with the smaller jet.
TheUnexpectedSleeper@reddit
Baby is gonna be a 717
bob_lala@reddit
717 never crashed
/rainman
Anxious_Ad9929@reddit
Kind of clothes aren't they? That would make me nervous . My booty will clench so tight I would have made diamonds by now
staycurious72@reddit
The angle of the video makes them seem so, but the two parallel runways are sufficiently apart.
Anxious_Ad9929@reddit
That's fair you want a diamond?
DuckWhatduckSplat@reddit
This plane is small. But the planes out there are far away.
Small. Far away.
bob_lala@reddit
no, I still dont get it
atheista@reddit
I have this on a t-shirt 😂
Ruby_and_Hattie@reddit
Father Ted!! 🤣
Good one! 😁
Mad_kat4@reddit
Now I've got sir David Attenborough in my head here we have the beautiful mother plane teaching her chick how to come back to the nest with all the grace and beauty that only mother nature can provide.
Shot-Swimming-9098@reddit
Why does the larger one not simply eat the smaller one?
gamrgrant@reddit
Don't talk to me or my son ever again
testthrowawayzz@reddit
I'm not great with words, but I'm thinking of the baby plane desperately flying away from the predator plane, only to find out later that the predator plane wasn't targeting the baby plane at all.
CaySalBank@reddit
The young eagle rises and falls, trying -- somewhat in vain -- to keep pace with her seasoned mother who effortlessly floats back to their home
Mekroval@reddit
Is anyone else hearing some spritely BBC documentary music in the background, while reading that?
VikingMonkey123@reddit
Mooove, b!tch, get outta the waaaay.
Economy_Link4609@reddit
Really cool shot of the converging parallel approaches used on those runways. The ERJ would have had the straight in to 28L, the 777 would been converging over to hit 28R. Plane on the right has to have eyes on the one on the left, and break out to the right if they lose sight of it. Best way to manage getting planes in on runways that are 750 feet centerline to centerline.
Also - if you are in the smaller plane being closed in on - does the plan automatically play the Jaws music as the big one gets closer?
EBtwopoint3@reddit
The traffic alert system would be going off, so kind of lol.
gophergun@reddit
Wouldn't it be disabled below 1000 feet? I imagine they probably don't want nuisance alerts during critical phases of flight.
ActionFigureCollects@reddit
Take that Fleet Week.
EnoughAd6885@reddit
It’s giving different paycheck vibes lol
bladel@reddit
“Excuse me, Tourist, but this is my Hub.”
Trix_Are_4_90Kids@reddit
"I'll race ya!"
PeculiarsSheep@reddit
This is my first time seeing parallel SFO approaches so synchronised in speed. Is the speed difference is usually much greater? I thought planes usually land at similar speed? In my personal experience on a flight there last year in an A350, we approached way faster than the plane alongside (I think it was a 737).
Top_Tower_168@reddit
They will assign the plane that is behind a higher speed until they can match up. Then assign the same speed. The last few miles there will be slight differences as the planes slow to their final approach speed.
OIL_99@reddit
It reminds me of a show I recently watched…
boise208@reddit
You vs the guy she tells you not to worry about
cuckmysocks@reddit
Ever been bowling and tried to throw the ball same time as the lane beside you? I would def gutterball the landing if I was the pilot.
Nevergonnasay36@reddit
Well son, when a Daddy plane and a Mommy plane love each other very much…
HappycamperNZ@reddit
I had a certain meme in my head, both pleasantly surprised and disappointed at this community at the moment.
Mekroval@reddit
Stunningly beautiful. I'm assuming the depth of field is so shallow, it's making them look worryingly close to each other?
Coomb@reddit
the centerline spacing between 28L and 28R is 750 feet, which is about 3.5 wingspans (i.e. total difference between wingtips) of a B777 series aircraft.
Mekroval@reddit
That's some pretty impressive math. I think I'd still be nervous being that close, especially if I were in the Embraer.
Jam555jar@reddit
It's the perspective not the depth of field. To get the same coverage using a longer lens compared to a normal lens you need to be further away (because the longer lens is zoomed in by comparison).
