50 Airport Quotes That Are Non-Forgettable

By Norbert Juma

Master quote curator and editor on a mission to inspire

Published April 20, 2023

Airport quotes are usually popular among frequent travelers.

If you are one of them, possibilities are there that you will also love our collection of airport quotes.

Apart from offering you the best possible quotes, we have also discussed the history of airports, their types, and interesting facts about them.

So, without any further ado, please continue reading!

History of Airports

Since air travel started only a century ago, airports have a short history.

The first ever airport was established in 1909 at College Park, Maryland.

Initially, this airport was used to offer flight training to military personnel.

However, the first commercial airport was inaugurated in 1928 in Tampa (Florida).

In their early times, airports only consisted of a runway, a small building, and a large field.

With time, new and larger airplanes were introduced to the world of aviation.

Large airports were built to accommodate such planes.

Types of Airports

Let’s check out the different types of airports.

Commercial service airports
Cargo service airports
Reliever airports
General aviation airports
Military airports

Commercial Service Airports

These are the airports capable of serving at least 2,500 passengers every year.

Commercial airports offer a wide range of facilities for the passengers, such as a terminal, information desk, WiFi, parking, ground transportation, lounges, ATMs, etc.

Cargo Service Airports

Cargo airports are specifically designed for cargo planes.

Hence, these airports offer services associated with the handling and transportation of cargo.

Reliever Airports

To relieve congestion at famous commercial airports, the FAA builds reliever airports.

It helps to improve the quality of air travel by minimizing the boarding or takeoff time.

General Aviation Airports

These airports don’t have a scheduled service.

They usually serve less than 2,500 passengers annually.

Military Airports

As the name suggests, military airports are used only for military purposes.

The military maintains these airports.

In addition to the above-listed types, airports are also categorized based on the length of their runways.

An airport with less than 5,000 feet of runway is known as a small airport, which serves regional air travel or general aviation.

On the other hand, airports having runways between 5,000 and 10,000 feet are called medium airports.

Airports having a runway longer than 10,000 feet are called large airports, which serve international airlines.

Interesting Facts about Airports

Listed below are the most interesting facts about airports that you probably didn’t know:

Airports usually sell left or lost luggage if not collected within 90 days.
Airports charge a huge amount of fee to airlines for allowing their planes to land on the runways on specific days or times.
Larger airports offer special security protocols and separate check-ins for celebrities.
Cash exchange rates at airports aren’t great.
Airports are designed in a way to prevent passengers from getting lost.
Unlike popular belief, the air traffic control tower is a peaceful place.

Top 10 Airport Quotes

Following is our list of the top 10 best airport quotes that are short and read-worthy.

1. “All human life can be found in an airport.” — David Walliams

2. “I want my books sold on airport bookstalls.” — Stephen Hawking

3. “I always keep a plane on the pole at the airport.” — Roger Penske

4. “Seems like half my anxiety dreams are about airports.” — Lois McMaster Bujold

5. “I hate everything about airports from getting there to taking off.” — Honor Blackman

6. “I’d like to fly. Then I wouldn’t have to wait in airport security lines.” — Jim Morris

7. “I like being comfortable at airports, in flip-flops with no jewelry on.” — Bad Bunny

8. “Just got back from a pleasure trip: I took my mother-in-law to the airport.” — Henny Youngman

9. “We have an extensive system of highways, ports, locks and dams, and airports.” — Jerry Costello

10. “I’m constantly complimented for my voice, even by random people at the airport.” — Kabir Bedi

You will also enjoy our article on air conditioner quotes.

Airport Quotes Based on Experiences

These are the airport quotes that are based on personal experiences and preferences.

11. “Whether I’m at the hangar or at the airport, or on an airplane, I get respect. And that’s the best part of my day.” — Gordon Bethune

12. “I’ve been chased through airports with a screaming baby because the photographers are ruthless, and they want the picture.” — Lisa Marie Presley

13. “I love the ending of a movie where two people end up together. Preferably if there’s rain and an airport or running or a confession of love.” — Taylor Swift

14. “I love sushi. Once on Valentine’s Day, someone I was dating rocked up at the airport to pick me up with a bag of salmon because I love it so much.” — Ella Eyre

15. “People come up to me in airports, they walk into the office, and they say, I’m going to cry; I’m going to pass out. And I say, Please don’t pass out; I’m not a doctor.” — John Lewis

16. “Happiness is actually found in simple things, such as taking my nephew around the island by bicycle or seeing the stars at night. We go to coffee shops or see airplanes land at the airport.” — Andrea Hirata

17. “I had to stop traveling alone because I missed so many planes. When somebody runs up to you in the airport and begins to tell you their life story, you can’t say, ‘Excuse me, boo,’ as they’re weeping on your bosom.” — Iyanla Vanzant

18. “My desire to curtail undue freedom of speech extends only to such public areas as restaurants, airports, streets, hotel lobbies, parks, and department stores. Verbal exchanges between consenting adults in private are as of little interest to me as they probably are to them.” — Fran Lebowitz

19. “To me, the greatest invention of my lifetime is the laptop computer and the fact that I can be working on a book and be in an airport lounge, in a hotel room, and continue working; I fire up my laptop, and I’m in exactly the same place I was when I left home – that, to me, is a miracle.” — Bill Bryson

20. “When I was younger, I would go to the airport with my friends and drive out at 2 A.M. and 3 A.M. in the morning and just hang out until sunrise watching planes fly in and fly out. Just sit there and dream about how, one day, that’s going to be us on those flights. We’re gonna be one of those people with places to go.” — Yuna

Airport Quotes that are Inspirational

These uplifting and motivational airport quotes will inspire you to embark on new adventures and explore the world.

