CLT attraction unveils final piece
ALSO READ: Sullenberger Aviation Museum takes shape at CLT as fundraising hits target
On Wednesday morning, museum and airport executives opened the 11,000-square-foot, $1.5 million addition to media for a sneak preview. The addition is housed in what's known as the 1936 Historic Hangar, built as a Works Progress Administration project and refurbished to house a history of Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) chronicling a century of aviation. The hangar was designated as a Historic Landmark in 2002.
In June 2024, the main gallery and other museum features opened, concentrating on aviation innovation and its impact on society and the region.
Stephen Saucier, the museum's CEO, told CBJ that the opening of Aviation City completes the campus, though there will always be updates and tweaks.
Read more and check out photos on CBJ's website here.
VIDEO: Passenger from Miracle on the Hudson shares story from famous flight
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New York Post
22-07-2025
- New York Post
These die-hard New Yorkers dedicate their lives to showing tourists the best of the Big Apple — and they have no plans to stop
All aboard! These die-hard New Yorkers have spent decades doing what most would find unthinkable — showing tourists the sights of the Big Apple. This year, Circle Line Cruises celebrates 80 years of sailing around Manhattan. Many of the workers have been boarding the boats for nearly that long — and they wouldn't trade their jobs for anything. Advertisement 28 'Our route showcases the greatest city in the world,' a proud Captain Kenneth Corcoran (above) told The Post. Tamara Beckwith 28 The sightseeing company offers several cruises from Pier 83 on Manhattan's west side and Pier 16 at South Street Seaport. Tamara Beckwith 'The city is just electric. It's just exciting,' Captain Kenneth Corcoran recently told The Post about cruising through his career. 'And you feel that energy from the passengers that come aboard, too. It doesn't get boring at all.' Advertisement It's not a tourist trap: it's a family business. Corcoran — aka Captain Kenny — as well as Senior Deckhand Richard 'Richie' Redmond, Captain Joe Volini (Captain Joe), Tour Guide Chris Mason and Senior Port Captain Mike Duffy (Captain Duffy) have all grown up on the boats. They began by visiting their dads, uncles, cousins and brothers on the job, then worked alongside them and eventually moved up the ranks to run the operation. 28 Over the years, the cruise line — shown circa 1965 — has become known as the city's top boating company, hosting over 80 million passengers on cruises around Manhattan. Getty Images Advertisement 28 The company has become a family business for many with generations of men working alongside their fathers, uncles, brothers and cousins. Shown above is Mark Bodal, then 8, who was honored by Captain Pat Patten as the 40 millionth passenger on the Circle Line on May 23, 1988. New York Post 28 The boats have also come to the rescue on countless occasions, including Sept. 11, 2001. AP Circle Line Cruises is more than just a boat tour — with crews helping to shuttle thousands of people to safety during 9/11, as well as bringing police and firefighters to downed US Airways Flight 1549 during the 2009 'Miracle on the Hudson.' But whether they're taking in the same skyline for decades or helping a city in need, these seafarers insist it's always a special trip. Advertisement 'Our route showcases the greatest city in the world,' a proud Corcoran said. Captain Kenneth Corcoran, 62 28 Captain Kenneth Corcoran (left) was recommended for the job by his uncle and godfather, Kevin Reynolds (right). Courtesy Circle Line Kenneth Corcoran's uncle Maurice started with Circle Line in 1956 after emigrating from Ireland and securing jobs for his two brothers and nine nephews. Corcoran was recommended for the job by his uncle and godfather, Kevin Reynolds — making it 10 cousins in total. In May 1983, at age 19, the younger Corcoran began as a pier hand and worked up to captain in 1992 when he was 29 years old. He's the last family member still with Circle Line, which he calls 'Broadway on the Hudson' for its 'magical' scenes from the Statue of Liberty and iconic skyline to views of the Brooklyn Bridge. 'We're showing off the city,' he said, 'and the city sells itself.' 