Being further away has a compressive effect. Objects behind your subject apear closer and truer to scale. Wide angle lenses (like phones) do the opposite and everything behind the subject appears smaller (because you have to bring the camera closer). That's why phone phones can be underwhelming compared to what you see in real life.
It's all about the distance to the subject basically
Mekroval@reddit
This is a great explanation, thank you!
deleted_by_reddit@reddit
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Applesauceeenjoyer@reddit
Do I look like a real boy, papa?
Macmaster4k2@reddit
Could I get some of that butter for my toast?
SubstantialFix510@reddit
This is AI. Wake turbulence , Separation is lost and way to risky...
yourlocalFSDO@reddit
This is literally an every day operation at SFO
Thequiet01@reddit
To be fair I was wondering how the wake turbulence works out with something like this - are they close enough that the smaller plane has landed before the wake turbulence becomes an issue? That’s my guess.
clburton24@reddit
No. Wake turbulence goes behind and down.
Thequiet01@reddit
Yes? The larger plane is overtaking the smaller one. If they’d continued flying the small one would have quite possibly ended up in the wake turbulence depending exactly what the pattern of distribution is.
So I am saying that my thought when watching was that the expectation is that they will both be on the ground - where wake turbulence isn’t a concern - before the larger plane overtakes enough that the small one is actually at risk of being in the wake turbulence area.
Although then what happens if they both have to do a go around?
Cool-Constant4319@reddit
This is a telephoto lens
Used-Ad2241@reddit
The only thing worse than AI brain rot is the brain rot of people who don’t have critical thinking skills and assume everything is AI
Texas_Kimchi@reddit
The plane she tells you not to worry about.
Mister-Redbeard@reddit
Fuselage envy.
SanDiedo@reddit
That's how Cesnas are made.
ahu_huracan@reddit
underrated ☝️
C6R882@reddit
I’ve never understood why this is deemed safe, although I understand a left or right diversion on landing is seemingly non-existent.
as718@reddit
At some point you gotta outweigh the risks vs the odds
C6R882@reddit
I think you mean the cost vs the risk.
But yes, I agree.
as718@reddit
I think I was trying to combine “weigh the odds” + “Risk vs rewards” and ended up with that amalgamation
raglbanana@reddit
You vs the guy she tells you not to worry about
InventoryNomad@reddit
Pretty cool, pretty pretty cool
RootsRockData@reddit
Banger clip.
kaiser-so-say@reddit
Was this taken by a third plane la ding beside them?
Weird-Conclusion6907@reddit
Question that may be obvious- why do planes do this?
maninthearenaz@reddit
Hey little buddy
bokan@reddit
Can someone who knows cameras tell me what trickery is making them seem so close?
Coomb@reddit
there's not a whole lot of trickery, the runways they are landing on are separated by 750 feet on centerline, meaning the wingtips are probably about 600 feet apart (or about 3 fuselage lengths / 3 wingspans for the larger aircraft)
skankhunt1738@reddit
The specific one is lens compression! It’s really cool to mess with if you have a big zoom lens.
bokan@reddit
I’m wondering how hard it was to keep the aircraft in frame if they were using a huge zoom with narrow fov
Thequiet01@reddit
The physics of a telephoto lens versus a wide angle.
skankhunt1738@reddit
Lens compression is a very fun tool.
bokan@reddit
That’s the word! Thanks
BlackAndStrong666@reddit
How those tiny tires , hold up giant asss airplane
Fluffy_Dependent9340@reddit
You vs. the guy she tells you not to worry about
HerryBalz@reddit
How is this allowed??
Imaginary_Debate5168@reddit
My thought exactly, aren't they too close to each other?
HerryBalz@reddit
Right? One big gust of wind and that’s a disaster.
Coomb@reddit
a lateral gust of wind will affect both aircraft (close to) equally.
Coomb@reddit
Visual separation is a beautiful thing.
hkohne@reddit
Instruments do a good amount of the work
DaimonHans@reddit
You vs the tennis coach she told you not to worry about.
saltedpepper547@reddit
Bad ass
R5Jockey@reddit
Amazing shot.
Aqualung812@reddit
Yup, amazing optics, great timing, smooth panning…just to have the image cropped to hell on the Internet!
proxpi@reddit
Seriously, where is the original un-cropped version?
