Akankah Pemilu Eropa Memperkuat Persatuan atau Membagi Kesenjangan Oleh Erik Norland 21 Februari 2017 Pemilu di Belanda, Prancis dan Jerman yang didukung oleh suara gemuruh Brexit dapat memperkuat persatuan Eropa atau memperdalam perpecahan. Lindung Nilai Ledakan Berikutnya di Obligasi Berharga Tinggi Dijelaskan Oleh Erik Norland 16 Februari 2017 Seiring Fed bersiap untuk kenaikan suku bunga, setiap percepatan dalam kecepatan pengetatan moneter dapat meningkatkan risiko penyebaran kredit yang membengkak seperti pada tahun 2007. Produsen Shale AS yang Efisien Tantangan untuk OPEC Oleh Bluford Putnam 14 Februari 2017 Dapatkah OPEC mengeluarkan pemotongan keluaran terbaru menjaga harga minyak tetap berjalan. Produsen serpih hemat biaya di Amerika Serikat akan memainkan peran besar dalam arah pasar. Futures Options TradingLove and loss Ketika saya mengatakan tomahawk, Anda mengatakan memotong Tomahawk Panggilan dan tanggapan di Atlanta Braves All Star Grill di Concourse D dipimpin oleh manajer bar Saundra Cage, yang telah melayani dan membangkitkan semangat di bandara selama 15 tahun. Di antara menuangkan anggur, bir dan margarita beku, dia bilang shes bermain terapis, terikat dengan pelanggan tetap dan menunggu bintang. Hulk Hogan, Jane Fonda dan almarhum Whitney Houston adalah orang pertama yang muncul dalam pikiran. Jika seorang musafir datang yang sudah minum terlalu banyak, Cage mungkin akan membuat orang itu memesan kentang goreng. Jika anggota dinas militer mengambil tempat duduk, dia tahu ada orang lain yang mau tidak mau akan mengambil tabnya. Jika pelanggannya kasar, dia mengingatkan dirinya sendiri bahwa setiap orang memiliki sebuah cerita. Cage pernah menghibur seorang wanita yang sedang terbang untuk mengunjungi ibunya yang sakit dan menghiburnya lagi saat wanita tersebut kembali dalam perjalanan untuk menguburnya. Lalu ada seorang musafir yang duduk di dekatnya pada hari Natal, putus dengan pacarnya melalui telepon dan memberi tahu pelanggan yang tidak curiga bahwa lencana memberinya hadiah sebagai imbalan pelukan. Satu pelukan cepat kemudian, saat pria itu berjalan keluar pintu, pelanggan membuka sebuah kotak untuk menemukan sepasang anting-anting berlian Tiffany 5.000. Cage tersenyum, mengingat dua orang asing lainnya yang pertemuannya di bar berubah menjadi sesuatu yang lebih. Pria tersebut mengundang wanita tersebut untuk bergabung dengannya dalam sebuah perjalanan ke Los Angeles, daripada naik pesawat ke New York. Saat dia bilang iya, dia membelikannya tiket langsung di tempat. Apa pun mungkin di sini, kata Cage. Tidak ada tiket untuk mengendarai Di tengah para pelancong dan pekerja adalah orang-orang yang tidak termasuk mdash terutama setelah tengah malam, saat bandara sepi. Polisi dan petugas medis menawarkan belas kasihan bersama dengan tangan yang tegas. 12 a. m. Di sini kita bisa membantu mereka Di bawah cahaya terang jam kaca dan krom, di atas kursi berlapis hitam, Mi Ja Choi sedang tidur, dua barang hitamnya ada di depannya. Polisi Atlanta Sgt. Vito Wallace dengan lembut membangunkannya. Permisi, maam, katanya. Mi duduk kaget. Shes mengenakan setelan garis-garis, tumit merah dan cat kuku merah muda. Dia memiliki mata hitam dan memar di sisi kiri wajahnya. Tolong simpan tas Anda di dekat Anda, Wallace mengatakan, mengangkatnya terus dan menggesernya di bawah kursinya. Dia tidak tahu bagaimana Mi terluka, tapi petugas telah melihatnya di bandara sebelumnya. Dia pertama kali muncul hampir tiga minggu yang lalu, dan ini adalah malam kedua berturut-turut tidur di atrium Terminal Domestik. Bandara ini memiliki aturan ketat tentang orang-orang selain karyawan atau penumpang yang menggunakannya untuk penginapan. Suatu saat bandara tersebut menjadi tempat penampungan tunawisma terbesar kedua di kota ini, kata petugas, dengan sebanyak 100 orang tidur di sini pada suatu malam tertentu. Bandara ini mudah bagi para tunawisma untuk mencapai sistem transit Atlantas MARTA, pemberhentian terakhir di jalur selatan. Tapi kemudian kota tersebut mulai menindak para tunawisma di bandara. Petugas membawa salinan kode kota yang relevan yang diketik di atas kertas ukuran dompet. Mereka menyerahkannya kepada orang-orang yang mereka lihat yang tidak memiliki bisnis di bandara. Penginapan, menurut hukum, berarti tidur atau tinggal untuk jangka waktu tertentu di area umum bandara untuk tujuan tidur. Tapi Wallace tidak meminta Mi untuk pergi. Dia tahu dia dalam masalah. Dia membawa paspor Korea Selatan dan sebuah SIM Georgia. Dia pikir dia mungkin terluka di Concourse F, Wallace mengatakan. Tapi dia juga mengatakan bahwa dia mungkin telah bermimpi. Wallace mengatakan bahwa dia mungkin menderita demensia. Tidak akan menendangnya keluar, katanya. Jika kita melakukannya, shes akan menjadi korban. Petugas seperti Wallace berpatroli di bandara dengan kewaspadaan. Di tengah para pelancong dan pekerja adalah orang-orang yang berada di tepi masyarakat, yang muncul karena alasan lain: mencari tempat berlindung di malam hari, melarikan diri dari situasi sulit atau mencoba mencuri barang bawaan. Veteran APD telah melihat beberapa hal gila dalam tiga tahun sebagai supervisor di bandara. Seperti pria tunawisma yang sedang sakit dan berlari telanjang melalui tuntutan bagasi. Atau orang lain yang buang air besar di atrium. Dia juga melihat hal-hal yang membuatnya turun, bahkan setelah dua dekade berada di kepolisian. Dia tidak tahan melihat ibu membawa anak kecil ke sini tanpa tempat lain untuk pergi. Tampaknya mereka bepergian, dengan barang bawaan mereka dan semua, katanya. Tapi mereka tidak. Jujur saja, lebih baik mereka datang kesini. Setidaknya di sini, kita bisa membantu mereka. 12:30 a. m. Sebuah peringatan, dan sebuah tagihan 5 Sekitar pukul 12.30, Sgt. Vito Wallace mengundurkan diri untuk menemui Petugas Jeanet Franklin dan rekannya, Petugas Willie Arnold, yang berpatroli di tempat-tempat umum di bandara pada dini hari di kendaraan stand-stand T3 mereka. Polisi Atlanta memiliki sekitar 18 dari mereka di bandara, bersama dengan sepeda kuno. Dia menemukan Arnold dan Franklin oleh loket tiket US Airways di Terminal Utara. Pukul 12.45 ketika Franklins melakukan radio. Saya mendapat 54, katanya. Itu kode untuk orang yang mencurigakan. Polisi mengira ada seorang pria kulit putih tinggi yang beroperasi sebagai pencuri barang. Itu tidak biasa. Ada pencuri profesional yang melayang-layang di sekitar daerah pendatang, menunggu untuk berangkat dengan tas penumpang. Tak lama kemudian, pengumuman dibuat tentang koper-koper bawaan yang tutup dalam lima menit. Franklin dan Wallace berjalan menuju area klaim bagasi Terminal Utara. Franklin melihat seorang pria yang terlihat acak-acakan dan bingung. Bandara hendak tidur, Franklin memberitahunya. Siapa namamu kartu MARTA oke? Nah, bawa Anda ke sana. Wallace mengeluarkan dompetnya dan menyerahkan 2 tagihan kepada Suleiman. Hal terakhir yang saya inginkan adalah agar dia tinggal di sini, kata Wallace. Dengan itu, Suleiman diantar ke platform MARTA untuk kereta ke utara. Dia menuju ke stasiun Bankhead, di jalur kereta bawah tanah jalur barat laut. Saya memiliki perasaan yang lucu dan akan kembali, kata Wallace. Petugas polisi berjalan ke luar ke pinggir jalan untuk mencari pencuri barang yang dicurigai. Pada siang hari, mobil macet bemper ke bemper, tapi sekarang bukan satu kendaraan parkir. Its a street sweepers heaven. Pukul 01.05, Franklin mengawal tersangka kembali ke daerah bandara. Hed sudah nongkrong di bagasi selama empat malam dan telah mengubah ceritanya tentang mengapa dia berada di bandara. Ini hanya sebuah peringatan, dia mengatakan pada pria itu setelah mengambil tembakan mug dan memasukkan informasinya ke dalam binder putih berkepala tiga tebal yang merupakan parade tersangka serupa. Dia mengatakan kepadanya bahwa dia akan ditangkap saat berikutnya hes mengambil seperti ini. Kemudian polisi menemaninya kembali ke stasiun MARTA. Tanda di pintu adalah indikasi bandara akan masuk ke mode shutdown. Kereta terakhir berangkat jam 1:18 a. m. Seorang pria yang hanya memberi namanya saat Suleiman menggesek kartu MARTA dan menuju ke kereta utara. Petugas Jeanet Franklin menjelaskan pengikat yang mencatat orang-orang yang diberi peringatan pelanggaran pidana. 1:54 WIB Mobil curian mdash atau hanya hilang Bandara bukanlah tempat kejadian terlalu banyak kejahatan, dan kejadian yang sama sekali tidak berbahaya seperti yang dilihat polisi di pusat kota. Terkadang kejahatan serius merayap di mdash seperti pada bulan Maret ketika seorang pria bersenjata membajak sebuah bus antar-jemput bandara dan ditembak oleh polisi. Biasanya, daftar itu tampak lebih mirip daftar detektif insiden yang ditinjau hari ini di pertemuan mingguan mereka: Sebuah panggangan merobek Buick 1986, sebuah ponsel curian, sebuah tablet yang hilang, kacamata hitam yang diambil dari ransel, dompet Kate Spade yang diambil dari Di dalam koper Minggu ini kami memiliki masalah baru dengan pencurian mobil, kata Mayor Lane Hagin, yang mengepalai kantor bandara untuk Kepolisian Atlanta. Gemuruh kereta MARTA yang lewat menggetarkan kantornya di Terminal Domestik. Sejauh ini, enam mobil telah dilaporkan dicuri dari fasilitas sewa di bandara. Kombinasikan itu dengan satu laporan minggu lalu, dan tidak terlihat bagus. Masih belum jelas, detektif mengatakan, apakah seseorang mencuri mobil atau masalah inventarisnya dengan perusahaan rental, yang harus terus melacak ratusan mobil setiap hari. Para detektif mengatakan bahwa mereka sedang menyiapkan pertemuan untuk mengetahuinya. Saya menghargai segalanya, Hagin memberitahu mereka. Bahkan dengan bantuan sekitar 1.800 kamera keamanan, bukan pekerjaan mudah bagi petugas untuk berpatroli di sebuah bandara dimana 58.000 orang bekerja dan rata-rata 250.000 penumpang melakukan perjalanan setiap hari. Its sebuah kota di sini, kata Hagin. Suatu saat, polisi mencari seekor kucing yang hilang dari womans di dalam bandara selama beberapa minggu. Akhirnya mereka menemukan kucing itu, Sgt. Kata Azie Horne, di suatu tempat dalam klaim bagasi. 8:15 a. m. Ini menjadi sibuk setelah sarapan Winston Bowers bekerja keras di Fire Rescue Station 32. Dia mendapat wajan dengan telur orak-arik, kacang, cabai, bawang merah dan kalkun tanah. Dalam panci api stasiun ukuran hes mendapat bubur jagung. Anda tidak akan kelaparan dengan saya, katanya. Ini tentang kapan kita makan. Setelah ini, itu akan sibuk. Segera Bowers mengumumkan melalui pengeras suara: Callin semua burung gagak ke palung. Selusin orang lapar mengisi burrito sarapan lezatnya, mencuci dengan jus cranberry yang manis. Paramedis havent punya waktu untuk membersihkan meja saat panggilan masuk jam 8:51. Cedera mata. Medic 3 mdash seorang ambulans berusia 10 tahun mdash menarik keluar dari stasiun. Letnan Jimmy Garner, 41, dan kru Sgt. Yappett Scott, 38, dan Firefighter Daniel Johnson, 34 mengelilingi landasan pacu saat mereka menuju ke Terminal Utara. Saat ambulans berhenti di tepi jalan, paramedis melompat keluar dengan tandu dan bergegas ke kantor polisi. Polisi Atlanta Sgt. Vito Wallace mengatakan bahwa dia memiliki seorang wanita Korea yang mengeluh sakit kepala yang sangat buruk. Namanya Mi Ja Choi, dan dia memiliki mata hitam. Scott mencoba mengajukan pertanyaan kepadanya. Dia mengatakan bahwa dia tidak bisa berbahasa Inggris dengan baik, tapi dia ingin pergi ke rumah sakit. Petugas medis memeriksa detak jantungnya, tekanan darahnya. Shes sudah lama berada di sini, Wallace mengatakan. Dia berusia 62 tahun. Wallace telah melihatnya tidur di sebelah kopernya di atrium pada tengah malam. Ini bukan kali pertama menghabiskan malam di bandara. Apakah dia seorang penduduk Georgia yang diminta Garner. Dia memiliki kredensial Georgia. Dia memiliki anggota keluarga lain di sini tapi dia tidak akan memberi kami informasi itu. Dia tidak ingin kita menghubungi mereka. Dia mengatakan kepada penerjemah bahwa dia tertabrak mobil. Tapi saya ragu itu berasal dari sebuah mobil, Wallace mengatakan tentang memar di wajahnya. Garner memutuskan untuk membawanya ke Atlanta Medical South di kota terdekat East Point. Rumah sakit terdekatnya. Ia juga dimana dia lahir. Usaha berulang untuk mencapai Mi atau keluarganya tidak berhasil. 10:45 a. m. Kedokteran atau pekerjaan sosial Setelah berhenti di rumah sakit, kru di Medic 3 kembali ke Fire Station 32, yang berada di samping landasan di dekat Concourse A. Tetapi pada pukul 10.45, petugas paramedis kembali ke luar pintu. Seorang karyawan di sebuah bilik taksi mengalami sakit dada. Terkadang kru harus merawat orang yang merasa sakit karena kegelisahan terbang. Terkadang, seseorang bahkan mungkin mengalami serangan jantung. Petugas medis bandara melihat contoh trombosis vena deep-vein yang lebih tinggi dari biasanya (bekuan darah di pembuluh darah) dan emboli paru (penyumbatan arteri di paru-paru) terkait dengan penerbangan yang panjang. Dan mereka juga harus menanggapi hal-hal paling konyol dan hal-hal yang membuat para pelancong bekerja. Jika mereka menggaruk jari atau mematahkan jari kaki mereka berpikir, Oh, yah, kita bisa menghubungi petugas medis, kata Sgt. Yappett Scott Seminggu sekali seseorang menantang eskalator. Eskalator tetap tak terkalahkan. Seseorang bahkan dipanggil karena kaki basah. Itu membuat frustrasi, kata Letnan Jimmy Garner. Orang-orang di kru sering mendapati diri mereka sebagai pekerja sosial dan agen layanan pelanggan. Seorang penumpang jatuh sakit. Garner harus memperlakukannya dan kemudian memesannya di penerbangan berikutnya atau membawanya ke maskapai penerbangan atau voucher hotel. Atau terkadang Garner harus membujuk seorang pasien untuk mengejar perawatan medis. Banyak orang ingin melupakan perawatan sehingga mereka bisa melanjutkan perjalanan kaki berikutnya, jadi mereka tidak melewatkan penerbangan. Tetap saja, ini adalah pekerjaan yang sulit, terutama di bandara, di mana kemungkinan kecelakaan pesawat yang berbeda terjadi setiap hari. Dari stasiun mereka, Garner dan krunya duduk di atas landasan pacu, melihat jet lepas landas dan mendarat sepanjang hari. Saat tragedi seperti terjadi kecelakaan pesawat terjadi dimana saja, yang jauh lebih sulit untuk tetap fokus. Pada bulan Mei, sebuah bus shuttle jatuh, melukai 16 orang. Rasanya seperti mencoba mengatur piring spaghetti, kata Garner. Scott menyelesaikan pemikirannya. Tapi Anda tidak bisa membiarkan pemandangan itu membanjiri Anda. Atlanta Fire Rescue Department Letnan Jimmy Garner berjalan ke aspal. Its kota mereka 12:19 p. m. Dia harus berada di permainannya Ron Levitz terikat ke lorong di luar ruang penerbangan AirTran. Seorang pria gemuk dengan pelari jarak jauh dan potongan rambut yang dipotong pendek, Levitz memancarkan energi. Pilot AirTran pernah bekerja di berbagai macam pekerjaan kantor. Aku benci itu, katanya. Terbang adalah cinta pertamanya. Ketika dia masih kecil, dia benar-benar mengalami dahan saat pertama kali melihat sebuah pesawat lepas landas. Tapi menerjemahkan cintanya ke dalam karir butuh waktu bertahun-tahun. Kompetisi untuk pekerjaan pilot di sebuah maskapai penerbangan besar sangat ketat. Jadwal terbang dan manfaatnya bagus, kata Levitz, dan seorang pilot bisa menghasilkan 200.000 setahun. Theres juga menyenangkan terbang. Pilot yang baik tidak dapat hidup pada saat mereka harus mengantisipasi apa yang mungkin terjadi dalam lima menit atau 10. Tidak ada penerbangan yang sama, katanya. Setiap kali saya naik pesawat terbang, itu membuat saya berpikir. Itu membuat saya mengevaluasi. Itu membuat saya tetap berjinjit. Kamu tidak pernah bosan Setiap kali Anda pergi bekerja, Anda menantangnya. Apakah dia pernah menghadapi panggilan dekat Pernah gugup di kokpit Tentu, katanya. Tidak