Welcome to rascott.com
This is a
personal site that reflects my interests in news,
current affairs, aviation and travel.
email me:
robert@rascott.com
rascott.com
Home Page
Photo Albums
My photographs are now stored on Picasa.
Please use
this link to see my list of photo albums.
Some
Useful links:
Information:
World Time
Clock
Exchange Rates
Journalism:
ForeignPolicy
Nationsonline.org
Project Syndicate
Amnesty International
Reporters w/o borders
The Guardian
BBC World News
CNN Asia
Bangkok Post
Daylife.com - news
Gulf News
Arabian Business
World News
WSJ - Asia
SCMP
Good causes:
Sister
Joan - Bangkok
Regional Info:
BKK Magazine
HK Magazine
In
Singapore Magazine
TimeOut Dubai
Back in the UK:
Newton Ferrers
Bournville News
And for fun:
EarthCam
History
BBC Archive
National Media
Museum
The British Library
Imperial War Museum
There are many other links on my AOB blog page.
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An Occasional Blog
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Dubai based Airine bloggers
TampaxTowers Egypt Thailand Blogs Thai-blogs.com - rather serious
2bangkok.com
-
not really a blog but always up to date on Bangkok news
Thai
Girl The exotic adventures of a literary
sexagenarian.
Thai Films
Asia Unbound - CFR
Dubai Blogs
dxbae
- picture blog - also Gerald Donovan
The Gulf Blog
Grumpy
Goat Arabic affairs blogs
The Arabist
Hong Kong Blogs In China: Danwei - media and advertising news from China
Shanghaiist.com
Hong Kong Cinemagic
Chinageeks
In Singapore: Xiaxue - self-confessed mean, bitchy, sex goddess who says "wah" a lot!
Mr Brown
- colourful commentary from Singapore
In Burma:
In Canada:
Media:
Tabloid
Watch (UK) Aviation: Amadeus (airline schedules) Airline meals - see it b4 you eat it!
Airliners
- aviation forum, trip reports and pix
archive Planenation - commercial aviation news Airchive - a web museum of commercial aviation.
CrankyFlier - mainly US commentary
Sharjah -
1937
KPAE - Paine Field Blog
Johnny Jet News: The Guardian - UK
Arabian
Business Bangkok info sites: Worthy Sites:
Rconversation - from Rebecca
MacKinnon, ex-TV reporter-turned-blogger.
Golf Sites:
Fun Sites:
Fun signs
Cooking
Technology Ideas:
Stuff -
gadgets
TNooz - Travel Tech
ViralBlog
Photography
The Rest:
Black
Flamingo - recipes and life (no golf!)
Previous months:
Nov - Dec 2011
Nov - Dec 2010
Nov - Dec 2009
Nov - Dec 2008
Nov - Dec 2007
Nov - Dec 2006
Nov - Dec 2005
Nov - Dec 2004
Author
Robert Scott lives and works in Dubai; born in England I have since lived in Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and Bangkok. I am very happily married to Tai.
If you want to know more you only need to ask! ask.
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31 October 2012
Emirates from 29DEC12
to 15JAN13 is to offer 4 extra round-trip flights on Dubai – Bangkok
service, on board 2-class Boeing 777-300ER aircraft.
Not enough - they could
easily fill a fifth daily based upon current loads. If they are anything less than 100% certain and have conclusive evidence then they would have been well advised to lay low...Chelsea has some way to go to get its own house in order...
****************************
"This was one of the
epic cup ties, an emotion-shredder of a match that saw the Mad Stad live
up to its nickname as Arsenal amazingly recovered from 4-0 down to reach
the quarter-finals of the Capital One Cup. Extra-time, extraordinary tie.
(Arsenal won 7-5).
************************ Economic recovery if it comes may stabilise this figure but it is not going to re-employ the unemployed. This is now a long term issue.
*************************** So what will we see:
Leia and the Tramp And of course, "Mickey, I am your father"
******************************** 30 October 2012 Sean Dyche has been appointed as manager at Burnley. I hope he does well there and can then raise the proverbial middle finger to the ingrates at Watford
**************************** But it is. Story of the night appeared to be a crane that was hanging lose over 57th Street. And CNN found a crane expert to tell us how it was hanging. Then we got pictures of a guy dressed as Santa running through Battery Park before the storm arrived. Now there is a news scoop. I don't often watch CNN these days. But this was over the top. And presumably the hype and hysteria must put off many customers.
