2,500 canceled American Airline flights means that a lot of people are spending a lot of time stuck at airports this week. It also means that a lot more stuff is going to end up getting misplaced or lost at airports this week.
So maybe it’s a very good thing that this week my Well-Mannered Traveler column on MSNBC.com offers tips on how to improve your odds of finding what you’ve lost at the airport.
Travelers may not be able to avoid escalating airfares and those pesky fuel surcharges, but those in the know can at least enjoy the freebies some airports still offer.
Some examples: free shoe shines at Los Angeles International Airport. Free local phone calls at Sioux Gateway Airport and Reno-Tahoe International Airport. And free motorcycle parking at Milwaukee’s General Mitchell International Airport.
For a list of a lot more airport freebies, see my April 2008 column on USATODAY.com.
And please share your tips about the airport freebies you’ve found.
Bad news for travelers booked on American Airlines flights today. Yesterday the airline canceled 500 flights to check on the wiring in its fleet of MD-80 aircraft. Today, the airline is canceling another 850 flights.
At Dallas-Fort Worth International airport, that means another 251 flights have been scrapped.
To make matters worse: severe weather is being forecast for the North Texas region later today.
So a lot of folks will probably be spending another night stuck at the airport.
American Airlines canceled another 500 flights on Tuesday to check a wiring issue on their fleet of MD-80 airplanes. 193 of those canceled flights were scheduled to depart from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. Some displaced travelers have been put up at hotels. Others got out of there on non-MD-80 flights. Still, a lot of people are spending the night stuck at the airport.
Luckily the folks at DFW are prepared for this sort of thing. They’re treating this incident like a weather event and have brought out cots, blankets, diapers, formula and other sleep-over necessities.
They’ve also put their emergency “concession plan” into operation: a few bars are staying open until 2 a.m. and a few restaurants will stay open all night.
Let’s just hope no one starts in with those scary ghost stories…
An airport is like the front door to a city. So a city that wants to impress visitors could start by fixing up its airport.
At California’s Fresno Yosemite International Airport, that sprucing up will take the form of fake sequoia trees.
According to a story from the Fresno Bee, a grove of six fake sequoia trees will be “planted” in the airport terminal next year as part of a $9.2 million renovation. One will even have a space to walk through.
The goal: to “convey a sense of wilderness” and “improve the city’s image by giving visitors a taste of one of the nation’s most spectacular natural wonders.”
