I fly to the northwest a lot but also fly standby. I have infinitely more options out of Boston if the early morning flights out of PWM are full which is almost always. It just offer greater flexibility.
DesertMaineiac
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Flew in and out of PWM the other week. As others have posted, the inbound flight from MSP was nearly at capacity and the outbound flight to DFW was the same. I love the additional options available for connecting to the west coast rather than flying south along the coast to connect and then still face a cross-country flight. I still want to try the DEN flight. I'm not sure how the regional flight load factors, such as JetBlue JFK and NYC flights, fare with the recent difficulties at Newark.
I flew back on a Saturday afternoon and the ticket counters were packed, American and Delta. There are times where you could roll a bowling bowl through ticketing and not hit anyone, but terminal planning for peak hour may have been close to being reached as the line was to the doors and it wasnt even the early morning push. Speaking of doors, what is going on with the large revolving doors at ticketing and baggage claim? They were all inoperable (maybe one was working) with tape and cones around them and forcing people through open single doors. And this was the same case when I flew though some months prior. Are these doors prone to repair or replacement parts too hard to keep in stock?
The new gate expansion and restrooms are sorely needed as the restrooms near Starbucks were heavily used with lines and in rough shape with broken hardware and dirty/wet conditions. I noticed the box restrooms near Gate 5. Not a good look, but maybe needed to provide an adaquate level of service, but please tell me these are temporary. New carpet was a welcome addition. Other improvements, like the tired and claustrophobic baggage claim, are on the way as people have posted. I still wish we could get updated city skyline imagery in the baggage claim and entry to the baggage claim! Airports are construction sites where planes often take off and land. We joke about the taxidermy menagerie on the lower level but people sure love that as a first picture spot. I do miss the observation lot across the airfield from the terminal to watch the aircraft. They have the roundabout along Westbrook St with No Parking posted and I stopped to watch for a bit and within 10-15 minutes an Operations truck flashed his lights and siren to get me to move. I was in the vehicle, not blocking the access/fire gates and over 6' back from the security fence but was not going to make an issue of it.
PWM, especially in summer, punches above its weightclass for service and destinations. Maybe Bozeman offers more based on city size. I get why people would look at Logan, but the convenience of PWM is hard to beat. And airlines keep experimenting with new markets and upgauging which is a credit to management and the market.
I flew back on a Saturday afternoon and the ticket counters were packed, American and Delta. There are times where you could roll a bowling bowl through ticketing and not hit anyone, but terminal planning for peak hour may have been close to being reached as the line was to the doors and it wasnt even the early morning push. Speaking of doors, what is going on with the large revolving doors at ticketing and baggage claim? They were all inoperable (maybe one was working) with tape and cones around them and forcing people through open single doors. And this was the same case when I flew though some months prior. Are these doors prone to repair or replacement parts too hard to keep in stock?
The new gate expansion and restrooms are sorely needed as the restrooms near Starbucks were heavily used with lines and in rough shape with broken hardware and dirty/wet conditions. I noticed the box restrooms near Gate 5. Not a good look, but maybe needed to provide an adaquate level of service, but please tell me these are temporary. New carpet was a welcome addition. Other improvements, like the tired and claustrophobic baggage claim, are on the way as people have posted. I still wish we could get updated city skyline imagery in the baggage claim and entry to the baggage claim! Airports are construction sites where planes often take off and land. We joke about the taxidermy menagerie on the lower level but people sure love that as a first picture spot. I do miss the observation lot across the airfield from the terminal to watch the aircraft. They have the roundabout along Westbrook St with No Parking posted and I stopped to watch for a bit and within 10-15 minutes an Operations truck flashed his lights and siren to get me to move. I was in the vehicle, not blocking the access/fire gates and over 6' back from the security fence but was not going to make an issue of it.
PWM, especially in summer, punches above its weightclass for service and destinations. Maybe Bozeman offers more based on city size. I get why people would look at Logan, but the convenience of PWM is hard to beat. And airlines keep experimenting with new markets and upgauging which is a credit to management and the market.
P
Portlander
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The observation lot is still available and well used and I drive by it almost every day. The sign that detailed all of the different types of aircraft that utilize PWM has been removed due to being outdated. I'll ask Paul about this, the revolving doors and the box restrooms when we meet later this week. The issue with the taxidermy display is not so much about the critters but more about how they are displayed in my opinion. A museum quality set up would work wonders and enhance the Maine wildlife experience for our travelers! As far as the skyline photos at the entrance to and in baggage claim itself, they will hopefully be updated and improved once the jetport expands that area or TC will totally lose it!
