Elves

Visting the North Pole with Alaska Airlines’ Fantasy Flight

Holidays, , ,

On Friday, Spokane International Airport (GEG) looks innocent enough. What with all the poinsettia trees and other holiday decorations.

But by Saturday afternoon the lobby is filled with elves waiting for the arrival of several busloads of deserving kids who have received invitations from Santa and Mrs. Claus to visit them at the North Pole.

Here’s a link to the story we wrote for the Alaska Airlines blog:

Elves, Toys, and a Holiday-Themed Plane: How Alaska Delivered an Unforgettable North Pole Adventure for Kids this Year.

For the past 25 years, the Spokane Fantasy Flight has been treating about 60 at-risk kids from the community to a magical holiday day that includes a flight on an airplane, a visit to a hangar transformed into the North Pole, and lots and lots of gifts. Alaska Airlines has been providing the airplane for the event for the past 14 years, and this year I got to go along.

Before anyone could board the flight, they had to go through airport security.

And the TSA team at GEG was nice enough to set aside a dedicated lane just for the North Pole flight passengers.

Then it was time to board the flight.

Alaska Airlines had brought in the brand new Starbucks “Merrier Together” and soon we were taking off for the North Pole, where there was unlimited candy and ice cream, lots of fun activities, and, of course, Santa.

We can’t show you the rest of the North Pole because we don’t want to ruin Christmas. But suffice it to say it is indeed a very magical place.

Santa’s workshop at Heathrow Airport

Holidays, Uncategorized, , , ,

Stuck at The Airport is continuing coverage of Santa sightings at airports.

We are also sharing updates on what airports are doing this year to make things merry.

So today we bring you this update from London’s Heathrow Airport.

To help parents with kids asking lots of questions about how Santa does what he does, Heathrow has installed “magical” periscopes in Terminals 2 and 5.

The periscopes allow children (and adults) to check in on what Santa is up to as he and his team get ready for the big night.

Heathrow says the periscopes offer a 360-degree view of elves in action at Santa’s the satellite workshop, which is conveniently located right under Heathrow (!).

Scenes include Santa’s Toy Factory, the Department of Wrapping and the Mail Room.

Heathrow Airport is going all out this holiday season to make travelers feel welcome.

The day before Thanksgiving, passengers from a handful of flights arriving at Heathrow from various U.S. cities got a surprise at the baggage claim.

Before checked bags showed up, baskets of fresh-baked pumpkin pie came down the line.

Spot Santa at the airport? Send us a photo.

Santa’s flight plan

Holidays, ,

British Airways has shared a preview of the flight plan the Jeppesen charting company has prepared for Santa for the evening of December 24th. 

    For those who aren’t well versed in reading flight plan charts,
    BA says that the chart shows the approach for landing Santa’s sleigh back at the North Pole, having completed deliveries around the world.

    “The chart shows that on approach, the sleigh will descend to 2,500ft on a track of true North between SANTA and CLAUS. The sleigh will further descend on the final stages of its approach from COMNG to TOWNN, but in the event that the weather conditions are not good enough to land then Santa will climb back to an altitude of 2,500ft before turning right at MSLTO. That will lead to KSSNG where he will hold until the weather improves.”

    Here’s some more detailed information about the plan: 

    “With Rudolph’s nose lighting system, the sleigh has a ‘decision height’ of just 250ft which will help Santa manage any bad weather, resulting in a safe landing. Safety is obviously a priority for Santa and his team, so the plan warns that reindeer and elves will be on the runway and that reindeer games could slow down ground operations. Other aircraft are advised to look out for the blinding red nose.”

    “We’ll be cheering on Santa and his reindeer on December 24 as he flies around the world,” said Simon Brooks, British Airways’ senior vice president sales, North America, ” He has priority over the skies that night so customers traveling should look for the sleigh and wave to Santa.”

    My favorite parts of the flight plan are the ‘Hot Cider Deice Pad” and “Letters to Santa Drop Zone,” and that little elf, but the whole darn thing is charming. 

    Elves at airports

    Airports, Free Stuff, Holidays,

    hmshost-elves-ohare-photo-1
    Airports around the country are ready for the holiday travel season with decorations, entertainment and special events of all kinds – including an invasion of gift-bearing elves.

