Airports are more than just transit hubs—they’re places where history is made, records are broken, and bizarre incidents unfold. From multimillion-dollar heists to quirky design secrets, the world’s airports have seen it all. Whether you’re a frequent flyer or just fascinated by aviation, these 50 surprising facts will take you behind the scenes of some of the most incredible airport stories ever told. Buckle up and get ready for a turbulence-free journey through the wild, weird, and wonderful world of airports!
1 Stockton Airport’s Name Controversy
In 2017, the airport in Stockton, California, attempted to rename itself “San Francisco-Stockton Regional Airport,” even though it is 83 miles away from San Francisco.
2. In 1979, an underwater landslide near Nice Airport in France triggered a tsunami, resulting in at least 15 deaths. The landslide, likely caused by dredging operations and sediment instability, also damaged airport infrastructure and nearby coastal areas.
3. Airport runway numbers do not follow a sequential pattern; instead, they correspond to compass bearings. For instance, Runway 9 aligns with 90 degrees, while Runway 27 points to 270 degrees.
4. In 2013, a group of eight masked gunmen led by a real estate agent and a luxury car dealer successfully broke into the Brussels Airport in Belgium and stole €38 million worth of diamonds as they were being loaded onto a plane. They executed the heist without firing a single shot or alerting the plane’s passengers.
5. In 2003, Chicago mayor Richard M. Daley ordered the midnight bulldozing of Meigs Field, a small downtown lakefront airport in Chicago. This unexpected action left 16 planes stranded on the ground, including several Fire Department helicopters. As a result, the FAA fined the city $33,000 for failing to provide the required 30-day notice before closing an airport.
6 Mystery of the Stolen 727
In 2003, two men stole and flew a Boeing 727-223 from Luanda International Airport in Angola, even though neither was qualified to pilot the aircraft. To this day, both the plane and the men remain missing.
7. One of the deadliest aviation accident in U.S. history occurred in 1979 at O’Hare Airport in Chicago. American Airlines Flight 191, a DC-10 passenger plane, crashed shortly after takeoff, killing all 273 people on board. In response, the FAA immediately banned all DC-10s from flying in U.S. airspace pending an investigation.
8. Pilots departing from California’s John Wayne Airport must, by law, cut their engines and pitch the nose down shortly after takeoff for about six miles. This maneuver helps reduce noise pollution in the residential area below.
9. In the 1930s, New Jersey housed the only commercial airport serving New York City. To protest this, NYC Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia once refused to deplane in New Jersey because his ticket stated “New York City.” As a result, the airline flew him to NYC.
10. CNN pays airports to air its news on terminal TVs. However, CNN specifically curates this version to omit any stories about plane crashes.
11 Airport Security’s Failed Test
In a security test conducted several years ago, 70 undercover agents attempted to sneak bombs or guns through U.S. airport security-67 of them succeeded.
12. Leaded fuel is still sold at approximately 13,000 airports across the U.S. and is regularly used by an estimated 170,000 small aircraft. Studies by the EPA and FAA have detected its lead residue in surrounding communities, raising environmental and health concerns.
13. As of September 2023, some American airports now permit non-ticketed passengers to pass through security, allowing them to meet loved ones at the gate or visit terminal shops and restaurants.
14. During the 1959 opening ceremony of Ottawa International Airport’s new terminal, a USAF F-104 Starfighter performed a supersonic flypast. The resulting sonic boom shattered nearly all the airport’s glass and caused significant structural damage, delaying the terminal’s opening by a year.
15. A massive “WELCOME TO CLEVELAND” sign on a rooftop along the flight path of Milwaukee’s airport has been causing panic and confusion among arriving passengers since 1978. What was the reasoning behind the creation of this sign? “Living in the world is not a dress rehearsal. You better have fun with it.”
16 Canada’s Operation Yellow Ribbon
Immediately after U.S. airspace closed on 9/11, Canada implemented Operation Yellow Ribbon, diverting 250 U.S.-bound flights carrying 45,000 passengers to 14 smaller airports across the country. Communities like Gander, with a population of just 10,000, generously welcomed up to 6,000 stranded passengers into their homes.
17. The Montréal-Mirabel International Airport, where “The Terminal” movie was filmed, turned out to be a massive failure. Passenger traffic estimates were wildly inflated, highways meant to connect it to Montréal were never built, and the terminal contained asbestos insulation. It stopped receiving passengers in 2004, and the terminal was demolished in 2016.
18. Denver International Airport spans 53 square miles, making it larger than the entire island of Manhattan.
19. During the COVID-19 pandemic, several airlines introduced “flights to nowhere,” where planes took off and landed at the same airport, allowing passengers to enjoy the experience of flying without reaching a destination.
