your favorite airport(s) and why? worst?

[KC-10 Driver]

I once had four hours off at SXM (St Maarten), on Christmas Day. Since it was a holiday, we were all a very junior crew.

We took a $5 cab to the beach, swam and had lunch. It was a nice break in the day to spend a few hours on the beach with all the junior (ie. young!) FA's.

Of course, my wife was a bit surprised to see me with a tan after a one-day turn.

 

[RightBettor]

Hmmmm...

I'd have to say LAS... because I always have a place to store any extra, unwanted quarters when strolling through the terminal.

Hey, KC-10, on the subject of hanging out on the beach with those young FAs and your subsequent return home: Make sure when you do get home the wife sees that you indeed have a tan line down there around "Mr. Happy"!!!!

 

[I'm lost]

For the best eye candy you can't beat MIA. All the hotties from Latin America woooooow!!! The FAs from all of those Latin American carriers can't be beat either, man those guys know how to hire flight attendents. Avianca comes to mind right off the top of my head.

DEN is hard to beat for the beauty of the terminal.

You want to step back a few years, if you ever get the chance Havana Cuba is a little strange. Not only do you get to see a terminal that is art of the state, not state of the art, you also get to see various interesting things the commies call "passenger aircraft", surplus Russian fraighters etc. etc. The plus side to HAV is they have a duty free store in the terminal with a good selection of Cuban cigars and Cuban rum that makes Bacardi taste like sewer water.


"Party on Wayne, party on Garth"

 

[Clearsky]

Anything run by BAA (formerly the British Airport Authority), including Pittsburg's retail and Heathrow Airport. They have a big retail focus and turn the Airport into a shopping experience. The shopping passes the time. What a great idea too - captive passenger, lots of foreign currency to get rid of, and time to look around.

 

[avbug]

""1. Rock Springs, WY (RKS) - This is without a doubt the armpit of the US. There is NOTHING there but wind, rocks, sand, and sagebrush. If go back at all in this lifetime, it will be too soon."

Skyking,

You forgot about the cats. Never go there without a roll of masking tape, and wear something warm...even if you get into the building after dark.

I went in there once doing am organ harvest. I went to the hospital with the med crew, and my amigo stayed with the airplane. Said he'd get some shuteye. I lived in Wyoming, so I knew better. When I came back, I noticed a considerable fuel imbalance. He ran one engine for the bleed, for quite some time, trying to stay warm.

Don't give up on RKS...like the rest of the state, you just need to spend a couple of years there to appreciate it. Wyoming is a great place.

 

[Britpilot]

The new DTW-I love walking through that tunnel with the funky light and music show.

 

[pmoffitt]

kids place

Not really a hub airport but BUF has a place for thekids toplay right next to but inside of security.

PIT is greta for the shops as a passenger and pretty easy to get around as a Pilot(at least GA side).

PHL is a rat hole. The terminal seems like it was built to load and off load airplanes of the 60's with the ramps going downhalf a level from the mian terminal level. Needs a paint job and a good cleaning.

LGA with the leave the terminal to catch another airline is crap in todays security. I will not make that mistake again!!!

 

[aviatrix]

several faves....

ORD for the underground concourse connectors with the neon lights. The moving walkways seem to be miles long, though.

TPA is so organized. That hub and spoke concept works well....others should try it!

And LAS purely for the entertainment. *ding-ding-ding*

Oh........and DFW has some pretty good-looking pilots walking around too!

 

[Typhoon1244]

Re: several faves....

Oh........and DFW has some pretty good-looking pilots walking around too!

Why, thank you. [Smoothing eyebrow with moist pinkie...]

 

[flyboy]

HNL has some pretty good restaraunts and the climate is usually pretty cozy (if you can put up with constant jet noise). Other than that, definitely DEN with their marvelous Que' Bueno. If only they'd find a larger area to do business........not nearly enough seating.

 

[TurboS7]

Worse runway commercial runway I have ever been to -UKLL.Lviv, Ukraine. Terminal is worse that VKO, Moscow.Most disgusting terminal bathroom-Cap Haitain, Haiti. It was the cities most used jackoff point. Terminals I enjoy flying out off,

LGW-interesting place

ANC-the bears

MSO-great terminal for a little city.

PIT

CLT

LAS-from the Exec terminal just walk to MGM grand.

LAX

HNL

SEA

JFK-Jet Blue area is really nice they are light years ahead of the rest of the airlines.

