Oh - that's where I put that old shell!! BAA, operator of London Heathrow, recently had to close part of a construction site at the airport's new Terminal 5 after workers found what they suspected to be a leftover World War II shell, according to an article by AP. The bomb squad was called to remove the shell, which was 15 inches by 3 inches.
Gun? What gun? My hometown airport -- Baltimore-Washington -- had to shut down two terminals last week after a gun was found in a carry-on bag at security, according to Reuters. The gun was turned over to the police. The owner was not found. You have to wonder what planet people are on, when, after all this time, they try to carry a weapon through security.
Why no, I’ve never been to an airport exorcism. Ninety Buddhist monks came to the Thailand’s new Suvarnabhumi International Airport to ensure that the facility has good luck after officials reported a series of ghostly sightings and accidents, according to an article in iol.com. A man claiming to be Poo Ming (Grandfather Ming), the guardian spirit of the land on which the airport was built, insisted that airport officials build a spirit house, common in homes and businesses in Thailand. The new airport was built on land that had once housed a centuries-old temple and a cemetery.
That demonstration may have just been “plane stupid.” Local police arrested 24 members of an environmental campaign after they cut through a security gate at Nottingham East Midlands Airport and sat on a taxiway between two cargo holds, according to infoshop news.com. The group, which called itself Plane Stupid, was claiming that the number of short-haul flights out of the airport were causing climate change. The stunt, which lasted four hours, caused six flights were delayed.
This is why mother says if you can’t say anything nice, say nothing at all. Venezuela’s foreign minister, Nicolás Maduro, was held for about an hour at JFK Airport after leaving the U.N.’s General Assembly in New York City last week, according to an article in the New York Times (free,but registration required). During the General Assembly, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, not a big fan of the United States, had, earlier in the day, delivered a blistering attack against the United States in general and President George W. Bush n particular. Coincidence? The State Department issued an apology to Maduro. But UN Ambassador John (Mr. Diplomacy) Bolton couldn’t leave well enough alone. “There was no 'incident' at the airport - this was Venezuelan street theater," he said. "He did not request the courtesies we would have extended to get him through the airport. He purchased his ticket at a time and in a manner and with funding such that he was asked to go to secondary screening and he objected to that."
Well at least she didn’t throw a phone. OK this isn’t exactly airport related, but it involves supermodel Naomi Campbell and Qantas, so I couldn’t resist. Campbell pitched a hissy fit and swore never to fly Qantas again, with a local television news crew in Sydney in full tow, according to the Daily Telegraph. The supermodel (who has had “people” issues in the past) accused the airline of telling the media she was on a flight from Bangkok to Sydney. In fact, a passenger informed reporters that Campbell was on the flight and about to come through arrivals.
Oh, there's the end of the runway. London Luton AIrport was shut down for 2.5 hours last week after a Challenger business jet overshot the runway, according to an article in MK News. The pilot reported having problems with the aircraft's landing gear. No one was injured, but the plane had extensive damage.