20. In 2013, a Canadian bank robber obsessed with Taylor Swift stole a Cessna 172 from a flight school, crossed into U.S. airspace undetected, and flew to Nashville. His journey ended in tragedy when he crashed at Nashville International Airport, killing himself instantly. Shockingly, the burning wreck went unnoticed for five hours.
15 Most Controversial & Costly Blunders in History
21 Canadian Sky Marshals in U.S.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police deploy undercover sky marshals on every Canadian flight bound for Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
22. Sioux City’s airport code is SUX. When officials attempted to change it, the FAA offered GAY as an alternative, which they declined.
23. Only three flights operate weekly to and from Tuvalu in the South Pacific. When the Funafuti Airport airstrip is not in use, it transforms into a public space for sports and social gatherings. A siren blares to alert residents when they need to clear the runway for an approaching flight.
24. In 2021, Lufthansa was losing approximately €500,000 per hour. To maintain its airport slots, the airline admitted in 2022 that it had operated over 18,000 empty flights during the pandemic.
25. In 2007, a passenger left behind a tombstone at Dublin Airport with the inscription, “You will always be remembered, never forgotten.” It eventually ended up in the airport’s lost and found.
RE: Fact #5 (Chicago’s Meigs Field Demolition) –How could helicopters be stranded? It’s not as if they need runways.
RE: Fact #18 (Denver Airport Larger than Manhattan) – And that’s just what we can see. What’s under Raccoon City?
What was the extra cost?
Why’s it so far out of town?
Lol, crazy theories everywhere!
Their old airport got swallowed up by the city, and the same thing’s happening to DIA fast.
RE: Fact #24 (Lufthansa’s Costly Empty Flights) – So that’s why I’m not worried about using plastic straws or eating meat. Big companies are going to be the end of us.
Lots of things can go wrong.
I’m not gonna sweat saving a planet that’s being wrecked by big business, bad policies, and the whole global mess.
RE: Fact #41 (TSA Detains Medal of Honor Recipient) – Even if you’ve never heard of the Medal of Honor, it’s obviously a medal.
Seriously, though, the person who actually earned a Medal of Honor? They could probably turn that thing into a weapon.
RE: Fact #29 (Runway Rubber Removal Process) – I’d love to see an airport level in Power Washing Simulator!
RE: Fact #11 (Airport Security’s Failed Test) – A few years ago, I accidentally took a pocketknife onto a plane. Security was distracted – they were busy taking my coworker’s shampoo.
Someone stole my nose hair trimmer!
Wait, you’re talking about those little, blunt-ended scissors, right? The ones that are safer even than kids’ scissors?
Same thing happened to my parents on a trip in ’06. Security missed my stepdad’s knife in his bag, but they totally nailed my mom for lotion in the wrong-sized bottle.
RE: Fact #13 (Non-Ticketed Passengers Allowed In) – Years ago, airport security was pretty lax. My mom wanted to see my son during a layover in her city, and they basically said, “No gate pass, but you can wander around the shops.” Mom just played along and said, “Oh, I’m shopping!”
RE: Fact #34 (Why Some Airport Codes End in X) – Where’s SE?
Sembach, Germany? They call the air base there “SEX”.
RE: Fact #16 (Canada’s Operation Yellow Ribbon) – There’s this awesome musical, Come From Away, about all those planes that ended up in Gander—it’s really great.
There’s a book, *The Day the World Came to Town*, and it’s awesome. Those folks really went above and beyond for total strangers – opening their homes, sharing their money, and showing so much kindness. It fills in some things the musical misses. Definitely worth a read!
Same here! Seriously, that book is incredible. Those Canadabros were lifesavers that day.
RE: Fact #26 (Real Hijacking During Film Shoot) – Did the hostages get paid extra? What about the hijackers?
A few of the hostages ended up in the movie as extras, apparently. The hijackers let everyone go and got arrested.
That was way different than what really happened at Entebbe. The Israelis showed up, totally wrecked the place, trashed a bunch of Ugandan planes so they couldn’t chase them, had a little firefight, and left with only one guy dead.
Lessons learned:
Don’t mess with Israel.
If you do, they’ll get you.
Keep your planes away from anyone who ignores rule #1.
RE: Fact #41 (TSA Detains Medal of Honor Recipient) – What does the TSA know about honor, anyway?
RE: Fact #34 (Why Some Airport Codes End in X) – Huh, I always figured it meant “Transfer” or “Crossing,” or something like that. Maybe it still does. “Los Angeles” doesn’t have an X, so LAX is probably short for LA Crossing.
