Orlando International Airport

[jzquince69]

Apparently, JFK has spent upwards of $180M to strengthen bridges and runways to accomodate the new A380. The A380 has already been to NYC, Chicago, and L.A., and to 21 other countries so far. Orlando in a couple of weeks. Singapore Airlines is the first to receive service.

[jzquince69]

Originally Posted by jzquince69

Apparently, the final design of the South Terminal is going to be very similar to these computer models. I don't have the other renderings yet, but they are very similar (as far as the terminal itself goes (landside); not sure about the Intermodal center's design or the airside.

[DrT]

Very cool renderings. These infrastructure investments will keep Orlando booming.
Most airports have no room to expand. Orlando is lucky (or planned ahead!).
I've been very excited about the new direct service to Frankfurt starting up.

[HARTride 2012]

TIA has been planning ahead also. I'm happy.

[echocardiogram]

having an irritable day

[HARTride 2012]

My point is this...

Both TIA and MCO have done some pretty good planning for capital projects. There are many airports in the US and abroad that have done the same (ie: SFO). But there are countless others that are to this day, still playing catch-up for whatever reason it may be.

I like MCO's plans to build an Intermodal Center. I think it will do the airport good and hopefully a good rail system can connect the airport with DT and possibly the theme parks.

I'm just curious to see how the airsides will shape up. I sure hope MCO doesn't break away from the landside-airside concept.

Also, I'm going along with DrT's previous comment. Many airports (IE: Chicago-Midway, LaGuardia) have little to no room to expand just because of their location. It is quite pitiful actually that their location is where they are. I'm not sure if it was poor planning or if population just grew too large too soon. The location of MCO is pretty good. It is situated in an area that was not too developed to begin with (although it was a WWII airfield prior to), it is not too far from DT and other major destinations, and it has plenty room to grow. On top of that, GOAA going along with the Landside-Airside design just like TIA did is another plus because the design allows passengers to not have to hassle so much with walking long distances from check-in to gate and gate to bag claim and etc. I know other airports have trains and stuff too to reduce walking distances. But I like the Landside-Airside design better than any other airport design I've seen.

[echocardiogram]

Originally Posted by wslupecki

My point is this...

Both TIA and MCO have done some pretty good planning for capital projects. There are many airports in the US and abroad that have done the same (ie: SFO). But there are countless others that are to this day, still playing catch-up for whatever reason it may be.

I like MCO's plans to build an Intermodal Center. I think it will do the airport good and hopefully a good rail system can connect the airport with DT and possibly the theme parks.

I'm just curious to see how the airsides will shape up. I sure hope MCO doesn't break away from the landside-airside concept.

my bad for overreacting. i woke up on the wrong side of the bed today.

they need to break away from the landside airside concept, at least for the international terminal. having to collect your bags twice is a major inconvenience for intl arrivals.

[HARTride 2012]

I can see the inconvenience in that...

If they do build a standalone International Terminal like SFO's, yeah...it may be more conventional rather than landside-airside. But the domestic terminals should be kept as landside-airside.

Just my 2 cents.

[jzquince69]

A380 flies in tomorrow for 3 days.

[HARTride 2012]

That's cool. I still can't believe how big that plane is...

[jzquince69]

I'm going to try and snap a shot of it somehow-- tonight or tomorrow perhaps from the parking deck... or from Heintzelman or... I don't know... but we won't see one again for a few years until they enter the service route into OIA I read in another article.

[SDK4]

Originally Posted by jzquince69

A380 flies in tomorrow for 3 days.

Man if only it was this time next weekend when I'll be in Orlando, crap

[jzquince69]

it's outside the Continental hangar accessible via Tradeport in the cargo area. bic from UP already snapped it yesterday. I'm going to see if I can go out there this afternoon.

[jzquince69]

A380 last night, parked outside the Continental Airlines hangar in the cargo area of OIA:

[SDK4]

Wow what a beautiful airplane. Wish I could be there.

[DrT]

Huge renovation planned to delay opening of second terminal until 2015.
From today's Sentinel.


Orlando airport to spend $381M to boost main terminal's capacity
Jason Garcia | Sentinel Staff Writer
January 17, 2008

Orlando International Airport is about to embark on a nearly $400 million construction plan designed to squeeze an extra five years of life from its main terminal.

Planners say the sweeping overhaul -- which will include pushing the third-level ticket counters back 12 feet, replacing 18 luggage-claim stations and installing new self-service machines alongside the curbs and the counters -- would allow the airport to put off the far more expensive construction of a second terminal until at least 2015.

The board of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, which oversees OIA, voted Wednesday to spend an initial $5 million to engineer the initial changes and to begin soliciting bids from contractors who want a piece of the work.

