Bangor International Airport
2 Reviews for Bangor International Airport
I haven't flown out of here since before 9-11, I admit. I do know that they have a well-kept runway, as my dad was a part of the paving crew for that job!
HOWEVER - I have tried to fly home from Boston, several times, thinking it would be $100 or so. Nay! It was $500 from Logan to BIA! I was astonished - my plane tickets from Boston to Cancun were comparable in price. I think the prices are so jacked up because there aren't many different airlines there, which is also frustrating.
Bangor Airport has had the dubious honor of sending off 500,000 of our armed forces personnel to Iraq. Perhaps because of that, or the fact that it is a small airport and has the time to do so, it also practices a security screening that must be in the Homeland Security Top 10.
Your ID is scrutinized for a good 30 seconds, checked against your boarding pass, as you sweat, hoping they will recognize you in the fabulous picture. Your carry-on is looked at for a good 2 minutes in the scanner. 80 year olds of clearly Yankee heritage (no profiling disrespect intended) and agile enough to require canes are routinely pulled aside and subjected to SERIOUS searches. Guess those walking aides are a tip off to potential mayhem in the air and terrorist affiliations. Finally, if you have not been screened within 30 minutes of departure, you are not allowed to fly. This, in spite of the fact that there are only 5 gates here, they are all stacked next to each other and 3 of them you walk across the tarmac to get to.
I made the error of bringing an ice pack with me in my carry-on as I was preserving some perishables and wanted to avoid baggage check. As I was preparing myself for the gauntlet ahead, laying out my bags and opening the backpack to take out my computer, I asked the baggage screener "preper" about the ice pack to see if it was ok, as I did not want to risk trying to slip one by them. As she was checking with the screeners, some other "official" walked up to me and said I had to open up my bags. I looked at her, looked at the "preper", and then back at the "official" and at my bags opened out right in front of her. "Like this", I said, as I pointed to the bags, trying to keep sarcasm out of my voice. I do not require all humans to be brilliant, but when your job description is about looking at opened bags, I expect a level of intelligence that covers the ability to recognize said objects. At that moment, the screeners said I had to check my bag as luggage as my item was not permitted as carry on, so I zipped up and went back to the desk and did so. When I returned, a new "ID screener" was there, and seemed to take longer than normal, looking at my ID, my pass, me, my ID. Just when I thought I was going to be hauled off, he let me go, but the "official" appeared from nowhere and blocked my way. She seemed to be peering back at the "ID screener". A few tense seconds passed, she asked him if it was ok, apparently it was, and she moved aside. Whether she recognized me or not, I am not sure. 2 minutes is a lifetime with such people. But I made it through the rest of the way without more hassle. Meanwhile, some middle-aged Yankee woman was pulled aside and made to "assume the position". Good humoured joking notwithstanding, as the screen was pulled closed, I sensed apprehension; the "official" was walking over there. Nothing good could come of it.
Other than that, it's a cool, funky little airport, a throwback to a different time. It's the gateway to Downeast Maine, and when you arrive, you know a good time is ahead. Just don't screw up on your way out!
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