- SOUTHWEST AIRLINES wins the Best Customer Satisfaction Award by Satmetrix Systems. The independent survey of 13,000 business consumers in late September identified the Dallas-based carrier as best in its class in the airline sector. Southwest received an 8.63 out of a possible 10 compared with the overall airline rating of 7.79.
- HOUSTON AIRPORT SYSTEM – HAS handled 3,254,018 passengers in October and over 36.7 million passengers through October 2001. George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) had 2.5 million, William P. Hobby Airports (HOU) had 671,429 and Ellington Field (EFD) had 5,943 passengers in October. IAH has served 28.3 million travelers, HOU handled 7.3 million and EFD had 48,356. HAS handled over 63.8 million pounds of cargo in October and over 590 million pounds through October in 2001.
- WINSTON FIELD, Snyder, Texas, marked its 50th anniversary on Saturday, December 8, 2001. The Snyder Chamber of Commerce hosted an Open House in observance of the anniversary. e DECATUR MUNICIPAL AIRPORT – Airport and city officials hosted a ribbon cutting for the new Decatur Municipal Airport terminal on Saturday, September l, 2001. The opening of the terminal was a part of the well-attended airport Open House which featured antique autos, antique planes, free plane and helicopter rides, including a Civil War re-enactment troop demonstration of small arms and mountain cannons.
- DALLAS-FORT WORTH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT – A 554-room Hyatt Hotel was demolished at the airport early one Sunday morning in October to make room for a $1 .1 billion international terminal that will be twice as large as the existing one.
- RWJ AIRPARK, Baytown – Civil Air Patrol C-182 aircraft was temporarily relocated recently to the Anahuac Airport because of the air space restriction in the Houston area resulting from the September 11 terrorist attacks. The plane is now back at RWJ. Major Don Fisher is the Liberty Sr. Squadron Commander of the Texas Wing CAP, which currently has 24 members. CAP performs special support missions, including search and rescue of downed airplanes or of lost persons, including hunters.
- HOUSTON, TEXAS – Charles Hutchins received the Lloyd P. Nolen Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Advancement of Aviation. Hutchins was presented the award at the recent Wings Over Houston Airshow. He was honored for his many years as organizer of the annual event. Previous winners include astronauts and test pilots among others.
- NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD – Marion Clifton Blakely was recently sworn in as the ninth Chairman of the NTSB. Her current term as Chairman ends September 23, 2003. Her term as a Member of the Safety Board ends December 31, 2005. Most recently, Ms. Blakely served as Administrator of the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (1992-1993).
- AIR FORCE ONE – President Bush said goodbye at a special retirement ceremony in August to a historic jet that was used by every president since Nixon. The speciallyconfigured Boeing 707 jet served seven presidents including Bush. It was on this plane that Nixon’s resignation became effective. It flew former President Carter to Germany to greet the 52 Americans who had been held hostage in Iran. Former President Reagan used the plane to travel to Berlin in 1987 to demand that the Soviet leader “tear down this wall.” Its last trip was to California for display at a new hangar at Reagan’s library in Simi Valley. According to President Bush, it may carry no more presidents “but it will carry forever the spirit of American democracy.”
Texas A&M Transportation Institute
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