| Salt Lake City |
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| GER |
12 |
16 |
7 |
35 |
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| USA |
10 |
13 |
11 |
34 |
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| NOR |
11 |
7 |
6 |
24 |
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| CAN |
6 |
3 |
8 |
17 |
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| RUS |
6 |
6 |
4 |
16 |
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| AUT |
2 |
4 |
10 |
16 |
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| ITA |
4 |
4 |
4 |
12 |
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| FRA |
4 |
5 |
2 |
11 |
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| SUI |
3 |
2 |
6 |
11 |
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| NED |
3 |
5 |
0 |
8 |
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Airport is armed, ready for after-Games rush
By Leah L. Culler
Deseret News staff writer
Olympic spectators have been trickling in and out of the Salt Lake City International Airport for a couple of weeks, but Monday will be the busiest day the airport has ever seen.
"(Monday) will definitely be the biggest day," said airport spokeswoman Barbara Gann. "It traditionally has been the day after the closing ceremonies. We've had a lot of people trickling out, but the impact will definitely be felt on Monday."
And it's the passengers who will feel that impact. Those who will be at the airport Monday should be prepared for long lines and extensive screening.
In addition to passing through the magnetometer and X-ray at the security screening checkpoints, all luggage will be tested with an explosive trace detection device at the ticket counter. Some luggage may be sent for scanning at a computed tomography X-ray machine. All passengers and their bags are also subject to increased hand search.
The airport's executive director, Tim Campbell, said it's vital that passengers arrive early. "We want travelers to be aware that this is a significant event, and we need their assistance in arriving early," Campbell said.
Airline reservations indicate that all departing airplane seats will be occupied Monday. Airline ticket counters will open about 4 a.m., with the exception of Frontier Airlines, which will open at 5 a.m. Passengers should be at the ticket counters for check-in 3 1/2 hours before their departure time.
"The Department of Airports, the airlines serving Salt Lake City and the Salt Lake Organizing Committee have been planning for this heavy impact for some time," Campbell said. "We've been creative and have put some atypical systems into place to deal with it, however, passengers need to arrive early or they will miss flights."
Those atypical systems include a reconfiguration of the front terminals to use all possible space. Airport spokeswoman Barbara Gann said the security screening area has also been reorganized so that lines are flexible and can be moved as they get longer or shorter. The international terminal will be used for screening, and people will be bused to the Delta Welcome Center if lines get too long. That center has served as the checkpoint for both baggage and ground transportation throughout the Olympics for some large groups of passengers. Gann said Airport Team 2002 will be fully deployed on Monday, doing crowd control, line management and making sure people are in "the right lines for the right thing."
So far during the Olympics, operations at the airport have been fine, Gann said. The welcome center has been used on peak travel days and has been "very helpful in alleviating heavy loads." She said the ground transportation system has also run smoothly.
And airport officials hope things continue smoothly the last few days. On Monday, airport employees will be handing out bottled water and chocolate medals "so everyone can leave town with a medal," Gann said. They will also be distributing a book of poetry that is part of the Cultural Olympiad, and the airport will feature entertainment used by the Salt Lake Organizing Committee at venues during the Olympics.
E-mail: lculler@desnews.com
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February 22, 2002
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