Airport

Attention. Attention, please.

Continental Airlines announces

the departure of Flight 3

for Los Angeles and Honolulu

at Gate 28, the Blue Concourse.

Global 45, Lincoln Tower.

Cleared to land,

runway two-niner.

Wind one-five, gusting to two-five.

Roger. Cleared to land.

Runway in sight.

Lincoln Tower from Global 45.

I think we cut the taxiway a little

too short and we're stuck in the snow.

Please notify company dispatch.

I think we'll need assistance.

We've got a condition four

on two-niner at taxiway Echo.

Right. Change traffic to runway two-two.

Two-niner's closed.

Trans World 17.

I have a change now.

Taxi to runway two-two.

Runway two-niner is closed.

Air Canada ninety-niner,

move to taxiway Bravo immediately.

Emergency equipment

will pass to your left. Over.

Runway two-niner closed,

account disabled aircraft.

Two-two approach.

Runway two-niner is closed.

All right, we'll stay

with two-two with everything.

Global 10, Lincoln Tower,

cleared for takeoff.

For this food, your many blessings

and your bounteous goodness

we give thanks to thee

in the name of Jesus Christ.

Hello, Mel? I'm glad I caught

you before you got away.

We just lost runway two-niner.

A tail sticking out

onto the runway about 20 yards.

I don't know. Could be a long time.

All right. I'll go right out there.

Air Canada Flight 425

from Quebec will arrive at Gate 44-A,

the Green Concourse.

Bakersfeld.

Mel, Tanya.

How about some coffee?

- I just found something.

- I just lost something.

Runway two-niner.

Oh no. Snow?

One of your jockeys missed a turnoff,

buried the wheels.

- No one told us.

- It just happened.

Flight 45. I'm on my way.

- Any casualties?

- Just me.

There's bound to be a passenger

with a $50-wrenched back.

I'd better get there

with some release forms

and plenty of sympathy

and understanding.

May I ride with you?

- See you downstairs.

- Good.

Mr. Bakersfeld, white phone.

Urgent.

Bakersfeld.

Where the hell are you?

I'm on my way to the field.

We've got an emergency.

You said you'd be home at 6:00.

You promised me you

wouldn't miss this dinner.

You promised that a week ago.

A week ago, I didn't know

we'd have the worst storm in six years.

You've always got some damn excuse.

I'll call you back.

Let me take that for you, ma'am.

You'll be much warmer in the bus.

I'm sorry this happened.

Captain wants you to take off

as much weight as possible

then hook onto the nose gear

and tow it out with a tractor.

Buried like that, the nose gear

would never stand the strain.

That's what I told him.

I think we ought to use pneumatic

bags to lift the wings.

Could take most of tomorrow.

I want that runway cleared tonight.

Tonight?

Look, I know you're doing

everything you can

but if I can con TWA

into giving us Patroni, will you object?

No, Joe can have all the tries he wants.

- Mr. Bakersfeld.

- Yes?

Snow desk!

- Yes, Danny?

- I'm calling Patroni.

Stand by on mobile phone.

Roger.

- Hello. Joe?

- Hi, Mel.

Save your breath.

Danny gave me the poop.

Tonight I'm not available.

Joe, I need you right away.

I got 14 on the ground

and 18 stacked upstairs.

I've got our five kids

stacked away at my mother's

so that me and Marie

could be alone for a while.

Tell Marie I'm sorry

to louse up her evening

but I need two-niner badly.

Can't the Global crew handle it?

Well, they're having a conference

now to decide what to do.

But I need somebody who knows,

a genius like Patroni.

Hold the whipped cream.

I've just had dessert.

All right, I'll be there.

Good.

In the meantime,

give everybody a shovel

have them start digging a ten-degree

incline in front of the wheels.

Right. Out.

Joe, do you have to go to

work on a night like this?

They don't call them emergencies anymore.

They call them Patronis.

I suppose you'll be late?

I'll be back in time, if I have to pull

that plane out with my teeth.

What's this you found

I should know about?

Your brother-in-law was on

the snow clearance committee today.

My boss got a copy of the report.

I can guess what it says.

"The airport", meaning me, "has been

inefficient in snow clearance".

"Grossly inefficient".

"Causing flight delays"

"loss of revenue

to all airlines, etc."

Signed, captain Vernon

Demerest, Chairman.

How can he say a thing like this?

Because he's a no-good,

irresponsible louse

who can't pass up

the opportunity to knife me.

Global 1, Snow Desk.

Where are you?

Coming up to the ramp.

Commissioner Ackerman wants you

at the street side of the terminal.

- Trouble.

- I'm on my way.

Close Down Runway 22.

Close Down Runway 22.

Keep moving, please.

Keep moving, please.

Mr. Harold Porter

please come to Braniff

information counter.

They'll break it up soon and go home.

After the TV cameras get a few shots.

TV?

The lawyer they hired yesterday

arranged for news coverage.

That's all we need.

I'd better get in touch

with the other commissioners

and tell them about this.

Afterwards, we'll meet

in the boardroom, you and I

and see what we can figure out

to calm those people down.

I'll call you.

Mel?

Hi, sis. I thought Vern

was on Flight Two tonight.

He is.

You're sure here early enough.

Well, what with the weather

and the traffic

Vernon didn't want to take

a chance on being late.

But we just sailed right along.

Skycap 14.

First, I thought they were

pilots picketing you.

I was all set to join them.

I heard about your report.

Besides everything else

now you're an authority

on snow clearance?

I call them as I see them.

Then you're due for an eye check.

For your information, clearing

those runways and taxiways

is the equivalent of 700 miles

of two-lane highway.

Well, what do you know.

And I'll bet you measured

every foot of it by yourself.

We've also had ten inches

of snow in the last 24 hours.

Anchorage had twice as much,

and they're clean.

They've got twice the equipment.

Well, then get some more.

This isn't Alaska.

You don't spend an extra

two million dollars for machinery

you might use once in ten years.

You buy for the average snowfall.

When emergency hits you use

what you have

and you work around the clock.

Sitting behind that desk has made

you think like a bookkeeper.

I didn't always fly a desk.

Well, all right, Daddy.

Now, you tell me all about

when you were a war hero.

You flew those pursuit jobs

you could land in a parking lot.

When I'm setting down

over 200.000 pounds of 707

I want something under my wheels

that's plenty long and mighty dry.

It'll be dry tonight,

but not too long.

Two-niner's closed.

The pilot from your Flight 45

made a shortcut across the field,

and he didn't make it.

Well, what are you doing about it?

Well, when the snow melts in April,

we'll get it out.

What the hell do you think

I'm doing about it?

Now stop that, both of you.

You're right. It's a waste of time

arguing with a penguin.

Goodbye.

Have a good flight, dear.

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