Acceptable_Animator5@reddit
Been there -done that
ShortysTRM@reddit
I am absolutely jaded when it comes to calling a random shot of a plane "interesting," and I'd like to believe a pretty good judge of scale, even with a telephoto lens, but that was one of the coolest pieces of commercial aviation video I've ever seen. My brain could barely comprehend that the smaller plane was actually in front of the larger one.
asday515@reddit
r/confusing_perspective
eorzeacam@reddit
Awww, mama plane and baby plane <3
yetiflask@reddit
This is so needlessly dangerous and irresponsible. Two planes should never be anywhere near each other when in the air.
_Gengar_Trainer_@reddit
I get nervous driving a uhaul. Pilots are fucking nuts
lucathecontemplator@reddit
He’s right behind me isn’t he
Pale-Ad-8383@reddit
Almost like a father-son landing!
Sipas@reddit
Don't talk to me or my son ever again.
AceCombat9519@reddit
Really impressive picture here by the way if we want to go technical AA E175 with UA B777-322/ER
Sophie_MacGovern@reddit
Don’t speak to me or my son ever again
Otto_the_pitbull@reddit
Plane porn
doingstuffwithpeople@reddit
When a daddy plane and a mommy plane love each other very much...
schnauzerdad@reddit
Why does the engine on the United plane look like it extends when landing?
____ACHIYA____@reddit
It’s called Translating-Sleeve type trust reversers. They are used to reduce the landing speed when the A/C touches the ground.
MightOk5012@reddit
You vs the guy she told to not to worry about
StoredCAthinkup@reddit
This is MS Flight Simulator, you can’t change my mind.
Illustrious_End9775@reddit
it’s like mama bear and baby bear
AtomicRedemption@reddit
The parent aircraft have to teach the baby aircraft to land somehow. Nature truly is beautiful.
TacTurtle@reddit
Heh they really do mean "junior airline"....
zoroddesign@reddit
That must have been one hell of a zoom lens.
ReginaGloriana@reddit
Aww, they’re mating!
skylinenavigator@reddit
That’s how I mount my gf
ScottOld@reddit
Looked like the big one was just pushing the little one along
civilized_warbirds@reddit
This is so incredibly dangerous! The ERJ’s wake turbulence could have really made that triple-7 spill a drink onboard!!!
Independent_Wrap_321@reddit
Serious question: I’m guessing there’s no need to worry about wake turbulence from each other if the noses are more or less parallel until very close to touchdown? I mean as long as one isn’t behind and flying through the vortex of the larger one? I realize it’s an optical illusion and they’re not that close, but not THAT far apart. Anyone?
Optimal-Room-8586@reddit
Wut
EJayy_22@reddit
Was this taken from the San Francisco Bay Trail?
NorkGhostShip@reddit
I miss Grey United 💔
Cabbage_Corp_@reddit
Really cool that the engine opens up like that. What’s the purpose?
Independent_Wrap_321@reddit
So they can get in there and start working on it right away. Time is money!
Or, just to slow down faster by reversing the thrust, but my idea is funnier
Not_Serial_Murdering@reddit
Hang back lil bro, watch me land this shit.
Fortressmarmalade@reddit
I stay at the Vagabond every time I’m in San Francisco just so I can watch scenes like this.
ChronoDrifter@reddit
Why doesn't the larger plane simply eat the other plane?
Radioactive_Tuber57@reddit
I flew into SFO and the plane next to us was keeping perfect pace (similar size too). I thanked the flight crew and the First Officer said it’s fun to do occasionally when planes lined up just right.
kkeut@reddit
"Davey, no!!"
Happy_Breadfruit_364@reddit
Literally zero experience flying just asking a dumb question here: essentially how much more difficult is it to fly the bigger one? I imagine at some point if being a commercial pilot, the size of the aircraft itself becomes less and less relevant, and I wonder if that applies here.
Meanie_Cream_Cake@reddit
My landing approach to LAX was also in parallel with an Airbus A320 or something similar. I should probably post this video here one day. Was a passenger not a pilot.
Film_Noir@reddit
Ummm…..beautiful but terrifying
piranspride@reddit
777 butter!!!
69odysseus@reddit
Would be nice to see A380 and Boeing -777 land at the same time.