LA Crossing: It’s like Animal Crossing, but, you know, updated!
RE: Fact #6 (Mystery of the Stolen 727) – They flew off into the sunset—poof! Gone. No, seriously, maybe they got toasted.
RE: Fact #43 (Star of David Found at Iranian Airport) – That shape’s pretty common in Islamic art, actually. It could be the Star of David or the Seal of Solomon – both kings are big deals in the Qur’an.
The Star of David is totally cool in Islam; nothing off-limits about it. It’s usually linked to Israel and Zionism, but it’s actually a symbol for all Abrahamic faiths.
Seriously? They said it’s a Zionist symbol, but it’s a Jewish one! It’s used by Zionists, sure, but it’s primarily a religious symbol.
RE: Fact #3 (Runway Numbers and Compass Bearings) – Finding the right runway in flight sim is way easier now, thanks to you!
Hey fellow flight sim fan, remember to check the wind before landing – it’s always best to land into it. So, if the wind’s coming from 300 degrees at 5 knots, and you’ve got runways 9 and 27, go for 27; that’ll put you right into the wind.
Yep, I’m a pilot, and that’s exactly right. Tailwinds can be really dangerous.
I usually follow what air traffic control says, but thanks for the heads-up!
Big airports with lots of runways going the same way use R and L for right and left. So, runway 09R becomes 27L if you’re going the other way.
Big airports sometimes use different numbers for runways even if they point in the same direction. For example, at ORD, you’ve got 27R, 27C, 27L, 28R, 28C, and 28L, but they all head roughly 273 degrees.
RE: Fact #16 (Canada’s Operation Yellow Ribbon) – Pretty darn Canadian, all things considered.
RE: Fact #31 (Houston Airport’s Clever Solution) – If they keep getting complaints, the complaints office might end up in the basement.
Texas needs more basements, they even filled in the Alamo’s!
It’s hidden in the back of a locked closet, with a warning sign about a leopard.
RE: Fact #36 (Denver’s Deadly Blue Mustang) – We call him Bluecifer.
Nobody’s posted a pic of his, uh, private parts on factrepublic yet. Bummer.
Seriously, with a statue that huge, my first thought was, “Is it, uh, anatomically correct?” We’ve got this horse statue in Fresno, it’s way smaller, but everyone knows it. You can’t miss the, uh, “equipment.” I’ve never actually looked for, you know, *everything* though.
RE: Fact #29 (Runway Rubber Removal Process) – Wow, how many tires do the planes go through?
Plane tires usually last between 120 and 400 landings, depending on things like the weather. They have to handle huge temperature swings, from -60°C way up high to scorching heat on the ground in really hot places.
RE: Fact #24 (Lufthansa’s Costly Empty Flights) – Those airports should be held accountable for making this happen. Airlines don’t fly empty planes unless there’s a good reason.
RE: Fact #33 (Nigerian Scammers Sell Fake Airport) – So, this guy got nailed for bribery, kidnapping attempts, and even bomb threats—the works! They took everything he owned to pay the victim, and he got a 25-year sentence. But get this—he was out after a year and got back a whopping $52 million!
Something fishy’s going on… most likely bribery.
RE: Fact #35 (Wright Brothers Airfield Still Active) – Planes and gliders? You can pretty much land those anywhere, as long as you don’t need to take off again.
RE: Fact #14 (Sonic Boom Shatters Airport Glass) – This pilot deserves a beer, maybe even a whole brewery if he wants one, a contractor at the event said.
That contractor just hit the jackpot! Then, boom, another huge contract right after finishing the first one.
RE: Fact #45 (Why High-Altitude Runways Are Longer) – So, it needs more speed to get airborne, that’s why it needs a longer runway.
RE: Fact #26 (Real Hijacking During Film Shoot) – I doubt the passengers felt the same way.
RE: Fact #13 (Non-Ticketed Passengers Allowed In) – Remember how great it was to greet family and friends at the airport? A lot of younger people, like almost 40% of Americans, probably don’t.
Daniel Tosh, I think, joked about how we forget the good things Osama Bin Laden did, like eliminating the need to walk your wife to her gate at the airport.
RE: Fact #23 (Tuvalu Airport Doubles as Playground) – Cool fact: Websites ending in .tv actually rent their domain names from the island nation of Tuvalu—that’s what the “tv” stands for.
RE: Fact #19 (Flights to Nowhere During COVID) – Australia’s state borders were shut, so you couldn’t fly between most cities. But some clever companies started using Boeing 777s for flights to Antarctica to see the Aurora Australis. These were 12-14 hour round trips from a single city, and passengers got amazing views of the southern lights. Brilliant!
