Thanks, folks, some great stuff above.
JohnM, that was quite something to be on that last Ansett flight. You say that the company was bankrupt as of midnight, which occurred mid-flight. Now my question to you is this: Did you insist on free drinks after that time, because my understanding of the law is that a bankrupt company has no right to continue trading?
BAM1748, that's a great story about the plane/train crash at SYD. I had never heard of it. You say that "some may remember it", . . . mmm, well, I thought I was about the oldest geezer on this site, born 1942, and I was just starting school when it happened. But maybe we have some octogenarians who remember it.
Altair, thanks for a great, and very unusual photo.
But the post above which has really grabbed my attention is that of RooFlyer, post #53. He provides a great map of a remote area with which I am quite familiar - northern Quebec - as I worked across it for several years in the late 70s. Now some will say that what I am about to write has absolutely no relevance to international travel, but if you persist to the end you will discover that there is relevance indeed.
Now take a look at RooFlyer's map, in particular the area to the East of Chibougamau, where he has the marker. You will see a highly unusual geographical feature. I am referring to that large almost perfectly circular (annular, actually - doughnut shaped) lake. It is Lake Manicouagan. The observant and the curious among you will have contrasted its shape with the shapes of virtually all the other lakes of northern Canada, which tend to be long and scraggly. This is because they are all of glacial origin. So what explains Lake Manicouagan? The answer is that it is the combined work of God and man. God? (Nature, if the concept of God is a bit much for you). Well, the contours there were created by a meteor impact some 23 million years ago. It is one of the largest meteor scars on the face of the earth. Man? It is an artificial lake, created by the Daniel Johnson Dam for hydro power generation. The dam, which is not located on the circle, but rather at the extremity of that narrow extension you can just discern to the south, is a very spectacular concrete structure, probably the largest multiple arch buttress dam on earth.
So, what does this have to do with flying? Well, there are not many man-made features easily discernable from 33,000 feet, but both the dam and the lake are. I saw them a couple of years ago, flying ORD - LHR, and I imagine that there are numerous other trans-Atlantic great circle routes which traverse this region. Lake Manicouagan has a diameter of about 75 km, say about the same as Port Phillip Bay, and if you are lucky and high enough you will be able to see almost the entire lake in one sight. It's circularity is stunning, and looks most unnatural.
Cocitus23.
Some years ago I started a thread on great sights from aircraft. There were many interesting contributions, but I don't think that I, or anyone else, thought to mention Lake Manicouagan. So thanks, RooFlyer for refreshing my memory.
JohnM, that was quite something to be on that last Ansett flight. You say that the company was bankrupt as of midnight, which occurred mid-flight. Now my question to you is this: Did you insist on free drinks after that time, because my understanding of the law is that a bankrupt company has no right to continue trading?
BAM1748, that's a great story about the plane/train crash at SYD. I had never heard of it. You say that "some may remember it", . . . mmm, well, I thought I was about the oldest geezer on this site, born 1942, and I was just starting school when it happened. But maybe we have some octogenarians who remember it.
Altair, thanks for a great, and very unusual photo.
But the post above which has really grabbed my attention is that of RooFlyer, post #53. He provides a great map of a remote area with which I am quite familiar - northern Quebec - as I worked across it for several years in the late 70s. Now some will say that what I am about to write has absolutely no relevance to international travel, but if you persist to the end you will discover that there is relevance indeed.
Now take a look at RooFlyer's map, in particular the area to the East of Chibougamau, where he has the marker. You will see a highly unusual geographical feature. I am referring to that large almost perfectly circular (annular, actually - doughnut shaped) lake. It is Lake Manicouagan. The observant and the curious among you will have contrasted its shape with the shapes of virtually all the other lakes of northern Canada, which tend to be long and scraggly. This is because they are all of glacial origin. So what explains Lake Manicouagan? The answer is that it is the combined work of God and man. God? (Nature, if the concept of God is a bit much for you). Well, the contours there were created by a meteor impact some 23 million years ago. It is one of the largest meteor scars on the face of the earth. Man? It is an artificial lake, created by the Daniel Johnson Dam for hydro power generation. The dam, which is not located on the circle, but rather at the extremity of that narrow extension you can just discern to the south, is a very spectacular concrete structure, probably the largest multiple arch buttress dam on earth.
So, what does this have to do with flying? Well, there are not many man-made features easily discernable from 33,000 feet, but both the dam and the lake are. I saw them a couple of years ago, flying ORD - LHR, and I imagine that there are numerous other trans-Atlantic great circle routes which traverse this region. Lake Manicouagan has a diameter of about 75 km, say about the same as Port Phillip Bay, and if you are lucky and high enough you will be able to see almost the entire lake in one sight. It's circularity is stunning, and looks most unnatural.
Cocitus23.
Some years ago I started a thread on great sights from aircraft. There were many interesting contributions, but I don't think that I, or anyone else, thought to mention Lake Manicouagan. So thanks, RooFlyer for refreshing my memory.
