The offer from United Airlines airlines was intriguing: “Want to spend the night at an airport to see what happens between the last flight of the night and the first one the next morning?”
Who wouldn’t?
My adventure took place last week and is documented in my August ‘At the Airport’ column on USA TODAY: “Behind-the-scenes: What happens at an airport overnight?”
Pop over there to read the full story, but in the meantime, here are some snaps from the night:
Much of the evening was spent in the maintenance hangar, where 8 United aircraft were in for various types of repairs.
Between midnight and 6 a.m. one airplane was scheduled to have an engine replaced.
I was reassured to learn how planes get fixed overnight – and that they also get a good cleaning.
During an early morning visit to the Flight Operation Center, I got a peek into the cupboard ‘shop’ where Captains and First officers can purchase extra supplies – such as clip on ties and epaulets for those extra shirts.