AwayCatch8994@reddit
Big bro and li’l bro coming to the playground
YaBaconMeCrazyMon@reddit
"Don't talk to me or my son, ever again!"
Unfair_Cicada@reddit
Is this AI?
ammitsat@reddit
JFC. Not everything that looks a little different from what you’re used to is AI. This is normal ops at SFO as long as visibility is good.
Cool-Constant4319@reddit
No
itbemario5@reddit
"if you come near me, or my son, ever again..."
Suspicious-Carry-168@reddit
Nice!
No-Hovercraft-455@reddit
Amazing 😍 this video made my day
The American Airlines looks so tiny in comparison that it's strange to think it's in fact not tiny at all
HavingNotAttained@reddit
I like how the calf really tries to keep up with its mom, does a pretty good job of it, too
Nelvoki@reddit
Haha, the ultimate "mother plane" flex—nature's got nothing on that!
Dont_Wanna_Not_Gonna@reddit
Dear Commercial Airline Pilots,
Thank you for having such amazing skills and nerves of steel so that a guy like me can go fun places.
Upset-Bad981@reddit
I am not an aviation person, but I like to lurk on this sub. I have never seen an engine cowling open up on landing before! Is this a relatively newer feature, like in the last 15 years? Or has it always been happening, and I have just never noticed before?
chaosattractor@reddit
Cascade reversers which have the cowling slide open like you see here are actually quite old - like late 1970s/early 1980s old. However until about the last 15 years or so they were mostly a Boeing thing; Airbus instead went with these pivoting-door reversers that open up like a flower. But their newer planes use cascade reversers. There are also clamshell thrust reversers which are even older and have been supplanted by the other two.
For context they redirect the engine's thrust so that it acts as a brake instead of pushing the plane forward.
chillflyer@reddit
That's the reversers opening up after wheel spin up.
maybeinoregon@reddit
Do they still have the two piece ones?
When I was younger, those reminded me of a dragster parachute lol
LeastInsurance8578@reddit
Vagabond Inn - bay view room on top floor is a great place to take photos from at SFO - higher level than the shore line pathway and goes a great buffet breakfast
m8_is_me@reddit
Reverse thrusting will always be badass
Cesalv@reddit
Still remember when the A380 was considered "massive" and more recent planes engine are bigger than previous models body section...
chaosattractor@reddit
...you mean like now when it is still the biggest passenger plane on earth?
LGmonitor456@reddit
"mine is bigger than yours'
AcePlanespotting@reddit
You can be my wingman any time!
sgf68@reddit
Is it 'take your kid to work' day again already?
FelisCantabrigiensis@reddit
Needs a faux-Attenborough voiceover about the juvenile aircraft narrowly escaping the larger adult predator.
Measure76@reddit
The smaller plane could totally get up inside the bigger plane's engine.
ChefTastyTreats@reddit
Is that how they got the gif of airplanes wheels coming in for a landing close up slow mo. It was on the front page recently.
cjhallx@reddit
Telephoto delight!
old-and-smooth@reddit
Isn’t there an unwritten rule like when you are bowling?
ProfessionalFlan3159@reddit
gold Jerry! gold!
dinomax55@reddit
Great shot
Python_07@reddit
Very nice. I love that transition at the end.
pierrecambronne@reddit
Mother teaching her child how to land.. Colorized.
Kyriakos120@reddit
I thought they were mating.
canadarich@reddit
Embraer 🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷
4EverFeral@reddit
So this actually happened to me about a month ago (on an American flight, coincidentally). We began our descent and everyone slowly started to notice that another plane was getting REAL fucking close to us. We were all white knuckling, eyes glue to the windows, the whole nine yards. I was about 10 seconds away from sending my wife a "goodbye" text before we came in for a completely normal, completely safe landing, lol.
wehappy3@reddit
It also actually happened in this video... parallel landings are a thing.
4EverFeral@reddit
Wait, really??? I had no idea. I thought I was posting a totally random comment for funsies that was completely unrelated to the OP. Wild 🤯
Literally just sharing a passenger's perspective who had never experienced it before.
ProfessionalGur9322@reddit
You and the guy she said not to worry about.