The only reason to
watch last night was to see if CNN's intrepid reporter in storm-torn
Atlantic City – his name was Ali – would be picked up by the wind and
blown into the sea. Who could blame him - at least he would escape Peirs
Morgan, But why this hype; its not like Sandy has not been around for a while; 69 people died when Sandy devastated the Caribbean, and Haiti was badly hit as usual.
But there are few
global media corporations or foreign correspondents in Port-au-Prince.
Sandy has already been around for 10 days. 29 October 2012 Downton Abbey - dull as hell episode...going nowhere. The Good Wife - The Calinda and Nick story line has to end...the show has lost too much of its spark. Too many characters not being fully developed.
*************************
I was shaken but not stirred ! 26 October 2012 Qatar Airways will begin daily scheduled services to the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh starting February 20, 2013. The Cambodian capital will also be its 11th gateway in the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean), following on from Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Bali, Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, Hanoi, Singapore, Manila, Phuket and Yangon. 23 October 2012 I like Berlin. Not sure why I have ignored it for so long.
****************************** Emirates A332 at Lusaka on Oct 21st 2012, uncontained engine failure and:
Emirates A388 at Tokyo on Oct 21st 2012, asymmetric flaps By bye to three of Emirates older A330s - A330/200 A6-EKZ and A6-EAN are stored. A330/200 A6-EAL was returned to ILFC and is now flying for Sichuan Airlines.
********************************
Vanity Fair is rather
good today on Newsweek's print closure: 17 October 2012 This sounds like hell: Dubai Mall will open round the clock for three consecutive weekends between 18 October and 4 November.
************************* 16 October 2012 Emirates Boeing 777-31HER A6-ENA departed Paine Field on delivery this afternoon routing direct to Dubai as EK777. This aircraft brings the Emirates B777-300ER fleet up to 79 aircraft. This is a two class high capacity 777.
***************************
*****************************
****************************** 15 October 2012
Downton Abbey spoiler
alert: review from
The Telegraph - "Lady Sybil’s death was one of those very Victorian
deaths; a thoroughly decent person who had to be punished for her angelic
nature to show the wrath of God. After her death, her sisters Mary and
Edith looked glumly like Goneril and Regan wondering if they would ever be
able to get on without Lady Sybil there as the peacemaker. It seems
unlikely, and with Lady Cora now blaming her husband for not listening to
Dr Clarkson, the family home is going to be a very unhappy one. Robert - not me the one in Downton Abbey - has been verging between arrogant, pig-headed and foolish all season - time he ran off with one of the maids. I dont like this but suspect it will happen - Tom will give his new born girl to Mary and Matthew to bring up as their own - solving their fertility issue - and sparing us from a Mary pregnancy. She has a men tongue now - would her own pregnancy mellow her. I dont like this solution - far too trite - but all too likely.
*************************
"Absolutely, brilliantly, completely, wonderfully, insanely genius!" 13 October 2012 Yesterday saw Emirates A380 A6-EDZ was delivered Finkenwerder – Dubai as EK7380. This brings the A380 fleet at EK up to 26 aircraft. It also looks likely that India will allow foreign airlines to operate the A380 into a number if its airports - Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. 11 October 2012 Not really safe for work - but still entertaining - Cathay Pacific, Lawyers, YouTube and Next Media all in the same tale of in flight entertainment !
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**************************** 8 October 2012 My idea of hell: The Dubai Mall will be open all night long on weekends from 18October to 3 November.
********************* 6 October 2012
Guardian: "There are
now thought to be more than 40 allegations of abuse against Savile." No cover up - just massive complacency that tolerated feral behaviour.
************************** "It is not yet clear if the old Dubai International Airport will move to DWC or if only some airlines will be shifted there," said Dubai Airport CEO Paul Griffiths. http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/736327.shtml Finally Paul Griffiths admits that he is unclear on what will happen with DXB. Closing it completely was/is/always will be a ridiculous idea given the billions of dollars that have now been pumped into the infrastructure for terminal 3 and the new terminal 4. Dubai will need two airports because the two runways at DXB are too close to allow parallel operations. It does look like Mr Griffiths is not as well linked into the discussions among the higher echelons of Dubai's power's that be as he would like and that his role is to maximise the use of existing DXB. |
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4 October 2012 A third daily to Jakarta has been announced from 1 March 2013. As with the Manila flight this is an evening departure with a lunchtime return into Dubai.