28 Corcoran started as a pier hand and worked up to captain in 1992 when he was 29 years old. Tamara Beckwith 28 The captain calls it 'Broadway on the Hudson' for its 'magical' scenes from the Statue of Liberty and iconic skyline. UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Advertisement He also recalls many 'special moments' onboard, like marriage proposals, anniversaries and renewed wedding vows. Corcoran reminisced about a time he photographed a couple — who originally met on a cruise — celebrating their 25th anniversary. That same duo was back to celebrate their 50th and Corcoran was once again there to photograph their milestone. 'Meeting all these people from all over the world, that's why I continue working here,' he said. 28 A Circle Line ship sits dockside in August 1971. The company has been in business for 80 years. New York Post Advertisement But one of his favorite moments is 'the focal point of every trip' — the Statue of Liberty, an especially emotional view for him. 'That's the first sight my mom had seen when she came to this country as an immigrant [from Leitrim, Ireland, by ship],' Corcoran shared, 'so it means that much more to me.' Senior Deckhand Richard 'Richie' Redmond, 64 28 Richard 'Richie' Redmond has worked for Circle Line for nearly 50 years. Tamara Beckwith Advertisement Richard Redmond has worked for Circle Line for 46 years. He confessed to The Post that when he applied for the job, he told them he was 18, not 17. 'Eh, they can't fire me,' he said with a laugh. Redmond was trained by his father, Richard Sr., a senior Circle Line deckhand, and commuted with him every morning on the 1 train from their home in the Bronx. 'He really taught me a lot: how to do things and respect people,' Redmond noted. Advertisement 28 The ashes of Redmond's father were spread by the Statue of Liberty. Paul Martinka His father was with the boat line until the end; he died from a heart attack in his car in the pier parking lot about 30 years ago. He was 55 years old. 'I tell people I see my father every day because his ashes are in the water at the Statue of Liberty,' he said, before joking, 'I tell people I run him over every day.' Stepping into his dad's shoes, Redmond warmly greets every guest, including celebrities, like George Clooney, Jane Fonda, Michelle Pfeiffer and former Speaker of the House Thomas P. 'Tip' O'Neill Jr. Redmond was also working on the morning of Jan. 15, 2009, when the 'Miracle on the Hudson' jet hit a flock of geese and lost power, forcing pilot Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger to famously land on the river. 28 The Circle Line crew stepped in to help on the morning of Jan. 15, 2009, when the 'Miracle on the Hudson' jet hit a flock of geese and lost power, before landing on the river. AP From the pier, Redmond looked out onto the water and saw people crowded on the downed jet's wings. 'It looked like they were waiting for a New York City bus to come and pick them up,' he marveled. Senior Port Captain Mike Duffy, 69 28 Mike Duffy started as a ticket seller (above) at age 18, right out of high school on June 1, 1974. Mike Duffy — who started as a ticket seller at age 18, right out of high school in 1974 — had been promoted to senior port captain only a few weeks prior when he helped coordinate the spectacular Hudson River rescue. Duffy and Redmond took firemen, police, EMTs and divers to the plane, and the boat's main deck was used for medical triage, staying with the aircraft for about three hours. Later, the crew received handwritten thank-you letters from Captain Sully. 'Every day is an adventure,' Duffy, whose father also was a captain, told The Post. 'You don't know what's around the corner.' 28 Mike Duffy's father, John Duffy (above) — who was also a Circle Line Cruise captain — told his son he'd have to give him all the 'crappy' jobs if they worked together. 28 The father and son duo would visit each other at work to sail together, as seen in this undated photo. 28 As senior port captain, Duffy now serves as the top dog. Tamara Beckwith In 1980, at age 22, Duffy became a captain himself and now manages the operation, with plans to stick around for another nine years and retire after a solid 60 years on the job. 'If you enjoy working, you never work a day in your life. And that's why it was easy to be here for 51 years,' Duffy said. Captain Joe Volini, 55 28 Joe Volini (left) worked on the boats alongside his dad, Joseph Volini Sr., and an uncle, cousins and his twin brother (right), who all worked on the boats at some point. Casey Collette Joe Volini has spent nearly his whole life on Circle Line Cruises, and his father Joseph Volini Sr., uncle, cousins and brother all worked on the boats at some point. Now, he's the last one onboard. 