This column originally ran in the Hamilton County Herald on Aug. 31, 2012.
It seems hubby and I are spending a lot of time in the air lately, such as today. That gave me the idea behind this puzzle – how much do you know about airlines and airports? Flying anywhere in the near future? You might want to check this out!
1. What is American Airline’s home base airport? New York - Newark Airport; Los Angeles International Airport; New York - John F Kennedy Airport; Dallas - Fort Worth Airport.
2. How many wheels are on a Boeing 747? 12; 18; 16; 14.
3. On modern airliners, where is the majority of the fuel stored? In separate metal tanks behind cargo hold; within 15 feet of the engines, per FAA regulations; in rubber bladders inside the wings; in the wings and center lower fuselage.
4. Until 2011, where were all the Airbus A-320s assembled? Madrid, Spain; Montreal, Canada; Toulouse, France; Seattle, Washington.
5. True or False: In order for a passenger airliner to takeoff, the total pounds of thrust created by all of the engines must be greater than the weight of the aircraft.
6. Which airline began as a crop dusting company in Louisiana? American; Delta; Piedmont; Continental.
7. Which airline was the first to establish a home page on the Internet? United; Northwest; Delta; Southwest.
8. Which airline was the first to have oxygen masks onboard? Northwest; Pan Am; American; Alaska.
9. Which airline was the first to carry emergency life saving equipment on board? American; TWA; Delta; Pan Am.
10. Which California airport is named after John Wayne? Fullerton; Ontario; Orange County; Burbank.
ANSWERS
1.American Airlines is based in Dallas Ft. Worth, Texas. 2.18. The aircraft has four main landing gear truck assemblies, each of which have four wheels. It also has two wheels on the nose gear. 3. In the wings and center lower fuselage. The left and right wing tanks are formed by the upper and lower wing skin and the front and rear spars. The center tank is in the lower fuselage forward of the wheel wells. Boost pumps inside the tanks send the fuel to the engines. 4. The final assembly point used to be Toulouse, with many European nations building parts of the aircraft and then shipping the sections to France for final assembly. In 2011, however, China began building and assembling A-320s entirely within its own country. 5. False. The wings generate lift. The engines just need to provide enough airspeed for the wings to create the lift. A 747-400 can weigh as much as 870,000 pounds at takeoff, but all four engines collectively only put out 224,000 pounds of thrust. 6. “Delta Air Company” was founded in Monroe, La., in 1924. In 1945, Delta Airlines moved operations to Atlanta. 7. Southwest. 8. Northwest. 9. Pan Am. 10. John Wayne Airport is in Orange County, Calif., between the cities of Santa Ana, Irvine and Newport Beach.