I had to Google Nok Air to figure out where they were. I guess "Nok' is Thai for bird. I think the paint scheme is actually pretty cool.
I've seen a lot of maiden flights at of the various Boeing jets made at Renton through the years. Going way back, 707's (by the time I saw them, it was the AWACS variant), 727's (at that point, only the FedEx cargo variant), 757's, and of course the 737's. They always taxi down the runway at a moderate speed, then turn around and come back at a slightly faster speed, where they once again turn around, then they take off. On the climb-out, they raise the gear, then lower and raise it again before turning east.
Kind of cool.
