Turning around, here's a view down one of the middle aisles towards the front of the store. Why is the number for "E26" so much larger than the others? Who knows! This isn't the last of the inconsistencies we'll see with these endcap aisle numbers, though. Also, I like how, in the distance, you can see right through one of the hanging department signs.
That large 'E26' does kind of remind me of the large signs that are on top of jetbridges at airports. Here's E22 at AMS. It's entirely possible I've been in that jetbridge before, lol.
ReplyDeletehttps://askthepilot.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/AMS-Boarding-Bridge.jpg
Huh, yeah, I doubt that was the intention, but I can see that!
DeleteI love AMS! I wonder if those over-the-wing jetbridges are used for anything anymore. It's too bad that the flights to this part of the world never got large enough planes to use those special jetbridges.
Yes, it was a real shame when the last scheduled KLM flight on a 747 to Houston came and went a few years ago. I believe KLM uses a 787 for their flight to Houston now. For a while in the 2000s, KLM actually had two daily flights here, one with the 747 and one with a 767. Lufthansa was using some combination of 747-8s and A380s before the pandemic, but I have no idea what equipment airlines are using to fly to Houston now during the pandemic or if all these airlines are even flying here everyday still. I really have not looked into that matter.
DeleteOne neat thing is that one exact KLM 747-300 Combi (actually, it was a -200 converted to -300 standards) that I had a couple of flights on in the 1990s, registration number PH-BUK, has been preserved at some kind of airplane museum in the Netherlands. It's neat that I could visit a plane I've had flights on before even though the plane has been retired for many years. Link: https://www.flickr.com/photos/tynophotography/26175119579
But, yes, I do remember those dual jetbridges AMS has/had. I really don't know if they are still in use.
Cool -- I wish I had been able to fly on a combi at some point, but I doubt I will now, since they aren't really a thing anymore. Most of the times I flew through AMS, the long-haul leg would have been on Northwest/Delta from their small hub at Seatac -- the first few times would have probably been a DC-10, so that's cool, but later flights were much less interesting.
DeleteI wouldn't say that flying on a 747 Combi was anything amazing other than that the cabin stopped before you otherwise would have expected it to stop. I suppose in some ways, flying on a Combi was better than a non-Combi as there were less people on the flight.
DeleteI did fly on a couple of KLM 747-400 Combis as well including PH-BFC ('City of Calgary'), a plane that was famous because it flew into a cloud of volcanic ash over Alaska when the plane was almost brand new that caused all four engines to flame out and other damage. Fortunately, they were able to land safely, but the plane was quite damaged and it had to be rebuilt. Nonetheless, it had a long career after that. For whatever reason, PH-BFC was a frequent visitor to Houston.