By John McDermott
The AirlineGeeks Podcast Episode 22: New Airports and Iconic Retirements
Thank you for reading the AirlineGeeks Podcast Recap. This article gives a brief look at this week’s episode of our news podcast. For our full analysis of each of these stories, you can listen to The AirlineGeeks Podcast on Spotify, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts or through our distributor, Anchor.
We start our episode with a discussion of Berlin’s new Brandenburg Airport. The airport has finally opened over eight years after its original opening date. The airport has been plagued by engineering issues for almost a decade. Authorities originally deemed it unsafe after a problem with its fire suppression system was identified, and since numerous problems have arisen. But the airport has finally been deemed safe for operation – ironically amid a pandemic that has slashed passenger counts drastically – and opened to the public.
In addition to discussing the airport’s history, we also look at Brandenburg’s location and how it impacts the other airports in Berlin. We touch on protests that plagued Brandenburg’s opening as well as Berlin’s highly-contested plan to limit the number of taxicabs at the airport.
Next, we take a sneak peek at a new AirlineGeeks series on aviation in Brazil. In an area of the Amazon rainforest where water transport is slow – the major Juruá River winds, preventing boats from moving quickly and significantly increasing travel distance – and roads are not well maintained, so aviation, though difficult in the rainforest, often proves the only viable form of transport for people and supplies who need to move between cities quickly.
While cities like Eirunepé rely on aviation to maintain their livelihoods, aviation is expensive, and in the podcast we look at some of the issues that this pricing creates in uncertain times. We also consider how essential aviation is to remote communities like Eirunepé.
Last, we take time to discuss Delta Air Lines’ final Boeing 777 flight. We take a look at the 777’s history at Delta and where the carrier might be moving with future fleet adjustments. We invite Joey Gerardi, who was aboard the final Delta 777 flight from New York to Los Angeles, to share his experience on the flight and add what it’s like to participate in an aircraft retirement during the coronavirus pandemic. Click here to watch Joey’s video trip report on the final flight.
We hope you’ll listen to the podcast episode for more in-depth analysis of each of these stories. Monitor our pages on your favorite streaming service each Friday to hear the latest episode just as it’s published – at 12 p.m. U.S. Pacific Time each week. Feel free to leave a comment sharing your thoughts on this week’s episode.
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John McDermott is a student at Northwestern University. He is also a student pilot with hopes of flying for the airlines. A self-proclaimed “avgeek,” John will rave about aviation at length to whoever will listen, and he is keen to call out any airplane he sees, whether or not anyone around him cares about flying at all. John previously worked as a Journalist and Editor-In-Chief at Aeronautics Online Aviation News and Media. In his spare time, John enjoys running, photography, and watching planes approach Chicago O’Hare from over Lake Michigan.