Results tagged “airport”

As Thanksgiving approaches, the airports fill up. Officials at LAX today are warning passengers of the expected increased traffic at the airport for a ten day period, beginning tomorrow. Of those ten, the three busiest are expected to be tomorrow, Wednesday, Nov. 25; and Sunday, Nov. 29 because "airlines are forecasting passenger load factors approaching 80 percent on most flights and some flights fully booked."

A problem, although now fixed, with the system that collects airlines' flight plans is causing numerous flight cancellations and delays across the country today.

Few details right now, but KABC-TV has reported that heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson has gotten into some scuffle with the paparazzi at LAX (wrong guy to harass?). It happened around 4:45 p.m. Unsubstantiated, but one person tweeted: "Mike Tyson just got arrested outside United terminal 7 LAX for punching one of the paparazzi!"

But LAX won't be one of them. Through January 15, 2010, 47 airports nationwide--that includes Burbank and San Diego--will have free WiFi. However, you can pay if you want. "The holidays are about giving and we hope that you can continue to spread holiday cheer by making a donation via Google Checkout to any of the participating non-profits," says the search engine giant. "At the end of the program, Google will match donations made via participating WiFi networks, up to a maximum of $250,000."

For an airport that looks horrible, operates terribly and still has no train connection, who would be surprised at the latest poll results? Based on an online survey taken by 14,000 members and world travelers of Priority Pass, LAX came in number three behind London's Heathrow Airport and Charles de Gaulle International Airport in Paris.

LAX officials yesterday finalized plans for the fourth FlyAway route that will take passengers to and from Irvine. Beginning November 16th, the one-way 50-mile trip will cost $25 for adults (they won't accept cash, credit or debit only). Each fare allows for two students 8th grade and under to ride for free. Children under five also ride free.

Times might be tough, but at LAX, making good use of the aging Tom Bradley International Terminal is proving to be tougher. Today, the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners are "expected to approve $1.13 billion in construction contracts to revitalize facilities for international travelers at Los Angeles International Airport and build new gates to accommodate the next generation of large commercial planes," according to LA Now.

A midnight fire on the west side of Los Angeles International Airport is causing some delays this morning. Terminal 6 is experiencing minor delays and officials are asking travelers to give themselves enough time as light signals around the airport have been affected. Other than that, the outage is mostly affecting administrative (non-essential personnel) and tenant buildings. There is no estimate of when the power will be restored.

One of L.A.'s best traffic-beating ideas will soon hit Orange County. A non-stop FlyAway bus between the Irvine Station and Los Angeles International Airport was approved today by the city's Airport Commission. The three-year license agreement between Irvine and LAX means the fourth FlyAway route could start soon.

They say Los Angeles is best compared to Paris. Well, both cities share rankings in a report released yesterday showing the busiest airports in the world: Paris at 5th, Los Angeles, formerly at 3rd and 5th in recent years, now at 6th. At its peak in 2000, Los Angeles served 68 million passengers. In 2008, 59.5 million travelers.

Another day, another suspicious package. Unattended luggage caused officials to evacuate a portion of LAX this morning. Shortly after 11 a.m., the bag sitting next to a Tom Bradley Int'l Terminal ticketing counter and bearing no name tags began emitting an alarm-type sound. Airport police cleared the area, moving about 500 travelers and employees into the streets. The LAPD bomb squad arrived and via an X-Ray machine, determined the sound was coming from a megaphone. 50 minutes later, operations were back to normal. LAX officials say there's a good lesson here: make sure all your bags, including carry-ons, are tagged with your name and info. Whoever's bag this was will likely never see it again.

The Theme Restaurant Building has been virtually synonymous with LAX since it opened in 1961. In 2001, the rooftop observation deck was closed in reaction to the September 11th terrorist attacks in the US, and in early 2007, when a hefty piece of plaster fell down as patrons ate nearby, the landmark building was closed for renovations.

As talks to extend the Green Line closer to LAX continue, the city will still have to figure out how to get people to each terminal from the new station. Councilman Bill Rosendahl last week proposed that a study be conducted about the feasibility of extending the train line directly into the Central Terminus area so a people mover can deliver travelers to their terminals, according to his motion:

Popular low-cost carrier JetBlue debuts their new service to LAX this morning, as they are scheduled to land their inaugural flight from New York's JFK at 10:45. It's been a bit of a wait, however, for the airline to begin service from our major airport; today's launch comes after "a yearlong delay," caused by a period of soaring fuel prices that made cross-country air travel costly, reports the Daily Breeze.

One of LA's best ideas is about to get a little more pricier. Beginning August 1st, LAX FlyAway one-way tickets between Union Station/Van Nuys and LAX will raise one dollar to $7 to further close the gap between revenues and expenses. Westwood to LAX and back will remain at $5 each way.

Whoa! A luggage container was "drawn" into an engine of a Japan Airlines jet as it pushed from its gate at LAX at approximately 1:30 p.m. The plane was immediately grounded and the 245 passengers safely departed back into the terminal as authorities investigated what-at-the-time was an unknown object. The type of luggage container involved was not immediately identified, but an example of one type is shown here.

The data from the FAA has been released showing that there have were 944 bird strikes at LAX between 1990 and 2008. Most all of those incident resulted in little or no damage, according to the LA Times.