EK356 DXB0440 - 1545CGK
77W D
****************************** So much easier when you are the challenger.
******************************* Now his knighthood looks sadly tarnished. Claims of assault must be investigated - even though Saville has died. And if the BBC was in any way complicit then it needs to be held to account. The image of Saville and Gary Glitter with young girls on "Clunk-Click" could haunt the BBC who were far to quick to canonise Saville after his death. 2 October 2012 News from Emirates route planning: Dubai to Manila goes 3xdaily from 1 January 2013
EK336 DXB MNL 1830
0630+1
The outbound sector has
only regional connectivity (of which there is plenty to MNL), whereas the
inbound is of course timed to feed into the afternoon departure bank. Phuket service will be operated by A340-300, instead of A330-200. Dubai – Rome effective 1October 2012 the planned introduction of 3rd daily service, EK099/100, has been cancelled. Dubai – New York JFK effective 1January 2013 will see 2 daily 487-seater A380 service, replacing 1 daily each of A380 and 777-300ER. By February 2012 London will get 5x daily A380. And Paris will also get 2x daily A380 as well as 5 weekly 777s. Dubai – Perth effective 1December 2012 service increases from 14 to 19 weekly and from 1 March 2013 Perth goes 3x daily. Today was a big delivery day with 2x A380s and 1x777 arriving: A6-EDX and A6-EDY are the 24th and 24th A380s. A6-EGZ is the 78th Boeing 777.
*********************** I drove two hours out of Bangkok - people do move around - wasn't that the whole point of building facebook so that people could keep in touch. Idiots.
************************ The ferry was damaged but able to return to harbour. 30 September 2012 Is Qatar Airways planning to join the One World airline alliance - and if so what does that mean for the Emirates/Qantas tie in. Flight Global reports that Oneworld will hold an event announcing a "significant membership development" on 8 October.
There are already
widely-reported discussions with Qatar Airways about joining the alliance. Now Qantas is already a One World member. But its tie in with Emirates meant ending its commercial relationship with British Airways also a One World member. Emirates meanwhile has stated that it has no plans to join any of the three major air alliances. 25 September 2012 Heading out of London this morning on EK008 to Dubai. Despite the awful weather forecast it is a lovely sunny morning. Sunday (all day) and Monday morning brought some shocking weather across Southern England. Especially in the West country. Driving on Sunday was unpleasant and very difficult.
************************** 24 September 2012 I am sorry but I read this and immediately thought two things - one that Dulux emulsion would be easier and two that it reminded me of golf on tv where they paint the inside of the cups (golf holes) on the greens so that they show up better on tv: Thailand's skin-whitening craze reaches woman's intimate areas
***************************** 23 September 2012 The London airport Marriott Hotel remains firmly rooted in the dark ages. This is simple. Hotels should provide wireless internet access in the same way that they provide a television or soap for the shower. But the Marriott charges gbp15 a day for wireless access. Criminal. And for an American owned hotel chain to do this is shameful. 21 September 2012 Andrew Mitchell the government chief whip needs to do the only decent thing and resign. In a week when two police women were shot calling the Downing Street police as "f***ing plebs" is simply stupid. If a member of public had said that to a police officer they would have been arrested.
*************************** 18 September 2012 Back in Dubai for just 24 hours - and I am so tired. Did not sleep on the flight back from Washington and had about an hour's sleep around lunchtime today. Have to pack again to head to Gatwick tomorrow morning. 15 September 2012 Dear Washington - you are looking a bit tired; a bit underinvested. And your subway remains bleak, dark and rather scary. Dark is not fashionable. Instal some lights. 14 September 2012 Lots of self righteous outrage in the UK after a French magazine published blurry pictures of Kate Middleton topless.
Maybe the simple answer
is that the royals should keep their clothes on? 11 September 2012 On September 11 2001, nearly 3,000 people died in terrorist attacks on New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania. Today marks the 11th anniversary of the September 11 attacks; our world is still impacted daily by the events of that day. I wont write anymore about that day. It was a difficult time in my life for too many reasons. And I am in a much happier place now. But here is what I wrote one year after the tragedy of 9/11.
