Slog
News & ArtsMonday, December 22, 2008
City Time and Space
Posted by Charles Mudede on Mon, Dec 22, 2008 at 3:39 PM
The Federal Aviation Administration is reducing the number of flights at New York's LaGuardia Airport in a bid to improve the airport's dismal on-time record.Transportation secretary Mary Peters today said the FAA will reduce the number of takeoffs and landings permitted each hour to 71 from 75. The number of hourly flights at the New York area's Kennedy and Newark airports is also capped, but at higher levels. LaGuardia tends to handle shorter-range domestic flights than its nearby rivals.
The FAA's move to further reduce capacity at LaGuardia is an acknowledgement that little can be done over the near term to cut into the airport's chronic delay problem other than limiting the amount of traffic it can handle. In 2007 and so far in 2008, LaGuardia ranks last among the 32 largest U.S. airports in on-time arrival performance with only 61% of flights arriving on time, Ms. Peters said. Reducing the number of flights to 71 from 75 will reduce delays by as much as 41%, she said, saving up to $178 million in delay-related costs each year.
"Too many flyers know that LaGuardia's delays are the worst of the worst, and we want to use every tool at our disposal to help passengers stuck with this grueling congestion," Ms. Peters said.
Their main problem is time. My main problem is the length of LaGuardia's runways:
I can live with the delays; what I can't live with is short runways. Fear kills me every time I fly out of LaGuardia.
1
I moved from NJ 15 years ago, and I still miss the annual "plane skids off icy runway into East River" news reports. Short runway + ice = jumbo jet in water.
2
I think about those runways every time I'm at LaGuardia. I normally don't worry about that stuff, but those runways are goddamn short.
At least this year I won't have to worry about it, my flight out of Seattle having been cancelled and all. Hooray?
At least this year I won't have to worry about it, my flight out of Seattle having been cancelled and all. Hooray?
3
And yet, you are still here Charles.
Remember the Litany of the Bene Gesserit:
I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to
......see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.
Only I will remain.
Remember the Litany of the Bene Gesserit:
I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to
......see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.
Only I will remain.
4
LaGuardia fucking rocks! The flight path gives you the MOST AWESOME FUCKING VIEW OF NYC EVER! The holding pattern for delays is even better - an ellipse that brings you over Manhattan every few minutes, bringing the full skyline into glorius view. Gertting into Manhattan from Queens is a fuck of alot quicker than from Far-fucking-Rockaway, which is second only to Newark for the shittiest place on the planet award. Quit complaining, you sad, pathetic nancy boy.
5
I have to agree: flying in and out of Laguardia scares the crap out of me! Every time I am convinced the plane won't stop in time or take off in time. Give me nice long runways please!
7
When I first flew into LaGuardia, I didn't know that it was so close to the water. When I looked out the window I though we were headed straight into it...
8
San Diego is scarier bc the landing gear misses the top of the Ryan Aeronautical building by inches. And Boston is scarier too.
But the runways at Midway are shorter than LGA by 500 feet. So kwitcherbeliakin.
But the runways at Midway are shorter than LGA by 500 feet. So kwitcherbeliakin.
9
What @4 said. If you're worried about safety, land in Newark and stay in Jersey (but not in Newark itself).
10
LaGuardia isn't that bad, you can take the M60 into Manhattan for $2, instead of $7 from JFK or NJ transit from EWR.
11
@8, you (almost) wrote my post for me. San Diego is definitely NOT scarier though-- it's actually IMO a very cool airport at which to land BECAUSE of the altitude. It was also cool to be able to look out the right side of the airplane and see my house during landings.
Midway is probably the scariest, not just because of the shorter runways, but also because of the high-power landings. Most airports, you have a nice glide path and just touch down at pretty much idle speed (like at O'Hare). But at Midway, you circle until you're about 1/2 mile from touchdown, and then the pilot jams the plane onto the runway, as if you're trying to land on an aircraft carrier, hoping the taihook will catch. I'm a seasoned flyer but MDW still scares the heck out of me...
Midway is probably the scariest, not just because of the shorter runways, but also because of the high-power landings. Most airports, you have a nice glide path and just touch down at pretty much idle speed (like at O'Hare). But at Midway, you circle until you're about 1/2 mile from touchdown, and then the pilot jams the plane onto the runway, as if you're trying to land on an aircraft carrier, hoping the taihook will catch. I'm a seasoned flyer but MDW still scares the heck out of me...
12
Midway Airport (famous for its Northwest Orient scene with Cary Grant from "North By Northwest") in Chicago is equally frightening. It's smack dab in the middle of the southwest side, and only a mile on a side.
A few years ago a jet crashed through a catch fence & slammed into a car, killing a kid.
A few years ago a jet crashed through a catch fence & slammed into a car, killing a kid.
13
The worst airport to land at is on St. Bart's. You're in a tiny puddle jumper, you have to fly over a small ridge and then drop immediately down to the runway. Miss and you land in the ocean or crash on the hillside. Fun times.
14
That's what you get for flying out of LGA, or into it for that matter. It is the worse of the three by far, for anything.
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