Brilliant idea, cramming everyone together for 14 hours during Covid, huh?
Australia dodged a big COVID bullet in 2020 with its strict quarantine. It eventually fell apart, but they still held out longer than most places.
RE: Fact #30 (11-Year-Old Sneaks Onto Plane) – Seriously, when I was twelve, I flew solo across the country to visit my grandparents for the summer. My last flight was overbooked, and this really nice flight attendant asked for volunteers to give up their seats in exchange for a free hotel room. I volunteered, and they actually let me!
That’s freakin’ hilarious!
He totally Home Alone’d himself.
RE: Fact #3 (Runway Numbers and Compass Bearings) – In *Catch Me If You Can*, when they’re bringing Frank back to the US, he says he knows they’re landing at LaGuardia on Runway 44. There’s no Runway 44 – the highest number is 36. I always wondered if that was a mistake, or if it was meant to show how Frank acted like an expert but was actually full of it.
Funny thing: most of what Frank Abagnale says about his life isn’t true, or is just plain wrong. He was basically a small-time crook who kept making things up after he got out of prison!
Runway four, inbound!
RE: Fact #37 (Bangor’s Troop Greeters Tradition) – Getting back from Kuwait/Iraq felt like we landed a million times! Romania for fuel, Germany for a plane change, Ireland for a pint and some downtime. Finally, we touched down in Maine – this tiny place – at 3 AM, and these two older guys were there to greet us. It was crazy, but so awesome to be back in the States.
Seriously, this feels like the beginning of a Stephen King novel, doesn’t it?
After Iraq, before everyone had cell phones, they surprised me with a welcome home – snacks and phones to call home! It was great. I got to chat with my wife and kids a whole day early, and skipped those crazy expensive, unreliable phone cards.
RE: Fact #13 (Non-Ticketed Passengers Allowed In) – If a family member or friend needs help getting to their gate, like if they use a wheelchair, TSA will let you go with them. I’ve done it tons of times with my mom, she’s getting up there. It was such a relief when I found out – before, just dropping her off at TSA was super stressful.
Kids traveling alone can have a grown-up walk them to their gate, too.
It’ll cost you $200 though.
RE: Fact #33 (Nigerian Scammers Sell Fake Airport) – Seriously, how can you spend that much cash without getting someone to check the place out first? People and companies that fall for that deserve what they get.
So, the bank was supposed to invest in this fake Nigerian airport for a $10 million cut. But the scammers kept sweetening the deal with bigger and bigger bribes, and that’s how they got caught in their own trap. It’s hilarious how greedy they were!
RE: Fact #41 (TSA Detains Medal of Honor Recipient) – The TSA really plays into the hands of groups like the Taliban and Al-Qaeda, scaring people half to death.
RE: Fact #42 (How ‘Mayday’ Became a Distress Call) – I thought it was just panicked screaming.
RE: Fact #40 (9/11 Memorial Flags at Logan) – I recall a similar thing leaving Dulles after 9/11. Our gate was the same one Flight 77 – the one that hit the Pentagon – used. They had someone carry a flag as we pushed back, and the pilots mentioned it was the same gate. I kinda get the idea, but it was unsettling, especially since I’m not a fan of flying.
RE: Fact #30 (11-Year-Old Sneaks Onto Plane) – Back in ’85, two Dublin kids snuck onto a flight to New York just to meet Mr. T.
Pre-9/11 flying was crazy! My parents used to tell me how they could just stroll right up to the gate without even a ticket – wild, right?
I once got on a plane just to hug someone goodbye.
Back in high school, my buddy and I would chill at the airport. Security was basically a conveyor belt X-raying bags, run by someone who was clearly just collecting a paycheck. You could wander around, go wherever. It was great for people-watching, grabbing a hot dog, and browsing the airport bookstore.
RE: Fact #9 (NYC Mayor’s Airport Protest) – If he didn’t like it, he could’ve built his own airport.
Nah, naming it would’ve been a pain.
RE: Fact #20 (Taylor Swift Fan’s Stolen Plane) – This makes me feel pretty good about my life.
RE: Fact #11 (Airport Security’s Failed Test) – TSA’s all about making us *feel* safe, even if it’s not really that safe.
RE: Fact #10 (CNN’s Curated Airport News) – Makes sense.
If I were flying, I’d probably want to know about any plane crashes that just happened.
RE: Fact #43 (Star of David Found at Iranian Airport) – Seriously, how could nobody notice the airport roof for 30 whole years?
RE: Fact #16 (Canada’s Operation Yellow Ribbon) – Thanks, Canada!
No thanks needed. On a day like 9/11, we weren’t just Canadians and Americans, we were all just people helping each other out.