ada pilot yang akan memberitahu Anda sebaliknya. Ada kalanya Anda memiliki situasi di kokpit saat ada sesuatu yang tidak beres atau ada penundaan terkait cuaca, seperti salju atau kabut. Anda harus benar-benar berada di permainan Anda. Pilot harus fit juga. Mereka harus lulus ujian kesehatan yang ketat setiap enam bulan dan mengikuti tes simulator penerbangan ekstensif setiap tahun. Levitz mulai terbang pada usia 19 dan tidak memiliki rencana untuk berhenti. Sebagian besar pilot di luar sana memiliki gairah untuk pekerjaan mereka, katanya. Jika Anda tidak menyukainya, Anda tidak bisa melakukan pekerjaan ini, karena Anda jauh dari rumah banyak dan ada begitu banyak hal yang harus Anda hadapi. Dia tidak akan memilikinya dengan cara lain. Ada beberapa hari saat aku terbang sehingga aku hanya melihat ke luar jendela dan aku merasa seperti orang paling beruntung di dunia ini. 9:30 a. m. Dibutuhkan T untuk tango Dengan satu tangan di ibu dan yang lain mencengkeram pegangan koper Barbie merah jambu, seorang gadis kecil berjalan dari kereta menuju gerbang T, meniraki apa yang baru saja didengar. Seperti tango, katanya, lalu melompat. T seperti di tango. Pengumuman tentang tongkat kereta tempur dengan pelari dibawa dari pemberhentian berhenti. Bagi beberapa orang, termasuk tiga wanita muda, mereka menimbulkan cekikikan. Lulusan perguruan tinggi baru-baru ini tidak dapat menahan diri setelah mendengar: Perhentian berikutnya adalah gerbang B. B seperti di bravo. B seperti di bootylicious mereka memekik sebagai tanggapan. Seorang wanita berbisik kepada pria di sampingnya, E seperti di gema, saat dia bersandar untuk mencium. Seorang anak laki-laki mengernyitkan alisnya dengan bingung sebelum berkata, F seperti dalam foxtrot Menjadi suara kereta bawah tanah bandara yang dikenal sebagai Kereta Pesawat bisa tidak nyata. Tanya saja Sharon Feingold, yang sekarang tinggal di Asheville, North Carolina, tapi mendengar dirinya kapan pun dia bepergian melalui bandara asalnya. Dia bisa didengar di Plane Train dan juga SkyTrain, yang bepergian ke luar bandara ke hotel, sebuah pusat penyewaan mobil dan pusat konvensi. Feingold, yang berusia pertengahan 30-an, adalah murid almarhum Paul Armbruster, yang suaranya dengan sopan mengancam untuk menarik mobil orang-orang di luar klaim bagasi Delta. Pertunjukan Kereta Layang, lebih dari apapun yang ada, mendapatkan perhatiannya di tempat yang tidak mungkin. Saya berada di sebuah konvensi geek, katanya, dan orang-orang meminta tanda tangan karena kereta ini. 2 a. m. Dalam klaim bagasi, kesombongan dan ketajaman William Talton mengikat vakum yang terlihat seperti ransel yang dikenakan Bill Murray di Ghostbusters. Siapa yang akan Anda sebut dia bercanda, memohon pada film-film terkenal. Rujukannya sesuai dengan area klaim bagasi yang terlihat seperti kota hantu. Its 2 a. m. dan bandara hampir kosong kecuali untuk kru pembersih malam. Seorang wanita vacuums di belakang counter tiket pesawat dan awak dua orang mengganti bola lampu di dalam perlengkapan yang tergantung di atas kepala dengan berat 20 kaki. Talton bertanggung jawab untuk menjaga 19 tas bagasi bersih. Dia menggunakan pahat untuk membebaskan barang bawaan, bungkus permen dan puing-puing lainnya yang menempel di bilah-bilah mobil. Dia menyemprot penghilang grafiti cair pada masing-masing mata pisau dan menggunakan pel untuk membersihkannya. Bau jeruk menembus area klaim bagasi yang luas. Rincian Talton Carousel No. 3 dengan ketepatan perhiasan yang bagus. Setiap Kamis, petugas bandara melakukan inspeksi. Dia tidak pernah gagal. Dulu saya bekerja sebagai supervisor layanan pelanggan di Sprint, Anda tahu, katanya. Mereka mengalihkan pekerjaan saya ke India. Itu lima tahun yang lalu, saat resesi terus berlanjut. Talton kehilangan rumahnya, mobilnya. Dia mengambil pekerjaan bandara untuk menghindari tunawisma. Saya melakukan ini karena putus asa. Dia bilang dia membuat 7,70 jam. Itulah yang dia buat sebagai anak laki-laki berusia 14 tahun. Saya tidak bisa membiarkan kebanggaan menghalangi, katanya dan kembali ke pekerjaannya. Penerbangan pertama tiba dalam dua jam. 560 karyawan bekerja untuk menjaga kebersihan bandara sejauh 57,75 ton, rata-rata dikumpulkan setiap hari Sumber: Bandar Udara Internasional Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Kelley Gregory beristirahat sejenak dari lantai pembersihan sebelum matahari terbit. 2:13 a. m. Seniman yang bekerja Tempat klaim barang bawaan Southwest seperti kumpulan film yang ditinggalkan. Tidak ada yang berada di balik loket tiket, dan lalu lintas di tepi jalan di luar menguap. Suara penyangga lantai memecah kesunyian. Bobby Williams secara metodis mendorong pembakar propana di atas lantai linoleum di dekat pintu masuk atrium. Tubuhnya ada di sana, tapi pikirannya ada pada iman dan mimpinya. Williams ingin berada di tempat lain lima tahun dari sekarang. Dia adalah pria yang lembut berbicara dengan pipi montok. Saya ingin memiliki layanan pembersihan sendiri, katanya. Saya hanya memiliki gairah untuk apa yang saya lakukan. Saya suka melakukan lantai. Saya suka melihat mereka bersinar. Williams menyebut dirinya sebagai teknisi lantai, dan hanya menjalani pekerjaan selama enam bulan. Dia masih terbiasa tidur di siang hari dan melewatkan waktu bersama anak laki-lakinya yang berusia 15 tahun, Bobby Jr. Dia melihat dirinya sebagai seniman, dan lantai bandara adalah kanvasnya. Beberapa pengunjung memuji karyanya yang lain berjalan sambil sementara ada dan memperlakukannya dengan acuh tak acuh. Iman Williams membawanya melalui penggilingan. Saat istirahat, dia menonton film-film Kristen di smartphone-nya. Dia menghadiri World Changers Church International, sebuah megachurch di pinggiran kota Atlanta. Dia penggemar pastor gereja, Creflo Dollar. Dia turun ke bumi, kata Williams tentang Dollar. Dia pulang ke rumah dengan banyak hal yang perlu kudengar. Saat aku pergi, rasanya seperti sedang bercakap-cakap denganku. Williams mengatakan bahwa imannya mendorongnya untuk percaya pada mimpinya. Ini memberi saya harapan bahwa semuanya akan membuahkan hasil dan mengajarkan saya untuk percaya pada hal-hal yang lebih tinggi dari saya, kata Williams. Jika saya mengalami hari yang buruk, saya hanya mengatakan bahwa akan menjadi lebih baik. Matahari akan terbit besok, dan semuanya akan berlalu. Dan suatu hari, Williams akan melukis kanvasnya sendiri. Petugas pemeliharanya Frank Edmondson memegang berbagai kunci yang harus dilakukannya. 3:52 Saya suka mandi kamar mandi Anita Daniel tergelincir dengan sepasang kacamata, bergulat dengan selang mesin vakum dan mengayunkannya ke kamar mandi pria yang kosong di Concourse T. Dia membalik sakelar, dan mesin bergoyang-goyang hidup, Terdengar seperti kapal tunda foghorn. Daniel telah membersihkan kamar mandi di bandara selama tujuh tahun. Its 3:52 a. m. dan shes jauh ke dalam nya 10:45 p. m. Sampai jam 6:45 a. m. shift. Aku suka mandi, katanya. Saya benar-benar. Its damai. Aku di sini sendirian. Bahkan saat dia dikelilingi oleh para pelancong, Daniel bisa merasakan sendiri. Pria akan sering mengabaikan tanda pembersihannya dan masuk ke kamar mandi saat berada di sana. Mereka bisa sangat tidak hormat, katanya. Saya seorang wanita Dan saya membersihkan kamar mandi mens. Saya tidak punya pilihan karena itulah pekerjaan saya. Mereka akan masuk ke saya, dan melihat saya dan langsung masuk dan menggunakan kamar mandi. Tidak ada hormat. Dan kemudian mereka melihat Anda seperti Anda menyerang privasi mereka. Dia memiliki ritual untuk menyalurkan amarahnya. Dia mengatakan pada pria kasar apa yang dia pikirkan tentang mereka setelah mereka meninggalkan kamar mandi. Saya hanya melakukannya secara pribadi, katanya. Aku hanya bergumam pada diriku sendiri. Dia tidak memiliki masalah dengan wanita. Beberapa orang paling baik adalah wanita, kata Daniel. Mereka akan melihat saya bekerja dan mengatakan betapa bagusnya pekerjaan yang saya lakukan dan terima kasih untuk menjaga semuanya tetap bersih. Itu membuat Anda merasa baik, agar seseorang memuji Anda atas pekerjaan Anda. Ibu Daniels, Louise, juga bekerja untuk cleaning service dan mengajarinya untuk melakukan yang terbaik. Ini bisa menjadi jahat, katanya, tapi aku biasa melakukannya. Dulu saya orang yang lemah perut tapi begitu saya mulai membersihkan kamar mandi, itu hilang. Pekerjaan itu mungkin tidak glamor, tapi Daniel mengatakan ada martabat dalam semua pekerjaan. Saya hanya tidak mengerti orang-orang yang tidak bekerja, katanya. Bagaimana Anda hidup sebagai manusia dan tidak bekerja Saya telah bekerja sejak berusia 18 tahun, dan sekarang saya berusia 52 tahun. Saya orang yang pekerja keras. 3:15 p. m. Dewa pria membuat ronde Frank Colladay mengenakan rompi neon-kuning dan oranye di balik jaket wolnya. Di bagian belakang, dikatakan Chaplain. Pukul 3:15 siang Dia mulai berjalan-jalan ke Concourse D. Di sini dia berperan sebagai orang Samaria yang baik hati, mencari pengembara yang sedang dalam kesulitan. Dia harus memutuskan kapan harus bertanya apakah ada yang membutuhkan pertolongan. Terkadang, ini adalah panggilan keras. Dia tidak ingin mengganggu. Pada hari ini, dia mendekati penumpang yang terlihat hilang. Shes mencoba mencari cara untuk sampai ke gerbang D23 untuk mengejar penerbangan ke Charlotte, North Carolina, dan kemudian ke Roma. Ayo, dia bilang, ikuti aku. Colladay sudah pensiun dari kementerian, meski masih menjadi pastor emeritus di Gereja Presbyterian Dahlonega, sekitar 90 menit di sebelah utara bandara. Setiap hari Rabu, dia turun untuk membantu di kantor bandara chaplains. Kepala pendeta, Chester Cook, mengatakan bahwa pekerjaannya bukan tentang iman karena ini adalah tentang layanan pelanggan. Beberapa minggu yang lalu, Cook membantu membeli tiket Greyhound untuk empat teman muda yang mobilnya disita. Lain kali seorang dokter datang menemuinya. Saya orang kaya, katanya pada Cook, tapi dompet saya dicuri, dan saya perlu mengeluarkan mobil dari tempat parkir. Yang lain memiliki masalah yang lebih serius. Mungkin mereka sedang dalam perjalanan ke pemakaman. Atau mencari perlindungan di bandara karena kekerasan dalam rumah tangga. Bagi 58.000 pegawai bandara, kapel antaragama kecil di atrium domestik adalah gereja mereka. Sama seperti tentara merasa lebih baik saat melihat seorang pendeta di lubang perlindungan, pegawai bandara dan penumpang menemukan kapel tersebut menjadi tempat berlindung di tempat yang memiliki banyak kesempatan untuk kegelisahan. Saya melihat seorang wanita tua di depan meja AirTran menangis sekali, kata Cook. Dia takut dengan proses terbang. Sebelumnya di musim panas, dia menangani kasus bunuh diri seorang penumpang di Terminal Internasional. Kantornya berada di sebelah USO, dan dia sering berbicara dengan tentara yang menderita stres tempur. Hanya dengan menggaruk permukaan, Cook mengatakan. Membantu 10 atau 15 orang sehari. Ada 150 lagi yang tidak kami bantu. Bandara ini sangat besar. Pada shift pertama Periklanan di bandara, dia membantu seorang wanita yang kembali ke rumahnya di China untuk memperbarui paspornya. Dia harus menavigasi birokrasi A. S. China dan Delta Air Lines. Itu sudah cukup untuk membuat cukekepek ini. 8:12 p. m. Dia mengutuk dirinya sendiri. Dia menyuruh orang untuk tetap memperhatikan barang bawaan mereka. Dia mengomel mereka tentang urutan asrama. Dia memerintahkan mereka untuk mengambil tulang lelah dan schlep mereka ke gerbang yang berbeda. Semua hal menjengkelkan itu bagus, sayangku, kata Tony Messano, dari Alpharetta, Georgia, yang suaranya bisa didengar di terminal Delta di seluruh dunia. 8:12 nya Dan pelancong ke Buenos Aires disuguhi pengumuman gerbang oleh Messano. Penerbangan 101 dengan layanan ke Buenos Aires, suaranya yang terekam memberitahu semua orang, sedang meninggalkan tempat pertemuan E seperti di gema, gerbang 8. Messano telah melakukan pekerjaan voice over selama 25 tahun. Dia mencatat jumlah, nama tujuan, dan surat gerbang sehingga setiap variasi dapat disatukan di komputer untuk membuat pengumuman yang diperlukan. Dia bilang, dia mengumpat dirinya sendiri saat suaranya menyuruhnya pindah ke gerbang. Dan dia mendapat bau mata dari istrinya sendiri. Mereka berada di Bandara Internasional Seattle-Tacoma, duduk di gerbang mereka bercakap-cakap dengan baik, saat suaranya terus berlanjut. Dia memberi saya tatapan seperti Stop mengganggu saya, katanya. Dan aku suka Yah, itu aku, tapi bukan aku. Hari-hari ini suaranya sedang diuji coba untuk penggunaan dengan teknologi serupa di sistem kereta bawah tanah New York City. Jika dia menguasai pekerjaan itu, dia berkata, saya kira ini akan melibatkan banyak kutukan dan teriakan di bagian atas paru-paruku dan bukannya dorongan lembut yang saya lakukan untuk Delta. Messano, bagaimanapun, bukan satu-satunya pengumuman di terminal Delta. Di gerbang alternatif, suara wanita berbicara kepada pelancong. Ini milik Susan Bennett dari Sandy Springs, Georgia, yang dulunya adalah suara Kereta Pesawat. Dia masuk ke pekerjaan ini di tahun 1970-an secara tidak sengaja. Dia adalah seorang penyanyi jingle, muncul untuk pekerjaan, dan bakat voice-over itu tidak ada pertunjukannya. Bennett, yang masih bernyanyi dan berada dalam sebuah band, diminta untuk mengisi. Kini suaranya terdengar di gerbang Delta di seluruh dunia. Dia juga bisa didengar dalam iklan, sistem GPS dan sistem telepon perusahaan. Bennetts mengklaim terbesar untuk ketenaran Di Amerika, dia adalah suara asli Siri, asisten pribadi virtual Apple iPhones. CNN mengungkapkan Bennetts mengubah ego awal musim gugur ini. Saya akhirnya berbicara kepada diri saya cukup banyak, katanya. Apakah dia pernah berteriak pada dirinya sendiri Tidak, dia menjawab. Saya tidak ingin menyakiti perasaan saya. 9:45 p. m. Kakak tahu di mana Anda memarkirnya. Akhir dari hari yang panjang bagi Laura Wilt ya, nama belakangnya memang dieja seperti bunga sekarat dan sekarang terasa panik. Dia tidak dapat menemukan tiket parkirnya dan tidak tahu dari mana dia meninggalkan mobilnya pagi ini. Ibunya menderita stroke dan dia bergegas ke Tampa, Florida, untuk berbicara dengan para dokter. Sekarang yang ingin dia lakukan hanyalah pulang ke Dallas di pinggiran kota Paulding County. Wilt memeriksa kantung celana jinsnya yang biru bangau. Dia melihat ke dalam dompetnya. Periksa kompartemen bawaannya. Wilt semakin khawatir saat bantuan tiba di Segway. Sopirnya adalah Timothy J. Watkins, manajer operasi untuk van kesopanan dan gerobak antar jemput. Dia dan dua lusin karyawan berlayar mengelilingi membantu orang-orang yang kehilangan stub parkir mereka. Di tempat dengan lebih dari 30.000 ruang, itu terjadi sekitar 400 kali dalam sebulan. Mereka juga memberi sekitar 500 loncatan mulai sebulan. Watkins memiliki sejumlah pertanyaan untuk Wilt: Kapan dia datang di jalan raya apa yang dia ambil Berapa banyak yang diparkirnya di rumah? Apakah dia ingat nomor mobilnya? Ada metode untuk kegilaan ini. Bandara ini memiliki sistem untuk mengarahkan mobil ke tempat parkir jangka panjang A, B dan C. Jadi mengetahui hari apa Wilt tiba bisa memberi petunjuk. Begitu juga kamera yang memotret plat nomor setiap mobil yang masuk lot. Truk dengan kamera juga berkeliling setiap malam dan memotret tag pada mobil yang diparkir. Jadi jika Anda memiliki pendaftaran atau mengetahui nomor tag Anda, mobil Anda dapat ditemukan di komputer. Wilt membuat satu lagi melewati barang miliknya. Dia membuang isi dua tas itu. Oh, tunggu, snap Wilt membuka ritsleting saku samping di tasnya dan cukup yakin, itu dia: tiket merah muda. Sopir bus shuttle Ron Dellingham membawanya langsung ke A lot. Sonata abu-abu diparkir di bagian 19A. Laura Wilt dalam perjalanan pulang. Harapan