'My father used to tell everybody, 'He's going to be here one day, and he'll be the captain,'' said Volini, who has been with Circle Line Cruises for 38 years — 26 of those commanding the bridge. 28 Following in his father's steps, Joe Volini became a captain 26 years ago. Tamara Beckwith 28 'My father used to tell everybody, 'He's going to be here one day, and he'll be the captain,'' said Volini, shown on board one of the boats. Tamara Beckwith Volini joked to The Post that his job is just a lot of staring — which came in handy when he was working on Sept. 11, 2001, and saw billowing smoke. He watched as the second plane crashed into the South Tower. He remembers watching as crowds rushed to the water's edge, trying to escape the horrific scene. The crew boarded them and headed across the Hudson River to New Jersey. He commanded several trips, and in the end, Circle Line Cruises alone carried about 40,000 to 50,000 people to safety, according to Violini. 28 Circle Line Cruises alone carried about 40,000 to 50,000 people to safety on Sept. 11, 2001, according to Violini. AP 28 The seasoned captain watched as the second plane crashed into the South Tower before springing into action. Tamara Beckwith It was just another reminder of how supportive the New York community can be. 'Every boat came to the shore to help out,' Voilini recalled. Tour Guide Chris Mason, 62 28 Chris Mason is shown with his father, Jason, who started at Circle Line in 1962. Brooklyn-born Chris Mason — whose father Jason began as a tour guide in 1962, one year before he was born — has fond memories of visiting his dad as a kid. 'I just fell in love with it, working on the water, watching him do his performance … I was amazed at how he held the audience in the palm of his hand,' Mason told The Post. 'It really left an incredible impression upon me. I was so proud of him.' Like the others, Mason has a favorite view. Besides Yankee Stadium, he loves Hudson Yards — a tourist location many locals groan about. 28 'I just fell in love with it, working on the water, watching him do his performance … I was amazed at how he held the audience in the palm of his hand,' Mason told The Post. Tamara Beckwith 28 A group of children share their patriotism during a 1991 Circle Line tour. New York Post 'There's a point in the trip where you can look through the new buildings of the Hudson Yards, and you can capture the Empire State Building right in between,' he noted. 'So it's a great contrast of the old and the new. I love that part of the trip. This year, Mason is celebrating 40 years as a tour guide, but he got his first job there in 1979 at age 16, answering phones and helping in any way he could. He's become especially nostalgic since his father died last year — who 'would do the job even if they didn't pay him,' Mason said. His father retired only two years ago at age 90 after about 60 years with Circle Line. 28 Mason, marking his 40th year as a tour guide, has become especially nostalgic since his father died last year. Tamara Beckwith 'He was so emotional,' Mason said of his combined retirement and birthday party. 'It was one of the highlights of his life. He loved working here [and] working with the crews as I do. 'He brought me to tears when he said he was so proud of me.' Deckhand Latisha Conover, 33 28 Latisha Conover is part of the new generation of Circle Line employees and hopes to be with the company as long as her co-workers have been. Tamara Beckwith She'd been on a cruise once as a child, but deckhand Latisha Conover — one of only two female Circle Line employees, including Kamika Lovely — had never considered a waterbound career. The New Jersey native started with Circle Line in 2018 — and now couldn't imagine setting sail anywhere else. 'I love it. I always wanted to be on the water as a kid, and now I'm here,' she told The Post. Conover considers it 'calming and very peaceful' — quite the opposite of how other New Yorkers would probably describe their jobs. 'It's different every day out in the water. The energy, the people, the views,' she said. 'And I love meeting new people, different personalities, from all around the world.' 28 Passengers prepared to board a Circle Line sightseeing boat in the 1950s. ClassicStock 28 'It's different every day out in the water. The energy, the people, the views,' Conover told The Post. Above, tourists sail along the Hudson River in 2021. Getty Images The people are really what keep her coming back, especially 'just seeing the excitement on their faces, making sure that I do my job and protecting them,' Conover told The Post.. 'It never gets boring here,' she added. 'I definitely plan on being here for a very long time.'