RE: Fact #21 (Canadian Sky Marshals in U.S.) – The tricky part is hiding their horses and acting like tourists.
RE: Fact #50 (San Diego’s Space Shuttle Hoax) – That prank was insane! The radio DJ was like, “No way they fell for that! Our runway’s tiny and can’t handle something as heavy as a space shuttle.”
San Diego’s airport is super busy—the second busiest single-runway airport globally, only London Gatwick beats it.
RE: Fact #5 (Chicago’s Meigs Field Demolition) – So, this happened, right? A city truck shows up, blocks the only camera watching the airfield. Truck leaves, and boom – giant Xs on the runway.
That old airfield’s now a park and nature reserve – a huge spot for migrating birds and fish spawning.
Northerly Island Park is a 119-acre park on Chicago’s Museum Campus, right by Lake Michigan. It was planned by the famous Daniel Burnham as part of a series of man-made islands, and it’s the only one that was actually finished. It hosted the Century of Progress World’s Fair back in 1933, and now it’s a really cool urban nature sanctuary – perfect for seeing how Chicago’s nature and city life mix.
This lakeside park has prairies, a savanna, a pond, and walking paths with awesome birdwatching. The path goes along the west side of the peninsula and ends at the south. There are tons of native plants and a growing savanna with thousands of trees and bushes, creating a great home for all kinds of birds.
That’s so Chicago, haha!
RE: Fact #46 (Beatlemania: Paul McCartney Catches Child) – Maybe her mom wasn’t all there either.
Seriously? That’s gotta be the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard a celebrity fan do.
Check out what one fan did to Lennon.
RE: Fact #14 (Sonic Boom Shatters Airport Glass) – To be fair to the pilot, the Wikipedia archive shows it happened during preparations the day before the ceremony, not the opening itself. It was also at the request of a Canadian official. Basically, the pilot was doing a test run for a show the next day, and when asked by an official to do a flyby, well, let’s just say the new terminal didn’t fare so well. The sonic boom was nothing compared to a previous incident, but this time, it took out over $10,000 worth of glass.
I thought it was cool how they opened the airport without a flyby planned, but the US just sent a plane to do one anyway.
Much funnier that way. “Congrats on the new airport!” “…Oh, crap.”
RE: Fact #18 (Denver Airport Larger than Manhattan) – It doesn’t use much of its capacity, maybe a bit over a third, going by my rough estimate.
It’s mainly farmland they’re holding onto for later.
RE: Fact #35 (Wright Brothers Airfield Still Active) – Man, the Outer Banks is way overdeveloped now. I grew up there, and it keeps getting worse every time I visit. I was there Friday, and they’d knocked down one of the houses I lived in and put up one of those huge, generic-looking vacation rentals in its place.
RE: Fact #28 (Fake Havana Airport for Hijackers) – So, that’s why 9/11 happened. Historically, hijackers just wanted to use the plane, so giving in was the usual response. Passengers only fought back on one flight, after they figured out the plan.
I doubt we’ll see another hijacking in the US. Why? Cockpit doors are super secure now, and passengers will definitely fight back.
I bet it’s standard procedure for the Air Force now to take down any hijacked plane that ignores their calls. So, even if a plane *is* hijacked, it won’t be used as a weapon – they’d be blown out of the sky long before reaching a city.
USAF rules are to shoot down any hijacked plane that won’t talk to them.
Seriously though, I wouldn’t want to be the pilot who has to shoot down a plane full of innocent people and a few jerks. I wonder if the Air Force has a plan for that pilot – like long-term therapy, keeping their name quiet, a new job, or even letting them retire.
RE: Fact #9 (NYC Mayor’s Airport Protest) – Just wait ’til he finds out about the Giants and Jets.
RE: Fact #23 (Tuvalu Airport Doubles as Playground) – Tuvalu and Australia made a deal a while back: Australia will take everyone from Tuvalu if climate change forces them to leave, as long as Tuvalu avoids deals with China.
Wikipedia says Tuvalu’s population is only 11,900 people. That’s about the same number of immigrants who arrive in Australia every three weeks.
A little outback town will do.
RE: Fact #47 (Finnair Flight 666’s Spooky Landing) – The pilot might not agree that the landing was just luck.
RE: Fact #19 (Flights to Nowhere During COVID) – Dude, pollution’s way down because everyone’s homebound. Wanna go crazy and rev up some engines just for kicks?
I totally get that. During Covid, airlines were flying empty planes just to hold onto their airport slots. Such a waste of fuel—completely pointless!
Well the pilots did need their flying hours.
RE: Fact #21 (Canadian Sky Marshals in U.S.) – So they’re getting rid of them during return flights, Great plan.