dan ketegangan 11:59 p. m. Tanda cinta John Mann merosot di samping tong sampah di belakang area pendatang yang dibatasi dengan tali, mengotak-atik ponselnya. Lalu lintas mengalir lebih baik dari perkiraan, dan sekarang hes terjebak dengan waktu untuk membunuh, menunggu dengan poster oranye terang di pangkuannya. Selamat Datang di Rumah Susie, tertulis, dengan saya hati U menulis di salah satu sudut. John pertama kali bertemu dengan Susie saat mereka berusia 9 tahun, tampil di sebuah sekolah produksi Alice in Wonderland. Dia adalah Alice. Dia adalah Cat Cheshire. Beberapa dekade kemudian dan benua terpisah, mereka terhubung kembali di Facebook. Mereka mulai berbicara setiap malam, lalu saling berkunjung di akhir pekan. Dia pindah ke Seattle, tempat dia tinggal. Dia melamarnya di Super Bowl Sunday pada tahun 2010, menggantung sebuah tanda di atas perapian yang mengatakan Will You Marry Me Dia bilang iya. Mereka sudah menikah sekarang, dan mereka sudah lama berpisah. Susies telah jauh dari rumah pinggiran kota Atlanta mereka hanya beberapa hari, membantu ibunya pindah ke Houston. Tapi John tahu minggu ini sangat sulit, dan dia ingin membuatnya tersenyum. Semacam ini bermain sepanjang jam di bandara tersibuk di dunia. Di tengah hiruk pikuk, kekacauan, arus lalu lintas pejalan kaki, ada reuni yang diantisipasi, mimpi yang ditakuti dan pertukaran manusia mdash mdash besar dan kecil sementara orang menunggu. Susie selalu menginginkan seseorang mengangkat tanda di bandara. Tapi John tidak pernah memiliki keberanian. Dia adalah penyanyi dan aktris yang terlatih, orang yang benar-benar tahu bagaimana bersinar di atas panggung. Dia adalah pengembang perangkat lunak mdash lebih banyak pria di belakang layar. Tapi kemarin, John memutuskan untuk menempatkan dirinya di luar sana. Sebuah kit glitter dan lem stick dan cut-out letters kemudian, inilah dia. Membuatnya mudah, katanya, tapi berjalan melalui bandara dengan itu bukan. Orang-orang menatap. Dia menghindari tatapan dan melihat ke bawah pada teleponnya. Sekitar pukul 11.45 siang. Dia memeriksa secara online dan melihat bahwa Southwest Flight 51 telah mendarat. Ia muncul dalam posisi, menanam dirinya di depan area tunggu pendatang. Dia menopang tanda itu dengan satu tangan dan menatap eskalator yang membawa kerumunan penumpang ke klaim bagasi setiap hari. Yang hampir tengah malam, meskipun, dan eskalator sebelumnya dikemas dengan orang-orang yang sekarang gulung sebagian besar kosong. Ada seorang pria dalam setelan bisnis, pasangan yang terlihat hilang, tapi tidak ada tanda Susie. John melihat gagang teleponnya lagi, lalu melihat kejauhan, menuju sebuah toko hadiah kosong. Tiba-tiba lautan orang melonjak eskalator. Susie melangkah dan mengembara ke kanan, mengamati rumpun orang yang berserakan di depannya. Melihat tidak ada wajah yang familier, dia berbalik ke kiri, berjalan beberapa langkah ke depan. Tanda oranye terang menarik perhatiannya, dan dia berhenti di jalurnya. John melihat ke arah lain. Tapi dalam hitungan detik, mata mereka bertemu. John menyeringai menyeringai Cheshire Cat. Dia berdiri, tampak bangga. Dia berjalan ke arahnya, berseri-seri. Saya membuat tanda Anda, katanya. Aku cinta kamu. 5:49 p. m. Menanti gaya Setelah melewatkan koneksi ke Omaha, Nebraska, Joanne Ford melepaskan kendali yang dia cantumkan dan masuk ke kursi spa. Pengusaha bisnis, yang bekerja di bidang perawatan kesehatan TI, sedang dalam perjalanan setiap minggu. Hari ini dimulai pukul 08.30 di Rochester, New York, dan dia memiliki waktu berjam-jam sebelum tidur. Tapi seperti pengusaha terdekat yang wajahnya ditanam di kursi pijat, dia belajar membuat layovers terbaiknya. Mendapatkan manikur dan pedikur di XpresSpa adalah bagian dari latihan. Ini tidak seperti dia punya waktu untuk memanjakan dirinya sendiri, setelah semua, saat pulang ke rumah di Honey Creek, Iowa. Mengapa tidak melakukannya di bandara Colin Lam, whos filing Fords nails, telah bekerja di toko ini di Concourse A selama lebih dari satu setengah tahun. Dia bilang dia sering bermain psikiater, berbicara dengan pelanggan tentang segala macam masalah kesengsaraan, hubungan snafus, sebutkan saja. Lelucon ringan, terutama mengingat orang-orang yang menonton penawaran bandara, sering beralih ke kritik mode. I just saw one today and said, Wow, says Ford, shaking her head at the memory of the traveler in 6-inch heels and a tight cougar-skin dress. Then she stood up and I said, Wow. And then she fell out and I said, Wow Another traveler, getting his feet rubbed one seat over, leans back and smiles. A woman fully reclined in a chair around the corner, getting her temples massaged, appears to be in a blissed-out slumber. People come in in a sour mood, and once they leave their whole disposition has changed, Lam says. We love bad weather. 7:45 p. m. Welcome home, Holly Planted in the arrivals lobby, a banner and loved ones await Holly Houston, 31. For a year and a half shes been in Brisbane, Australia, on a Christian mission with Operation Mobilization. Her mothers camera phone is poised, ready to capture the daughter shes missed as she comes up and off the escalator to see them. Next to her parents are friends from childhood, high school, church and college. All of them crane their necks and hold their breath, scanning the faces of travelers as they stream in. Finally, they release a collective squeal as she runs into their arms. 12:04 a. m. First-time jitters Kunyu Harun Henu is slumped over in a blue padded seat, 8,000 miles from home. He started flying 25 hours ago mdash and still has another day to go. The journey might unsettle any traveler. But for Henu, a 39-year-old pastor from Kiserian, Kenya, the problem is nerves. This is his first time flying. The planes trembling during takeoff is what first got him. The man sitting next to him sensed his fear. This is normal, he told Henu. Planes rattle during takeoff, and sometimes they hit turbulence in the air. After he explained, I was OK, Henu says. His plan was to fly from Nairobi to London, then Atlanta, then St. Louis before finally heading to Missouri State University to start his masters degree in religious studies. The whole trip was supposed to take about a day. But after a nine-hour layover in London, a problem with a passenger forced a two-hour delay on the tarmac. And that delay caused Henu to miss his connecting flight in Atlanta to St. Louis. Thats why he finds himself almost alone in the middle of the night in Atlantas massive new International Terminal. He cant fly to Missouri for another eight hours. Other travelers might have grown agitated by the snafus. Not Henu. No airline is immune to problems, he says. In life, people expect everything to be perfect. Thats human nature. When theres a problem, they want someone to blame. But things happen. Granted, Henu is exhausted and barely able to lift his eyelids. But he refuses to sleep. Who knows what could happen to his belongings mdash one big suitcase full of clothes and a smaller suitcase packed with books So the first-time flier sits and waits, making small talk with the occasional passer-by. 9:15 a. m. Happy any hour There are many ways to drive a person to drink at the airport mdash at any hour of the day. But under Georgia law, the person can only buy that drink after 9 a. m. Monday through Saturday, and after noon on Sundays. People are sitting here before 9 a. m. just waiting, says Atlanta Hawks Bar Grill bartender Brooke Hunnings. Its 9:15 a. m. and a man and his brother are having breakfast. Another man has already bellied up to the bar for a Bloody Mary. Sisters from Bogota, Colombia, wait for their connecting flight to visit family in Canada after spending three hours in customs. 10:20 a. m. Headed north, armed with tradition Chad Spicer is the kind of guy who thinks nothing of wearing cowboy boots, a hefty belt buckle and silver jewelry through airport security. I just take it all off and shove everything in a bag beforehand. But I usually need four to five trays to get everything through, he says, laughing. Hes also the kind of guy who looks completely at home sitting in a bank of empty chairs at gate C21, wearing a pair of dark aviator sunglasses while munching on a foil-wrapped Chick-fil-A breakfast sandwich. An artist and graphic designer, Spicer splits his time between New Orleans and a farm just over the state line in Mississippi, where several other artists live and work on their own projects. Each piece of art he wears has a story. His belt buckle bears a javelina in relief, recalling his childhood pastime of boar hunting. Its a family tradition on his fathers side, which includes Choctaw and Cherokee roots. An ex-girlfriend made him the silver ring with a druse meteorite stone. He lost it once at New Yorks LaGuardia airport, but someone turned it in. When he called to inquire about it, the person on the phone said he knew someone was going to want it back, and sent it to him free of charge. His older brother made the brown and white bracelet from carved wood and bird bones. Theyre close, and now that his brothers children have left for college he has more time to spend with Spicer, which is what brings him to Atlanta today. Hes connecting through Hartsfield-Jackson from New Orleans on his way to Minneapolis, where his brother lives. Theyve got a big hunting and fishing trip planned in northern Minnesota up toward Canada. Theyll use every scrap of whatever they kill, just the way they did growing up in rural Louisiana. 2:15 p. m. Flight-ready faces Its that time of the day when its relatively slow at the MAC cosmetics store in the new International Terminal, allowing employees a chance to try out new products and hone their skills. Today, theyre practicing layering effects with new eye shadow colors. Most of the time, people wander in to kill time without anything particular in mind, says the store manager, who declines to give her name, citing company policy. Other times, people pick up items they forgot. Do they get a lot of business Yes, she says. Youd be surprised. 6:15 p. m. Tending the flock Tim Ferrill, 33, gingerly navigates his way through the crowded gate at A29. Hes on crutches, his right leg in a brace. The torn ACL mdash courtesy of a soccer game played with his five brothers in Birmingham, Alabama, where his family was just visiting mdash makes this days journey more complicated, especially for his 28-year-old wife, Jodi. Theyre awaiting their second flight of the day, this one to Denver, and they are far from alone. In the area along the wall that the familys claimed, Jodis doling out single French fries to their five young children, with the fluidity and calm instincts of a mother bird. All under age 8, the two youngest sit in the bulky stroller, the one she loads up with all the stuff Tim cant carry. Small backpacks are scattered about, the responsibility of the older three kids, who are accustomed to pitching in. I know how to fold shirts, pants and shorts, boasts Seth, 4, before spinning around and squawking for another fry. With such a large brood, the Ferrills have a system. They face challenges one at a time, pack light and pray a lot, says Jodi. One thing that makes this easier is we home-school, adds Tim. The kids are used to being together. Theyve been on the road for nearly three weeks now. Once they arrive in Denver, theyll stay with friends for two days before road-tripping back home to Southern California. Weve got a 15-passenger van, Tim says. Room to grow. 2:20 a. m. For the love of a son Denise Sardinha wasnt supposed to be here, sitting all alone in front of gate F10 in the middle of the night. She should be asleep in her San Francisco home, getting ready to send her 7-year-old son, David, to his first day of school in the morning. Instead, she is 2,400 miles away, waiting to pick up her boy after a booking mishap sent her scrambling across the country. He was visiting his dad in the middle part of Brazil, says Sardinha, who is also Brazilian. Because hes 7, hes not supposed to have a connecting flight. Sardinha thought she had resolved that problem by paying a 100 unaccompanied minor fee, but after she booked she found out that Delta wont allow connecting flights for children under the age of 8 traveling alone. So she had to take two days off work from her housecleaning business and jump on a four-hour flight to Atlanta to meet her son and accompany him to San Francisco. David, meanwhile, had to miss his previously scheduled flight and wait another day. I wasnt happy at all. He starts school tomorrow, Sardinha says. Then I felt better flying with him to San Francisco because that made him feel more secure. Shes been sitting at the Atlanta airport for five hours, with another three hours to go until she sees her son. Before this trip, the longest shed gone without being with him is two days. Now, its been two months. She passes the time watching clips of the recent MTV Video Music Awards on her laptop. And behind the weary look on her face is the excitement of a mother who cant wait to embrace her little boy. 10:29 a. m. Father, son and an awkward bro-hug The middle-aged man wears a Columbia T-shirt, a shoutout to the university in New York. He looks at his son, whos heading off to college. The tall young man with the full head of curly hair wears a preppy collared shirt decidedly not like his dads. He looks at his father, a little unsure of what will come next. The father leans in and gives his son an awkward bro-hug. The young man turns bright red. Extended family stands around watching while his mother stands off to the side. Youll do well son, an older aunt says to him. We know you will, were proud of you, she calls after him as the young man snakes his way through the maze toward the security checkpoint. He tries not to look back. 7:35 p. m. The lure of those little noses Four grandsons await the arrival of Gayle and JB Franklin. A fifth grandbaby a girl is on the way. The Franklins son and daughter-in-law and their kids, all under 7, live in London. In a few hours, the couple from Lilburn, Georgia, and their six big honking suitcases, filled mostly with clothes for the children, will start their trip across the pond. Gayle and JB, who are in their late 50s, will visit with family in London, then fly to Italy, then head back to London before coming home. They figured three weeks straight would be too long to stay with their sons family. Like fish, wed start to stink, says Gayle. But right now, anticipation is building. She smiles broadly, thinking about their arrival and all those little noses pressed against the third-floor window. 