Logan Airport

Salute for a fallen Marine at Logan

adamg — Thu, 17 May 2012 13:49:40 +0000

Daniel Weintraub files this report:

Last night a fallen soldier, escorted by 2 active Marines was returned to Boston on my flight from Atlanta. The casket was received with full honors outside the gate by the Massport FD, Local State Troopers, Local Marines, and of course the family. Heartbreaking scene. A good 1/4 of our flight stood and watched with respect from the terminal as the casket was unloaded.

Would anybody know who he was?

MBTA starts useful service and the Herald won't stand for that

adamg — Wed, 16 May 2012 11:07:04 +0000

Seems that when a big convention is in town, the MBTA runs special Silver Line service to the airport straight from the convention center, rather than making people carry their bags on that long walk to the nearest Silver Line stop and crowding onto a bus there.

Are you outraged? The Herald is, to the point of displacing its long-running Indian Joke of the Day series from the front page, which today features end-of-world fonts to accuse the T of stealing "all" its buses to service fat-cat conventioneers. Who, the Herald grudgingly admits, pay their fares just like rest of us - but only after the paper's crack investigative unit did some undercover surveillance:

On Friday, a Herald reporter and photographer observed people at the convention center paying regular fares to board the nonstop airport-bound Silver Line buses. The drivers did not take normal Silver Line routes or make any Silver Line stops before dropping passengers at Logan Airport. A driver said the buses provide conventioneers with rides to the airport. A bus tailed by the Herald did not follow the Silver Line’s dedicated bus route, instead driving directly to the Ted Williams Tunnel.

The horror!

Ed. derail question: Why is the convention center stop so far away from the convention center?

Where supply doesn't meet demand in Boston

adamg — Mon, 07 May 2012 11:32:11 +0000

Sara photographed the cab line at Logan around 12:45 this morning.

Plane and supermoon

adamg — Mon, 07 May 2012 03:22:54 +0000

Mark Garfinkel got a cool shot tonight.

First mobile donut/chowder wagon pulls into Boston

adamg — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 17:09:28 +0000

Redsox223 watched as the first non-stop JAL flight from Tokyo landed at Logan yesterday, after passengers were feted with Boston-inspired donuts and clam chowder.

Copyright Redsox223. Posted in the Universal Hub pool on Flickr.

Mmm, what goes better with clam chowder than glazed donuts?

adamg — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:51:06 +0000

Travelers on Japan Airlines' new non-stop service between Boston and Tokyo are in for a Boston treat: Donuts AND chowder, on one convenient tray that just begs you to dunk the donuts in the chowder.

Apparently, Mister Donut is a huge donut chain in Japan that has its roots right here in the greater Hub area. In fact, it's sort of the yin to the Dunkin' Donuts yang - it got its start when two budding donut entrepreneurs (brothers in law, no less) couldn't agree on the future of donuts and so separated, one to form Dunkin' Donuts, the other Mister Donut.

So if you've ever wondered about the possibility of alternate-universe Dunkin' Donuts donuts, just book a flight to Tokyo to get your exclusive "AIR MISDO set, which includes a chocolate-coated cinnamon ring and a maple-flavored ring of classic Mister Donut doughnuts, alongside a bowl of Boston's signature clam chowder."

H/t William Bradshaw.

Free Silver Line service from Logan to South Station could start in June

adamg — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 11:56:27 +0000

WBZ reports Massport is expected to make a final decision on April 26 on a three-month pilot project.

Next time, don't stuff so much camphor in your suitcase

adamg — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 16:30:21 +0000

The following just in from State Police:

Troopers from Troop F of the Massachusetts State Police, along with a State Police bomb squad K-9, the Massport Fire Department, and TSA security personnel, responded to a bag room at Logan Airport this morning after TSA personnel noticed a noxious odor coming from a checked bag. The bag room was evacuated and people who had been in the room were quarantined until the identify of the item was determined. Troopers and Hazmat personnel identified the source of the odor as a common household chemical item that a couple had placed into their bags to ward off mice. The chemical was disposed of, and the situation determined to pose no threat. The couple was traveling overseas. They were allowed to continue on their way, and the bag was allowed on board. The room was aired out; no one who smelled the odor required medical attention. The scene has been cleared.