    Beginning Thursday, December 1 at Chicago’s O’Hare airport and running through December 8, the HMSHost Holiday Elves and their “magical sleigh” will be popping up at major U.S. airports handing out electronics, fun gag gifts, holiday collectibles and travel accessories to select lucky travelers and passersby who play the elves’ naughty-or-nice game.

    Look for the elves on December 6 at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (I’ll be there!) and Orlando International Airport on December 8.

    Not planning on being at those airports on those days? You can still can win prizes (in airports or not ) by posting creative holiday travel photos.

     

     

    Free WiFi – and more – at Spokane Int’l Airport

    Art, Entertainment, free Wi-Fi, Fun Stuff, Wi-Fi, , , , , ,

    Well, here’s an airport moving in the right direction.

    Washington’s Spokane International Airport, which serves about 3 million passengers a year, is now offering travelers free Wi-Fi (well, for 20 minutes..) inside the Terminal Building and, starting in September, will be providing baggage carts at no charge.

    “In today’s climate, people are unhappy with the pricing models of air travel companies and are suffering from declines in customer service,” said airport director Lawrence Krauter.
    “This is just the beginning of our commitment to explore new ways to provide greater customer satisfaction at Spokane International Airport.”

    Just the beginning? Wonder what will come next? Maybe a circus, like the one offered each year at Dusseldorf International Airport. Or a miniature golf course, like they have at Florida’s Palm Beach International Airport.

    After all, this is the airport that serves as the gateway for the Spokane Fantasy Flight to the North Pole each December for 60 kids and their elf escorts – so you know they know how to have a good time.

    Embedded with the elves: North Pole Fantasy Flights

    Air Travel, Holidays, , ,


    The security checkpoint at Spokane International Airport is usually a quiet, orderly place. But earlier this month “It was a mad house,” says TSA screener Julee McCully.

    Carolers were crooning Christmas classics in the terminal lobby. Eighty of Santa’s elves were trying to get sixty kids from this year’s “nice” list through security for secret Alaska Airline’s Flight #1225 (get it?) to the North Pole. And alarms kept going off at the metal detector.

    “It was all those jingle bells,” says McCully. “The elves had metal bells sewn onto their clothes and stuffed into these little purses that said ‘Elf Stuff.’ It was like a puzzle finding all the bells on each elf. My hands were covered in elf glitter after just the first pat-down.”

    Elves? A secret flight to the North Pole? What is this, a Hallmark/Homeland Security Christmas special?  Well, yes. Sort of.

    Thanks to the efforts of airline and airport employees, the TSA, sponsors, donors, and an army of  secret Santas, planeloads of seriously ill and/or disadvantaged children have been taking off for the North Pole not just from Spokane, but from Chicago, San Antonio, Phoenix, and a sleigh-load of other cities around the country as well.

    What happens at the North Pole?

    Embedded as an elf (that’s me on the left, Tammikins on the right),  I was able to tag along this year on the North Pole flight organized by Spokane Fantasy Flight, a non-profit group that invites area shelters and community programs to pick a group of kids who could really use “an evening of wonderment and surprise” and a huge pile of presents.

    60 kids and a troop of elves set off for a 40-minute flight to the North Pole, which is actually (spoiler alert!) a decorated hangar at the airport populated with Santa and Mrs. Claus, loads of extra elves and, of course, a few reindeer.

    Some might call that cheating, but as one of the other elves explained, “If you’re a little kid on your first plane ride and your ticket says North Pole, and the shades are drawn, and everyone, including the flight attendants and all the elves are saying the magic words, then who’s to say you haven’t landed at the real North Pole?”

    She has a point.

    This is the 12th year a flight to the North Pole has taken off from Spokane International Airport.  But it still two took months of planning meetings with the TSA, the airport and airline representatives to make sure everything went smoothly.  Horizon/Alaska Airlines customer service manager Dave Burris explained: “This is only the second year our airline has been the official North Pole carrier. United Airlines used to host these flights, but in 2008, there was a mix-up and no plane was available. Alaska Airlines stepped in at the last minute and it was such a hit with the kids and our employees that now that we have our foot in the door, we’re not going to pull it out.”

    More North Pole action

    Don’t worry: Alaska Airlines hasn’t put United Airlines out of the North Pole business. Not by a long shot. To find out about the North Pole flights organized by employees from United and Continental Airlines, please see the full column  Now Boarding Flight 1225 to the North Pole on MSNBC.com.