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According to this article, Robert McDonald, a passenger on a Delta flight heading from JFK to Las Vegas on Sunday after arriving from Rome,  is in big trouble after trying to open an emergency exit door while the airplane waited out a delay at JFK airport.

Flight 149 pulled back from the gate just after 5 p.m. but was delayed on the taxiway for more than 2 1/2 hours due to bad weather and congested skies, common issues at JFK. Around 7:45 p.m., McDonald, who was traveling with his wife, lost his cool, prosecutors said.

“Apparently, the defendant wanted to get off the plane,” District Attorney Richard Brown said, “so he opened the emergency exit door.”

Wrong, sure.  But, when you’re stuck in that sort of  “when will we get out of here?” limbo, don’t you sometimes think about doing exactly the same thing?

Categories: Safety
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On Tuesday, April 7th, Red Sox fans willing to sing a version of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” at Boston Logan Airport will have a chance to win prizes, impress other travelers, or simply make fools of themselves.  You – and Wally the Green Monster – can help decide the winners.

The contest is part of the opening celebrations for Jerry Remy’s Sports Bar and Grill, located pre-security in Terminal C.  (Remy is Red Sox Nation President and Boston Red Sox Sportscaster).  The first place winner will receive a Red Sox road game package that includes airfare, hotel stay, and tickets to see the Red Sox vs. the Chicago White Sox in Chicago on Labor Day Weekend.

The second place winner will get to bring a guest and sit in the broadcast booth alongside Jerry Remy during a Red Sox home game. The third place winner will get a $50 gift certificate to Jerry Remy’s Sports Bar & Grill.

Don’t want to sing? Wally the Green Monster will be taking photographs with fans and Remy will be signing scorecards from the 2007 World Series. They’ll also be raffling off Red Sox memorabilia.

The “Take me out to the airport” singing contest takes place Tuesday April 7, 2009 between noon and 2 pm at Jerry Remy’s Sports Bar and Grill, located pre-security in Terminal C at Boston Logan Airport.

Categories: Contests, Fun Stuff
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Here’s just one more reason why Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is one of my favorite places in the world: in addition to a great airport-wide art collection, a wedding service program, a casino, great kids’ play areas, and the on-site Rijksmuseum Amsterdam Schiphol (and museum shop), the airport now has the Netherlands’ first Café Chocolat, serving everything from chocolate fondue and chocolate mousse to something called a ‘Golddigger:” a glass of champagne with golden chocolate pearls.

Photo courtesy Amsterdam Airport Schiphol

Categories: Food, Restaurants
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A rare working week in London is bracketed by two very different, but equally impressive at/in Heathrow Airport hotel stays.

6 AM arrival: after a long, sleepless flight from the US west coast beside a fidgety, too-tall seatmate, I can’t face heading to town and trying to stay awake until hotel check-in time. Instead I visit the short-stay YOTEL in Terminal 4, where compact and very cozy, ship-cabin-inspired rooms offer just the essentials: bed, TV, Wi-Fi, and bathroom.  Four hours later I’m refreshed and ready for the Tube-trek into town.  Not for the claustrophobic, but a great option for folks with very early arrivals or departures.

6 AM departure: With such an early morning flight, its just makes sense to stay at – or in – the airport.  In the past I’ve snagged an acceptable rate at the Heathrow London Hilton Airport Hotel, attached to Terminal 4, but this time I’m snuggled in for a short night at the new, ultra-swank Sofitel London Heathrow, attached to the new Terminal 5.

Rooms offer pillow menus and many public areas have themes:  for example the lobby is “Antarctica,” with a cool ice-block-inspired fountain, and there’s a huge, peaceful indoor Zen Garden.

There are multiple restaurants, several bars and a fitness room, but it’s the spa that offers a hidden treat for folks stuck – or just worn out – at the airport.  For about the same price as four hours at the YOTEL, travelers can hang out in the Sofitel’s Hydro Suite, which has a shower, steam room, sauna, giant spa tub, and some very inviting-looking lounge chairs.  If you’re nice, they might even let you stretch out in the official relaxation room as well.

Categories: Hotels, Sleeping
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It’s not just passengers who are having their flight plans disrupted by the repeat eruptions of Mt. Redoubt.  Many cargo freighters heading to Anchorage for refueling are instead diverting to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA).

According to airport officials, so far SEA is getting at least three times  the normal arrivals of  international cargo planes: 45 during the first four days of diversion, the equivalent of a full week’s regular schedule at SEA.  Now the airport is figuring out where they’ll put more diverted wide-body planes if the volcano stays active.

So are passenger planes being pushed aside to make way for the giant, thirsty, visitors?  ”Nope, no delays for passenger traffic,” says airport rep. Perry Cooper, “A passenger may see a big cargo plane next to them at the terminal, but it won’t delay any of their flights. This, of course, is outside what passenger delays are created by the flights Alaska has had to cancel due to the volcano. What has created the cancellation for those flights is creating the extra traffic in the cargo area for us.”

(Photos of visiting cargo planes courtesy Port of Seattle)

Categories: Environment, Safety
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