Airport fears confirmed: Two baggage handlers charged with rifling through luggage and stealing stuff

adamg — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 22:26:24 +0000

Some of the recovered items. Photo from Suffolk County DA.

Two Logan Airport baggage handlers were arraigned today on charges they stole thousands of dollars' worth of electronics, tobacco and cash from luggage at Terminal E, which mostly handles international flights.

LaShawn Fontenot, 25, of Lynn, and Joshua Wright, 25, of Mattapan, were arrested yesterday in the baggage area, according to State Police. Wright allegedly had some freshly stolen goods on his person; additional stolen stuff was recovered from both their houses, State Police say.

State Police say Massport contacted them several weeks ago about complaints of thefts from checked luggage.

Both were arraigned in East Boston District Court today on single charges of larceny over $250, but additional charges are expected, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports. East Boston District Court Judge Roberto Ronquillo, Jr., released them on their own recognizance with orders to stay away from Logan while their cases are pending.

Innocent, etc.

Could the FAA sink possible Massport takeover of harbor ferries?

adamg — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 20:23:37 +0000

No, not because Massport would want to buy some 40-story ferryboats if it agrees to take over ferry service from the MBTA but because the FAA is concerned the authority might use some of its airport revenue to subsidize commuter boats, Jon Chesto reports. T officials have floated the idea of handing the ferries over to Massport as a way to keep them running as the T runs out of money.

If only they had Plane Day

adamg — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 21:15:29 +0000

Scott Arfin was at Logan today when Wally helped Jet Blue inaugurate its new Soxjet service (see it larger).

Too soon, Marky Mark, too soon

adamg — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 22:28:07 +0000

Our own homegrown tough guy and Whitey wannabe is now apologizing for saying if he'd been on Flight 11 out of Logan on 9/11 - like he was originally planning to be - things would have turned out differently.

Chicago sandwich chain to open Logan outlet

adamg — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 02:41:31 +0000

So if you've been to Chicago and think Potbelly is the cat's meow of sandwich places, well, you'll have a new reason to jump on the Blue Line to Airport.

Fans of sandwich chains will recall, of course, that Earl of Sandwich first came to Boston via Logan before winning a bid to turn the former Boston Common men's room into an outlet.

H/t Jim.

TSA to fliers: Stop packing cupcakes in jars, you morons

adamg — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 12:09:10 +0000

The TSA breaks its silence on Cupcakegate (and mad props to them for calling it Cupcakegate and getting in a Wile E. Coyote reference); notes the cupcake in question wasn't just some delicious pastry on a napkin but a suspicious looking wad in a jar filled with icing - with a spoon attached.

So stop trying to sneak jars filled with icing onto planes:

If you're not familiar with it, we have a policy directly related to the UK liquid bomb plot of 2006 called 3-1-1 that limits the amount of liquids, gels and aerosols you can bring in your carry-on luggage. Icing falls under the "gel" category. As you can see from the picture, unlike a thin layer of icing that resides on the top of most cupcakes, this cupcake had a thick layer of icing inside a jar.

In general, cakes and pies are allowed in carry-on luggage, however, the officer in this case used their discretion on whether or not to allow the newfangled modern take on a cupcake per 3-1-1 guidelines. They chose not to let it go.

Every officer wants to finish their shift and go home with the peace of mind that they kept potential threats off of airplanes. They're not thinking about whether their decisions will go viral on the internet – they’re thinking about keeping bombs off of planes. This incident may seem like a silly move to many of our critics, but when we can't be exactly sure of what something is, every officer has the discretion to not allow it on the plane. This is done purely for the safety of everyone traveling.

TSA blocks terror cupcake from flight to Boston

adamg — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 19:42:37 +0000

Channel 5 reports a Peabody woman was stopped from bringing a cupcake back to Boston from Las Vegas by an alert TSA agent who felt the frosting was too "gel-like."

That it was "gel-like" at all was pretty amazing since the woman had brought it with her on a flight from Boston to Las Vegas, where she didn't eat it and then, for some reason, decided to bring it back home again, perhaps (althought the article does not state this) because she lives on the North Shore and the cupcake was from Wicked Good Cupcakes all the way down on the South Shore.