Royal Air Maroc at Washington Dulles International Airport

This past Thursday, September 8th, 2016, Royal Air Maroc, the flag carrier for the Kingdom of Morocco, began non-stop service between Washington, DC, USA and Casablanca, Morocco. Royal Air Maroc's Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner will make the 7hr journey between Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) Mohammed V International Airport (CMN) three days each week.

Events at Dulles began with a reception for passengers at the gate waiting to depart, and the main festivities began when the inaugural flight landed at 9.55PM on R/W 19L.  The aircraft was greeted at the gate with a ceremonial water arch.

Moroccan Ambassador to the United States Rachad Bouhlal was made inaugural statements marking the occasion before a ribbon cutting ceremony prior to boarding of the first departing flight.

The new 787-8 Dreamliner flown on this route features 18 Business Class seats and 256 Economy Class seats, with an updated layout that allows for more legroom and space for passengers throughout the cabin.

Departing passengers were presented with gift bags containing a commemorative challenge pin, certificate of inaugural flight, Royal Air Maroc USB drive, and a pair of Moroccan tea candles.  The 787-8 Dreamliner lifted off for Casablanca twenty minutes before midnight.

Press

My photos from this event have been featured on the front page of AirlineGeeks.com and have been distributed via PRNewsWire, a New York based newswire agency.

Behind the Scenes

I was fortunate enough to speak a bit with the departing Captain, who showed me around the Dreamliner's cockpit for a few moments during his pre-flight.  What a cool guy!

For the photo and avgeeks out there reading this, airfields are extremely dark at night; this is especially true for Dulles since the runways are so far away from the ramp's sodium lights.  All landing photos on the runway were at ISO 25,600, f/2.8, 1/125th in order to have just enough shutter speed to stop motion, but still have enough light to make the capture, and I still had to boost exposure by +⅔EV in post.  The 1D X handles these kinds of conditions very well; extraordinarily well for press usage as is the purpose here.

Photos on the ramp were at ISO 12,800, f/2.8, 1/250th, mainly because I am photographing while walking during water arches; the ramps are lit by orange sodium lights which can be counteracted with manual White Balance set to 2,100K; this setting shifts their amber light white, but will shift the 4,300K incandescent bulbs illuminating the Main Terminal a deep cyan.  You can see this same effect in my inaugural photos for Brussels Airlines, and a few of my weddings and portrait sessions where I purposely use this mixed-color-temperature situation for dramatic effect.

Departure photos were at a more sensible ISO 6,400, f/2.8, 1/60th.  In general I won't drop my shutter speeds below 1/125th unless dark lighting conditions or creative need arises, and I usually prefer to stay at 1/250th and above if I can help it without going crazy with the ISOs.  That said, I'm not afraid of pushing into high-ISO because I know the 1D X handles them very well (although this post isn't the best example of it).

Emirates A380

Yesterday at Washington Dulles International Airport, Emirates formally welcomed daily service between Washington, DC and Dubai on its new flagship aircraft, the A380, which replaced the 777-300ER.  Events throughout the morning were broadcast live on WJLA7 / NewsChannel8.

This was the second event for Emirates at Dulles I've been on hand to take part in since they began service in 2012.

On hand to introduce the new aircraft and additional services was Rob Gurney, North American Senior Vice President, Emirates, and Christopher U. Browne, Vice President and Airport Manager, Washington Dulles International Airport.

On-board Emirates' new A380 aircraft, first and business class passengers enjoy lie-flat bed seating, and have access to the onboard lounge, featuring a full bar and lounge seating.  First class passengers enjoy the luxury of private suites stocked with a variety of refreshments, beauty products, productivity kits, entertainment options including personal iPads, and access to one of the A380's two Shower Spas.

On the lower deck, all economy passengers have access to ICE: Emirates' award winning free in-flight entertainment system offering more than 2,000 television, film, music, and game channels, as well as complimentary Wi-Fi.  Children also benefit with their own busy bags, including coloring books, toys, and stuffed animals.

Wings for All

Earlier this year I was brought in on a program which is probably the most meaningful project I have worked on to date.  Wings for All is a bi-annual event at Dulles which seeks to teach and acclimate individuals with autism and other special needs to commercial air travel.

This simulated event is real and authentic in every way except that the aircraft does not push back and take flight.  Participants begin by arriving at the airport and checking in at a United ticket counter, where they check their bags and are given real boarding passes.  Next, they proceed through a TSA security checkpoint, where they are actually screened.  From here, participants must navigate the airport to their gate.  At the gate, passengers (participants) board the Boeing 777 by assigned group number, stow their carry-ons, and prepare to take flight.  Cabin crew give the safety briefing, the pilot speaks over the intercom, everyone buckles in, and the lights turn off for departure.  "In flight," the cabin crew provide refreshments.  Soon it is time to "arrive;" the seatbelt light chimes and turns on again, the pilot announces the weather, and soon the aircraft "lands" and passengers deplane.  Finally, participants proceed to baggage claim to pick up their luggage from the carousel, before luncheon stopping by the luncheon to conclude the morning.

The Wings for All program is a fantastic opportunity for anyone with special needs who wants practice with commercial air travel in a controlled setting with guidance as needed.  It doesn't matter if you've flown 100 times, or never at all, because it allows participants to experience everything about an airline flight except for movement of the aircraft.  It is also beneficial to those in the aviation industry because it provides real world practice with aiding those with special needs, in addition to training and awareness sessions that are provided leading up to each event.

In the Spring Wings for All session, I was called upon to film the event, producing the video below.  This past weekend I also filmed the Fall session, and I will soon be updating the promo video as requested, and creating a 30 - 60 second spot for Wings for All to be further promoted.

Wings for All events can be found at other airports, including locally at DCA and BWI.  At Dulles, Wings for All is organized by The ARC of Northern Virginia in partnership with The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, and sponsored by United Airlines and Marketplace Development, among others.

This was also my first foray into videography, which I currently will only undertake for select projects for longstanding previous photography clients.

I am so fortunate to have continued involvement with this rewarding program!

South African Airways, Non-Stop Service to Accra, Ghana

On August 3rd, 2015, South African Airways began service from Washington, DC to Accra, Ghana, introducing the A340-600 aircraft to accommodate the unprecedented range of this 10 hour air route.

Events began early in the morning, before the sun had even risen, as the inaugural flight arrived from Accra.  Passengers and the South African Delegation were welcomed to Dulles during a reception with comments from Marc Cavaliere, Head of the Americas, South African Airways.

In the afternoon, the flight was scheduled to depart Washington for Accra, and Discover Dulles guests, as well as airport passengers, were treated to a traditional South African music and dance performance at the gate, before the ribbon cutting ceremony.

Since I was photographing for South African, and needed to get the perfect Water Arch shot, Airport Operations let me manage where the Foam Trucks were placed for their arch.  I was joined by my longtime aviation friend James Dingell, who was interning with Airport Management at DCA this Summer.

After South African's aircraft departed, the Discover Dulles guests wanted to stay on the runway just a little longer (how often does the general public get to planespot while standing on an active runway? Never!) to watch British Airways' A380 blast off.  Air France's A380 was not far behind, but the airport needed to re-open our Taxiway, so they only got to see one A380 depart, which is still an awesome sight to see!

Aer Lingus at Washington Dulles International Airport

On May 1st, 2015, Aer Lingus made its return to Washington Dulles International Airport with daily non-stop service to Dublin, Ireland.  As with most major airline events at Dulles, Discover Dulles guests were invited to take part in the festivities, and watch on the runway as the inaugural flight landed.