11:15 a. m. Compassion mdash and a shared smoke Travel often brings people together in ways they wish they hadnt experienced. But at least Chiara James now knows that airline employees can be helpful. She had to miss her flight to find out. The single mother from Atlanta is traveling with her 7-month-old daughter and elderly mother. A necessary diaper change for the little one meant they arrived at gate D1A for an AirTran flight to Detroit moments after the door closed. And that door, despite her pleas, stayed closed. The gate agent whose job is to watch the plane push back from the jetway learned her story after he returned to the terminal. What he heard frustrated him. They pick and choose who they want to let on, says the agent, a contractor for Southwest and AirTran who didnt want his name used. It frustrates me because it happens all the time. He rebooked James and her family on the next flight to Detroit at 3:15 p. m. with assigned seats, not just on the standby list. Then, he escorted the family to Concourse C and joined James in the smoking lounge while her mother and daughter waited outside. Its just stressful, James says. But its good to know some people care and are willing to help you. 9:12 p. m. Three-shot friends Poor Brad. The guys been sitting in Buffalo Wild Wings Grill Bar for five hours. Five hours The New Yorker missed his connection to Indianapolis. With hours to kill, this spot in Concourse D seems as good as any. Earlier, it served as a makeshift office for a few hours, but he went off the clock. Thats when the boyfriend-girlfriend team of Zach Sperry and Kelsey Smith walked in. They came to grab a quick bite and a drink before heading off to Florida, but then Brad happened. Weve had three shots together Sperry announces from a corner of the bar. Thats what brings people together. Were new best friends Brad says, as they all laugh. Theyve only been here an hour and a half. Ive been taking attendance since Ive been here so long. 9:30 p. m. Heaven must wait As passengers pour off the escalators into the arrivals lobby during a busy night-time rush, Nar Lungali leans on an empty luggage cart, picks up his phone and starts dialing. She is not coming today, he says, talking with one family member after another. The case aide waiting with him from the International Rescue Committee just told him his older sisters flight from Chicago was canceled. The hot meal waiting for her in nearby Clarkston, known to some as the Ellis Island of Georgia because of the large number of refugees who land there, will have to wait. Fried chicken and rice. Delicious, spicy food, he says mdash the kind of meal that will make his sister feel at home, even more than 8,000 miles away from their native Bhutan. It was only two days ago that she called from Kathmandu and told him she was moving from Nepal to America with her husband and two sons. She was so excited, he says. He could hear it in her voice. Hes excited, too. He hasnt seen her in more than two years. He cant wait to talk to her about how old friends left behind in the Beldangi 2 camp in eastern Nepal are doing. Tens of thousands of Bhutanese refugees live in Nepalese camps. But nearly 80,000 have left in the past six years as part of a resettlement push to move them into better living conditions. Now mdash finally mdash his sister is among them. And hell come back to the airport tomorrow to welcome her. Standing here, watching passengers stream by, he remembers the day he first came to Atlanta more than two years ago on a flight from New York after leaving Nepal. The memory of the airport is still fresh in his mind. So many people, he says. He smiles, thinking of the way his life began to change that day, the way his sisters life will change now, too. For him, the difference between life in the United States and Nepal is clear. Its just like heaven, he says, and hell. How it works Theyre the invisible part of the airport, rarely seen but making it tick: They clear planes for takeoff, track storms, handle baggage, fuel aircraft and make sure that package you ordered online gets to your doorstep on time. Once you meet them, youll never look at an airport the same way again. 1:30 p. m. Feeding the beast Mike Ryan chomps on a stick of gum and clicks his pen as he keeps an eye on the Airbus A319 heading for Atlanta. Its Delta Flight 1767 arriving from Flint, Michigan. Ryan cant see the jet. Its just a blip on his screen in a dark, curved, windowless room 30 miles from the airport. Ryan is one of two dozen air traffic controllers at the Federal Aviation Administrations Terminal Radar Approach Control, or TRACON. They sit at radar consoles, their faces bathed in an eerie green glow. The Airbus is one of more than a dozen planes Ryan is tracking. Controllers here handle planes that are 4 to 40 miles from the airport. Theyre part of an intricate network that keeps air traffic moving mdash and part of the huge behind-the-scenes effort that keeps Atlantas airport humming. From controllers and ground crews to baggage handlers and a cargo cowboy, not a single jet could get off the runway without their help. If the nearby Atlanta FAA Center, which handles the entire region, is the highway of the sky, then TRACON is the offramp, guiding traffic to the parking garage mdash the traffic control tower at the airport. At least thats how the controllers here describe it. Even within TRACON, the controllers have different roles. Today, Ryan is the feeder, slowing planes down, lowering their altitude and handing them off to another controller, known as the final mdash who hands them off to the airport tower. A self-described aviation junkie, Ryan saw a newspaper ad years ago about qualifying for air traffic control training. He took the civil service exam, which led to a 22-year career path from the Bay Area to Southern California to Cleveland and, five years ago, Atlanta. He says he fell into it mdash and fell in love with it. Within 30 seconds Ryan issues directions to five pilots flying hundreds of passengers. Delta 1767, descend and maintain 7,000, Ryan says in a clear monotone. Two seconds later, he calls another A319, this one flying in from Little Rock, Arkansas: Delta 1733, descend and maintain one-two-thousand. Next an Air Canada jet: AC 4940, descend and maintain 7,000. In no time, Ryan goes back to Delta 1767, to tell the pilot to use another frequency to reach the final, whos sitting at a radar screen next to Ryans. The final will guide the plane to within 4 miles of the runway before handing it off to the airport tower. Contact Approach 1-2-7-point-2-5, Ryan says. Good day. Inside the Federal Aviation Administrations Terminal Radar Approach Control, or TRACON, Ken Hunihan monitors the systems that air traffic controllers use, including radar antennas and communication towers. 9:35 a. m. On top of the world Brian Wilante scans the room, then the horizon. A gentle wind is blowing from the northwest. Every few seconds a low rumble rises from below as an airliner throttles into the sky. Wilante is nearly 400 feet above the runway in The Cab mdash the top of the tallest air traffic control tower in North America. It offers a one-of-a-kind, 360-degree view of taxiways and runways laid out in sprawling ribbons. An 8-by-10 paper tacked to a console reads Todays forecast, followed by a big yellow smiley face. It feels to Wilante like this day will be on the light side, but its hazy. He can barely make out the white roof of the Georgia Dome, home of the Atlanta Falcons, 10 miles away. As a kid, Wilante cherished his Matchbox airport set and die-cast toy planes. Now, the veteran air traffic controller is surrounded by the beeping and humming tools of the profession. Hes one of more than a dozen men and women controlling the planes mdash and passengers safety mdash each shift. Theyre the chief guardians of all airspace within 4 miles of the airport, up to 4,000 feet off the ground. No shift here goes as planned. Every day includes five or six emergencies mdash from minor mechanical problems to in-flight heart attacks to infant births. Controllers here can quickly make a hole in the landing order, pushing a flight to the front while coordinating with paramedics on the runway or at the gate. At the center of it is supervisor Murray Storm, sporting a headset above his graying mustache as he hands out job assignments. What do you have Wilante asks. Storm issues Wilante his gig: directing takeoffs on Runway 1028, Atlantas newest. Stepping toward a console, Wilante puts on a headset and begins a carefully controlled procedure before taking over the runway. Wilante gets a briefing about which planes are about to depart, where theyre going and what commands the pilots have already gotten. After the handoff, the previous controller watches Wilante for two minutes to make sure he understands everything. Many of the pilots Wilante handles fly in and out of Atlanta frequently. They know his thick New York accent, if not his face. Theres a familiarity between the pilots and controllers, Wilante explains. Wilante radios his pilots on the airfield below mdash setting up for departure, guiding them on the runway and green-lighting each for takeoff. Wilante times the departures so the planes have a safe distance separating them after takeoff: 3 miles for most airliners, 5 for the larger ones. AirTran Flight 382, youre cleared for takeoff. Less than a minute later, the Boeing 717 is wheels up and headed to Baltimore. 4:40 a. m. Cans, tugs and dots Megan pulls into the FedEx facility amid the howl of aircraft engines and the tart smell of jet fuel. Megan is a plane. An MD-10, to be precise, FedEx Flight 1703 from Indianapolis. Every plane in the companys fleet is named after an employees child. Its a competitive process every time FedEx gets a new plane, employees can submit their childrens names. The winner is chosen by raffle. Megan may be distinctively named, but in other respects shes an average member of FedExs 670-strong fleet. And the system of unloading the plane is a well-practiced procedure. Even before the engines wind down, a giant lift makes its way up 30 feet to the airplanes cargo door. One by one, giant containers cans are rolled from the plane onto the lift, lowered to the ground and placed on a flatbed dolly pulled by a tug. From there the cans are rolled into FedExs 285,000-square-foot facility, their freight unloaded onto conveyor belts. (The floor is speckled with wheels and convex dots mdash ball bearings in the floor mdash making it easier to push around the cans, which can weigh 5,000 pounds.) From just looking, youd never know the variety of items on board. Its box after package after cardboard crate, each with an identifying label, heading to destinations all over Georgia. About 20 employees sort packages, load them into another set of containers and move those onto 18-wheel trucks mdash some headed just to the other side of the airport, others more than 100 miles away. From there, the containers are broken down again, their packages put on the familiar FedEx vans and sent out to offices, homes and businesses. By 5:20, the first trucks holding Megans freight pull out. 5:15 a. m. Move em on, head em out His name is Alfonzo Ward Jr. but everyone calls him Cowboy. Hes even listed that way in the FedEx directory: Alfonzo Ward Jr. (Cowboy). The name comes from his bowlegged stance. Every time a loaded truck pulls out of the FedEx facility, Cowboy hops in a cab and puts an empty trailer in its place. He does this 30 or 40 times a shift. If backing a trailer into a spot sounds hard, try doing it at a sharp angle in the rain. Cowboy has little forward space to work with, and so far this year Atlanta has gotten more than 50 inches of rain, well above average. But Cowboy knows how to do it hell celebrate his 30th anniversary with FedEx in November. You have to count on your own expertise in getting the trailers in the dock, he says. As soon as the driver pulls out, we have to get that trailer back in in a timely fashion so they load the next trailer. One key time is 6:24 a. m. Thats when all the freight has to be processed and the sorting lines shut down. Why not 6:25 What difference can one minute make A lot, says Kerry Mason, senior manager of ramp operations. After all, overnight packages are promised to arrive by 10:30 a. m. Say you got 800 carriers and they all leave a minute later, thats 800 customers who are going to be dissatisfied if they get it there by 10:31 instead of 10:30, he says. That one minute makes a big difference. At 6:24, the facility gets quiet. The hum of the conveyor belts has stopped. The chock-chock sound of cans rolling from place to place is diminished. Many employees have left. Of the four flights that landed this morning, only Megan is heading right back out: Shes being loaded with cans full of mail. (Yes, the U. S. Postal Service subcontracts to FedEx.) She takes off for Memphis at 7:30. The rest of the planes will sit on the tarmac until nightfall. Thats when trucks will arrive from all over Atlanta full of tomorrows packages mdash which will be sorted, loaded onto planes and sent into the air, ready for the whole process to begin again. 9:25 a. m. Building a brick wall Its not even 9:30 in the morning and already the sweat is beading up on Scott Lottis shaved head. Lotti, 40, is a ramp agent for Southwest Airlines, hoisting bags onto a conveyor belt that sends them into the belly of a plane headed for Austin, Texas. Another ramp man in kneepads scrambles inside to stack and secure them. Its a game of Tetris every day, says Lotti, wearing shorts, a gray T-shirt and an orange reflector vest. You got to kind of think of it like building a brick wall. Once a plane pulls up to a gate, Southwests ramp agents have about 30 minutes to unload and reload it before the plane heads off again mdash forcing them to work with brisk precision. The best parts of the day are being outdoors and enjoying the easy camaraderie with crew members. The worst parts are the sudden, unexpected dangers. Lotti says one co-worker was killed when he drove a cart into a planes propeller. Another was struck down by lightning. Then there are the superheavy bags, the obese, leaden kind that one man can barely lift without help. Lotti has seen bags tipping the scales at more than 100 pounds mdash twice the weight most airlines will tolerate before punishing passengers with extra fees. Southwest ramp agents must be able to lift 70 pounds. During the hiring process, theyre asked to lift a heavy bag if they cant, they dont get the job. Sometimes you wonder what people pack in these bags. You really do, he says. The worst offenders College students. Theyve got all those books in there. Lotti, not pictured, is a burly man and played football in high school, but like a lot of ramp agents he wears a back brace at work. He strained a disc in his back earlier this year. Other ramp agents have injured wrists, shoulders, knees. Its an unforgiving job if you do it wrong, he says. Ramp agents are acutely aware that they work under the watchful gaze of passengers peering out from windows or gates. We live in a fishbowl, Lotti says. Were surrounded by eyes. It keeps you on your task. 8:45 a. m. My first responsibility Michael J. Maier winds his way beneath the Boeing 777. As the co-pilot on Delta flight 110 to Los Angeles, its up to him to do an extra preflight safety check in addition to the one done by a mechanic to make sure everything is up to snuff. The captain is in the plane already, programming the flight computers and briefing the crew. Maier, the first officer, will soon join him. He looks at the engines to confirm that there are no oil leaks or nicks on the blades. He stands before the nose-gear well and examines the landing gear. The tires look good. The hydraulic lines are leak-free. The lights are in working order. Maier began his career as an Air Force pilot in 1982. He flew A-10s during the Cold War and was there when the Berlin Wall came down. After leaving active duty, he joined the Reserve before retiring from the Air Force. Hes been flying for Delta since 1991 and has been piloting the Boeing 777 for the last seven years. On his tie is a small commemorative pin, issued by the Air Line Pilots Association. It says, In Memory 9-11-01. God Bless America. He says he never flies without it. It reminds me that my first responsibility is the safety and security of the passengers and flight crew. 9:38 a. m. Cheers for a nervous newbie Sirprena Spearman is at the wheel of a tug. She only learned to drive it a week ago mdash now shes getting ready to push a plane back from the gate for the first time. Spearman is a ramp worker for Southwest. She started running bags for AirTran in 2005, but with the Southwest merger, all ramp workers are now required to handle every job. I was so excited to learn new stuff, she says. The pilots know shes a trainee and are patient as she rolls them back, a trainer at her side. It takes her a few minutes longer than an experienced driver, but she gets the Boeing 737 onto the taxiway by 9:43 a. m. mdash ready for the pilots to turn on the engines and move under the aircrafts own power. Soon it will be in the air bound for Seattle. As Spearman climbs out of the tug, shes greeted by cheers and applause from a dozen co-workers. I was so nervous, yall she says, happily accepting their hugs. 11 a. m. Boxes dont talk A thousand arrivals and departures. 