Author: Alana Calmi

LaGuardia Airport has been the scene of many “firsts” throughout its world-class redevelopment. Passengers on Southwest Airline’s Flight 617 to Tampa participated in another milestone as they were on board the first plane to taxi under the new Terminal B pedestrian skybridge, which opened last June with the new arrivals and departures hall and connects customers to their gates in the eastern concourse. The occasion was marked with a water cannon salute to celebrate the inaugural flight passing below a skybridge measuring 70 feet across and up to 97 feet above the taxiway. Since 2020 customers have been using the…

It was just after 5 p.m. on a recent Thursday evening and Chris Rhoads, the manager of airport operations at LaGuardia Airport, was engaging in one of his favorite pursuits – talking with high school kids about a future in aviation. This evening, however, would turn out to be a little different. Rhoads was awarded the William H. Spurgeon Award, the highest recognition for individuals who contribute significant leadership to the Exploring Program, an affiliate of the Boy Scouts of America. The award was presented by LaGuardia’s General Manager Lysa Scully, and Claretta Mills, chief executive of the Explorer Program.…

When Huntley Lawrence moved with his family from London to Queens in 1969, he lived a stone’s throw from LaGuardia Airport and attended the aviation program offered at P.S. 127. Here he learned first-hand about flight at LGA and John F. Kennedy, the major international airport located a short distance from his East Elmhurst home. Little did he know that those early lessons would lead him to one of the most prestigious aviation jobs in the United States — Director of Aviation for the Port Authority, a post that oversees the regional airport system – John F. Kennedy International, LaGuardia…