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Airport Authority Board welcomes new member |
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Tom Smisek, second from left above, was sworn in as the newst member of the Airport Authority Board at its February 5, 2009, public meeting.
Also at the meeting, Jim Desmond, far left, and Admiral Bruce Boland, second from right, were reappointed as Board members. Board Chair Alan Bersin, far right, swore in the Board members.
A resident and former three-term mayor of Coronado, Smisek served in the U.S. Navy and Navy reserve for 26 years, where he flew the F-8 Crusader in Vietnam and was a TOP GUN graduate. He also served as a pilot for 25 years with Western Airlines and Delta Air Lines.
Smisek was a member of the joint Airport Authority/SANDAG Committee that started a new Master Plan for San Diego International Airport in 1997. The mayors of the south county cities appointed Smisek to a current term ending January 31, 2012.
For information about all Airport Authority Board members and the areas they represent, click here. |
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Airlines adding more nonstop routes from SDIA
Easier travel between SDIA & Boston, Calgary, Atlanta, Milwaukee & Memphis
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Several airlines have announced increased nonstop service between San Diego International Airport and some attractive business and leisure destinations - just in time for the upcoming summer travel season. 
The new nonstop service will carry you between San Diego and such cities as Boston, Calgary, Atlanta, Milwaukee and Memphis.
The airlines bringing this enhanced nonstop service include American Airlines, Air Canada, AirTran, Delta and WestJet.
Find out more about these nonstop routes coming to Lindbergh Field, including specific start dates, frequency and flight arrival and departure times. |
| Airport Authority & SANDAG:
Teaming up to make getting around easier |
Locals and visitors alike will tell you that San Diego County isn't always the easiest place to get around. Two government bodies are teaming up with other agencies to change that.
The San Diego County Association of Governments (SANDAG) and the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority are leading focused planning efforts to improve the functionality of, and mobility around, the county's civilian airports, shown on a map here.
On the aviation side, the Airport Authority is spearheading the Regional Aviation Strategic Plan (RASP). This plan will seek to improve the performance of the regional airport system by examining the current infrastructure and airspace of civilian airports in the county and in adjacent regions. Senate Bill 10, authored by State Senator Christine Kehoe and passed in 2007, mandates that the Airport Authority collaborate with SANDAG to prepare the RASP, which is due in 2011.
On the surface transportation side, SANDAG is spearheading the Airport Multimodal Accessibility Plan, also required by Senate Bill 10. This plan analyzes different ways people move around the region (automobile, rail, bus and potential high-speed rail) in order to improve access to and from the region's airports. It is due in 2013 and will ultimately be combined with the Regional Aviation Strategic Plan. As part of this plan, SANDAG is looking at potential high-speed and commuter rail connections between San Diego County and other airports in Southern California and Mexico.
To ensure the above efforts will actually make a difference in the region, they will be woven into the Regional Transportation Plan. As a blueprint for San Diego County's transportation future, the Regional Transportation Plan addresses public policies and strategies to help manage and enhance the region's entire transportation system. It is updated by SANDAG every four years, with the next update due in 2011.
In the end, all these efforts are about one thing: giving San Diego County residents and visitors the smoothest, easiest ride possible, whether they're headed to Orange County on a train, downtown on the trolley, to work or home in a car ... or cross-country on an airplane.
It's easy to keep up on the progress of these plans, thanks to a special Web site at www.sdrasp.com. |
Exhibits give airport visitors something to think about |
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by Cynthia Hawthorne
Regardless of whatever fascinating trip brings you to San Diego International Airport, be prepared to be fascinated by something actually at the airport.
Four new cultural exhibits, running through July 2009, are opening airport visitors' eyes to sites rarely seen in an airport setting, while presenting learning opportunities in a safe and friendly environment.
Want to learn something about climate change and its effects on our oceans? The Birch Aquarium's Feeling The Heat exhibit in the Commuter Terminal will fill that desire, with displays of giant triton sea shells and staghorn coral; then-and-now snowcap photographs from Alaska, New Zealand and the North Pole; and information on small changes you can make to make a big difference.
Over in Terminal 2, these intriguing exhibits provide additional opportunities to learn:
Lasting Legacies of Chinese Living History - antique boxes, family utensils used in daily life, terra-cotta art, traditional Chinese medicine (including an acupuncture dummy) and memorabilia from the Flying Tigers, who were volunteer American aviators who served in the Chinese Air Force during World War II. (Located in Terminal 2 East, pre-security.)