640 workers. 500,000 square feet of space. 250 live animal shipments a day. 437 million pounds of cargo a year. To say Deltas cargo facility stays busy is an understatement. The airline handled 32 of the airports total 2012 load of 646,481 metric tons of cargo, making Delta the airports largest cargo carrier. Nothing stays in place for long 60 forklifts are always in motion, sorting pallets by destination: Buenos Aires, Tokyo, Johannesburg, Paris. Sometimes, though, a shipment doesnt make it. Thats where Shantay Small comes in. Her job is to figure out what went wrong mdash and where. It requires a lot of detail work. I go back and see what happened mdash if it was returned back to the shipper, or if it was something that needs to be rescreened, if there was no space on the aircraft so we had to rebook it I find out exactly what happened to get it moving, she explains. Small started as a passenger gate agent and moved to baggage service before coming to cargo. She prefers the freight side of things, she says: Its a little more flexible, a little less demanding, and not as, ah, contentious. I like to tell people, Boxes dont talk. 4:30 p. m. Keeping his eye on the blob Its a warm, sunny afternoon in Atlanta, but theres a problem on Fred Brennans screens: A blob of showers is affecting airports in Boston, New York, Washington and other cities across the Northeast. For all the sun here, that blob has been giving pilots headaches since early morning. Its really bogged us down, says Brennan, a meteorologist for Delta. Even though the rain is dissipating, were still trying to recover from it. While Brennan keeps an eye on the Northeast, his cubicle neighbor, Bill Thull, watches Atlanta and the Midwest. The two contribute regularly to Deltas five-day weather outlook, released every morning. Updates come every six hours and include red flags for flight paths around the world. Their forecasts are highly detailed, predicting exactly when and where storms will occur, down to the hour. Just a few feet away, dispatchers use the forecasts to tweak flight schedules, fuel orders and routes to avoid the upcoming weather. Delta says its the only U. S. airline that has a meteorology staff to create its own forecasts. Like a virus, flight delays due to the Northeastern blob spread across airports, including Atlanta. Passengers miss their connections, and when the weather clears, the resulting traffic surge in the Northeast will create extra work at their destinations later. Meteorologist Bill Thull follows developing weather in Atlanta and the Midwest. 8:32 p. m. Ups and downs An hour ago, Toney Frank was reminding his crew this is Founders Day mdash UPSs 106th birthday. In two days, if all goes well, his team will hit another milestone mdash 30,000 safe workdays mdash which will call for a party. Frank asks his crew members what theyd like to grill. Steak, they reply in unison mdash before bursting into laughter. The Atlanta air division manager shakes his head. What is steak he asks. Chopped beef. If they hit their goal, they plan to celebrate with burgers. For now, theres work to be done. His starting call is the cue: Dozens of workers in yellow vests begin to zip between planes. Semis arrive. Armored vehicles pull up to the jets with high-value cargo, better known as cash. Most nights, four UPS planes fly out of Atlanta three to Louisville, Kentucky, and one to Philadelphia. Its a small operation compared to the hub in Kentucky, but the pressure is real. Sometimes they carry something special, like live whales or terra-cotta figures most nights its mail, flowers, floor samples, lobsters whatever comes in from Atlantas workday and has to be somewhere fast. Packages are tagged, secured, weighed and collected in massive containers designed for the 757s, A300 and monster MD-11 that UPS is flying tonight. It takes this team 45 minutes to load an A300 scheduled to depart at 9:56 p. m. But with less than an hour to go, some packages arent on site yet. This is why you get this right here, Frank says, rubbing his bald head. This is pushing it, but hey, thats what we do. Some of the containers are being hoisted onto the empty jet. One by one, theyre locked into place. At 9:39 p. m. the final topside container heads up. A crew pushes it over the jets rolling-ball floor, and for the first time, the yellow vests glowing on the dark ramp halt. At 9:41, the container comes back out. Something is wrong. At 9:42 p. m. it sinks back down, away from the plane. At 9:46, the cargo door closes without the last container aboard. Glitches are real, says night manager Mark Ballman, but theres always a backup plan. In this case, the bottom of the container popped out just enough that it couldnt be locked into place. If its not secure, it wont fly. The crew couldve swapped containers or tried to fix this one, but they mightve missed their flight time. He had to make the call, and he decided this container could catch a later flight. So at 9:50, the captains paperwork is validated, and the door is shut. The plane pushes back at 9:52, four minutes early. But soon it returns. The captain realizes paperwork needs to be revalidated. This 9:56 flight is finally in the air by 10:15. One down, three to go. At 10:31, the second flight pushes back, and a little brown truck from somewhere in Atlanta whips into the facility. Theyre not done yet. 3:36 a. m. The Plane Train takes a nap This is one of the few hours when the sweltering tunnel is relatively quiet. Usually its a nonstop blur. As many as 11 trains mdash each consisting of four 18-ton cars mdash shuttle about 235,000 passengers a day from terminals to concourses to baggage claim and back in a matter of minutes. For now, the Plane Train is down for its nightly inspection. Thats when workers scour 4 miles of track for loose fixtures, faulty doors or the occasional cell phones, Barbie dolls or car keys dropped between platforms and trains. One woman left 5,000 of camera gear on the train, says Steve Poerschmann, the citys director of automated people mover systems. We have a very close relationship with airport lost and found. One crew inspects switches and valves that send the trains in different directions. Twenty-seven switches like this are inspected daily, Poerschmann says, gushing over the system like a proud father. Its more than just a horizontal elevator. Meanwhile, another worker shoves wooden objects between train doors mdash first a square stick, then a cylindrical rod. Hes testing various objects to make sure the proper sensors react in case anything say, an arm mdash gets stuck in a door. Still, Poerschmann says, the train has a reliability rate of more than 99. Pity the traveler who tries to walk from ticketing to Concourse F. The journey can take more than 30 minutes. The Plane Train isnt just a passenger convenience. It means the airlines get their flights out on time, too. Airlines schedule their connections based on the transit time between connections, Poerschmann says. The airport couldnt operate without the Plane Train. Echoes of war Sniffing and seizing 12 a. m. Light em up, up, up At the worlds busiest airport, people whose jobs involve searching, sniffing and seizing are at work every hour of the day. Some sift baggage for contraband others use dogs to find explosives. And out on the airfield, folks like Geoffrey Gaskin check for burned-out lights, dangerous debris and too much rubber on the runway. Its midnight. Gaskin talks into his two-way radio: Tower, this is Airport Whiskey 4-5. Please step the runway lights to step four. In a flash, Runway 8L26R lights up like a Christmas tree. Huge X signs lit by bright white lights flash on at each end of the runway, a warning to pilots that it is closed. And Gaskin, a senior airside operations supervisor, begins his slow drive down 9,000 feet nearly two miles. He inspects the center line of lights first, then makes another loop to eyeball the lights on the edges of the runway. Every light out here means something, he says. Two-thirds of the way down the runway, the lights change from white to red and white mdash a signal to pilots that theyre about to run out of landing space. With 2,000 feet remaining, the lights change again, to cautionary amber. Across the airfield, a total of 17,466 lights ensure safe takeoffs and landings. Gaskin and his colleagues consider this the big leagues after all, these runways are the premier field in the aviation game. Tonight his inspection reveals just two lights out, which he notes on his clipboard. The Federal Aviation Administration allows no more than 10 of each light system to be out. The agency requires U. S. airports to inspect airfields before the first flight of the day. Since the air traffic only slows down but never really stops in Atlanta, lights are inspected just after midnight and a search for junk on the runway (Foreign Object Debris or FOD, as its called at the airport) is done at first light. In between, Michael Giambrone arrives at Runway 8L in a yellow Saab hatchback transformed into a rubber friction-testing machine. With airplanes landing at speeds about 160 mph and then braking, the arrival runways collect a good amount of rubber. And too much rubber can keep aircraft wheels from properly gripping the pavement. The friction test must be done every other week, but removal is required only when two 500-foot sections drop below the required friction levels. Thats about every four to six months. Chemical treatments and broom-equipped trucks used for snow removal get the job done. 6:22 a. m. The longest (and wildest) flight The sky is still dark as Delta Flight 201 taxis toward gate F8. This Boeing 777, the second-largest plane in Deltas fleet, has just arrived from Johannesburg, completing the longest nonstop flight in the airlines global network. Large cans filled with priority bags are the first to come off, followed by the rest of the baggage and cargo. At the back of the plane, items checked at the last minute mdash bags and strollers, mostly mdash ride down a conveyor belt with pets that traveled as cargo. Dazed-looking dogs stare from behind carrier crate bars. Then come the guns. Its hunting season in South Africa, and judging by the number of high-powered rifles moving down the conveyor belt, quite a few passengers aboard this flight were on the prowl. Timothy Square is one of the men unloading the weapons, and he explains that they will be driven to customs and, for security purposes, put in the glass room off the international baggage claim lobby. Serial numbers will be checked to ensure they match passengers customs declarations. Then hunters will be called inside to claim their guns. You should see them. They look into the glass room like deers themselves. Square laughs as he holds his hands up, as if theyre pressed against glass, and opens his eyes wide in imitation. But what if the traveling hunters actually killed something Where does that stuff go Square shrugs. It beats him. Another worker chimes in: Hes heard that people pay big bucks to put their trophies in cargo. We gawk at a stack of large wooden boxes, many marked fragile, and wonder whats inside. Customs officers check the serial numbers of weapons that arrived on a flight from Johannesburg. About 40 to 60 weapons are cleared by customs at Hartsfield-Jackson on a typical day. 6:36 a. m. A search goes bust A customs officer pulls a pair of white metal bottles from a Texas womans luggage. One look at the label tells him this could get interesting. A naked man is pictured embracing an equally naked woman, her breasts conveniently obscured by his cupped hands. Macho Potenciador Sexual the label says. Its a Colombian aphrodisiac, but customs officers suspect it might contain something even more stimulating mdash narcotics. Traveling back from a trip to Colombia on a ticket purchased recently with cash, the woman has drawn the officers attention as a possible drug smuggler. Shes relatively small, they note, but rather busty. They wonder if shes hiding drugs in her bra. The officer, who asks not to be identified, places a few ampules of the aphrodisiac in a plastic pouch, then crushes them. The substance comes back clean. Its nothing more than the sex aid the label claims, but officers still arent satisfied. The whole story doesnt add up, says Stephen Kremer, director of Customs and Border Protection for the Atlanta port. A female customs officer is summoned to take the passenger to a private area for a more thorough search. It turns up nothing. She really is just busty. They clear her on to Texas. A customs officer authenticates passenger passports and visas. A customs officer displays a close-up of a fraudulent U. S. visa. 11:06 a. m. Symphony of movement In the vast Delta cargo facility, Quatian Allen, who goes by Q, gives Zera a command in German. Shes a German shepherd, after all. The TSA officer is testing her bomb-sniffing colleague. Zera zooms ahead, spinning and jumping, as Allen calls out commands in a singsong voice. The dog zeroes in on a pallet of boxes, circling it again and again. Then she homes in, planting her rump on the floor, announcing shes found the bomb test device. Suddenly calm, intent, Zera waits for her reward a black chew toy. Just a few minutes earlier, another dog, Sandor, was bounding away with his own Kong toy mdash a reward from Officer Davarone Jackson mdash after the Belgian Malinois found the test material. It may seem chaotic to a viewer, Allen says, but its a symphony of exact movement to me. 7 a. m. Scavenger hunt on the runway Normally its the job of professionally trained airport operations teams to inspect the airfield every day for foreign objects. But once a year other employees are invited to grab a pair of gloves and a trash bag and walk one of the airports five runways. Its called the annual Foreign Object Debris, or FOD, removal walk. Kevin Fuzell, an airside operations supervisor at the airport, is out on Runway 1028 when the walk begins at 7 a. m. Aircraft are like large vacuum cleaners, he explains, and debris sucked into the engines can cause everything from minor to catastrophic damage. You find everything out here. Flashlights left in wheel wells. Bolts that come off carts. An aircraft ran over a fox on a runway once. He grimaces remembering the mess. The runways are mostly debris-free this morning. Fuzell spots a red-tailed hawk overhead. Theres a lot of grass out here, he says, which means theres a lot of wildlife here every day. The red-tailed hawks come in search of rabbits. Sometimes he spots Canada geese. He points to a red tube near the runway. Its a bird cannon that can be set to blare at intervals to scare the birds off. (Birds and aircraft engines arent a good combination.) The FOD walk ends with a small haul: a handful of pebble-sized rocks found on Runway 1028, and small pieces of metal mdash ball bearings, springs and washers mdash pulled from the pavement joints on the South Cargo Ramp. Participants stretch before the Foreign Object Debris walk. 7:40 a. m. Body scrub or body blast A suspicious jar is found in a black suitcase bound for Miami and beyond. Could it be an explosive If youve ever opened your bag after a trip and found a note from the TSA saying its been searched, the search happened in a room like this one in the basement of the North Terminal. With bright fluorescent lighting, stainless steel examination tables and workers wearing latex gloves, this TSA baggage-screening room has the feel of a laboratory. This morning, nine officers paw through bags containing items that raised a red flag out in the general screening area. Over and over, they slide the bags off conveyor belts and onto the stainless steel tables, zip them open and poke around. An X-ray screen shows them what to look for. Usually, its a bottle or jar of some substance mdash Pepto-Bismol, say, or mulberry juice. Damon Mason, a wiry man in his mid-30s, unzips the black bag on its way to the Cayman Islands via Miami. He pulls out the suspicious item in question mdash a jar labeled shea sugar body scrub mdash and swipes it with a small swab. He then feeds the swab into a tabletop machine, and it comes back as positive for a potential explosive. Mason calls in his supervisor, who summons TSA explosives specialist Carlos Serrano, a 22-year veteran of the Atlanta Police Departments bomb squad. Serrano brings a portable electronic scanner and checks the body scrubs ingredients against a database of known explosive materials. This time, the test is negative. The bag is repacked and sent on its way. Just looking at it, I knew it wasnt an explosive, Serrano says. But its always good to double-check. An explosives detection system in the baggage security facility. The machine scans every piece of checked luggage to ensure its not carrying explosive materials. About 13 million checked bags are screened by the TSA annually at Hartsfield-Jackson. 