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General aviation/airplane news and chat

So I was at Lisbon airport recently and noticed a special lane for non-EU but approved countries to use e-gates which included the U.K. first time I’ve seen this option for non-EU/EEA/CH passports in the EU. I’m always having to be stamped in manually on a UK passport and that includes recent trips to major cities like Amsterdam and Berlin.

Unfortunately I was transiting so I didn’t get to use the gates but it’s the first time I think I’ve not had to get a physical check/stamp on arrival to the EU since Brexshit.

Has anyone else seen anything similar in the EU? (I know we do it in the U.K. for EU, US, Japan etc passports)

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So I was at Lisbon airport recently and noticed a special lane for non-EU but approved countries to use e-gates which included the U.K. first time I’ve seen this option for non-EU/EEA/CH passports in the EU. I’m always having to be stamped in manually on a UK passport and that includes recent trips to major cities like Amsterdam and Berlin.

Unfortunately I was transiting so I didn’t get to use the gates but it’s the first time I think I’ve not had to get a physical check/stamp on arrival to the EU since Brexshit.

Has anyone else seen anything similar in the EU? (I know we do it in the U.K. for EU, US, Japan etc passports)

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I used it at Lisbon and it was great because it was quiet. However there were only 2 guys to do the stamping which I imagine would be a bit of a bottle neck if it was busy.
 
Yeah clear the egate than you get stamped. I suspect it's in preparation for the new system where after first entry when they take prints it's easy entry and exit for a few years

Supposed to kick in last month, delayed yet again to "sometime in 2025"

The UK's version of this fiasco goes live for EU people in the spring. Would advise not travelling during the first week or so of that.
 
Ah ok I presumed it was like in the U.K. where they don’t even stamp you if you’re from one of the ‘approved’ countries.

I did notice in Nice airport a few weeks back there was a load of infrastructure not yet online which I presumed was part of the long delayed EES system.

What fun that’s going to be. Can you imagine the ferry ports too with all the trucks and families and bus loads of school trips and stuff having to get fingerprinted.
 
In Madrid, to this day it’s still ‘EU passports this way, everyone else that way please’. Complete with 30+ minutes waiting time for the latter. Don’t know if those countries not in the EU but with special cooperation agreements such as Switzerland get to use the EU gates, though.
 
Helicopter question. Next to the rowing club is the military police helibase. Most of the helicopters have 4 skinny blades. There is one more aggressive chopper with 2 fat blades that seems to be used as a helicopter gunship. It sounds complete different, like a helicopter from a Vietnam war movie.
Why 2 blades, not 4?
My supposition is that the fat blade is more resistant to small arms fire. Am I correct?
 
Two blades is actually the most efficient and will give the greatest speed (and least weight), but having more blades makes the ride less wobbly and is preferable for civilian uses. This is true for marine propellers, as well. With the added issues of cavitation thrown in for fun. This is why you see submarines with 8+ blades on the prop.
 
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News this week that the Malaysian government has agreed on a no-find-no-fee new search for MH370.

I am sure locating the final resting place of the wreckage will provide a degree of closure and comfort to the families of the victims. But from an investigative standpoint, are there any realistic chances of gaining an understanding of what went on during that flight?

Are flight recorder boxes designed or remotely likely to be able to yield any data after spending a decade several thousand metres under the ocean? I’m pretty sure in this particular case there’d be little to be gained from recovering the fuselage or other debris, seeing as we pretty much know why the plane eventually ditched.

Not being unsympathetic at all and I hope it will be found, as I am sure it will bring a degree of comfort to the relatives. Just wondering if investigators have any realistic hopes of obtaining data from the boxes.
 
Two blades is actually the most efficient and will give the greatest speed (and least weight), but having more blades makes the ride less wobbly and is preferable for civilian uses. This is true for marine propellers, as well. With the added issues of cavitation thrown in for fun. This is why you see submarines with 8+ blades on the prop.
Thanks, that made this morning’s S92 flight feel all the more luxurious.
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