Sam Chui (/ˈtʃuːiː/; Chinese: 崔佳星; pinyin: Cuī Jiāxīng; born 7 November 1980) is a Chinese-Australian aviation and travel vlogger, photographer, and author.[1][2]
Sam Chui | ||||||||||
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| Born | 7 November 1980 | |||||||||
| Nationality | Hong Konger, Australian | |||||||||
| Education | Bachelor of Commerce | |||||||||
| Occupation | Photographer | |||||||||
| Years active | 1999–present | |||||||||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | |||||||||
YouTube information | ||||||||||
| Location | Worldwide | |||||||||
| Years active | 2007–present | |||||||||
| Genre | Vlogs | |||||||||
| Subscribers | 3.56 million | |||||||||
| Total views | 928 million | |||||||||
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| Website | samchui | |||||||||
| Sam Chui | |||||||||||
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| Chinese | 崔佳星 | ||||||||||
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Early life
editSam Chui was born on 7 November 1980 in Beijing, China.[3] When he was a child, his parents moved to Hong Kong.[1] While growing up, Chui says he often visited Hong Kong's former airport, Kai Tak Airport, and watched planes land.[4]
Career
editIn 1999, Chui started a website, publishing photos of aircraft.[5] It has since expanded to include current events regarding aviation.[5] He is known for overhead pictures of Los Angeles International Airport captured from helicopters.[5]
In 2019, Chui was invited onto a Boeing 747-SP private jet owned previously by the Qatari Royal Family and he flew from Hamilton, Canada, to Marana, Arizona as the only passenger. In 2019, he flew from Rome to Tel-Aviv on board the last El Al Israel Airlines Boeing 747 flight.[6]
Chui has a keen interest for the Boeing 747. He has logged over a million miles on 279 747 flights and has flown on every commercial variant of the 747 across 37 operators from around the world. His first flight on a Boeing 747 was in 1993 onboard United Airlines Flight 800 from Hong Kong to Tokyo Narita.[7] Chui has flown on 240 airlines and 180 aircraft types. He has flown New York to London on Concorde, landed on a glacier in New Zealand, visited Lukla in Nepal and taken the longest non-stop flight from Singapore to Newark. He was the sole passenger aboard the world’s only privately-owned Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Chui received his Private Pilot License in the USA in July 2021.[8]
He has also worked for the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) to publish highlights from the 2021 NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (NBAA-BACE).[9]
Controversies
editIn 2022 it was reported by several Nepalese online media that Chui was allowed into the cockpit by Nepal Airlines Chief Pilot Vijaya Lama during the flight to Kathmandu violating safety laws. The Nepalese Civil Aviation Authorities started an investigation. Lama denied these claims later in an interview later.[10][11]
In May 2023 Chui was suspected of violating Taiwan’s Aircraft Flight Operation Regulations due to photos and videos of him inside the flight deck on Starlux's inaugural flight from Taipei to Los Angeles. The plane was piloted by Starlux Founder and Chair Chang Kuo-wei and he faced a fine of 60,000 NT$ due to the safety violation.[12] It was determined that both parties actually followed safety protocol and Chui's flight deck visits only occurred when the plane was not in flight: the vessel was on the ground with its engines turned off and the door was open.[13]
Books
edit| Title | Publisher | Publication year | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air 1 – Sam Chui Air Photos | Zkoob Limited | 2008 | ISBN 978-9881750006 |
| Air 2 – Aviation Photos and Flight Reports | Pixelium Company | 2012 | ISBN 9789889918651 |
| Air 3 – Aviation Photos and Flight Experiences | Astral Horizon Aviation Press | 2014 | ISBN 978-9881370907 |
| Air 747: Experiencing the Passion: Boeing's Jumbo Jet | Astral Horizon Aviation Press | 2020 | ISBN 9780993260490 |
References
edit- ^ a b Simonetta, Biagio (29 May 2019). "Sam Chui, l'uomo-leggenda dei cieli che ha preso più di duemila voli". Il Sole 24 Ore (in Italian).
- ^ Mack, Ben (18 November 2019). "Here's what it was like on board Qantas' first nonstop, 19-hour flight from London to Sydney, Business Insider – Business Insider". Business Insider.
- ^ Bin Asad, Kazi Akib (6 March 2019). "'AvGeek' Sam Chui lands in Dhaka". The Daily Star.
- ^ "Interview with Sam Chui". Aviationtag (in German). 20 September 2020. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
- ^ a b c Michael Jonga,"Connecting four billion travelers via content and business: Sam Chui interview". aerotime.aero. 5 January 2024. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
- ^ "Aviation blogger Sam Chui on EL AL 747 departure flight – In Other News..." Arutz Sheva. 2 November 2019.
- ^ Menon, Murali (13 November 2021). "One man's Boeing 747 obsession". Money Control. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ Lennox, Graeme (16 August 2020). "Aviation influencer Sam Chui on why we need to buckle up for turbulent times ahead". The Times. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ "Social Media Influencers to Highlight BizAv Value at NBAA-BACE: Join the Conversation". 24 September 2021.
- ^ "NAC suspends captain Vijaya Lama for shooting in the cockpit - OnlineKhabar English News". 9 November 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
- ^ "Pilot Vijay Lama barred from flying". nepalnews.com. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
- ^ "Aviation influencer's act could leave pilot with $31,000 fine". NZ Herald. 3 September 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
- ^ Schlappig, Ben (10 May 2023). "Starlux Chairman Faces Fine For Letting Influencer In Cockpit". One Mile at a Time. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
External links
edit- Official website
- Sam Chui's channel on YouTube
- "Sam Chui". Jet Photos. 2007 [2003].