It’s no secret that flying is often a big hassle. Sure, the reward of being whisked away to far corners of the globe is awesome, but with the TSA wanting even more of our information, we just want some way to get around the whole thing. That’s why we’re thinking about buying our own airport for the private plane that we don’t (just yet).

Up for sale just west of Ft. Myers, Florida is an airport on Pine Island. They’re only asking $1.6 million, and they are prepared to receive a bunch of random emails since it’s for sale on Craigslist. The airport features a 2,700-foot grass runway you'll have to keep well-mowed on about 19 acres of land; we might want to consider buying a Cessna rather than a Gulfstream.

If you act now, the owner is willing to throw in a couple extra perks; you’ll get seven hangars, a barn, a house, and a zoning permit that will allow for the construction of an additional 13 hangars. The owner bought the land in 2002, but doesn’t want to spend the rest of his retirement mowing all that grass. His loss is our gain, but first we need to head over to the Coinstar machine to cash in our change.

Related Stories:
·Pine Island Airport on Craigslist [Tampa Tribune]
·Craigslist coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo of a Slightly Fancier Runway: Joi] ]]> kjb 2009-06-30T09:17:20-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/1/22/144138/427

Got a couple bil lying around? Flaunt your wealth with a transportation portal that's all yours. London's second-largest airport is for sale, and while you just missed the initial bid deadline, it's still up for grabs.

British Airports Authority was ordered to sell Gatwick Airport after British courts ruled that the company's holding of three London-area airports constituted a monopoly. Six bids have been entered, including, as Joe Sharkey noted, a coalition which includes bailed-out bank Citigroup and who currently leases Chicago's Midway Airport. Other bidders include Manchester Airports Group and a German construction company.

BAA was expecting to get in the neighborhood of $2.7 billion for Gatwick, but the private bids are rumored to be more in the neighborhood of $2.33 billion. That's almost 15 percent off! Whatta deal! But the trappings we envision would be bundled with a personal airport are probably more fantasy than reality (no more security queues and in-terminal Starbucks only serves your favorite drinks, to begin with). One thing's for sure, we'd be a lot more optimistic if Richard Branson had entered a bid, as was the rumor last fall. There's always a first time to fly into Virgin Airport.

Related Stories:
· Sovereign wealth giant ADIA drops out of Gatwick race [Times Online via Joe Sharkey]
· Will Richard Branson Buy Gatwick? [Jaunted]
· LGW coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: johann-in-london]]]> egw 2009-01-22T15:09:12-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/