EIPissedOffo@reddit
This is how airplanes teach their young
georgekn3mp@reddit
Forced perspective really does make planes look like they are climbing at 60 degree angle of attack or like this, like they are racing to see who can land first....
god_damnit_reddit@reddit
i worked in burlingame for a few years right on the water and spent hours at a time watching approaching flights just like this.
it literally never got old.
i will still watch and upvote and comment on every single one of these posts. incredible.
ErgoNomicNomad@reddit
I'm gonna win I'm gonna win I'm gonna win... awwww.
OkBobcat2075@reddit
I don’t understand this well but why isn’t this super risky for both planes from a wake/turbulence perspective?
OkBobcat2075@reddit
Thanks all!
buriedupsidedown@reddit
There’s a number of things to consider. If crosswinds are from the left, they will blow United’s wake to the right, away from the runway course. Also, if it’s windy that’ll disrupt wake. I don’t think a side by side plane has as much to worry about as the plane that comes in after United, who may try to compensate by flying above glide path. The runways in sfo are so long that you can stay slightly above glide path and still land in the touch down zone.
IronBeagle63@reddit
Horizontal separation is probably more than it appears from this angle. Still, they’ve neutralized evasion vectors for each other. RNAV would have to be pretty advanced in both aircraft. TCAS alarms in both cockpits the whole time I imagine.
ES_Legman@reddit
Parallel runway operations are heavily regulated and have specific rules and the runways are separated by a distance to make it safe.
Zestyclose_Way_6607@reddit
the "wake" falls back and behind the aircraft, even if an aircraft was following in they could come in just above slope and land just past the touchdown point of the front aircraft without crossing through the wake
the wake would be behind both aircraft in this situation so no issue, it doesnt shoot out to the sides like that
someone can probably explain this better
dKabz@reddit
Is this safe? What's the separation
doom_pizza@reddit
Yes it’s safe. This happens multiple times a day everyday.
nestestasjon@reddit
They're landing planes at SFO like this 24/7 so I'm gonna go with yes.
21five@reddit
Centerlines are 750ft apart.
Stegosaurus69@reddit
They're farther away than it looks
dKabz@reddit
For sure. I mean understand the forced perspective from this angle makes them look like they are next to each other, but they still look much closer. Thanks
discombobulated38x@reddit
This is just hella cool, in a "oh yeah this reminds me why I like planes" kind of way.
saggywitchtits@reddit
See here, a mother plane shows it's offspring how to land, and... perfect landing for both mother and child.
KinksAreForKeds@reddit
It's a little unnerving as a passenger.
publius-esquire@reddit
Let’s fly with mama :)
Rbkelley1@reddit
https://tenor.com/4S55.gif
suryanamascar@reddit
dont talk to me or my son again
verstohlen@reddit
Forced perspective. Wait...no
ChinaCatProphet@reddit
Move it shawty!
XDM_Inc@reddit
Like the little plane was giving the big plane some kind of landing support 🤣
gjferg@reddit
The duality of commercial aviation.
YebelTheRebel@reddit
Nice camera work
djsnoopmike@reddit
What a comical perspective
MandalorianBeskar@reddit
“The layout of the parallel runways (1L/1R and 28R/28L) was established in the 1950s, and have a separation (centerline to centerline) of only 750 feet (230 m)”
Sustainable_Twat@reddit
The United craft as it approaches
“Here, Son, let me show you how it’s done “
Dasshteek@reddit
Don’t talk to me or my son ever again.
EvergreenMystic@reddit
Now boys and girls here we have the mating of a rare species. See how the male totally dominates the smaller female aircraft? Yes jimmy, this is how we get Cessna's.
No-Award5040@reddit
I love the old United livery so much, especially on the 777 and 767
dsdvbguutres@reddit
Butter my toast, captain.
Cautious-Antelope743@reddit
Is this how jets are made?
KDHatesOKC@reddit
Mom and cub
elvenmaster_@reddit
"Mommy, I don't need the side wheels anymore ! I can ride alone, now !"
superimu@reddit
The plucky Eagle held the lead early, but the big United had too much power down the stretch, and got the victory.
goro-n@reddit
Now that’s what I call synchronized flying!
deleted_by_reddit@reddit
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