I breezed through the airports on my trip to Jackson. It was the easiest time I’d had passing through RDU security in years. I went from car to the gate in less than 15 minutes. At 6 PM on Monday, I expected more hassle. I’m happy to be wrong every now and then!

The Jackson International Airport has got to be the smallest municipal airport I’ve ever visited. It definitely is the smallest international airport I’ve ever visited. The runways, however, are world-class: twin 8500-foot concrete ones. I think the “international” part must come from destinations like Baghdad. I saw a few C-5A‘s land: enormous military cargo planes which seem to hang in the air when they’re moving at 200 knots.

I had fun at the gate while waiting for my plane by punching the tail numbers of the passing aircraft into Google. Google now offers searches on FAA registrations, so I could instantly find out the history and ownership of any plane. For the record, I took N426US from Charlotte to Raleigh.

Another highlight: the TSA screeners at Jackson were the friendliest by far of any airport I’ve visited. They were courteous, they smiled pleasantly, and every single one wished me a good trip, and meant it! Mississippi folks are some of the nicest, friendliest folks anywhere. They were so darn friendly, I was tempted to go through again!

I think airlines need to get tough on passengers hauling refrigerator-sized bags onto planes. They could shave 15 minutes off the trip if they did. We waited that long while huge bags got reshuffled in the overhead bins to accomodate Even More Stuff. I think if a bag won’t fit underneath the seat in front of you, it gets checked. No ifs, ands, or buts.

When I got back to Raleigh I waited around for my bag at baggage claim. If the airlines could speed up that process, the need to carry on luggage would disappear. While I waited, some fellow passengers – obviously new to the area – asked around to find out where to rent cars. I chimed in with info on the shuttle bus and was thanked generously.

It’s not the first time I’ve found myself happily giving airport advice to people there. I love making sure visitors get a good impression of the Triangle. It reminded me to explore an appointment to the RDU Airport Authority board, or at least to volunteer there. Either one would be a blast.

Tried out the new Exit Express service, where you pay for parking before you leave. I was disappointed there were no kiosks at the baggage claim area. It would be perfect to be able to pay for parking while you’re killing time waiting for your bag. It also would provide incentive for bags to get to baggage claim quicker: if the clock was no longer ticking on their lucrative parking fees, airports would be in a hurry to send you on your way. Parking fees are the cash cow for airports. They’d pay attention.

I also didn’t get a receipt for my parking, though I pressed the “receipt” button at the Exit Express kiosk. For a $23 parking bill, you’d better believe I’ll need a receipt.

Now its back to reality as I head into office for the first time since Friday.