21. “I’m mainly an airport author, and if you’re trying to take your mind off the journey, you’re not going to read King Lear.” — Maeve Binchy

22. “Not everything in old age is grim. I haven’t walked through an airport for years, and wheelchairs are the way to travel.” — Donald Hall

23. “I’m always traveling and spend a lot of time in airports so I know what it feels like to get a personal welcome home. I wish I got more of them.” — Ben Eine

24. “People think our work is monumental because it’s art, but human beings do much bigger things: they build giant airports, highways for thousands of miles, much, much bigger than what we create.” — Christo

25. “When I was a very little boy, I lived underneath the air pattern of LaGuardia airport in New York and I watched the planes fly to their destinations. I was in love with the design of these airplanes.” — John Travolta

26. “There are twice as many knitters as golfers in North America. Still, if you walk into any airport in North America, you can find a golf magazine but not a knitting magazine, even though you can’t golf on a plane.” — Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

27. “We need to build roads, bridges, airports, locks, dams, and rail that work for this century, not the last one. And let’s not forget about updating our energy grid, repairing and replacing our water infrastructure and sewers, and making sure all Americans have access to broadband.” — Amy Klobuchar

28. “Like a lot of people, I pray for a sick relative or that kind of thing, but I don’t pray to make my next flight connection at the airport. I find prayers before sports contests to be insensitive and kind of demeaning, at least when someone prays to beat the other team or something like that.” — James Carville

29. “Women inspire me. Women in airports, around the country, in different cities, and in destinations around the world inspire me with the way they express their individuality. I love watching women and discovering all the ways each person uses color, pattern, style, and even lipstick color. I’m a people watcher.” — Camila Alves

30. “When checking in at an airport, no matter how rude the check-in person is to you, always smile and be nice because you don’t know what kind of day they’ve had. You are going on holiday, and they’re stuck wherever they are. Be nice to them because they can re-route your baggage to wherever they feel like.” — Ross Kemp

Airport Quotes Related to Security

These are the airport quotes that are related to security matters.

31. “I don’t like getting patted down and taking off my shoes at the airport.” — Rebecca Miller

32. “I hate flying, airports and the whole rigmarole – queuing up, security and lost luggage.” — Johnny Vegas

33. “With existing technology, we can enforce airport security without sacrificing our personal privacy.” — Tom Udall

34. “Search for the truth. I tell you things, and I always ask you to verify what I say. I told you yesterday that there was an attack and a retreat at Saddam’s airport.” — Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf

35. “Don’t get me wrong – our fanbase is super passionate, and I love them, but there’s a difference between stalking me at the airport and just happening to see me.” — Seth Rollins

36. “We know that the airports are not protected as they should be protected. The terminals are public areas, wide open – anyone can go and walk at any terminal he wants.” — Isaac Yeffet

37. “Now that we have a democracy and you can go back and the airport air is not laden with evil any more, you can actually breathe oxygen when you land in Johannesburg.” — Janet Suzman

38. “I met Sable when she was 15, and I was 18. I sent her home to New York while we carried on the tour. When we got back, the police were looking for her at the airport and everywhere!” — Johnny Thunders

39. “Other countries, such as Israel, successfully employ behavior detection techniques at their airports, but the bloated, ineffective bureaucracy of TSA has produced another security failure for U.S. transportation systems.” — John Mica

40. “After Lockerbie, everyone thought, now we’ve learned the lesson of how to be proactive instead of being reactive. Unfortunately, September 11 came and we know the result. Thousands of people lost their lives. Security totally failed, not at one airport, at three different airports around the country.” — Isaac Yeffet

More Airport Quotes

Here are some more airport quotes that you will surely like to explore. You can also share them with your loved ones.

41. “So much better to write pen on paper; you can do it anywhere, say, while stuck at the airport.” — Upamanyu Chatterjee

42. “I like to layer when I fly – the climate always changes from the airport to the plane to the new city.” — Shay Mitchell

43. “Switzerland still has a huge share of the watch market, all advertised at the airport on illuminated hoardings. Gosh, they are ugly.” — Simon Hoggart

44. “If I get the walk of a character, that helps me find them. So I’m constantly looking at airports and train stations, registering walks.” — Stephen Graham

45. “Wherever I go, I’m watching. Even on vacation, when I’m in an airport or a railroad station, I look around, snap pictures, and find out how people do things.” — Richard Scarry

46. “I personally go to the airport looking like a homeless person because I think people will leave me alone. But I dress myself with my luggage – all my luggage matches.” — Andre Leon Talley

47. “In America, if you want to make it as a golfer, you go to college on a scholarship. In Australia, you go to the airport with a plane ticket. The competition just isn’t there.” — Stuart Appleby

48. “I have learned that I am incapable of packing the right amount of clothing, probably because I start 10 minutes before I’m supposed to leave, and that I truly hate airports.” — Marcus Brigstocke

49. “I think my level of fame will drop back down. I think it’ll recede. In fact, I know it will. That’s life on Planet Earth. And I’m okay with that. Besides getting tables at restaurants and special treatment at the airport, what else is there?” — Tina Fey

50. “I’m from Houston. I think I was thirty-seven before I ever set foot in Dallas, and that was just in the airport. So I’ve never really been there. Dad grew up in Port Arthur, Texas, and all I can ever get out of him is, ‘I wanted my first son to be named Dallas.’” — Dallas Roberts