Airport officials say OIA's main terminal can currently handle a maximum of 40 million passengers a year -- a level they expect to reach as early as 2010. The changes, however, would boost the terminal's capacity to 45 million.

OIA handled more than 36 million passengers last year.

Wringing more life out of the existing terminal is crucial. With commercial airlines facing a likely slump amid record fuel prices and slowing passenger demand, airport executives want to wait as long as possible before launching construction of a south terminal, which is likely to carry a multibillion-dollar price tag.

OIA officials are also in the midst of negotiating a new wave of leases with their major airlines. The airlines do not want the new agreements, likely to last five years, to include the higher fees and rents that it would take to finance a new terminal.

"It's a tough sell," airport Executive Director Steve Gardner said. "Eventually you've got to do it. But it's a big hit."

But improvements to the existing terminal won't come cheap, either. The total package is expected to cost $381.6 million, including:

*$123 million in the ticketing lobby. In addition to pushing walls farther back and installing more self-service machines, the plans call for boosting counter positions from 319 to 400, creating more shared counter space among multiple airlines, new entrances and more.

*$90.4 million to improve baggage-claim and baggage-handling systems. This would cover installing baggage carousels; replacing older conveyor belts with newer, wider ones; and replacing sorting equipment.

*$102.6 million on rental-car improvements, including new and expanded "quick-turn areas" for companies to process returned cars, and relocated taxi and bus lots.

*$42.2 million for roads and parking. This work would cover a second "through lane" for traffic along the terminal entrances and the building of a second cell-phone waiting lot, this one on the north side of the airport.

*$23.4 million for parking, which would include expanding the "blue" satellite lot by 3,000 spaces and adding overflow parking.

Airport officials said the pricey construction plans will likely require OIA to borrow more than $300 million through the sale of bonds. Taking on the extra debt was enough to give at least one board member pause.

"Any other way to finance it?" board member Tony Rey asked. Staffers said they simply couldn't generate enough cash to pay for the improvements in lump sums.

Rey ultimately joined the rest of the board in supporting the plans.

"I'm always cautious," he said, "but I understand you have to borrow money in order to make money and leverage it."

[jzquince69]

OIA keeps title as state's busiest passenger airport

Jason Garcia | Sentinel Staff Writer
February 6, 2008

Orlando International Airport set another traffic record in 2007 and retained its crown as the busiest passenger airport in Florida, according to figures released Tuesday.

Almost 36.5 million travelers passed through OIA last year, a 5.3 percent jump from 2006. That was nearly 3 million more people than Florida's No. 2 airport, Miami International Airport.

The gains were fueled in part by international traffic, which jumped 9.5 percent to 2.3 million passengers.

Two significant international carriers -- Germany's Lufthansa and Ireland's Aer Lingus -- began flying to Orlando last year. Several others added service, including Canadian carriers Air Canada and WestJet and Panama-based Copa Airlines.

The combined effect of Lufthansa and Aer Lingus, both of which launched Orlando flights in late October, was especially dramatic: International traffic at OIA was up 24 percent during the final two months of the year.

Representatives for both airlines said the new routes have exceeded expectations.

"It's among the top-performing flights in our route system," said Lufthansa spokeswoman Jennifer Urbaniak. She said the carrier is considering boosting the service to seven flights a week from six, though such a decision likely would not come until spring at the earliest.

Jack Foley, Aer Lingus' executive vice president for North America, said the Irish carrier is discussing whether to use a larger plane for its Orlando routes. The airline currently flies to Orlando on a 270-seat Airbus A330 but could switch to a longer, 330-seat A330.

Orlando bookings are "well ahead of where we had hoped they would be," Foley said. Particularly encouraging, he said, is that the number of customers using the service to travel from Florida to Ireland -- as opposed to Irish tourists headed to Orlando for vacations -- is ahead of projections.

Domestic travel at OIA rose 5 percent for the year to 34.2 million travelers.

...

[jzquince69]

Jet Blue received approval from the Fed. to begin daily flights to Bogota, Colombia, from OIA.

[jzquince69]

JetBlue Plans New Focus City At Orlando International Airport


Airline now offering low-fare service from Orlando to 18 cities,
with more flights to Latin America planned

Local flight crew base to open in June

292-suite Crew Lodge to be completed in 2009

ORLANDO, Fla., March 19, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- JetBlue Airways (Nasdaq:JBLU) today announces the development of Orlando International Airport (MCO) into the airline's seventh focus city. The designation of Orlando as a key city in JetBlue's growing route network underscores the airline's commitment to the Central Florida economy, with more flights and destinations; an expansion into as many as 10 gates in Airside 1 at Orlando International Airport; the development of a 292-room JetBlue Crew Lodge; and the establishment of a local crew base for JetBlue's pilots and inflight crewmembers.