7:41 a. m. Seeds of doubt Customs Officer Arrisia Sims pours a pile of fragrant Indian jeera, or cumin seed, onto a piece of white paper. Shes looking for evidence of Federal Noxious Weeds mdash FNW, to those in the know. As she sorts the tiny brown seeds, she thinks of what she could cook with them. But her eyes are peeled for tiny interlopers. She immediately separates out two seeds that dont belong. The cumin is all thrown out, joining a pile of seized beef, a bag of red fruit that smells like a dirty diaper and a head of lettuce that gave up a micro-sized bug whose identity stumps even the customs inspectors. All of it was seized this morning all will go into a grinder for destruction. Customs officers will conduct 151 agriculture inspections on this day. Officers write up what theyve found and send it along to Customs and Border Protection in Washington and to Agriculture Department officials for analysis. Their observations could lead to warnings to other inspectors about what to look for, or even prompt new bans on agricultural products brought in on flights from around the world. Sims, who studied plant science and biotechnology at Fort Valley State University, never dreamed shed work for a law enforcement agency. But, she says, she loves the job now that shes here. It does have one big drawback: She knows too much now about nasty diseases and pests lurking in the food supply. Going to the grocery store isnt the same anymore. 9:04 a. m. Who let the dogs out Where are the dogs Andre Sims crew has been waiting all morning for the dogs to show up to sniff stacks of cardboard boxes bound for Las Vegas. Time is running short. Its 9:05 a. m. and the flight is supposed to leave in less than an hour. Time for Plan B. The humans at the Southwest Airlines cargo center will have to step in for the canines. So pause the Avengers DVD in the break room. Hold off on the lunchtime cookout. Sims team of five begins processing the boxes through a machine known as an Explosive Trace Detector. They swab the sides of each box, feed the rectangular swabs into the machine and await confirmation that everything checks out. In just 10 minutes, the boxes are on their way down an ergonomically designed conveyor belt. At the other end, they are loaded onto Cart No. 22, a high-speed tug piloted by Oliver J. Long. He heads for gate D5, which should take 17 minutes, give or take a minute or two to flash his badge or wait out a blast from a jet engine. Long pulls up, right on schedule, to a teal and white AirTran plane and hands the boxes over to a man in an orange vest. Sims watches closely as each box is carried onto the front of the plane and secured. By 9:40, the last package is onboard. By 9:44, the cloth door is fastened shut to hold the boxes in place. This cargo is good to go, with 11 minutes to spare. Suitcases and duffel bags are still chugging up the conveyor belt at the back of the Boeing 737-700. Can this flight possibly make it out by 9:55 Sims shrugs: The freight did. 10:19 a. m. Nigerian Versace Its a heaping pile of luxury. Items with the best brands: Hugo Boss. Kenneth Cole. Versace. Hermes. Suits and coats and jackets and purses collectively valued at many thousands of dollars. Its all counterfeit. A clutch of Customs and Border Protection officers stands around the clothing and accessories, which have been laid out on a crate in the main warehouse of Deltas expansive cargo facility next to the International Terminal. The swag came in from Lagos, Nigeria mdash an automatic tip-off, says one officer. They just dont make these items in Lagos. Customs is a regular visitor here. Each day, officers study manifests and follow leads, keeping track of the countless goods coming in to the United States. They maintain a handful of vans with X-ray equipment, not to mention a K-9 unit to sniff out various banned, illegal or unfamiliar substances. Although drug seizures and terrorist threats get the big headlines, some material simply violates intellectual property laws. Looking at the counterfeit clothes, its easy to joke about it as the sort of thing that ends up being sold on Manhattan street corners. But the damage goes far beyond a companys trademark mdash or the humiliation of a fashion victim whose stitching comes unraveled at the first drop of rain. After all, a Hugo Boss suit or a Hermes bag can fetch hundreds or thousands of dollars. That money ends up in some criminal pipelines, says customs Officer Gladys Summerville. Its one of the ways that terrorists are funding their organizations and their missions, Summerville says. 6:49 a. m. Please dont pet the customs officer The 297 people just off the long flight from Johannesburg are waiting for their luggage. And Vince is making his rounds. Vince, as in Vince Dooley, says his partner, customs Officer Christyne Scofield, referring to the legendary University of Georgia football coach. Vince is a beagle, and Scofield is his handler. This beagle is serving his country, but hes not a bomb dog. And hes not into drugs. Vinces niche is agriculture. He sniffs bags for hints of produce and other items banned from the United States. Vince is Snoopy-cute. Travelers want to pose with him for photos. He might be the most popular customs officer in the airport. No petting, Scofield warns. Hed just want to sit there all day, she says. Vince ambles up to a blue bag dangling from Tammy Birkmires hands. He sniffs, then again. Hes found something. Whats in the bag Scofield asks. Its a giraffe bone, says Birkmire, who is from Pennsylvania. Its art, she explains. Thats allowed, Scofield says. Birkmire and her giraffe bone are free to go. 11 a. m. Waiting for the worst The five officers on the Atlanta Police Departments Bomb Tech Squad are busy training the fire departments emergency personnel at an off-site location. What happens if an explosive device goes off How do you get the 95-pound Kevlar suit and 25-pound helmet off an injured bomb tech Its like fileting a fish, says Officer Michael Payne. Theres an art to it. Payne likes to use food analogies. He loves to cook and had thought seriously about becoming a chef before he won a football scholarship to the University of West Georgia. No regrets, though. His experience as an offensive lineman mdash learning plays and practicing them over and over again mdash is paying off in his current job. Payne, otherwise known as Goob mdash only his mother calls him Michael mdash looks like an offensive lineman: Hes 6-foot-5 and 270 pounds. He works out for an hour and a half a day at the gym on the first floor of the pyramid-shaped building the bomb squad occupies just outside the airport. He tries to elevate his heart rate to 170 beats a minute to condition it for the time he spends inside the bomb suit defusing a bomb. If youre used to performing at a higher heart rate, it helps control the anxiety, he says. Payne hasnt had to tackle a real bomb at the Atlanta airport mdash not yet, anyway. But he practices twice a week to keep up his skill level. The training bombs are inert, but Payne insists its very much like dealing with the real thing. He wont give details but says, you know when you mess up. His real salve is humor. Payne and his colleagues have known each other for years. They eat together, they blow up bombs together and they laugh together. You have to, Payne says. You need levity for such a heavy job. Asked to describe his work, he answers: I like to pick things up and put them down. So far today, there has been no need to call in the bomb squad, a good thing for everyone. But its only 11 a. m. The day is young. Payne guesses its a million-dollar loss every time the airport comes to a standstill. But he is prepared with 8,000 hours of training behind him. In June, the airport evacuated part of Concourse D after an electrical explosion near gate 21. The bomb squad rushed over to check it out. The Army green suit looks menacing but really, says Payne, if there is a powerful explosion, the suit basically keeps your body together for a funeral. Its just like any other policing tool, he says. It has limitations. So why do this job I believe in good versus evil. 12:06 WIB The bug beat One of the better places to be at high noon on a hot, muggy August day in Atlanta is the U. S. Department of Agriculture inspection room in Deltas cargo facility next to the International Terminal. Cargo in the form of food or medicine arrives in temperature-controlled boxes called Envirotainers and gets special attention as it makes its way from a warehouse cooled by giant fans to the chilled inspection room. Once there, officers take samples, looking for pests, diseases and other organisms that could contaminate the U. S. food supply. On this day, officers are scrutinizing shipments of avocados and breadfruit from Jamaica, roses from Ecuador. The crops are ultimately headed for Newark, New Jersey. One officer occasionally squints through a microscope while another beats on the flowers to shake loose any insects. What if they set free some kind of horrific bug Could cargo turn into Contagion Parris Hawkins, chief of agriculture for Customs and Border Protection, brushes off such concerns. Its the potential, but its small, Hawkins says. A lot of bugs we get are like your Coleoptera, your Lepidoptera. That would be your beetles, your butterflies and your moths. 6:40 p. m. The daily grind Ginep. Mangosteen. Guava. Eggplant. Nance fruit. Ginger. Jocote. Grapefruit. Watermelon. These arent the offerings of some international supermarket. Theyre seized produce, destined for Customs and Border Protections grinding machine. Some items that need more inspection get sidelined to a nearby U. S. Department of Agriculture laboratory. Bigger items mdash beef, sugar cane or bags of food banned from coming into the United States mdash are hauled away. Everything else goes through an industrial kitchen grinder in a back room in the International Terminal. Tonight, agriculture specialist Lauren Lewis does the honors. Its 6:40 p. m. just past suppertime. Slipping on black gloves, she takes each piece mdash garlic, onions, rambutans, carrots and more mdash and feeds it into the whirring machine. With that, what might have been someones post-flight snack is reduced to mush. All in the name of safety. Life of one plane In hand: 12 boarding passes. The assignment: Fly AirTrans busiest plane from the busiest concourse out of the worlds busiest airport. One plane, six flights, four pilots, six flight attendants, 555 passengers, 1,864 nautical miles mdash and two reporters. As dawn breaks in Atlanta, an immigrant from Chile is arriving at the airport with her daughter to go see family in Memphis, Tennessee. A man in Minnesota is on his way for a vacation with a boyhood friend. A woman is headed to Florida to catch a flight for her sisters funeral in New Jersey. A young family prepares to spend the weekend at the National Sweetcorn Festival in Illinois. All of them will be transported on the same plane this day. They dont know each other, and their paths wont cross. But collectively, they tell the story of a global society on the move mdash and connections made in the sky. One jet, six legs 2:24 p. m. On board Name . Lillian Eversly Lillian Eversly was among the first passengers to board, but Eversly would prefer not to be making this journey. Right now, Im very emotional. Im going home to Trenton, New Jersey, to bury my sister. It was a sudden heart attack, so its not a pleasant trip for me. There were six brothers and sisters. Eleanor Culbreath, 69, was the second to pass. Lillian and Eleanor would take turns visiting each other. One year, Eleanor would come to Brunswick, Georgia, to stay with Lillian the next year, Lillian would visit her older sister in New York, where she lived. Their family home was in Trenton, where her sister will be buried. We were very, very close, she says. I feel a tremendous loss and void and hurt. The two didnt visit this past summer. When they last spoke by phone, they talked about their children and grandchildren. Eversly pauses, gathers her thoughts. I didnt expect to be going home for a funeral, but such is life. 2:24 p. m. On board Seats . 30A, 30C, 30D, 30F Names . Steven Spahn, Brittany Norris, Kyle English, Jessica Woodrum Ages . 