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John Walton

@thatjohn.bsky.social

3.4K followers 260 following 3.9K posts

Editor in chief of @theupfront.media: in-depth independent aviation journalism for the digital age. Subscribe today! Journo, Japan travel expert, bon vivant, lover of gardens, fan of 22°C, crocheter, Champagne enthusiast. Big 🏳️‍🌈 w/the 🏳️‍⚧️, 🇪🇺 in 🇫🇷, he/him.

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · May 26

I couldn't be more excited to bring you my newest exciting challenge: The Up Front.

Creating, designing and building the site — and over 15,000 words of content at launch — with @garius.bsky.social has been nothing short of incredible.

Join us for a fresh new approach to aviation journalism.

The Up Front @theupfront.media · May 26

Hello and welcome to The Up Front — in-depth, independent aviation journalism on the topics that matter for the people who live and breathe the passenger experience in aviation: airlines, passengers, designers, manufacturers, and the supply chain and ecosystem that surround it all.

theupfront.media

The Up Front

In-depth independent aviation journalism for the digital age

theupfront.media

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Reposted by John Walton

The Up Front @theupfront.media · 11h

We talk about CMF — colour, materials, and finish — of airline cabins a lot, and folks are often surprised at how high-tech something like a seat cover can be in order to meet requirements like flammability, smoke toxicity and heat release.

Flightradar24 @flightradar24.com · 13h

Finnair is canceling some flights and performing inspections on 8 of its A321s because the seat covers on those aircraft were cleaned using water. www.flightradar24.com/blog/aviatio...

The cabin of a Finnair A321 looking aft.

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 1d

Quick (ahahahahaha lolsob) FYI for any other overseas-residing US citizens or others who need to file the FBAR: the new online system isn't working but you only discover this when you get to the end.

The download-PDF-fill-in-upload system is working, but of course you need Acrobat.

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Reposted by John Walton

John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 2d

My take on the new BA lounges in Miami and Dubai — oh, and why they're more bad news for BA Gold and oneworld Sapphire frequent flyers.

theupfront.media/update-20-ba...

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 1d

Solidarity with you, man. These assholes, just the worst awful fucking people. Courage and defiance!

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Reposted by John Walton

Jay @jasonrosewell.bsky.social · 1d

Blake Boom is a bigoted asshole. Full stop. #pickme

A screenshot of an X (formerly Twitter) post. At the top, the time on the phone reads 22:40. The post shows user stepfanie tyler (@wildbarestepf) writing, “when looking for a mate, you should always seek out people with an obvious mental illness.” Below her post is another embedded tweet from i/o (@avidseries) that says, “Dumb: First question. Dumber: Second question.” That tweet includes an image of a Psychology Today article headline reading, “Will Straight Men and Women Date a Trans Person? Evidence suggests the answer is often no—but why not?” The article is by Ritch C. Savin-Williams, Ph.D., under the category “Sex, Sexuality, and Romance.” Underneath, Blake Scholl (@bscholl) has quote-tweeted it saying, “I fixed it.”

Another screenshot of Blake Scholl’s post on X showing his quote tweet that says, “I fixed it.” Below, there’s an image of the same Psychology Today article, but the publication title has been edited so that “Psychology Today” now reads “Psycho Today.” The post shows it was made at 21:31 on October 12, 2025, with about 1,000 views. The top reply from stepfanie tyler reads, “it took me way too long to figure out what you did 😂.” The phone time again reads 22:40 at the top.

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 2d

I did some maths and wrote about this in July. If Airbus and Boeing don’t produce markedly more widebodies than they have ever managed before, there is a hole of somewhere between 5 and 20 Emirates-sized airlines in the widebody market.

theupfront.media/as-productio...

Text:
Historically, production data (from Boeing and Airbus, cross-referenced with production charts) show widebody deliveries peaked in the mid-2010s at just over 350 per year. In 2024, Airbus and Boeing together manufactured about half that number.

That gives us two edges of the manufacturing envelope between today and 2044:
• assuming 350 widebodies per year: 7,000 aircraft produced, gap of 1,300
• assuming 175 widebodies per year: 3,500 aircraft produced, gap of 5,000

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 2d

My take on the new BA lounges in Miami and Dubai — oh, and why they're more bad news for BA Gold and oneworld Sapphire frequent flyers.

theupfront.media/update-20-ba...