Invisible People -That's what local artist Neil Shigley calls San Diego's downtown homeless population. He puts them front-and-center in this exhibit featuring large-format portraits showing their "nobility, beauty, strength and vulnerability." (Located in the Terminal 2 East/West Transition Corridor, post-security.)
The Mexican Gray Wolf - The California Wolf Center presents dramatic preserved animal specimens (including a mountain lion, fox, coyote and raven) and displays relating to how wolves and other animlas in the wild have been trapped and reintroduced. (Located in Terminal 2 West, across from gate 33, post-security.) |
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Airport happenings |
Public Meetings:
For Airport Authority meeting dates, agendas and minutes, click here.
Live performances:
Click for a schedule of upcoming live musical performances at the airport. |
A clearer focus for Lindbergh Field's future |
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by Sharie Shipley
For the past 10 months, ideas for the future of Lindbergh Field have been in the hands of an unprecedented multi-agency effort known as Destination Lindbergh. The effort brought together policymakers from three lead agencies: the Airport Authority, City of San Diego and SANDAG, as well as other partner agencies including the Port of San Diego, County of San Diego, Metropolitan Transit System, North County Transit District and U.S. Department of Defense.
To guide Destination Lindbergh, an Ad Hoc Airport Regional Policy Committee was formed, chaired by San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders.
On Thursday, February 12, the committee considered a proposal that recommended a three-phase program for the airfield, a consolidated rental car facility, passenger processing facilities and an Intermodal Transit Center located on the north side of SDIA. The Intermodal Transit Center would include trolley, rail and bus stations to better connect the airport to the regional transit infrastructure.
An Executive Summary of the three-phase program is available for viewing or download. If adopted in full, the plan would be implemented in three phases over 21 years and cost between $5 billion and $11.1 billion.
Funding would come from a variety of sources, such as Federal Airport Improvement Program (AIP) funds, passenger facility charges and airport revenue bonds. Other sources of funding could include:
- State and local funding
- Tax increment financing
- Public/private partnerships
- Transportation Development Act (TDA) sales tax funds
- Rental car facility charges
- Loan proceeds from the Transportation Infrastructure, Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA)
The next steps in the process: the three-phase plan will go before the San Diego City Council and the SANDAG Board for consideration in February and March. It is then expected to go to the Airport Authority Board for final consideration by early March 2009. |
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Get your Jamba on
Jamba Juice now serving smoothies in Terminal 2 |
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by Katie Jones  |
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People cheered and fruit danced as San Diego International Airport celebrated its latest culinary offering, Jamba Juice. Known for its healthy smoothies and fruit juices, Jamba Juice is located post-security on the second floor of Terminal 2 West.
The festivities were held on Thursday, January 29, with free samples, coupon giveaways and remarks from Jamba Juice representatives, Airport Authority Board Member Jim Panknin and Nine Dragons, Inc., the franchisee of the airport's Jamba Juice outlet.
Airport Authority employees clad in bright, Jamba-styled shirts (below) energized the crowd with exercises designed for air passengers and gave away shirts to the crowd.
Although there are 750 Jamba Juice outlets nationwide, San Diego International Airport is one of only a handful of airports to have one.
For a complete Jamba Juice menu, including breakfast smoothies with organic granola and new organic, steel-cut oatmeal, call: 1-866-4R-FRUIT or visit www.jamba.com. |
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Free behind-the-scenes tours of SDIA |
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A hip new tour has been wowing the crowds in San Diego: the Terminals to Tarmac Tour at San Diego International Airport. It's as easy as clicking here to sign up for one and learn more about the tours, which cover the public areas and take you behind the scenes at the airport. |
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| Employee blog |
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Nobody knows an organization like the Airport Authority better than the employees who work there. Now you can see what's on their minds about life at Lindbergh Field, thanks to a unique employee blog:
The Ambassablog. |
| Your Airport Authority |
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The San Diego County Regional Airport Authority was established by state law in 2003 to operate San Diego International Airport (SDIA) and address the region's long-term air transportation needs. SDIA - funded through user fees and not local taxes - contribubes some $10 billion anual to the regional economy and served 18.1 million passengers in 2008. For more information, visit www.san.org. | |
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