Slippery Eagle

An American Eagle EMB-145 coming in from Chicago-O'Hare slid off the runway at SYR around 9:30 pm Sunday night. No one was hurt and the passengers were bused to terminal. The plane blocked the runway it was on until the next day when it was removed around midday on Monday. The conditions at the time were very icy due to freezing rain which made the runways and tarmacs very slick.
http://avherald.com/h?article=412da857&opt=0

RIP PAN AM 103

Today marks the 20th anniversary of the Pan Am 103 disaster. The Pan Am Boeing 747-121, N739PA, Clipper Maid of the Seas, operating as flight 103 from London's Heathrow airport to New York John F Kennedy airport was destroyed by a small bomb which tore it's nose section off at approximately 19:03 local time over Lockerbie, Scotland. The crash killed all 259 people aboard and 11 others on the ground. Among those killed were 35 students from Syracuse University and 2 students from SUNY Oswego. A memorial to those 35 SU students was subsequently built in front of the Hall of Languages at SU. for more info see the following links:
http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19881221-0
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Am_Flight_103
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/south_of_scotland/7777553.stm

Potential SYR Renovations

A plan was recently released that would result in a major renovation of Syracuse airport terminal. The plan calls for among other things moving the baggage screening machines into a new first floor area behind the ticket counters that will allow the space that they occupy now to be reclaimed for the public. Another aspect involve constructing a new second floor central security check point and a second floor bridge to connect the two concourses. This would probably involve obliterating the airport exhibit and there's no word as to whether anything might replace it. The parking garage would still be a viable viewing place but the view fo the terminal might be degraded but the runways would still be visible. The renovation would also include energy efficient savings and food service improvements. The plan still has to be approved by the Syracuse Common Council.
http://news10now.com/Default.aspx?ArID=130224
Snowy weekend
Today was a very snowy day across New York state and northeast with many flight cancelations as a result. After a short break on Saturday, Sunday is due to be a snowy and windy day.
http://news10now.com/content/top_stories/130269/snow-causes-problems-at-hancock/Default.aspx

December update

Due a busy schedule, I've been unable to have much time to myself and so have had to put things like this blog on the back-burner.
Update on NWA DC9-30 decompression incident on 5/18/07 SYR-DTW resulting in a diversion to Buffalo, NY.
According to the NTSB, the damage (a 12 inch by 5 inch fuselage skin tear about 6 feet forward of the right forward cargo door) was caused by a inadvertent contact with the fuselage by a belt loader and a tug which those present didn't seem to realize would cause major damage. http://avherald.com/h?article=411ba58b&opt=0

TCA Connie

A former Trans-Canada Air Lines/Air Canada Lockheed L.1049 Super Constellation airliner which for many years had been on display at Toronto International Airport has now been repainted in it's original color scheme at Empire Aero's facility in Rome, NY. The plane has been under restoration for a while now and the plan is dismantle it and move it by road to Seattle, WA where it will be displayed by it's owner, the Museum of Flight. The move is planned to take place in the spring when the chances of getting it there intact is higher than during the winter. Why they aren't moving by air or by barge which might not be as fast but would decrease the chance of damage is beyond me. http://skyliner-aviation.de/viewphoto.main?LC=nav2&picid=5228
Delta matters
All 4 of Delta's flights between SYR and Atlanta are now all operated by CRJ-700's which seat 70 people verses the CRJ-100's which only seat 50. Now that the merger between NWA and Delta has been approved where 2 will consolidate their operations in SYR is not known but I imagine that NWA will move over to the north terminal because their is more space available there than the south terminal. The detroit flights will probably stay but those to Cincinnati because CVG's hub status is questionable due to the closeness of both Detroit and Atlanta.

Elmira

Elmira-Corning Regional Airport located 6 miles northwest of the city of Elmira in the Big Flats area with the Southern Tier Expressway/Interstate 86 (I-86) forming it's southern perimeter. The Wings of Eagles aviation museum is located at the airport and has a military aviation focus. US Airways Express, with 6 flights a day to Philadelphia using a mix of CRJ-200's and Dash-8 100's and 300's, and Northwest Airlink with 4 flights to Detroit with CRJ-200's provide the only scheduled flights. Allegiant air is due to start 2 flights a week to Orlando-Sanford in late November using MD-80 jets. Schweizer Aircraft Corporation and subsidiary of the United Technologies Corporation (UTC) which produces helicopters and small reconnaissance planes is located on the eastern side of the airport.
National Soaring Museum
The National Soaring Museum is located on top of Harris Hill to South of Elmira Airport adjacent to the Harris Hill Soaring Center. It has an extensive collection of soaring relating items and a huge collection of gliders from various manufacturers. During the spring to fall one can also take glider rides from adjacent airfield.

Smoke Alarm

A United Airlines 757-200 flying from Boston to San Francisco had to make an emergency landing this recently (October 16th) due to a smoke alarm going off in a bathroom the cause of which is unknown at this time.
http://www.9wsyr.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=f5b5784a-05d2-458f-92ec-58806d4563ff
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e68c3b&opt=0
Ithaca Update
Air Service at Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport was recently enhanced by the addition of Continental Connection 4 x daily flights to NYC-Newark. This is in addition to Us Airways Express service to NYC-LaGuardia and Philadelphia plus NWA Airlink service to Detroit.