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 2d

And that's a Good Thing™.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZ1b...

Martha Stewart Good Things

YouTube video by videoliciousapp

www.youtube.com

John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 2d

literally do not know how Martha Stewart gets through the day without just combusting

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 2d

And if you love a monstrance and are anywhere near New York, the place to see a LOT of them is the Cloisters uptown!

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 2d

I did not name my north jersey suburban drag king character Taylor Hamm for people to do THIS

John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 2d

Hot damn, I wish I voted in the city and not the suburbs.

Zohran Kwame Mamdani @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social · 3d

UNTIL IT’S DONE, Ep. 4: Sylvia Rivera

In the 1970s, queer New Yorkers had been pushed to the margins of NYC. Our trans neighbors faced immense cruelty. But in Sylvia Rivera, they found a champion.

As we combat Trump’s politics of darkness, her legacy can light the path forward.

John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 3d

Because successive managements have outsourced far too much of their operations and backend structures to third party companies who either don't have the same interest in keeping customer data secure and/or for whom any prospective fines are just part of doing business as cheaply as possible

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 3d

Instant volunteer.

John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 3d

What an absolutely outrageous statement.

Some airport lounges are genuinely nice places to spend an hour or two.

Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 3d

I've been to Dubai for work a few times. It's like the world's biggest airport lounge. Utterly soulless. Can't imagine wanting to live there whatever the financial benefits. (That's before you get to the ethical issues...)

Katie Martin @katie0martin.ft.com · 3d

People keep telling me the UK is so over and they're going to move to Dubai and, like, fine. Go on then. Would you like directions to the airport?

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 4d

I've spent the last couple of days trying to read between the lines of Airbus' services forecasting numbers for "modifications & upgrades", which includes cabins.

But it really does seem like Airbus is forecasting a sharp drop in that demand. Does that make sense to you?

The Up Front @theupfront.media · 4d

Our latest:

Airbus says its "modifications & upgrades" services business grew 18% last year — double some other segments — but Airbus expects 20-year growth of just 1.9% each year, on average.

That's less than half of some other segments from now to 2044.

Why?

theupfront.media/pro-readout-...

Pro Readout: Airbus’ services market forecast predicts drop in demand for seats and cabins “modifications and upgrades” business

Airbus says its aircraft modifications and upgrades work — including cabins and seats — have hit a peak in 2025, and forecasts strongly slowing demand for this category over the next 20 years.

theupfront.media

John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 4d

le french, he is a beautiful and multilayered language rich in nuance

John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 4d

Aha! Now that I *can* help with.

John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 4d

Sad professional fistbump of aviation journalist battling through Airbus' 20-year prediction numbers and compound versus year-on-year accounting maths…

John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 4d

oh no am i gonna be mEaN aBouT bA aGaiN

John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 4d

Why do those new BA lounges look like someone fed the 2014 Cathay/Ilse Crawford and Etihad/Landor/Facets lounges into an AI slop machine and said "make it a bit Union Jack-y"?

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 4d

I do love jam! But now I want a @kjcharleswriter.com historical romp through this world, like one foppish English chef and the devilish railroad baron’s son and their small army of pinafored waitresses and possibly some cowboys

Nono, definitely some cowboys

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 4d

Main's Wikipedia article is a Hollywood Hidden Queer CLASSIC:

• when her husband died it was "like losing a good friend. Like part of the family"

• her "marriage was a nontraditional one", "happy, but not particularly close",

and
oh yeah
also

• "had a long-term relationship with a woman"

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 4d

Just after 1m30s you'll hear the speak-singing from the fabulously statuesque* Marjorie Main, best known as Ma Kettle from the films of the same era.

* yes, I do mean "lesbian". Main was in a long-term relationship with fellow MGM player Spring Byington, according to her (Main's) biographer.

A handsome woman with sensibly short hair leaning on a couch and looking slightly away from the camera.

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John Walton @thatjohn.bsky.social · 4d

I dare you to listen to the 1946 Academy Award-winning On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe, the best known song from the movie, and not be earwormed for the entire day.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSgr...

Judy Garland Sings “On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe” (Clip) | The Harvey Girls | TCM

YouTube video by Turner Classic Movies

www.youtube.com

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