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Yahoo
Trump conducts the weirdest exit interview in history as Musk departs the White House — for now
Elon Musk's exit interview began like any other. The boss heaped praise on the departing employee while demonstrating a tenuous grasp of exactly what it is he did. The employee vastly inflated his achievements, and the pair made vague promises to stay in touch. From there, it veered into a freewheeling discussion about transgender mice, Musk's alleged prolific use of horse tranquilizer, nuclear war between India and Pakistan, and a potential pardon for Sean 'Diddy' Combs, should he be convicted. Now that Musk's legally limited 130-day term as a 'special government employee' is over, the most destructive professional partnership since Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader shacked up in the Death Star has finally come to an end. Trump and Musk, the powerful bromance that shook the world, are taking a break — for now at least. The hour-long farewell, in front of the world's press, came just hours after a New York Times exposé alleged the world's richest man had taken so much Ketamine during the 2024 presidential campaign that he was unable to control his bladder. Musk did little to calm those rumors as he turned up sporting a black eye (the result of mutual combat with his five-year-old son, he says), wearing a cap, a 'Dogefather' t-shirt, and at one point rolling his head around to stare at the ceiling as the president spoke. Sitting at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office, Trump lauded his friend standing beside him for the savings he claimed to have made, which are almost certainly exaggerated. 'You know the kinds of things that he's found, and his people have found… They found things that are pretty unbelievable. I have to say that the numbers that we're talking about are substantial, but they're going to be very much more substantial with time,' Trump said. He praised the Tesla founder and CEO for delivering a 'colossal change in the old ways of doing business in Washington.' Musk indeed shattered norms by ignoring outdated hiring practices that prize experience and expertise and instead placing 19-year-old hackers with nicknames like 'Big Balls' in charge of government departments. Or as President Trump put it: 'DOGE has installed geniuses with an engineering mindset and unbelievably talented people in computers.' The world's richest person also broke new ground by becoming one of the most deadly bureaucrats in the history of the U.S. government, killing an estimated 15,000 people with his deep cuts to the U.S. Agency for International Development. Trump could not have been more effusive in his praise, placing Musk's four-month stint as a cost-cutting consultant in the ranks of America's great heroes, somewhere between Miracle on the Hudson's Sully Sullenberger and Captain America. 'Elon's service to America has been without comparison in modern history," Trump said, noting the huge sacrifice Musk had made by having to endure people being mean to him online. 'He willingly accepted the outrageous abuse and slander and lies and attacks, because he does love our country,' Trump went on. Anyone hoping for an end to the friendship that ended thousands of government careers would be sorely disappointed. 'Elon is really not leaving,' Trump said. 'He's going to be back and forth, I have a feeling. It's his baby, and I think he's going to be doing a lot of things.' Musk agreed. "I expect to continue to provide advice, whatever the President would like advice... I expect to remain a friend and an advisor, and certainly, if there's anything the President wants me to do, I'm at the President's service," he said. But for now, Musk is returning to his many businesses, which are all simultaneously suffering from significant brand damage due to their association with him. In one particularly awkward moment, Musk batted away a question from a journalist concerning Friday's published allegations about his drug use, which reportedly included Ecstasy, psychedelic mushrooms and Adderall, in addition to ketamine. 'Is the New York Times — is that the same publication that got a Pulitzer Prize for false reporting on the Russiagate? Is that the same organization? I think it is,' he said, theatrically turning to Trump. 