Hello All: I was privileged to be the guest speaker last evening at the Washington Airline Society at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. My topic was UPS Airlines. My guest host, Robin Dunn, president, saw my article: ' The UPS Way' on Airliners.net in June 2004 and invited me to make a more formal presentation to his group. (About 40 people) The presentation went well. I printed (with permission) several photographs from Airliners.net as well as received many 'playing cards' from UPS' media group in Louisville, KY that included black and white fleet photos with the plane stat's on the reverse side. The questions were good and the company friendly. I spoke for about 40 minutes. This group was the first of any such kind that I knew of that met on a regular basis to discuss the airline industry, mergers, and what ever else that comes up that interests folks like us. Interestingly, just prior to speaking, I decided to call home and check my voice mail, and found that Delta - Comair, had decided to cancel my return flight home due to the storms that had plagued the Northeast last night. One of the members suggested Amtrak. As it turns out, they had a 10 pm train heading back to Boston and I had just enough cash in the bank to buy a one-way home. Delta had me booked on the 10 am flight the following day. I was cringing. I had visions of sleeping on National's floor that evening, as I didn't have any hotel money. Thankfully, God made a different way home for me. Reagan National (now I can say the words. When they added the former presidents' name, it just didn't sound right.) is a striking design airport. Wide aisles, carpeted, lots of stores. It's also has an easy connection to the city by using the city's Metro- Blue Line to L'enfant Plaza. Great city! I had a short, but pleasant visit. The Smithsonian museum is second to none! It's a must-see for any aviation enthusiast. The Washington Airline Society is presenting their own airliners show next year. Please visit this link for more information: Airliners International 2006 www.ai2006.com The Washington Airline Society's link is: http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Hangar/2366/was.html Here is my story: http://www.airliners.net/articles/read.main?id=66 The Smithsonian Air and Space Museum link: www.nasm.si.edu I'll be posting more reflections on my trip, Boston's new Terminal A, my observations on Reagan National Airport, the DC Metro, Amtrak, and more in the next day or so. Thanks for reading and enjoy the links! Mike Burris Cambridge, Mass 'Thought: While flying is faster, you see a lot more of the world by train, even at night!'