Oops. After discovering a 4-inch butterfly knife in a carry-on bag, a 38-year-old Chicago man was arrested at Oakland International Airport on Thursday. "The man, who was headed to Las Vegas on a Spirit Airlines flight, told TSA agents he had forgotten the knife was in his bag and was unaware it was prohibited," reports Oakland Tribune. more ›

A note threatening to blow up an Alaskan Airlines plane heading from Seattle to the Bay Area was removed form the tarmac at Oakland this morning. Passengers were checked and re-screened, and no explosives were found. (Whew.) more ›

Remember the former LA City Attorney who went berserk on a Peet's kiosk and airport police on Christmas Eve? She was sentenced today. "Angela West, 50, a Harvard Law School graduate, pleaded no contest Tuesday in San Mateo County Superior Court to exhibiting a deadly weapon and battery on a peace officer, both misdemeanors," reports SF Chronicle. "Judge Richard Livermore sentenced her to two years but suspended it, giving her credit for time served." [Chron] more ›

Angela West, a former LA City Attorney, reportedly went on a bit of a rampage during the holiday season at San Francisco International Airport. And how. Look, we get it: Christmas and SFO and the lines and the kids and the outrageous Peet's kiosk prices make us go a little nuts as well. However, we've never been so bold as to act on our deepest rage-filled desires as West did on Christmas Eve. Behold: more ›

Blue Angels-on-United action by rat-fink. more ›

An American Airlines flight has been grounded at SFO after a bomb threat. According to the Transportation Security Administration, reports CBS 5, "the threat was made against American Airlines Flight No. 24 — which was destined for John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York." The airport police "received a threatening phone call" just before the flight was about to takeoff. more ›

Because we're always cheated out of a proper summer -- for whatever reason, this year's summer chill seems particularly glacial -- that means low fog. And what does low fog mean? It means flight delays at SFO. According to BCN (via SF Appeal), "Flight delays of up to an hour are possible at San Francisco International Airport into the afternoon today due to low fog in the area." Please make a note of it. [SFA] more ›

View larger image. more ›

by Chris Jones more ›

This glorious shot comes to you from noted photographer exxonvaldez. He captures "[r]unway 1 departures from San Francisco International Airport between 10:22pm and 11:38pm on June 27, 2009, as seen from Brisbane Marina." more ›

More than twenty pounds of sweet, pain-alleviating opium were discovered "wrapped in plastic and concealed inside false walls of drums" arriving from Thailand, found at SFO. The incident, which happened in "mid-February," prompted San Francisco Area Port Director John Leonard to boast, "Diligent work by CBP officers locally and across the nation helps to keep this narcotic from getting to the general public. [Too late, it's here already. -- SFist] In addition to our primary role of preventing terrorists and terrorism-related articles from entering the U.S., CBP takes active measures to interdict narcotics at the gateways to our country." So just to be clear: pot, good; opium, bad. (Last link NSFW.) more ›

Oh wow. We need to get in on this racket. See, San Francisco International Airport plans on installing carbon-offset kiosks, so guilt-ridden travelers can donate to saving the Earth and stuff. It works like this: Travelers enter their flight info at the green kiosk, which figures out how many puppies and kittens will die as a result from the carbon dioxide emitted from their flight. A cost for offsetting your environment-crippling flight plans will then be deducted from your credit card, then sent to one of several carbon-reducing projects. While this sounds like an inspired idea, it could have corruption written all over it. more ›

Airports simply aren't given to happy surprises. It's the way it is.

Gotta go, gotta do, gotta git. It's a funnel, a gilded chute, a holding pen. A set of obstacles, checkpoints, and fetch-quests. It's something to be overcome, not enjoyed.