That’s funny! “Happy retirement! Your last job’s undercover in Washington. Break a leg!”
RE: Fact #42 (How ‘Mayday’ Became a Distress Call) – I’m pretty sure it comes from the French “m’aider”—he didn’t make it up.
It’s “m’aidez,” like the Wikipedia page says.
RE: Fact #17 (Mirabel Airport’s Costly Failure) – Cool fact: They filmed a scene from *The Jackal* (the one with Bruce Willis!) here. I think I even spotted the airport shuttle things they used to get people to the planes. And that Montreal stuff? All shot right here.
RE: Fact #27 (LEGO’s Private Airport) – I’m not sure I’d want to fly in a Lego airplane.
RE: Fact #22 (Sioux City’s Unfortunate Airport Code) – The FAA were trolling super hard.
My local airport’s Fort Grant, code FGT.
Right, so this airport’s gotta be Soviet Womble’s fave.
Honestly, it’s all because “Gateway” is right there in the airport’s name, so the whole GAtewaY thing kinda works, making the troll possible.
I was curious about their reasoning!
O’Hare’s airport code is ORD. Huh, no “D” in O’Hare, right? Turns out, it used to be called Orchard Field.
RE: Fact #7 (Deadliest U.S. Aviation Disaster) – Cutting corners on maintenance probably caused a lot of those crashes. Imagine the weight on the maintenance person’s shoulders after something like that – a lifetime of guilt. I wonder what ever happened to them afterward.
One of the guys behind the Valujet 592 crash in ’96 is still on the FBI’s most wanted list.
I’m not sure, but their boss supposedly killed himself right before he had to testify about the crash.
His worker warned about this exact thing in a bunch of memos, but nobody listened.
RE: Fact #40 (9/11 Memorial Flags at Logan) – I flew out of Logan in 2002, and they had cops with submachine guns patrolling the airport.
So, no armed cops constantly patrolling the airport anymore? Over here in Germany, and everywhere else I’ve been in Europe, there are always armed officers, usually with MP5s or P90s, keeping things safe. In Belgium, they were even patrolling the main city areas last time I was there.
RE: Fact #8 (John Wayne Airport Noise Rules) – Airline pilots don’t shut off their engines, they just lower the power. It’s pretty standard to quiet things down during takeoff, especially at the New York City airports.
RE: Fact #20 (Taylor Swift Fan’s Stolen Plane) – I bet Swift gets stalked a lot. Her Wikipedia page doesn’t even mention her personal life these days.
RE: Fact #17 (Mirabel Airport’s Costly Failure) – Man, I used that airport tons as a kid. It was out in the boonies, mostly holiday flights heading south and some cargo, if I remember right.
My NYC apartment was my base, but I spent a year working in St. Anne du Lac—right near the airport. It only did international flights, but you could snag a cheap, unofficial ticket on a Canadian airline to Europe, just for the LGA to Laval hop. Back before all the airport security, check-in was a folding table in the terminal, and getting on the plane was like hopping on a local flight. The Laval airport parking was always deserted, so I could park right by arrivals. Once, I went from my NYC apartment to my Canadian rental in just an hour! It was awesome.
No way, you went from your NYC apartment to your Canadian place in just an hour?! I find that hard to believe. How’d you even get to the airport in NYC? Even decades ago, that’s gotta be a rush, let alone getting around NYC itself in an hour – that’s crazy impressive these days.
RE: Fact #12 (Leaded Fuel Still in Use) – That UN article saying it’s not sold anywhere anymore? That’s wrong, right?
They don’t sell it for ground vehicles anymore.
RE: Fact #7 (Deadliest U.S. Aviation Disaster) – No worries, they just called it the MD11 instead.
Seriously though, I flew on a DC-10, like, thirty years ago. It was a real rattletrap, super noisy. But a buddy of mine flew cargo for KLM in one for ages, and he *loved* the DC-10 for hauling freight.
The DC-10 was a real cargo favorite—until the cargo decided to take a 30,000-foot joyride, haha.
RE: Fact #4 (Brussels Airport Diamond Heist) – Back in May 2013, the police arrested 31 people involved in the heist, and some of the diamonds turned up again. Nineteen of them got charged. Funny thing is, the arrests happened because the crooks messed up trying to sell the loot. It all started with Pascal Pont, a Swiss real estate guy, who got a huge bag of diamonds from his buddy, Marc Bertoldi, a fancy car dealer. Bertoldi’s car was spotted near the robbery, and that led the cops to Pont. They listened in on his calls and found out he was trying (and failing!) to sell the diamonds in Geneva—not exactly a diamond hub.