23, 25, 27, 29 Brittany Norris is a bit jittery. I love flying. I just dont like the takeoff and landing portions. Shes surrounded by three friends, helping ease her anxiety. Theyre headed to Boston for a few days after finding cheap round-trip tickets. They met at a church near Floridas Atlantic coast, but theyre not exactly holy rollers, says Jessica Woodrum. Their main agenda: beer, baseball and lobster rolls. Thats all you need out of a vacation, right she says. Its not like were looking to go get wasted in the streets. Beer is wonderful Steven Spahn agrees. Yep, if we can end on that, thats perfect. Kyle English is looking forward to a game at Fenway Park. I finally get to unplug, he says. As the plane begins its final descent, Brittanys nerves kick in. A smiling Kyle motions that the jet is about to take a nosedive. A few minutes later, safely on the ground, the interior lights begin flashing for no apparent reason. Oh, my God, is this the Twilight Zone Brittany asks. 2:24 p. m. On board Job . Flight attendant Name . Shay Sanders Shay Sanders traded in a job at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan for flying in June 2004. Its been a life-changing experience, traveling and seeing the world. She had worked for United Airlines after high school for almost four years before moving to the insurance field, where she spent a decade. Once you work in the travel industry, she says, you get hooked. The travel industry makes you gravitate towards it. 4:22 p. m. Leg 5 6:30 p. m. On board Name . Linda Clemons A body language expert, Linda Clemons is headed to Palm Beach, Florida, for a black enterprise conference. She travels 20 days a month, and planes offer her opportunities for research. Ive got a world of people to be able to be my case studies, just to look at, and I love it in real time, Clemons says. When Im flying, Im just like a child at the holidays. Can a plane serve as a metaphor for our global society No matter where we are in the world, she says, the emotions are the same fear, surprise, happiness, sadness. But its so interesting to see how its displayed on a plane. Among her clientele are salespeople, lawyers, girlfriends, boyfriends or spouses trying to read their significant others. I have folks invite me over to be a human lie detector. Quick with a smile and a laugh, Clemons explains one of her tricks: I watch couples. I can always tell, if theyre sitting beside each other, if theyre in love because the way they sit will form a heart. If there is dissension or stress, I can see that. 6:30 p. m. On board Job . Flight attendant Name . Trina Holden Passengers tell her all the time she looks like Rihanna. Trina Holden has been a flight attendant for 14 years. She was aboard a Continental jet from Newark, New Jersey, to Los Angeles on September 11, 2001, when news of the terrorist attacks came. She was in the bathroom when her crew members knocked. I was like, Can I get a moment of peace They were told something had happened to planes in New York and that air traffic control was doing its best to find a place for their plane to land. They eventually touched down in Omaha, Nebraska. Ill never forget it, she says. Flying has definitely changed after that. It will never be the same. But at the end of the day it definitely beats sitting in an office doing a 9 to 5. I know that this is where I need to be. 6:30 p. m. On board Job . Flight attendant Name . Cherrie Providence A flight attendant for seven years, Cherrie Providence has been mesmerized by air travel ever since she was 10 and boarded a plane from Trinidad to New York City a stay that ended up being permanent. I wouldnt trade it for anything. Air travel, she says, brings us together. Because here it is, were in this tube and Im pretty sure if we were to do a survey, wed have people from all walks of life. Air travel has enabled the world to come together as one and to take you to different parts in such a short space of time. 11:20 a. m. How to greet a woman Vladimir Danaila holds a large bouquet of bright-colored flowers wrapped in red paper. He and his mother are waiting in the arrivals area for an old family friend theyve known for decades. The last time they saw her was six years ago in their home country of Moldova, more than 5,400 miles away. Where I come from, if you are meeting a woman, it doesnt matter if shes a girlfriend or not, you bring flowers, he says. Sometimes you dont even have money for the next meal. You always have to buy flowers. 5:36 p. m. The traveling pink box The bright pink signature box he carries makes Brian Setzler pop out against the muted backdrop of an empty Delta baggage claim carousel. The traveler has been getting attention for the loot all day. I walk through the airport and people are like, Oh, Voodoo Doughnuts he says of the hot spot in his hometown, Portland, Oregon. Inside the box are treats for the 20-year-old daughter hes come to visit, whos interning in a law office in Atlanta this summer. Lucky for her, the handmade doughnuts actually made it past salivating travelers. 8:32 p. m. Getting runway-ready Irene Atkins spends her time at ATL surrounded by bras, panties and body shapers. She works at the Spanx store on Concourse E. She likes to watch the wide eyes of travelers who gawk in the windows as they stroll by. But the shoppers who come in mdash her favorites being the older, seasoned set make her day. Her job is to help them feel good about themselves. She tells the story of one woman who strolled in, having never tried on Spanx before, and insisted on diving into the heavy-duty equipment, the super-slimming items worn by Hollywood stars mdash which can be a struggle to put on. Atkins knew this wouldnt go well, but the customer needed to find out for herself. I hear her in the dressing room saying, Help Help Atkins remembers. And she came out crying, Why do we women do this to ourselves Atkins says she was standing ready, armed with words of comfort and an age-friendly, less intense, body-shaping answer. 3:25 a. m. Finding peace and sleep Anna Rebmann arrived hours earlier with a mission: to find sleep. The atrium didnt work it was too noisy. A sign for the surely quiet Interfaith Chapel one floor up gave her hope, but it was closed. Then she spotted a security guard dozing on a bench by an elevator. If that area was good enough for him, it would be good enough for her. With the bike lock she always brings with her, she tied her two pieces of luggage and a guitar together so they would be hard to swipe. And then she settled in. Her wait is long. The Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, native arrived from Baltimore at 9:20 p. m. Her flight to London via Toronto doesnt leave until 11:30 a. m. So shes made herself comfy, a square cotton pillow beneath her head and a magenta cloak draped over her like a blanket. She couldve booked a hotel room, but she didnt want to bother. Whats a night in the airport when youre heading off to Europe for four months 1:40 a. m. Free parkings worth it A burst of people pours out of the MARTA station. Ollie Locklear Jr. and his wife, Lori, have come from Cedartown, Georgia, about 75 miles northwest of the airport. Locklear used to work for MARTA, and among the perks of retirement are free rides and parking at stations. So the couple always drive to the closest MARTA station to their house and take the train to the airport. Never mind that they had to catch one of the last trains of the night, putting them at the airport a full four hours ahead of their flight. Were going to see our new grandbaby, Lori Locklear says of their 5:45 a. m. US Airways flight to San Diego. So all this is worth it. 8:47 p. m. One more glimpse and a prayer A woman stands behind the main security checkpoint in the Domestic Terminal, craning her neck. She wants to watch her daughter and grandchildren for as long as she can. Theyre flying home to Richmond, Virginia, and that makes her nervous. You cant never be too cautious nowadays, says Ann, 65. So I sent them a prayer. Ann is heading back to Richmond, too. But shell travel by bus. Shes made the trip that way many times. I aint never thought about flying. Its faster, I guess. But I like sightseeing, she says. I guess I just feel more comfortable on the ground. Past the ropes, the TSA desks, the conveyor belts and body scanners, she can still see her daughter and grandchildren. They step onto the escalator and disappear. Only then does she walk away, stealing one more glimpse over her shoulder. 5:13 p. m. Mothers mdash and fathers mdash little helper As boarding announcements for a flight to Paris begin in the International Terminal, a mother serves up spoonfuls of pink syrup to her kids and her friends kids. Its Nausicalm, an over-the-counter drug to prevent motion sickness that like Dramamine can also cause drowsiness. Her husband laughs, admitting that they might be doing this more for themselves than for the four children. We were just discussing how much medicine to give the kids so they sleep on the plane, Jean-Marc Alfassa says, his French accent thick. As the two families make their way to the gate for their long flight home, Alfassas 4-year-old daughter, Camille, and her 3-year-old friend, Manon, bounce along. They hold hands and giggle not yet feeling what will soon hit them. Manon and her brother Tom, 5, pass out before takeoff. Camille soon follows. But Alfassas son Louis, 6, has other plans. Unfortunately, I have to say that the onboard entertainment was stronger than the syrup, Alfassa says later. Next time Louis will be treated to a double dose. 10:55 p. m. The price of perks The upside of working for a Delta Air Lines subsidiary like DAL Global Services Free flights. The downside Flying standby means Trevor Joseph, 27, is in for a long, long night. He arrived from Belize City nearly six hours ago. And itll be another eight hours before he can catch a flight to New Yorks LaGuardia airport. So with his red in-flight Delta blanket draped over him, he hunkers down, splayed uncomfortably across a bunch of seats at gate A19. Im not mad. I had an option to buy a ticket, he says, brushing his dreadlocks from his face. Ill just talk on the phone till I get sleepy. He pops in his earbuds and settles in. He doesnt have a lot of company, but hes certainly not alone. A family has claimed a corner several gates down, the children already sound asleep. 2:15 p. m. Off to DragonCon Young newlyweds Richard and Kristen Faith stand near the North Terminal baggage carousel looking travel-weary but relieved to be reunited with their bags. After all, you cant pick up a battle axe just anywhere. Theyve flown in from Albuquerque, New Mexico, via Houston on Southwest Airlines so they can attend DragonCon, the annual gathering of geek culture. Their luggage is full of costumes including a replica of an axe wielded by a character from Fray, the Joss Whedon-penned comic book which explains the six checked bags, plus two carry-on backpacks. Armed with what they need, the couple steer their laden cart toward the curb, a taxi and anticipated DragonCon glory. 8:06 a. m. Carrying faith home A pack of clean-cut and strapping young men dressed in ties and black suits is hard to miss. As soon as you catch a glimpse of the nametags pinned to their jackets each begins with the word Elder mdash theres no mistaking who they are: Mormon missionaries. For two years theyve dedicated their lives and energies to serving The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a rite of passage in their community. Now the men are on their way home to Utah. Some were in Salta, Argentina, the others in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Understandably, theyre excited but anxious about returning home. You wonder things like, is Facebook still cool anymore I asked my sister and she said, No, not really, says Elder Parker Jared Harmon, 21. Keeping up with family in the Internet age hasnt been too hard, but otherwise theyve been in their own worlds. Being a missionary is tough at first, but you get the hang of it after a few weeks, says Elder Greg Santi, 21. Before long, youre hitting your goal of six baptisms a week. Before they board, they graciously pose for a picture and offer to share some information about their faith. 9:50 a. m. Dressed for comfort Shauna Byrnes and her friend Ginger Cassidy both claim theyre dressed for comfort for their flight to the Dominican Republic resort town of Punta Cana. Laid-back and casual, Cassidy is wearing sweat pants and sandals from Target. With her dyed red hair, nose-ring and tattoos snaking up her neck and down her arms, Byrnes shops from a different aisle. Im kind of a shoe freak, so this is pretty standard, she says of her tall flowered platform wedges from Target, which reveal the dragon peeking out from her red pants. And yes, she swears theyre comfortable. 10:50 a. m. High-heeled essentials Sabrina Wilder marches to the beat of her own drum. A tattoo on her arm, Me against the mother-fking world, confirms that philosophy. Luckily, she works in a profession that values individualism, she says, laughing, as she rides the escalator to the Concourse C smoking lounge. The hairstylist from Chicago is on her way to visit friends in Montgomery, Alabama, in her first trip to the South. Shes sporting a pair of studded strappy lime-green heels with orange platforms that she bought during a trip to New York City earlier this year. Even when shes home, Wilder wears heels. I clack, clack all around the house. She feels naked without them. 5:15 a. m. Eating local, sort of Whatll ya have, whatll ya have Monique Wheeler hollers the signature catchphrase of The Varsity, an 85-year-old Atlanta fast-food institution, as bleary-eyed passengers whove just cleared security trickle up the escalators to Concourse C. Wheeler, 24, wakes up at 2:30 a. m. to make her morning shift here. Like passengers, she too has to go through security every day. None of the stores in the airport is independently owned local institutions like The Varsity or Sweetwater Brewery simply license their names to the concessionaires that run the restaurants. The Varsity splits a kitchen with Atlanta-based Chick-fil-A. Loretta Evans, on the Chick-fil-A end of the kitchen, doesnt have to ask her customers what theyll have. Shes busy making biscuits for the breakfast rush the store sells about a thousand a day. 7:30 a. m. How do you say over easy in Chinese The third order of the morning at P. F. Changs is Kung Pao chicken. Chinese for breakfast It might not be as strange as it sounds who knows what time zone a customer is coming from This outpost on Concourse A, which opened only the day before in an old Chilis space, is the first P. F. Changs in the country to test a breakfast menu. But the full menu is also available during all operating hours. Its an all-day affair, says Nico Roldan, regional chef for the Southeast. Theres not the normal after-lunch lull typical of nonairport restaurants, he says. Once were busy, we never stop. 10:47 p. m. Last call A customer finishes his drink just before closing time at the Atlanta Hawks Bar Grill on Concourse A. A delayed flight does more than strand passengers. It keeps employees on the job. Concessionaires are bound by contract to remain open until the last departing flight leaves the concourse. 