'I think it is.' But Musk couldn't leave without first reeling off a list of excuses for why he didn't achieve what he set out to do. He claimed he could cut $1 trillion from the federal budget before September 30 by ending "waste, fraud, and abuse," but now even his own likely cooked numbers have failed to meet that target. 'Obviously, at times, when you cut expenses, those who are receiving the money, whether they receive whether they're receiving that money legitimately or not, they do complain, and you're not going to hear someone confessing that they receive money inappropriately. Never,' he said. He even saw fit to appropriate Hannah Arendt's famous "banality of evil" quote to draw a bizarre comparison with government spending and Nazi Germany. 'It's the banal evil of bureaucracy. It's sort of the frankly, largely uncaring nature of bureaucracy,' he went on. And perhaps more ominously for anyone who relies on USAID for their lifesaving HIV medication, or anyone with a job in the U.S. government, or anyone who needs government healthcare to survive, Musk promised that his mission would continue. 'The DOGE team will only grow stronger over time, the DOGE influence will only grow stronger. I liken it to a sort of Buddhism, it's like a way of life,' he said, demonstrating a clear lack of understanding about Buddhism and life. In other words, this Rasputin for the McKinsey age is not going anywhere.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Yahoo
Nathan Fielder Shades Sully's Miracle on the Hudson: 'I Did Put Down My Plane Safely on Land'
Nathan Fielder's dedication to flight training for The Rehearsal season two was very impressive. Some — for sure Fielder (though he'd make it sound like it was your word choice) — might even say it was miraculous. To help solidify his hypothesis about co-pilot-to-pilot communication being the No. 1 cause of airplane crashes, Fielder spent two and a half years becoming a real pilot. He even received his 737 certification and went wheels up with 150 actors as passengers — and one real co-pilot — in the HBO show's season two finale. Thankfully, after circling San Bernardino a few times, those same wheels touched down safely. More from The Hollywood Reporter Jimmy Kimmel Roasts His Employer and Boosts '60 Minutes' at Disney Upfront Why Charlize Theron Thinks Uma Thurman Should've Won an Oscar for 'Kill Bill' Critics' Conversation: A Gloomy Small-Screen Spring On Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Tuesday, Fielder attempted to brand his 737 passenger flight over the Mojave Desert as 'The Miracle Over the Mojave.' 'Are they calling this 'The Miracle Over the Mojave?'' Kimmel jumped in. 'I feel like I've seen people calling it that — online,' Fielder said in his usual deadpan. 'I think if you look at the comments on this video if you post it, I think a lot of people will be calling it that.' 'I feel like I've seen a Wikipedia page, too, about it,' Fielder added. As of this writing, there is not a 'Miracle Over the Mojave' Wikipedia page. There are a whole lot of YouTube comments crystallizing the phrase, however, just as Fielder predicted (and intended). 'People are saying, like, of the 'Miracle' flights, which are flights branded with the word 'Miracle' in it — people are saying this is the most significant one,' Fielder said. Sounds like that pilot cockiness rubbed off on the comedian rather easily. 'More so even than the 'Miracle on the Hudson,' huh?' Kimmel asked, referring to US Airways Flight 1549. On Jan. 15, 2009, the Airbus A320 suffered dual bird strikes shortly after takeoff from LaGuardia Airport in New York City, losing all engine power. Pilot Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger glided the plane to a safe landing on the Hudson River, where all passengers were saved by boats. ''Miracle on the Hudson' is another one,' Fielder conceded. And then he totally made it a competition. 'Not to create sort of like a competition or anything,' Fielder said, 'but I did put down my plane safely on land.' He's not wrong. 'I wouldn't call myself — like, I'm not calling myself a hero,' Fielder continued. 'If people say that — I'm just doing my job.' Then gesturing to Kimmel for a response, Fielder said, 'I don't know if you would …' 'I'd say 'hero,'' Kimmel said. 'OK, well, yeah that's fair,' Fielder quickly responded. Watch the video here: Best of The Hollywood Reporter 'The Studio': 30 Famous Faces Who Play (a Version of) Themselves in the Hollywood-Based Series 22 of the Most Shocking Character Deaths in Television History A 'Star Wars' Timeline: All the Movies and TV Shows in the Franchise