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************************ 10 September 2012 Have a read of the Jonathan Freedland article in the Guardian - and then read the comments below: Goodbye to Britain's golden summer - fascinating how polarised people's views are of the impact of the 2012 games. But 1 million people lining the streets for the victory parade says more than a few malcontents in the Guardian. The question is can the feel good factor last - will diversely abled people get equal opportunities; will cities, office and home be made fit for everyone. Is inclusivity real or a pipe-dream? 9 September 2012 David Weir - T54 - wheelchair champion and gold medal winner in all four of his disciplines - what a performance – 800m, 1500m, 5000m and now the marathon. And from a contributor to the Guardian's daily paralympic commentary:
"I don't want this to
end. I don't want to go back to being the frightened, defensive person I
was before the Games - constantly feeling I had to defend myself and other
Disabled people who are forced to survive on social security benefits. In
the last few days I actually felt like I belonged on this planet. And I've
been waiting 44 years for that. I can't bear the thought of what happens
when it's all wrapped up and packed away. I'm scared that people will
revert to the "scrounger" narrative. I want to be wrong on that. I want to
believe the best of people. But it's up to you to prove me right. The last athletics event in the stadium and a special performance from Oscar Pistorious, who wins the 400 metres by a distance, is the culmination of an incredible six weeks or so at London 2012. 7 September 2012 The Canada Aviation and Space Museum in Ottawa is showcasing a new exhibition from 4th October 2012 -"People, Places and Planes: Air Canada at 75." The museum's exhibition will showcase 75 of the best photographs from the Air Canada Collection. The photographs trace the development of Air Canada since its early days. The Museum holds the world's largest collection of Air Canada material including vintage uniforms and thousands of images and printed material, in addition to aircraft such as the Douglas DC-9 and the Lockheed Electra.
This collection tells
the story of the growth of Canada's aviation industry and its contribution
to our nation. Visit
www.aviation.technomuses.ca for more information on the Canada
Aviation and Space Museum.
I think this is
actually a very important moment in aviation history Michelle Obama in her speech to the Democrats convention last evening: If farmers and blacksmiths could win independence from an empire…if immigrants could leave behind everything they knew for a better life on our shores…if women could be dragged to jail for seeking the vote…if a generation could defeat a depression, and define greatness for all time…if a young preacher could lift us to the mountaintop with his righteous dream…and if proud Americans can be who they are and boldly stand at the altar with who they love…then surely, surely we can give everyone in this country a fair chance at that great American Dream. Good speech - but at some stage someone has to deal with the real issues of promises not delivered (Quantanamo) of an economy in tatters and of huge and continuing unemployment. 3 September 2012 The biggest fraud in car hire policies : Your vehicle will be supplied with a full tank of fuel and must be returned empty. No refunds will be given for unused fuel. Whoever thought of this is a genius - no one ever returns a car empty. So the car hire companies make money from every vehicle that is returned with gas in the tank as they fill up the 3/4 that remains and charge for a full tank. Disgraceful !
****************************** R Airline (Bangkok Don Mueang International (DMK)) is the new brand of Thai charter carrier Sunny Airways that had recently returned its single aircraft, a B767-200ER. It plans to resume operations under the new brand with a fleet of two B737-400s that it feels are better suited to serve short-haul charter services for incoming tourists from markets such as China and South Korea.
********************************* He won't last the year. In the meantime handball will be promoted as the UAE's national sport.
********************************* But Oliveira's blades were legal. The Science of Sports blog has much more detail. So does Pistorius agree that blades improve performance - which was the core of the 'should he be in the Olympics' debate. In a statement released to Press Association Sport, Pistorius said: "I would never want to detract from another athletes' moment of triumph and I want to apologise for the timing of my comments after yesterday's race." The statement continued: "I do believe that there is an issue here and I welcome the opportunity to discuss with the IPC but I accept that raising these concerns immediately as I stepped off the track was wrong.
Note that he apologised
for the timing and not for what he actually said. Poor. 2 September 2012 Sir Alex Ferguson is must be looking forward to today's game; this is his 1000th as Manchester United boss. One. Thousandth. Remarkable. 1 September 2012 Bored.
*********************************** America will be a sadder and darker place if the Republican Party is allowed to achieve their goals. Americans need to do whatever they can to re-elect President Barack Obama this November.
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