BWI Marshall has a spotter Park, the Dixon Aircraft Observation Area, across Dorsey Rd. at the se end of 15R/33L, and a hill off the bike trail that overlooks the west end of 10/28. Plus in the terminal there’s a comfy 3rd floor observation deck with a wine bar that is outside of security between Concourse B and C, that overlooks a number of gates and the runway intersections at some distance (I like their prosecco, and rocking chairs). Nice airport.

(Written on 2018年 09月 07日)(Permalink)

Hah, no way, I can't even land a small airliner in the MS sim without a fatal impact, things happen too fast in a jet for me to manage. Too many flight controls in a big puppy, and who knows where they are? Throttles and flaps sure, but all the other stuff, no way. You need to know instinctively. I honor the skill and dedication of commercial pilots to stay up on all of this, especially the software changes that come down the pike.

(Written on 2018年 07月 13日)(Permalink)

I'm glad the TSA folks were paying attention. Hah, as I just put up on the post about the old lady hitchhiker, my fiancée was coming back from Minneapolis with a small jar of rutabaga chutney from the famed Askov Rutabaga Festival (www.askovrutabagafestival.com), and it set off the bomb detectors. They let her go when she surrendered the chutney, for which I give thanks - both that they let her go, and that I didn't have to try rutabaga chutney.

(Written on 2018年 01月 26日)(Permalink)

Hah, my fiancé was bringing a small jar of rutabaga chutney (!!!) for her mom, from the famed Rutabaga Festival in Askov, Minnesota (www.askovrutabagafestival.com)back to Baltimore...and it set off the bomb detectors. I was very glad they took it from her.

(Written on 2018年 01月 26日)(Permalink)

As noted by Mr. Allen below, at BWI Thurgood Marshall there's a nice park just south of the field. There is also a bike path that circles the field, and there are several locations along the path that are good, including a grassy hillslope overlooking the west end of 15R from which you can see a lot of the field. And my recent favorite is the 3rd floor observation deck they added between B and C concourse - has a somewhat restricted view of the field, so you can usually follow a plane taxiing very far, but it has a nice view to the south over the main runways, and the wine bar has a lovely prosecco...

(Written on 2016年 07月 08日)(Permalink)

Really. I was on a Signature Hawker 800 last year, the pilots had Ipads linked to the plane that could show them the weather all the way from BWI to Centennial, not just the 150 mile range of the radar on the plane. (As well as engine status etc.). I felt good about that.

(Written on 2015年 08月 21日)(Permalink)

BWI Baltimore has an observation deck by the Sky Azure bar on the second floor of the terminal; and a bunch rocking chairs by a large observation window along Concourse B, for ticketed passengers, tho the folks I see in them are all staring at their I-devices. I wanna dump one out so I can sit and watch the aircraft. But I also like Friendship Park just south of the field, which was set up for planewatchers, and the bike trail that goes around BWI, right outside the fence at the end of two of the runways. Fun!

(Written on 2014年 06月 13日)(Permalink)