More flights and destinations - plus growth to Caribbean and Latin America

Earlier this month JetBlue inaugurated its first international routes from Orlando, including the region's only daily nonstop service to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and Cancun, Mexico. Furthering its commitment to capitalize on Orlando's location at the crossroads of the Americas, JetBlue has received tentative approval from the U.S. Department of Transportation to offer Orlando's only service to South America, with daily nonstop service to Bogota, Colombia, beginning later this year(a). Combined with its existing flights to Puerto Rico - up to seven departures per day to Aguadilla, Ponce, and San Juan - JetBlue is proud to be Central Florida's leading airline to the Caribbean and Latin America.

JetBlue began service to Orlando in June 2000 with service to New York City and has grown to serve 17 nonstop destinations from Orlando International Airport. The airline will kick off nonstop service to Austin, Texas, its 18th destination, on May 1, with continuing service available to West Coast cities including San Francisco and LA/Long Beach, Calif.

Terminal shuffle

JetBlue has entered into an agreement with the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) to lease the long-term use of up to 10 gates in Orlando International Airport's Airside 1. The terminal move will provide expanded facilities for the airline as well as customs and immigrations capabilities to process JetBlue's growing roster of international flights. Currently, JetBlue's domestic flights operate from six gates in Airside 2 while international flights operate from nearby Airside 4. The relocation and consolidation of all JetBlue flights into Airside 1 will provide customers the added convenience of fast same-terminal connections between international and domestic cities.

Crew base

JetBlue will establish a local crew base for its pilots and inflight crewmembers (flight attendants) at Orlando International Airport beginning June 1. Crewmembers based in Orlando will begin and end their scheduled flying ("pairings") at MCO. Other JetBlue crew bases include Boston, Fort Lauderdale, New York City (JFK), and Long Beach, Calif.

In addition to its flight crew base, JetBlue will continue to offer training for the airline's pilots, flight attendants, technical operations professionals, and airport crewmembers at its Orlando Support Center, which has been in operation since 2005 on a campus near Orlando International Airport.

Crew Lodge

JetBlue will begin construction in September on a 292-suite JetBlue Crew Lodge, which will be used to accommodate the airline's crewmembers who are in the Orlando area conducting training and other related airline business. The Lodge will be situated on 4.5 acres of a total 6.5 acres leased from GOAA, and will create hundreds of construction jobs plus 50 permanent new jobs for Orlando residents. The Lodge will be managed by InterContinental Hotels Group and feature 292 guest suites, a 1,000 square-foot enhanced fitness center, and quiet study rooms, meeting rooms and e-library capabilities. In addition, the Lodge will include a 24-hour retail concession pantry. Outdoor amenities will include a pool, sports court and outdoor cooking facilities.

"JetBlue is thrilled to affirm our commitment to the economy and people of Central Florida by establishing Orlando as our newest focus city," said JetBlue CEO Dave Barger. "With an ever-increasing line-up of low-fare flights to top destinations throughout the United States, Caribbean, and Latin America, JetBlue has quickly become the airline of choice in Orlando for great fares and even better customer service. With the development of a local crew base, the building of a crew hotel, and our move into ten new gates at the airport, we look forward to continuing to grow and prosper here."

"JetBlue's decision to expand here and make Orlando one of its focus cities means more jobs and more flight choices for Central Florida families," stated U.S. Representative Ric Keller.

"I'm thrilled to see JetBlue continue its high flying ways in Orlando," said Orange County Mayor Richard Crotty. "Designating OIA as the centerpiece of a new focus city signals another major investment by JetBlue in our community that will reap tremendous rewards."

"We are excited that JetBlue has chosen to expand their presence in Orlando," said Buddy Dyer, Mayor of the City of Orlando. "Building on our already strong international airport, this not only provides new options for visitors but strengthens the Central Florida economy for our residents."




(the rest of the article is on JetBlue's website)

[FLAWDA-FELLA]

ORLANDO, Florida - A Jamaican man was arrested at Orlando International Airport carrying materials in his luggage that could have been used for an explosive device, the FBI said.

Federal behavioral specialists spotted Kevin Brown acting suspiciously around noon in the ticketing area.

A search of his luggage revealed two galvanized pipes, end caps, two small containers carrying BBs, batteries, two containers with an unknown liquid, and bomb-making literature, according to an FBI statement.

Brown, a Jamaican national, planned to board a flight to Jamaica. It was not immediately known what the FBI charged him with. A voicemail for an FBI spokesman was full.

Brown is scheduled for an initial appearance in federal court Wednesday. FBI officials believe he was in the United States legally. It was not known whether Brown had legal representation.