Taking off Travel blog

Frank Lahm and Orville Wright qualifying in the US Army's first aircraft July 27, 1909

I was interested to read recently two differing views on air travel. The first, by Ed Jones on Fredericksburg.com, shared his list of pet peeves about air travel. As well as the rush to board the plane when the flight is called (irrespective of whether your row is the one being boarded or not), and the lack of legroom on board, Ed’s top air travel annoyance is what he calls “smart phone addiction”. It seems that some people are genetically incapable of turning off their phones even to the point where they bump into things because they’re so focused on the tiny screens. And as Ed points out a successful landing is now marked by people rushing to get their phones on.

In contrast to this piece was another article by Leon Neyfakh in the Boston Globe. His view was that air travel might be about to see an improvement because of some of the new technical wizardry that is available. Of course he hasn’t got rose coloured glasses on. He says:

Flying is cheaper, more popular, and generally much less comfortable. These days, when we line up at the checkpoint with the rest of the crowd, we expect to surrender our dignity along with our shoes.

However, there is some hope with technological advances that can reduce waiting times and improve the flow of passengers through airports. These include using face recognition technology, RFID tags for luggage tracking, improvements to boarding and of course the next generation air-traffic control system.

Do these prospective improvements get you excited about how travel will change? Leon Neyfakh isn’t jumping for joy yet. He warns that the future might not be as exciting when it actually arrives.

(Image by Nobunaga24 at en.wikipedia [Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons)

There was an interesting piece in USA Today yesterday about the development of airport apps – apps that guide you around the airport, covering shops, restaurants, security and check-ins. The apps reviewed were Gateguru, iFly Pro, Flysmart and GoHow Airport, and of these, Gateguru looked the most interesting, especially with planned improvements in functionality. The developers want to include geotagging information that will help travelers identify information such as which lines are moving fastest. Now that’s what I call useful! Have you tried any of those apps?

If not, then add them to our previous lists of useful travel apps:

The Best iPhone Apps For Travelers

The Best Free Blackberry Apps For Travelers

Got an iPad For Christmas? Here Are Some Cool Apps

San Francisco Airport (SFO) is thinking green with its $383M renovation of Terminal 2, scheduled to reopen in mid April. The airport will make major strides in saving energy, using natural sunlight, waste reduction, recycling and composting, saving water, eco-friendly construction, great public transit options and even organic food in the concessions.  With an estimated carbon emission saving of 1,667 tons per year, the terminal has received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, the first US airport to do so. More on the changes at Earth911.

The best and worst airports in the world

Planning a trip? Then these lists might be useful. CNN has a list of the world’s best airports which have consistently been top rated over several years. These are:

• Hong Kong International Airport
• Changi International Airport, Singapore
• Incheon International Airport, Seoul, South Korea
• Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia
• Munich Airport, Germany Read more »

At first glance, airport layovers can be a brutally boring experience, but with a little imagination and perspective there’s some fun to be had at the airport! As I sit here waiting for my flight, I decided to put together a collection of some of the funniest and most interesting airport videos on the net to give you a chuckle and maybe relieve some of the layover doldrums.

World’s Longest Waiting Line

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