Execujet by RobGeraghty, on Flickr

Execujet Hawker 800XP VH-RIU landing in Canberra. This aircraft is based at Essendon in Melbourne, but this flight was from Sydney to Canberra. It seats eight passengers and can fly from Melbourne to Nadi in Fiji in 5 hours.

Equip the entire BizJet fleet with in-flight refueling capability and convert all the unused wide-body fleets into tankers. Cycle the tankers at 800-900 nm intervals on international routes. Provide on-demand, point-to-point service to any suitable location (rather than the present hub-and-feeder scheme) with more economical seating capacity.

Reduces the traffic at major int'l airports. Allow more economical (Class C and D) airport infrastructure. Less expensive aircraft. Less dependence on in-flexible, scheduled 400-500 seat service but still available on-demand when cost effective.

Why 800-900 nm spacing? Provides customizable options with conservative 2- 2 1/2 hour fuel endurance legs with reserve gas for 'Murphy-moments' and weather. Acft selection to match mission, seating, endurance and divert alternates.

Oh, yeah, AND more opportunities for aircraft spotters!

Funny, because I was looking at which airports to refuel that business jet to fly from Canberra to Tokyo. I figure refuelling stops in Cairns and Guam or Palau. However, having flown from Canberra in a Jetstream 32 which probably has a similar sized fuselage, I don't think I'd want to fly more than a couple of hours in one. The inside of that tube is very small! I certainly wouldn't want to fly across the Pacific in one. Mind you, Bombardier build a bigger executive jet with a higher cruise and ceiling which has the range to fly direct from Canberra to Tokyo...


Now you're talking!

So, I'm guessin' you're not up for a Trans Oceanic flight strapped into an ejection seat with an O2 mask, helmet and a exposure suit, huh?

Not even with the luxury of a piddle-pack an' a chocolate bar?


That flight experience ought'a be on everyone's bucket list.

Slight tangent on that issue, back in the 80's I was still in uniform and the squadron was being sent on an exercise on the other side of the pond. In those days sony walkman was the mobile music device of choice, and I did a roaring trade making up an adaptor harness so that the walkman could be plugged in to the aircrew helmet earphones.

Bless you, sir. Every l'il bit helps.

I'd love to go for a flight in a seriously fast jet (as opposed to the L39 I went up in)! That's a different story, of course. But a long straight flight in a fighter would be boring, even if it would be an amazing privilege.

Not that there's any such chance for me, alas.

I can see that it would help reduce the boredom on a long ferry flight!