But what if someone went out of their way to lace a usually-crappy process with the crisp surprise of basic joy? more ›

by Tiffany Maleshefski more ›

American Flight 442, bound for Miami, made an emergency landing at LAX today after the pilot "reported smoke and the smell of fuel in the cockpit." Egads. more ›

Southwest Airlines, the cattle-car service of affordable air transportation, resumed flights this morning after yesterday's maintenance SNAFU grounded "approximately 4 percent" on Tuesday night. It seems that many of their airplanes failed to have safety checks last year, which resulted in yesterday's Southwest Airlines schedule meltdown and a drop in their stock price. But today, Thursday, "the majority of the planes removed from service have been returned" spokeswoman Christi Day tells CBS 5. more ›

Yesterday we mentioned the delightful work trip/vacation San Francisco supervisor Bevan Dufty and city treasurer Jose Cisneros took to Australia for Sydney's Gay Mardi Gras. Trannyshack founder Heklina was there, too. And many readers fretted about whether or not city tax dollars went to pay for this trip down under -- an excursion, it should be mentioned, that will reportedly bring in much-needed tourist dollars to SF. Anyway, according to Dufty's office: more ›

Billion-dollar expansion work at Mineta San Jose International Airport came to a halt this morning after a 28-year-old construction worker's arms were severed below his elbows in an accident. Yikes. more ›

A standoff is underway right now in Oakland. The fuzz claims that a robbery suspect is holed up inside studio apartment, near 32nd and Telegraph Avenue. Due to the nail-biting action, police have closed Telegraph Avenue between 30th and 34th. more ›

A grown man died during a street race in Oakland last night at around 9:30 p.m.. The unidentified 42-year-old -- that's right, 42-year-old -- was racing his 2005 Nissan "west on the 7100 block of Doolittle Drive, near Oakland International Airport" before losing control of his vehicle. He then slammed head-on into a non-compete Hyundai, which sent the 57-year-old driver of the former car to the hospital with serious injuries. more ›

Hey, remember angry Sarah Nome, the lady who refused to move out of the Kaiser hospital in Marin for over a year, and ran up a $1.4 million bill? Well, Kaiser's 1) gotten ownership of her house in San Anselmo and 2) will be auctioning it off to pay off her tab. Kaiser was awarded the house after Nome was put in the care of the state (after her daughter refused to take her in), and has been paying the mortgage while their case against Nome was pending -- even though they haven't actually been given access to the place. The house isn't in the best of shape -- it's apparently been hit by falling trees and Nome was in a fight with her insurance to get them to pay for it -- but given the real estate market in Marin, we're guessing it'll probably move fairly quickly. more ›

Marines returning home from Iraq were beaten to death with puppies and aborted fetuses by Oakland Airport officials on 9/27. At least that's how some conservative blogs and other outlets have spun it, more or less. (Because the Oakland Airport has nothing better to do than come up with ineffective political statements.) more ›

Seattlest watches as a S.L.U.T. is born and Seattle Flickr users go nuts over a local art installation. A restaurant critic demands a Diner's Bill of Rights over a gnat next to her drink, and, in lieu of a Portlandist, Seattlest debates with itself over the identity of the Northwest's crown jewel. Seattlest also joins the guys from Fantagraphics for an ill-fated gun party in the woods. more ›

-- 19-year-old lad from Felton -- a fascinating, frightening place -- calls cops after his weed gets pinched. Which he was trying to sell in downtown Santa Cruz. And doesn't get arrested. [Chron] more ›

Well, it won't be destroyed so much as it will be sent into space. And then vaporized, or zapped, or something. more ›

This morning, SFO crews found a dead body lodged in the wheel well of the nose of a United plane coming in from Shanghai. It might have been a stowaway. more ›

Just some random news items on the wire: more ›

--A day of physical activity! Bikers set off for LA for the AIDS ride, and those not content just to bike did the Escape from Alcatraz triathlon. more ›

J.D. Power and Associates, the well-regarded surveyor of customer satisfaction rankings and similar, has conducted its 2007 North American Airport Satisfaction Index Study. Guess which U.S. airport ranked the lowest in the large airport (those with 30 million passengers+/annum) category? Yeah, it's San Francisco International. more ›