The ORIGINAL 1000+ Posts Club

[MaineWriter]

Good morning...

28 degrees, sunny, and blue sky, The report is for really warm today...temps up to 50! We'll see...

L

[David]

For some TSA humor, enjoy this Sierra Mist TV commercial.

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[Jeff Wrangler]

Hi Jeff,
 
  Hmm,   I hadn't thought about the Cape Air flights.    Were those even TSA people screening them?      At Bradley, even the small planes  (commercial ones) use the main terminal.   

   A transfer to Provincetown?  LOL !  Now your talking!

David 

Yeah, I felt kinda sorry for that guy in P'town, going through my luggage and having to check my worn jockstrap for nitrates. Oh, wait--he looked like he was having entirely too much fun doing that!   

But, yeah, even in P'town, before boarding the Cape Air Cessna for the commuter hop back to Logan, it was off with the boots and belt--the whole nine yards.

[MaineWriter]

Honey, we ALL have to take off our shoes and belts...

L

[Jeff Wrangler]

In my journeys, I have noticed how many airports, especially older ones (and Logan falls into this category) have real challenges in retrofitting their physical plant to meet today's security requirements. I don't know if it was by accident or design, but Logan has five separate terminals, each with their own security screening checkpoint.

There have been times that I have flown into Logan and they have taken us from the plane, by shuttle bus, to our next terminal. But usually that is when I have been on a little plane (ie, coming from Portland) and transferring to a bigger plane. I also believe that terminals B, C, an D are all connected by walkways that are behind the screening area (or in the sterile area, as David would say). But it is a hike from B to D, that's for sure!

Compare that with Denver International with one terminal and one security area. Once through, you take a subway to the various concourses. All the concourses have restaurants and shopping...it is a great set up. Atlanta (Hartsfield) is the same way, but I don't like it as much because it is so crowded.

Another airport I avoid, because it has problems like Logan, is Dallas.

I was somewhere not too long ago (Kansas City, maybe?) and all the restaurants and shops were outside the security area. I could see what the original plan had been and how they had to modify the building to accomodate the screening procedures. But from a traveler point of view, it was a major pain in the neck!

L

Maybe Logan has been retrofitted since the last time I flew to Provincetown. If so, that's great. "Major pain in the neck" would be putting it mildly when you had to come in to the terminal used by Cape Air, go down to the baggage carousel to collect your bags, go out of the terminal, then get yourself over to the next terminal for USAir, then go through Security again. That's why in '05 and '06 I took the train to Boston and then the fast boat down to P'town. It's more time-consuming than flying, but less of a security hassle, and fun, too.

Philadelphia International is similar to Logan in its arrangement of terminals and concourse. Maybe once upon a time that was a more efficient use of the land?

In any case, in my limited travels (around the coffeepot. ...  ), the Philadelphia-Boston-Provincetown flight was my frame of reference for making an airline connection, and I would still never allow less than an hour between flights!

[Jeff Wrangler]

Honey, we ALL have to take off our shoes and belts...

L

Well, sure. My point was just that the procedure is the same, even in a rinky-dink little airport like P'town.

[MaineWriter]

Philadelphia, Logan, National...oh, excuse me, Reagan (in DC) all suffer from the same problem...they are close to the city with fairly limited room to expand. For Logan, a major strategy has been to try to entice people to fly to/from other airports, namely Providence RI and Manchester NH. I think this has been more or less successful. Dulles was supposed to be "the airport of the future" that would make Reagan obsolete. Well, that plan flopped  and Dulles today is a disaster.

The Philadelphia airport seemed to go through an extended period of reconstruction but now that it is done, it is nice, and quite manageable. I get the feeling that lots of traffic has been diverted to Pittsburgh, which has eased up the burden in Philly.

Logan has been going through an extended period of construction for oh, the last 40 years or so. No end in sight on that one. LOL

And David, amazingly, in all my travels, I have never been to your airport...Bradley International, right?

L

[David]

And David, amazingly, in all my travels, I have never been to your airport...Bradley International, right?

L

Yes.  Bradley Int'l Airport, or Hartford/Springfield as often called is the second largest Airport in New England next to Logan.      It is situated about 12 miles North of Hartford.      We don't have any International flights currently, but in July NorthWest Airlines will offer non-stop flights to Amsterdam.

http://www.bradleyairport.com/home/home.php

[Jeff Wrangler]

For Logan, a major strategy has been to try to entice people to fly to/from other airports, namely Providence RI and Manchester NH. I think this has been more or less successful.

I guess it's what, Southwest?, advertises regularly down here that they fly from Philadelphia to "the Boston area," which, when you read the fine print, turns out to mean Providence and Manchester.

I know New England ain't that  big--it ain't Wyomin', after all--but I'm, like, What's that about? If I had business in downtown Boston, why the heck would I want to go to Providence or Manchester, and then have to deal with getting into downtown Boston?

I know money's a good point, but still. ... 

[David]

Yeah,  SouthWest advertises Bradley to Philly for $39.     My Mom (who is afraid to fly) keeps saying she'll take that flight just to see if she can handle a short trip.     I keep telling her that it is $39 + fees each way.   Plus if she wants to go into Philly for lunch, she'll need a taxi (more $) each way.    When she realizes the little lunch trip will cost her over $100 she nearly fainted!    LOL

Of course she thinks you can still take the train to NYC round trip for $20 !