Airports

Category Archives for Airports.

Europe Will Protect Incumbent Airlines From Competiton At Its Airports Through Winter

by Gary Leff on August 28, 2020

Aug 28 2020

Europe has reversed course and announced an intention to protect incumbent airlines from competition at its airports at least through winter. Immediately after the company that coordinates takeoff and landing slots for 46 airports warned airlines that they were going to have to use their slots in the U.K. and Europe or lose them this winter, the European Commission introduced a proposed regulation to extend the waivers. I take it then that Airport Coordination Limited’s warning was more political pressure than prediction.

One Man Lives – And Farms – In The Middle Of Tokyo Narita Airport

by Gary Leff on August 23, 2020

Aug 23 2020

Toyko Narita airport was built on top of former farming villages, despite local opposition, backed by the Communist and Social Democratic parties, known as the Sanrizuka Struggle. While land for the airport was initially acquired voluntarily from its owners, by 1971 the Japanese government began expropriating property.

Opposition clashed with construction workers and police, leading to deaths and mass arrests. Over 500 guerrilla actions have taken place against Narita airport since its opening in 1978.

In Hong Kong, Morning Airport Arrivals Take Less Than An Hour From Landing To Negative Covid Test (Don’t Show Up In Afternoon)

by Gary Leff on August 22, 2020

Aug 22 2020

Back in May the process for entering Hong Kong was one of the most excruciating things I’ve seen in travel, taking the better part of a day. It involved being bused to the EXPO Center, long waits for testing and results, and receiving a monitoring bracelet.

While transit has opened up in some cases, the process for actually entering Hong Kong is still stringent – but has been substantially streamlined.

Pennsylvania’s ‘Airport For No One’ Can’t Fill Eight Seat Planes, Wants United Express Regional Jets

by Gary Leff on August 22, 2020

Aug 22 2020

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington named the late John Murtha one of the most corrupt members of Congress, in part for earmarking government money for campaign contributors. His legacy, though, is the John Murtha Johnstown–Cambria County Airport, the ‘airport for no one’ which – before the Covid-19 pandemic – saw an average of 17 passengers per day.

The airport wants to kick out the incumbent airline and bring in SkyWest – which promises 50 seat regional jets to Chicago and Washington, DC.

Woman Throws Water On TSA, Rushes The Checkpoint, And Makes A Break For The Airport Train

by Gary Leff on August 21, 2020

Aug 21 2020

Around 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday evening a woman approached TSA screening at Pittsburgh airport, through water on a TSA employee when asked for her ID, and then ran through the checkpoint.

Police rushed her and subdued her. She broke free, “started fighting with them and ran for the airport train” but was detained again.

Driver Crashes Onto Portland Airport, Heads Under Plane To Evade Police

by Gary Leff on August 19, 2020

Aug 19 2020

A 24 year old man crashed his car through a perimeter gate at the Portland airport on Sunday. His wife and two children were in the vehicle with him. He told police they were being chased by trucks, and wound up on the airport grounds as an evasive maneuver.

Then the man took off, with one of his kids in tow, and drove underneath the wing of a taxiing commercial flight. There’s video of the arrest.

Florida Airport Evacuated After Discovering Live Missile

by Gary Leff on August 18, 2020

Aug 18 2020

Amazon Air says there “is no threat to our associates and Amazon Air operations have not been disrupted” by the live missile.

Customer Service Agent Dishes On The Best And Worst Celebrities To Deal With At LAX Airport

by Gary Leff on August 15, 2020

Aug 15 2020

Whenever I fly through or out of LAX I run into celebrities. And the thing is there must be more of them than I realize, because I don’t know who most people that are conventionally famous even are. I’ve run into Billy Crystal at TSA screening and then the terminal 4 Admirals Club, Reba McEntire in the Admirals Club too, and Randy Jackson escorting a child star in first class across the aisle to name just a few.

Airline employees, either more culturally aware than I am or just with access to a flight manifest, must find this an every day occurrence. So a Los Angeles-based airline customer service agent with a Tik Tok account is a dangerous thing when she decides to dish on the celebrities she’s met at the airport.

TSA May Soon Require Passengers Without ID To Answer Challenge Questions On A Mobile App

by Gary Leff on August 14, 2020

Aug 14 2020

Under the system the TSA is contemplating, a private contractor would develop an app to ask the traveler challenge questions based on both government and commercial data about the person. It would then produce a pass/fail to be shown at the TSA checkpoint.

Nearly 20,000 Fake IDs Seized At Chicago O’Hare

by Gary Leff on August 10, 2020

Aug 10 2020

After all the scare stories, Customs and Border Protection acknowledged “most of the fake IDs were for college-age students.” Isn’t the biggest risk then that someone could be tasked with buying booze for a non-socially distanced rager as colleges open this fall?