Forget worrying about what you've packed in that suitcase you have to shell out a few extra bucks for; if you've packed on too many pounds and want to fly on United, you could be headed for shelling out a second seat's worth. The airline is now enforcing a policy that stipulates that "passengers who are unable to fit into a single seat; are unable to properly fasten their safety belt [using a single seatbelt extender; and/or] are unable to put the seat's armrests down, will be denied boarding unless they purchase an extra seat," according to cbs2.

It all started with a blogger: Last week news broke that budget airline JetBlue was thinking of pulling out of Long Beach Airport (LGB) after their CEO said as much to the blogger behind Crankyflier.com. Although formal meetings are on the books for LGB's Director, Mario Rodriguez, and JetBlue CEO Dave Barger back east later this month, the pair wound up having an impromptu lunch at In-N-Out Burger on Thursday.

The difference between LAX and Burbank airports are obviously vast. At one you should arrive an hour or two early just to make sure you'll make it through all the lines. At the other, arriving 20 minutes before your flight is typical.

Air Force One will be landing at Long Beach Airport around 3 p.m. this afternoon, which has the city letting residents know of a few things for today and tomorrow. Security measures will be strictly enforced, especially in regards to traffic. Additionally, no parking will be allowed on Lakewood Boulevard or Spring Street.

On the heels of last night's plane crash in New York, a Fiji-bound Boeing 747 carrying 441 passengers and crew landed safely at Los Angeles International Airport shortly after take-off around 2:30 a.m. this morning. Air Pacific flight 811 apparently had a "fuel transfer problem," but was also found to be overweight.

It only takes 20 minutes from take off to landing for a plane to go from Catalina Island to John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana. The chartered Bonanza plane, piloted by Mark Hogland, was carrying two others and took off around 4:50 p.m. yesterday with weather causing low visibility. It was supposed to land at 5:10 p.m., but never made it. The Coast Guard was eventually warned, nearly five hours later, at 10:30 p.m. who began and still continue search and rescue efforts.

JetBlue announced this morning that they will begin offering two daily nonstop flights each way between LAX and JFK in New York City and Logan International in Boston. Tickets will go on sale February 4th with flights beginning on June 17.

A small airplane crashed at Santa Monica Airport around 5:05 p.m. tonight leaving at least two people dead inside. "The single-engine airplane crashed during take-off at the west end of the airport runway," according to Ian Gregor, Federal Aviation Administration spokesperson, per KABC. Upon impact, the plane was engulfed in flames. No one on the ground was hurt. It's been a crazy and unfortunate two days in Los Angeles. Twitter user Marc Chambers summed it all up: "Plane crash at santa monica airport, u-haul chase, murder/suicide yesterday ... its the apocalypse." A police officer also died early this morning in a head on crash on the 10 freeway.

Comedian Johnny Knoxville, legally known as John Philip Clapp, was detained this morning at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) as he went through security. "Clapp was processing through passenger security screening when a Transportation Security Administration officer saw the image of a hand-grenade in his carry-on bag," an LAX statement read. "Airport Police and the Los Angeles Police Department Bomb Squad were called, and it was determined the hand-grenade had no explosives or firing pin." It ended up being a prop from one of his photo shoots that he forgot was in his bag, he said. He was released but could be later charged with a misdemeanor, for possession of a prohibited item within the sterile area of an airport.

For the third time in four days, LA Airport Police have arrested a man for bringing a gun to LAX. "Markus Dane Sargent, 27, was taken into custody about 7 a.m. on World Way West, which is used by employees getting into the airport, Airport Police Sgt. Jim Holcomb said," via wire reports. "An antique .22-caliber long rifle made by the Marlin Firearms Co. loaded with 12 rounds was found in the trunk of his car at a perimeter checkpoint, Holcomb said." Like Saturday's incident, Sargent, who worked for an airport vendor, forgot that he had the gun in his car. And to boot, he was busted for possession of a small amount of marijuana--double tsk. On both Friday and Saturday in unrelated cases, men were arrested for bringing guns onto airport grounds.

A second unrelated incident occurred Saturday morning when a man entered the airport to pick up his wife, according to LAX officials Police searched his vehicle and found two unregistered and unloaded shotguns (12-gauge and 20-gauge) as well as about 220 rounds of ammunition. The man told officers he recently went to a shooting range to fire the guns and forgot they were in his vehicle. The man was not arrested, but the guns were confiscated and he risks possible prosecution down the line. His name could also become part of a federal "watch list" database of sorts.

Los Angeles International Airport officials have updated earlier information regarding this morning's arrest: "A male Hispanic was detained and subsequently taken into custody at 12:20pm today by federal and local law enforcement officers who are investigating his attempt to bring several weapons plus ammunition into LAX. At 10:49 this morning, the man driving a grey 4X4 Silverado was stopped by Airport Police officers for a routine vehicle inspection at the intersection of westbound Century Blvd. and Sepulveda Blvd., one of the main entrances into the passenger terminal area of LAX. Thirty handguns and 7 rifles, plus fully loaded ammunition magazines were found in the same container in the back of his pickup truck. The driver was arrested at 12:20 pm for weapons transportation violations and will be booked at Pacific Division LAPD."

We've all heard time and time again: LAX tends to have too many close calls of planes knocking into each other. At the crux of the problem, many believe, are the staff shortages at the airport and in the main radar facility that guides planes between the six regional airports.