The AvGeek Bear

The AvGeek Bear My name is JM 🧔🏻
Manila-based planespotter 📸
Model aircraft collector ✈️
Bear 🐻🌈

20/02/2026

After saying my prayers in Quiapo, I went to Shell C5-Southlink just to take a breather after a six-day workweek. I had no reason at all to track special aircraft since leaving this hobby in 2018. I'm now a mere spectator. However, thanks to a newly met planespotter, I learned about this British Airways A380 flying back to Heathrow after nearly two months of maintenance here.

The last BA aicraft I saw in Manila back when they still had regular, scheduled operations here was the Boeing 747-200, usually in the USA World Tail colours. Occassionally, the 747-400 was sent here, too.

Special shoutout to Nek Aberia, SEAL Sea Air Land, JC Aviation Photography, Shan Eusebio, and Remarks Antonio! 📣📣📣

Nek and Rodel, it has been a while. 😌

Shan, JC, and Reimarks, it was nice meeting you bros. 🫡

British Airways
Airbus A380-841
G-XLEK
Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL/RPLL)
21 February 2026

A little late for Hearts Day, but I just want to say that a partner who is supportive of your hobby and passion is defin...
14/02/2026

A little late for Hearts Day, but I just want to say that a partner who is supportive of your hobby and passion is definitely for keeps. 🥰💕🛫

Happy Valentine's, everyone! 💖

This is, perhaps, the closest I can get to seeing a Pan Am bird for real. She began her life with the iconic Pan America...
05/02/2026

This is, perhaps, the closest I can get to seeing a Pan Am bird for real. She began her life with the iconic Pan American World Airways in 1987 as N816PA, christened 'Clipper Glory of the Skies.' She was absorbed into the Delta Airlines fleet after Pan Am collapsed in 1991, staying until 2000. She was converted into a freighter in 2006 and joined the FedEx fleet in the same year. She was put into storage less than a year after this picture was taken and was scrapped in 2020.

Apologies for the quality. It was taken with a point-and-shoot digicam.

Federal Express
Airbus A310-324
N310FD
Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL/RPLL)
17 November 2015

Throwback to 2016, when the first Cebu Pacific aircraft to be painted in its current livery arrived in Manila. I got to ...
03/02/2026

Throwback to 2016, when the first Cebu Pacific aircraft to be painted in its current livery arrived in Manila. I got to fly her later that year.

Apologies for the quality. It was taken with a point-and-shoot digicam.

Cebu Pacific Air
Airbus A320-2149(WL)
RP-C4107
Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL/RPLL)
22 January 2016

*insert Taro Hakase's Another Sky*Winter at New Chitose Airport is a treat for any planespotter. I hope to experience it...
03/02/2026

*insert Taro Hakase's Another Sky*

Winter at New Chitose Airport is a treat for any planespotter. I hope to experience it soon, too. 🤞







Peak noontime sun ☀️ plus new mown grass 🌾 leaves a greenish reflection on the belly, wings, and engines of this classic...
01/02/2026

Peak noontime sun ☀️ plus new mown grass 🌾 leaves a greenish reflection on the belly, wings, and engines of this classic Big Juan 🇵🇭

Cebu Pacific Air
Airbus A330-343
RP-C3342
Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL/RPLL)
18 November 2017

Went to Shell C5-Southlink this morning to perk up myself and look for art inspirations, and I was surprised to see it b...
22/01/2026

Went to Shell C5-Southlink this morning to perk up myself and look for art inspirations, and I was surprised to see it brimming with life even in the ungodly hours. So kung naroon kayo nang madaling araw at may nakita kayong nagdodrawing sa tablet, ako 'yon. 😅

With then-First Officer Khalil Faustino at the controls.Philippine Airlines (Operated by Air Philippines Corporation)De ...
22/01/2026

With then-First Officer Khalil Faustino at the controls.

Philippine Airlines (Operated by Air Philippines Corporation)
De Havilland Canada DHC-8-402Q
RP-C3036
Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL/RPLL)
10 August 2016

Speaking of 2016 throwbacks, this is one of my favourites from that year. She was a surprise catch, since no one was awa...
19/01/2026

Speaking of 2016 throwbacks, this is one of my favourites from that year. She was a surprise catch, since no one was aware of her visit. We were at the old PPSG tambayan along Multinational Avenue when word of her came through Flightradar24. She was already on final approach, so we hurriedly ran all the way to the approach lights. She was almost over my head when I pointed the camera upwards, and this picture is the result. Sadly, I lost the raw files of this and several other pictures.

AirBridgeCargo Express
Boeing 737-43QSF
VQ-BVF
Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL/RPLL)
30 October 2016

While she's still with me 🛫🇵🇭It's a long goodbye. I look at her everyday in the permanent display, expecting some parts ...
18/01/2026

While she's still with me 🛫🇵🇭

It's a long goodbye. I look at her everyday in the permanent display, expecting some parts to fall off bit by bit. To my bewilderment (and relief), so far, there are none.

However, I would notice hairline cracks, specks of paint chipping off, and her wings and horizontail tail flexing upward a little as if she's in flight.

She's generally in good shape, still trying to look majestic despite zinc rot slowly eating her away.

My friend Satrian's post about his own PAL 727 compelled me to take pictures of my own model before she becomes a pile of crumbled metal. Maybe I'll take pictures of her from time to time for as long as she can strike a pose.

For now, she stays.







Also celebrating a milestone anniversary this year is my country's flag carrier, Philippine Airlines. At 85 years old in...
09/01/2026

Also celebrating a milestone anniversary this year is my country's flag carrier, Philippine Airlines. At 85 years old in 2026, PAL is Asia's oldest airline operating under its founding name.

Here, I drew perhaps the most recognisable PAL aircraft in the 1970s and 80s. Branded as the 'Super PALjet,' it was a favourite among crew and passengers and was the backbone of the domestic fleet: the BAC One-Eleven.

Throwback from 14 years ago when NAIA's single fence perimeter provided clearer views. I believe the 747 wore Cathay Pac...
06/01/2026

Throwback from 14 years ago when NAIA's single fence perimeter provided clearer views. I believe the 747 wore Cathay Pacific's previous livery the best. This particular jumbo was one of the airline's oldest, dating back from 1990—part of the sunset years of British Hong Kong.

Cathay Pacific Airways
Boeing 747-467
B-HOR
Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL/RPLL)
09 April 2012

PS: Apologies for the quality. It was taken using a point-and-shoot digicam.

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