8:15 a. m. Her first flight of the day Hi. Glad to have you aboard. Hola. Guten tag. Selamat pagi. Flight attendant Chasiti Anderson has five greetings for passengers, and this morning shes working them as people board AirTran Flight 10 to Memphis at Atlantas gate C12. Her broad, engaging smile provides an air of comfort. The job has allowed her to see the world, and the flexible schedule lets her be active in charities to help at-risk youth. I love everything about flying, she says. This is the first of three flights for Anderson and her crewmates today on board N982AT, a Boeing 717-200 with 117 seats. Among her passengers is Roc Howard, 51, seated in 29F. Born in Mound Bayou, Mississippi, Howard is the 10th of 14 children. He picked cotton as a boy in the Mississippi Delta, worked in finance at the White House and now works in finance at the Department of Homeland Security. The day of this flight is the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr. s I Have a Dream speech, and thats not lost on him. Ive been lucky in that Ive seen both worlds, Howard says. Working at Homeland Security and the White House, its a different, different world than what I grew up in. Hes headed home for a family reunion in Mound Bayou. He flies into Memphis and will drive the rest of the way. He hopes to get some golf in before eating up barbecue and tall tales with family. Itll be the first time hes seen most everyone since his mother died last year at 82. My mother raised us all on her own, he says. Even today, I dont know how she did it. 11:55 a. m. Life of a rocker Jim and Julieanne Goodwin can hardly contain their excitement about this trip. Everything seems less painful than usual, says Jim. Theyre on AirTran Flight 425 from Memphis to Atlanta, but their final destination is Denver, where theyll see their 22-year-old son, John, at the University of Colorado. Theyll be joined by their 23-year-old daughter, Anne, for a full family affair in the Rockies. The couple are from Tupelo, Mississippi. You know, Elvis is, too, says Julieanne. What would a flight out of Memphis be if someone didnt invoke the name of the King of Rock n Roll Flight attendant Tyk Phillips, 64, used to live the life of a rocker. From 1963 to 1973, Phillips played in a band that traveled the nation. After that, he promoted concerts for nearly a decade and then worked special effects lighting for rock bands for two more decades. Had a ball, he says. We did The Who tours. Neil Diamond. Barry Manilow. Journey. Rod Stewart. ZZ Top. You name them, weve done them. He started for AirTran in management before trading it in six years ago to do something fun. Now, he likes studying people on planes, striking up conversations and hearing their stories. As the flight arrives in Atlanta at 11:55 a. m. flight attendant Selina Menowski tells a young toddler that hes a cutie pie. He pouts and stomps off: Im not a cutie pie. She laughs. 12:42 p. m. Some things you just leave alone Dexter Kluttz, 60, is in seat 28F as AirTran Flight 163 heads to Jacksonville from Atlanta. He started his day at his home in St. Paul, Minneapolis, and now hes flying to Florida to meet up with a boyhood friend. Ever since they were 20, the two have traveled to fish and party. Their mancation delegation used to number six, but deaths have cut the group to two. Kluttz and his friend will drive to the Carolinas. The plan: deep-sea fishing off Cape Hatteras or Myrtle Beach. Theyve been plotting the trip for a year and a half. The thing about it is, the fish dont matter, he says. Its just basically about getting together again. It becomes more important as you get older. Their best mancation was in Germany when all six were still alive. What made that trip special Kluttz bristles, chuckles and mentions the unwritten rule of mancationing: What happens on the road stays on the road. Some things you just leave alone, he says. Lets just say it was a good time. As the jet reaches a cruising altitude of 27,000 feet, Keith Walker, 47, rests in seat 21F. Based out of Austin, Texas, Walker travels frequently for work. I fly 35 to 40 times a year, so you have to enjoy it, he says. The people I meet are enjoyable. You cant allow the frustrations of flying to be an issue. That just is what it is. Walker works for a nonprofit agency that helps put veterans with disabilities back to work. His life changed in 2009 when he met an Iraq War veteran whose carotid artery was severed by an IED explosion. The loss of blood left him with mid-term memory loss. For Walker, that meeting put everything into perspective in the blink of an eye. He left a job with a large defense contractor and moved to his current company, which employs 1,400 people, including more than 900 with a wide range of physical and mental disabilities. Our company mission is to create a job opportunity for every type of disability. 2:24 p. m. The saddest trip Lillian Eversly would prefer not to be making this journey. Right now, Im very emotional. Im going home to Trenton, New Jersey, to bury my sister, said Eversly, 61. It was a sudden heart attack, so its not a pleasant trip for me. There were six brothers and sisters. Eleanor Culbreath, 69, was the second to pass. Lillian and Eleanor would take turns visiting each other. One year, Eleanor would come to Brunswick, Georgia, to stay with Lillian the next year, Lillian would visit her older sister in New York, where she lived. Their family home was in Trenton, where her sister will be buried. We were very, very close, she says. I feel a tremendous loss and void and hurt. The two didnt visit this past summer. When they last spoke by phone, they talked about their children and grandchildren. Eversly pauses, gathers her thoughts. I didnt expect to be going home for a funeral, but such is life. At 2:24 p. m. AirTran Flight 339 departs Jacksonville for Atlanta, where Eversly will change planes for the long trip home. 4:20 p. m. The toddler express Immediately, something becomes obvious on AirTran Flight 164 to Indianapolis, scheduled to leave Atlanta at 4:20 p. m. There are at least a dozen kids under the age of 3, seemingly all over the place. This can strike fear in even the most experienced traveler: Will a screaming kid be sitting next to me All 117 seats fill up, too, the most full this 717-200 has been all day. Flight attendant Trina Holden mdash passengers tell her all the time she looks like Rihanna mdash takes it all in stride. Shes been a flight attendant for 14 years and was aboard a Continental jet from Newark, New Jersey, to Los Angeles on September 11, 2001, when news of the terrorist attacks came. She was in the bathroom when her crew members knocked. I was like, Can I get a moment of peace They were told that something had happened to planes in New York and that air traffic control was doing its best to find a place for their plane to land. They eventually touched down in Omaha, Nebraska. Ill never forget it, she says. Flying has definitely changed after that. It will never be the same. But at the end of the day, it definitely beats sitting in an office doing a 9 to 5. I know that this is where I need to be. 5:38 a. m. Name that town Louiza Goulart is overwhelmed. Its her first time in the United States. She and her husband, Silvanio Pereira Santos, have traveled 4,100 miles from their home in rural Goias, in Brazils highlands, to live close to their son in Austin, Texas. A retired couple, they are drawn to the United States not by the promise of work, or safety from oppression, but by the lure of travel, children and grandchildren. Everything is so big, Louiza says in Portuguese. She and Silvanio are looking forward to settling in Texas and exploring the United States. What do they want to see most Louiza scrunches up her face as she tries to remember a citys name. A pause, but she remembers. Boston, she finally says with a smile. 12:03 p. m. Seizing the spinach Korean Airlines Flight 35 arrives from Seoul, and David Pline and his Customs and Border Protection colleagues are about to have their hands full: suitcases brimming with exotic produce. Is this pepper Pline asks a Virginia resident who has just returned from his native Vietnam. The man isnt sure. Then Pline notices a bag inside a bag that seems particularly heavy. Is there anything in there Again, the man doesnt know, saying he didnt pack everything himself. Pline slices the bag open with a small knife. He finds clothes lots and lots of clothes tightly packed inside. And while theres plenty of food here, too, Pline doesnt find much else of concern. The only thing he takes is a single package of water spinach. The man walks away smiling, with plenty of other things left to bring home to family and friends. 12:49 p. m. Catching cows heads This was Diedra Dukes introduction to life as an agriculture specialist in customs: On her first day at work, a Nigerian woman told Duke there was a cows head inside her luggage. Sure enough, when Duke opened the bag she found decaying flesh and squirming maggots. It was an experience, Duke recalls, with a big smile and bigger sense of understatement. Twelve years later, Duke isnt getting her hands dirty in the same way anymore. At 34, shes now a chief in the agriculture division of Customs and Border Protection. She oversees a group of specialists with science backgrounds who are asked to detect minuscule pests, recognize all types of flora and fauna, and grasp how rules differ depending on where the goods came from. Humans arent the only ones assigned to this task: Numerous beagles and one Labrador prowl and sniff to make sure every item is up to snuff. Their work goes well beyond forcing a traveler to toss out her apple. These specialists think a few steps ahead. What happens if an invasive animal or plant species is introduced into the United States How about a pest that, absent any natural predators, gobbles up crops and chews through trees Dukes team is the first line of defense. Members need to have one thing in common: You have to have a love, a passion. Find that bug, that disease, and stop it. 10:27 a. m. Snakes on a plane Bugs, weird food, dirty laundry, mice. Tarra Rankin has seen just about everything go through the airport. She generally works in the oversize luggage area in the International Terminal. After nine years with TSA, the slight woman from Niagara Falls, New York, says little surprises her any more. You name it, Ive seen it, she says. But you cant be scared, even if it says its a box of snakes. Shes gotten good at guessing which suitcases come from which country. People traveling often bring food from home for comfort. The luggage from India smells like curry, she says. Italians and Spaniards like their stinky cheese. I dont mind at all, she says. I find it all very interesting. With the right paperwork, guns can go into checked baggage. Often, though, weapons turn up in carry-ons. TSA in Atlanta leads the country for finding the most weapons mdash 68 guns just this year, as of this August day. (By comparison, TSA officers at JFK in New York have found seven.) One guy even came up to me and opened his jacket to show his gun, Rankin says. He said he completely forgot. When that happens, I tell them what their options are and try to help out. The key to doing well in this job is to stay flexible and level-headed. 7:09 a. m. Boots on the ground Hunters and explorers often bring back more from their trips abroad than just memories and mementos. These can include viruses and bacteria that pose a threat to U. S. agriculture or health. To guard against this, customs officers spray down the boots of returning hunters with a disinfectant called Virkon S. Today, a wet, muddy mess collects at the bottom of a gray tote as a customs officer sprays a pair of boots belonging to a hunter back from South Africa. Its the same treatment military vehicles returning from overseas duty get, port director Stephen Kremer says. 1:17 p. m. The world comes to him Nick Sengchanh has been around the world as a flight attendant for Northwest Airlines. Now, as he sits in the Customs Hall, the world is coming to him. On this day, travelers from places from Aruba to Zurich file past a bevy of interpreters paid by the city of Atlanta and walk up to booths, where they are met by Customs and Border Protection officers like Sengchanh. To his left, people with U. S. passports stand in their own set of lines. He doesnt remember it much, but Sengchanh was once a newcomer to the United States himself. Born in 1968 to a Laotian father and Thai mother, he immigrated with his family in the mid-1970s. Their first stop was Nashville, before moving a few years later to Atlanta. Three decades later, Sengchanh is in many ways a Southern gentleman but one who speaks fluent Lao and Thai. As a flight attendant for Northwest, hed often help passengers fill out the paperwork they need to officially get into the United States. Asked to describe the best part of his current job, an answer comes easily: When a new immigrant is coming into the United States. However they end up in this country, he adds, Its like winning the lottery. Being a flight attendant was fun while he was single, but it didnt make as much sense once he got married. He followed a friends advice and applied for a customs job after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. He still travels the world. But nowadays, its for fun. Airports are gateways to journeys, not the final stop. But for 24 hours, we made the worlds busiest airport our destination -- and discovered a world with its own culture, marketplace and transit system, people who make it hum, even a taste of the exotic. In other words, much like the places we visit or hope to see. On August 28, from 12:01 a. m. to midnight, more than three dozen journalists descended on Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. We found moments of love and loss, hope and suspense, echoes of war -- both on the ground and in the sky. Its a city within a city thats a second home to 58,000 workers and a fleeting stop for the 95 million passengers whose nearly 1 million annual arrivals and departures earn the airport its worlds busiest distinction. We invite you to join us on our journey, presented below in chronological order. Scroll down to read the stories in order or tap JUMP TO at the bottom of the screen to move to a particular hour. laquo Leave chronological viewCBC Digital Archives Canada8217s Earthquakes and Tsunamis Beneath our feet, Canada is constantly atremble. Earthquakes shake the country about 2,500 times per year, most too small to feel. But occasionally, and without warning, the earths crust below Canada buckles and spasms to frightening effect. More dangerous are the tsunamis that such quakes can cause. CBC Archives looks back at notable Canadian quakes, fears about the big one predicted for the West Coast and scientists efforts to better understand the threat from below. Canadas Earthquakes and Tsunamis The Early Years of the AIDS Crisis In the early 1980s doctors began noticing rare cancers and infections striking otherwise healthy young gay men. Something was destroying their immune systems -- something fatal and possibly contagious. At first it was called the gay plague. Then others began dying: Haitians, intravenous drug users, hemophiliacs and heterosexuals. Fear, confusion and prejudice reigned as the disease eventually known as AIDS grew from a mystery to an epidemic. This topic contains discussion of a sexual nature. The medical information in the clips was believed accurate at the time of broadcast, but may have changed. The Early Years of the AIDS Crisis Recommended Author James Baldwin on being black in America In 1960, the novelist talks with Nathan Cohen of the CBC about the place of black people in American society. Arts Entertainment Literature Other Books and Authors Bargain retailers go upscale Zellers, Kmart and Honest Eds have begun competing with the traditional department stores for consumer dollars in 1987. Economy Business Consumer Goods Consumers Products Tommy Douglas8217s story of Mouseland: A political allegory Life was tougher than ever in Mouseland until a little mouse came forward with a big idea. Politics Parties Leaders Tommy Douglas and the NDP Three-day blizzard seals Manitoba8217s fate before 1997 flood The people of southern Manitoba fear the flood of the century. Environment Extreme Weather Red River Rising: Manitoba Floods 1993: Canadian peacekeepers bid farewell to Cyprus After 29 years of service, Canadas Blue Berets prepare to leave the Mediterranean hotspot for good. War Conflict Peacekeeping Peacekeeper to the World Interstellar communication: the search for life beyond Earth Scientists discuss how we should look beyond our solar system for signs of intelligent life in 1965. Science Technology Space Space Astronauts On This Day Connect with us
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