I hope you have enjoyed the holiday season and are ready for all the New Year has to offer. It is undoubtedly a time for reflection and renewal while we prepare to hit the ground running into 2024.
In this issue, we turn our attention to an area of the airport with less traffic, no lines, fewer people, and a significantly much higher price tag: Fixed-base Operators, better known as FBOs. In the world of private aviation, the FBO provides high-net-worth travelers with a way to avoid all the waiting that the average traveler encounters. It is not a bad way to get around… if it fits your budget!
We are also welcoming Jerry Spampanato onboard as a contributing editor. As the former General Manager at John F. Kennedy International Airport, he has seen and done it all. His unique viewpoint and memories of airport events will be a welcome addition to our regular features. Like us, Jerry has a deep affection for the airport community, and we look forward to having him share his passion for the airport and stories of his time on the job.
Terminal 5 at JFK is the backdrop for this month’s Editor’s Notebook. Julia Lauria-Blum recounts her pleasant experience picking up and dropping off her daughter, Maggie, and her adorable dog, Pierre, for their holiday visit home. We tend to hear more about the bad things at the airports, so reporting that they had a pleasant and uneventful experience was a refreshing change of pace for Julia and hopefully for our readers who work at Terminal 5. Congratulations to JetBlue and the Terminal 5 team for creating a wonderful travel experience for everyone during this hectic season.
We interviewed David Tanenbaum from Lilker and asked him our Fast Five questions about the Terminal 6 project at JFK. He dives deep into sustainability options the team at Lilker has implemented, and the impact technology has at the airport. While his answers are fairly technical, he does a terrific job of explaining the uses of solar power systems and how reclaimed rainwater is used to flush toilets instead of relying on potable water.
We marvel at the wonderful places our Non-Rev Traveler contributors, Maureen Katz and Jonathan Katz, travel to each month. As retired airline personnel, they use their knowledge of the airline industry to travel on standby and take advantage of the deep discounts provided to them at car rentals and hotels. They share tips on making the most of your trip and details on what to see and where to say. This month, they share their trip to the Strasbourg and Colmar Christmas markets in France. If you need additional motivation to use your travel benefits, past trips, and additional photos can be found on our website.
I hope you find the new year full of good health, happiness, and prosperity.
Enjoy the issue; I’ll see you around the airports.