 

[Dan CFI/CFII]

Avbug:

The cats at Rock Springs.... You don't know how hard I'm laughing right now. Last time I went through (about a month ago), my student nearly sat on one of them, until it let out a screeching yelp.

Gotta love Wyoming (I do).

My personal favorite: Grants New Mexico. The contingent of certified airport bums there are awful cool. And one of them ownes the best resteraunt in town--always hooks a brother up!

Dan

 

[414Flyer]

Avbug:


My personal favorite: Grants New Mexico. The contingent of certified airport bums there are awful cool. And one of them ownes the best resteraunt in town--always hooks a brother up!

Dan

There are a pair of husky/malamute type dogs that are at the airport that like to greet incoming pilots.

We have an contingent of airport bums here in Gallup also, and one of them went thru pilot training with Yeagar back in 43..They were in the same class at Luke

 

[jon210]

favorite- Schiphol, Amsterdam
sux-houston intercontinental

 

[chawbein]

MCI is the worst. Security at every gate!

 

[Dan CFI/CFII]

Quoth 414flyer:
"There are a pair of husky/malamute type dogs that are at the airport that like to greet incoming pilots."

Only Caesar is a malamute something or other (I've lived around Huskies all my life--even raced them competitively for a spell). But they are awful nice. I spent a few days last week flying out of Grants covering for our CFI who normally takes a plane over there for a few days a week. Wes has sure enjoyed seeing something other than Tri-States or Peabody's corporate aircraft coming and going. Been awful quite there since he landed his 210 with the Down swith in the UP position...

"We have an contingent of airport bums here in Gallup also" yeah you do, they even have hats and shirts! Went to that pancake breakfast ya'll had a bit back, sure was good to put some decent Chili on my eggs that early in the morning!

Gotta add another one to the list of sweet airports to hang out at: Helena, MT. Mustang Mickeys baby! you just can't beat that!

Worst: Lafeyette, IN. "Purdue 13, what part of Michigan were you planning on turn base over?" Or if you're flying a twin: "No, you cannot fly as my safety pilot and log PIC, and neither can the other fife thousand guys here wanting to ask."

Dan

 

[General Lee]

The best airports I have actually flown into:

1. Bermuda --Hamilton---kinda windy, but really nice people and
interesting color terminal building
2. Cancun----easy to get thru customs, fun departure procedure---
level off at 2000ft, fly up the beach, nice people
3. West Palm Beach---easy to get in and out, balmy, good
restaurants
4. Phoenix--------nice people, good weather
5. Salt Lake City-----nice people, not too many delays


Worst airports I have flown into:
1. LGA--La Garbage----cranky controllers, rough runways, long
taxi
2. IAD---Dulles-----mean female controller
3. MEX-----Mexico City---bad controllers, old airport, dangerous
4. ANC--Anchorage---Bad security---they hassle you because you
might be the only person they see all day in Winter
5. EWR--Sewark---cranky people, long delays


Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[310]

GAI - Gaithersburg MD- not enough transient parking; a real problem some weekends

W95- Ocracoke NC- outer banks- no fuel- no lights just parking but man it is nice- 10 min walk to Ocracoke village; you can rent bikes and leave them at airport. Runway is maybe 100 yards from the beach.Manteo airport is place to go if you want fuel and rental car on outer banks. (MQI)

FFA- first in flight - outer banks of NC- you can walk over to the Wright memorial and the museum and the first flight location. A must for all pilots.

PMZ- Plymouth NC -eastern NC- landed there on a solo cross country as a student in a C152- it stands out as a "Twilight Zone" kind of memory- nice paved strip NOBODY there or nearby- no traffic near airport(car or aircraft) - no aircraft on ramp, just a locked up FBO building with a phone number on door if you need fuel. Area around airport is very flat farm fields and was VERY quiet. Really neat- like I was alone in the world.

stopped in Hutchinson Kansas for fuel and got a great surprise- there was a SR-71 on the ramp and a guard- the plane had been trucked in for the museum in Hutchinson and Save a Connies' Lockheed was on the ramp for a upcoming airshow

LBL- Liberal Kansas has a nice museum- alot of military stuff plus Max Conrad's single engine comanche that he flew nonstop from Casablanca to LA is there.

 

[avbug]

Don't forget the wizard of oz museum in Liberal. They have the little model that spun around in the tornado, Dorothy's shoes, and even the yellow brick road. And in a glass case, toto, stuffed and looking spiffy as ever.

 

[dispatchguy]

AZO has an air museum of some type on the west side of the field - of course I live 30 miles from it and have never made the trek...