I usually hide my illegal stuff in countries that are really strict.
So, Switzerland’s super-rich, right? It’s like they built their whole thing on ignoring where the money actually comes from.
RE: Fact #38 (MI5’s Gerbil Terrorist Detector) – People who are scared of flying probably had a really rough time after that hours-long interrogation.
Back then, they used koalas for questioning, so it wasn’t so awful.
RE: Fact #48 (Disney’s Musical Airport Runway) – That’s awesome! Thanks for letting me know.
RE: Fact #28 (Fake Havana Airport for Hijackers) – Back in 1958, when the government started looking after air travel, hijacking wasn’t even a crime. Airports were super laid-back; you could just stroll onto the tarmac and onto your plane – no tickets, no ID, nothing.
The first hijackers all wanted to get to Cuba. The very first American hijacking happened May 1st, 1961. This guy, Antulio Ramirez Ortiz, an electrician from Miami, hijacked a plane, claimed he was going to kill Fidel Castro, and demanded to be taken to Havana to warn him.
Then hijackers started aiming for farther-off places. Take Rafael Minichiello, an Italian-American marine, who hijacked a plane from Los Angeles to Rome. He was treated like a hero in Italy and only did 18 months in prison because they wouldn’t send him back to the US. He even got a part in a movie!
Finally, hijackers started acting like regular kidnappers, demanding money. This all started with Arthur Gates Barkley, an unemployed truck driver who had a problem with the tax man. He hijacked a plane to Washington D.C. and wanted a hundred million dollars from the Supreme Court! After that, they asked for cash, gold, booze, cigarettes – you name it.
It’s hard to believe you could just walk right onto a plane without showing anyone your ticket, huh?
Seriously, who thinks the Supreme Court keeps that much cash lying around? And why would they get involved in a hijacking? Plus, why would he even care *who* pays if the government’s on the hook anyway?
I want the money in different amounts, delivered by Ruth Bader Ginsburg on a motorcycle!
Whoa, hold on! We can get you the cash, but seriously, think this through! She’s not your average grandma!
RE: Fact #25 (Tombstone Left at Dublin Airport) – Could it have been some kind of art project?
Maybe
RE: Fact #25 (Tombstone Left at Dublin Airport) – Crazy how forgetting a tombstone on a plane made that person famous to tons of people online. Mission accomplished, I guess?
People remember the tombstone, but not the person buried there.
RE: Fact #8 (John Wayne Airport Noise Rules) – It’s gotta be loaded folks living there.
Right on!
Hey, could you ease up on the plane’s power a bit? It’s messing up our polo game!
Those rich folks moved next to a military base that’s been there forever, but because they have money, they get noise reduction measures just for them. It’s hilarious getting noise complaints after we’ve been flying over their houses for ages. “Why don’t you just take off from MY driveway?!?”
Don’t tempt me!
There’s an air force base near my town, it’s been there way longer than the fancy houses. For a bit, they did jet drills almost every day – basically telling the rich folks to get lost. Now, nobody cares about the single weekly jet flyover.
RE: Fact #6 (Mystery of the Stolen 727) – The flight school I worked at had a little single-engine plane disappear in awful weather. The student pilot was last seen on radar flying into the Cajon Pass – totally off course. Bad weather, mountains… a recipe for disaster in flying.
Thing was, this kid was the son of Israeli ambassador to Mexico. Huge political pressure to find the plane. You’d think it would be easy – a small area near a super populated place, right? The LA and San Bernardino County Sheriffs searched for two weeks by helicopter. The Civil Air Patrol even used side-scan radar; they found a couple of old WWII wrecks, but not our guy. He just vanished.
A hiker found him eight years later, in a place they’d already searched tons of times.
I totally believe a 727 could crash in a sparsely populated part of Africa and nobody would ever know.
The Congo jungle’s up north, Namibia and Botswana deserts to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean’s right there to the west. So a lot of great places to lose a plane.
RE: Fact #19 (Flights to Nowhere During COVID) – Airports have these rules about how many flights a day airlines need to keep their gates. So, American Airlines should’ve grounded some planes – better for the planet and cheaper – but Delta could’ve grabbed those gates if they’d flown more. It’s crazy, the airports should’ve just ignored that rule until passenger numbers were back up to almost normal.
RE: Fact #7 (Deadliest U.S. Aviation Disaster) – The left engine fell off right after takeoff. Turns out, the mechanics used a forklift to put it back on instead of the proper lift – the slower one – and that messed up the engine mount.
The DC-10 was pretty flimsy, so a bump that might just ground other planes would crash a DC-10.