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DesertMaineiac
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It is still there! I just assumed it was MAC Jets. I just needed to look! I guess if I asked the Operations agent they might have pointed me to next door?! Thank you for that.
I haven’t been there in a couple years, but found the sight lines to be less than optimal. Just down the street at the circle the sight lines were good, but don’t think you can park there anymore. Years ago there was a spot on a slight knoll over by Time Warner that I found better … Kind of a shame there’s not a better spot IMOView attachment 64910
The observation lot is still available and well used and I drive by it almost every day. The sign that detailed all of the different types of aircraft that utilize PWM has been removed due to being outdated. I'll ask Paul about this, the revolving doors and the box restrooms when we meet later this week. The issue with the taxidermy display is not so much about the critters but more about how they are displayed in my opinion. A museum quality set up would work wonders and enhance the Maine wildlife experience for our travelers! As far as the skyline photos at the entrance to and in baggage claim itself, they will hopefully be updated and improved once the jetport expands that area or TC will totally lose it!
P
Portlander
Guest
The top level of the parking garage is decent and "Logan Spotters" has used it to make some excellent plane spotting videos on YouTube. Have taken some videos from that vantage point myself and was never been asked to leave.
One of the best spots to plane spot is across the turnpike on District Rd. where there is overflow parking (pink lot) for the Jetport. Park along the median and the jets come in and out right over your head.
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Portlander
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PWM had a 20,400 gain in passenger counts for June against 2024 numbers.
Did we find out anything on the revolving doors. I think the last count was 5 out of service. Does Logan have these? I know Term B, C, and E have none. Plus, the escalator going from ticketing to TSA has been out of service for several months, Broken granite light hit by a sidewalk plow by the garage for months.
Cosakita18
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It seems like Frontier is more-or-less giving up on PWM. Their schedule extension through January cuts TPA and keeps a skeleton schedule to MCO for November and December. There are only 3 flights to MCO in November and 2 in December. (Not 2-3 weekly, 2-3 flights for the whole month)
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Portlander
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No loss, Breeze and JetBlue will happily pick up the slack. Frontier, Allegiant and especially Spirit are all treading water right now and their ULCC business model is beginning to unravel due to the legacy airlines starting to provide competitive low cost fares on most of their flights.
Do you have a link/source for this? Frontier briefly tried PVD back in 2022, but it didn't last long. I'd be kind of surprised if they gave it another shot now considering their own issues combined with Breeze making PVD a hub.
NR2Portland
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The recent JetBlue expansion into manchester and lack of expansion in Portland is mind boggling, as we have discussed. But here is more to add to the confusion.
JFK-Manchester tomorrow (Saturday)(A320)
JFK-Portland tomorrow (Saturday)(2 A220s)
Again, mind boggling
JFK-Manchester tomorrow (Saturday)(A320)
JFK-Portland tomorrow (Saturday)(2 A220s)
Again, mind boggling
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Portlander
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MHT-JFK service ends on September 3rd which reinforces your frustration with the load factors. Other than Orlando year round, Manchester only has FLL and RSW for seasonal service so I wouldn't say that JetBlue is overwhelming the southern New Hampshire market with unique destinations and options. Though I do wish that some airline would step up and provide Portland with service to FLL. I am getting a tour of the new gate expansion this morning and will add some photos later today.
Also to add that PWM-JFK is 2x a day vs 1x a day for MHT, A220 is more efficient than the A320 on the short run. Yes, I scratch my head regarding the lack of service to Florida on the east coast. MIA, FLL, VRB, PBI. FLL and MIA are the 2 largest cruise ports close to an airport. Port Canaveral (MCO) is an hour drive. I am surprised to this day, why no one serves FLL?
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Portlander
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Some shots from the tour graciously given by Paul Bradbury to myself and Markhb this morning of PWM's Gate 11-14 expansion which will open shortly. The exterior revolving door repair issue has been assigned to another company with more experience and will be completed in the near future. The "Welcome to Portland" signage as you enter baggage claim will be replaced with a better version by Clear Channel, photos inside baggage claim will be changed when the new incline carousels are installed. Breeze has signed a lease for Gate 5 and Gate 14 will be available for all airlines. Mark may add some insight to anything I may have missed while taking photos.
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Portlander
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