I always heard the Lockheed Tristar, its less successful rival, was built like a tank.
I’m shocked American Airlines didn’t get sued into the ground over this.
That payout would have been huge.
That’s a really sad story. I think the maintenance manager who made that call later killed himself.
RE: Fact #29 (Runway Rubber Removal Process) – Why not start spinning the tires before landing?
Adding motors to each part of an airplane’s landing gear is overkill; it’s already super complicated as it is.
How about adding little angled flaps to each wheel, so the wind makes them spin when they’re out?
RE: Fact #31 (Houston Airport’s Clever Solution) – Working at an airport, I totally get why they do it this way. People think some magic machine whisks bags off a plane in a flash, but it’s not like that. Two people unloading even a small plane with just 45 bags takes a good ten minutes. Then there’s all the safety rules and regulations we have to follow – that adds more time. And sometimes the cargo door gets jammed, or bags are all piled up, adding even more delays. So making you walk a bit to get your bags is pretty reasonable. Trust me, we want you to get your bags and head home just as much as you do – we have our own work to finish too!
RE: Fact #3 (Runway Numbers and Compass Bearings) – Runways 9 and 27 are actually the same runway; it just depends on which way you’re going.
It’s the same bit of ground, but different runways. The usable lengths can vary because of things like obstacles and the safety areas at the ends. Plus, the navigation aids are usually set up differently for each runway. (From a commercial flight instructor)
I wanted to ask about that 180-degree thing, thanks!
So, that also prevents anyone from mistakenly guiding you onto a runway the wrong way. If you’re landing on runway 09, you’re heading east, and your compass should read 090 degrees when you’re aligned. They wouldn’t have told you to land facing the wrong way, because if they meant that, they’d have said runway 27.
So, with multiple parallel runways, you’d have, say, 9L/27R as one runway, and 9R/27L as a totally separate one. It’s all about which way you’re approaching it—from the left or the right. It’s all perspective.
RE: Fact #5 (Chicago’s Meigs Field Demolition) – Everyone’s first airport in the old flight sim.
It was added back in the FS2020 update! So cool.
RE: Fact #22 (Sioux City’s Unfortunate Airport Code) – I’m a pilot, and US airport codes start with “K.” Sioux City’s KSUX isn’t too bad, but poor Little Rock (LIT) has to put up with KLIT. I’m still waiting to see what UNT’s code will be.
Hey, the local country station, KSUX-FM, spells it KSOO on recordings to avoid the whole “K-sucks” thing. I heard there’s a short clip somewhere online of Garth Brooks cracking up saying “K-sucks… is this a joke?” It’s pretty funny. (By the way, KSOO is like K-Sioux.)
RE: Fact #20 (Taylor Swift Fan’s Stolen Plane) – Seriously, how did no one see that burning wreck at the airport?
RE: Fact #33 (Nigerian Scammers Sell Fake Airport) – Picture this: the meeting’s going down, some bigwig leans in and whispers, “Dude, even the Nigerian Prince is Skyping in! What could possibly go wrong?”
RE: Fact #1 (Stockton Airport’s Name Controversy) – Germany’s got a similar thing: Frankfurt Hahn airport? That’s like, a hundred kilometers or more from actual Frankfurt, way out in the boonies.
RE: Fact #11 (Airport Security’s Failed Test) – They always fail that yearly test, and spectacularly so.
RE: Fact #9 (NYC Mayor’s Airport Protest) – So, no NYC airport… where’d he touch down?
They touched down, and then, whoosh, an airport appeared.
RE: Fact #31 (Houston Airport’s Clever Solution) – That’s also why you get stuck listening to that awful music when you’re on hold.
So you’ll gripe about the music instead of the wait?
RE: Fact #32 (Airports Incinerate Roadkill Waste) – Given all the invasive species problems the US has, burning trash from questionable sources, maybe even from other countries, seems like a smart move.
I read somewhere that someone’s job is just walking around ports, checking shipping containers for unwanted pests. Sounds pretty awful, honestly.
RE: Fact #1 (Stockton Airport’s Name Controversy) – Melbourne Regional Airport changed its name a while back, got sued by OIA, and lost. It’s about 63 miles from OIA by car.
RE: Fact #49 (Atlanta: World’s Busiest Airport) – I remember Atlanta zooming past O’Hare right before the ’96 Olympics. Crazy to see O’Hare’s barely in the top 10 these days.
RE: Fact #26 (Real Hijacking During Film Shoot) – Seriously, what are the chances of that happening? I’d love to see someone crunch the numbers – it feels like a one in a billion shot. I can’t think of any specific examples offhand, but I’ve definitely seen a couple of movies do something similar, using real-life stuff.