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Railroader · Mar 14, 2007, 03:34 PM

I have been doing some research for school and I have been finding out some interesting things and theories concerning the Denver International Airport. My research concerns the terminal design and layout.

There's a lot of Masonic rumors and weird architectural details circulating.

There's a claim the the airport was not needed and simply an excuse to build a central hub for the military.

Anyone regularly fly out of there and know any interesting stuff about this place?

mitchell_pgh · Mar 14, 2007, 03:48 PM

It's one of the most advanced automated baggage handling systems in the world... which still isn't working to the original specifications.

centerchannel68 · Mar 14, 2007, 03:54 PM

I've been there a few times.... why would it not be needed? Where would people fly into go skiing? And yeah, the baggage system is pretty sweet. I really like the custom ski/board baggage system. Interesting stuff.....hrm.... well, everytime I've been there, my flight has been delayed. That's all I know.

SSharon · Mar 14, 2007, 04:18 PM

The last time I was there I was told that the exterior design of the terminals was designed to mimic the mountains in the background. I was also told that the airport owns more land than any other north american airport. That explained why the closest hotels said they were 1 mile from the airport even though they were a few miles from the actual terminal building.

earthlings · Mar 14, 2007, 04:21 PM

Yeah, I like the ski holder system also.

I like the train that takes you to the last terminals.

And the domes on the exterior of the main terminal.

imitchellg5 · Mar 14, 2007, 04:29 PM

The baggage system is the most expensive system in the world. And it doesn't work. In fact you can walk from the United ramp underneath the terminal and see it. There is also a huge pile of trash underneath the terminal. (My dad works out of DIA.)

earthlings · Mar 14, 2007, 04:37 PM

Ew, trash.

Jawbone54 · Mar 14, 2007, 05:07 PM

I've been there several times. The airport is huge, and has a lot going on inside of it. The shopping area can almost be compared to a mall. And yes, the top of the airport is meant to mimic the Rocky Mountains. Really cool.

There are a lot of rumors that have surrounded the place since it was being constructed. One of them is that there is a massive underground complex beneath the airport; some say it has something to do with the government.

My dad has a friend, a really bright and classy guy, who was talking to us about the Denver airport one day. He talked about the rumors surrounding the place, and out of nowhere said that he believes that the underground complex is some sort of government base that houses the bodies of the aliens from Roswell, among other "weird" things. He's a really sensible and intelligent guy, so it almost made me spit out my Mountain Dew when he said that.

I haven't heard anything about the freemason stuff though.

centerchannel68 · Mar 14, 2007, 05:10 PM

Yeah that little tram thing is kinda neat. Totally reminds me of half life.

Jawbone54 · Mar 14, 2007, 05:13 PM

A few pics...

As for DIA not being needed, it's the 5th busiest airport in the U.S. (10th in the world), according to Wikipedia.

Northeastern292 · 10:45 PM

I love DIA!! I fly through Denver International Airport every few summers to see relatives!

It's in fact my great uncle who gave my family our first Macintosh (Mac IISi) and I loved it to pieces! My great uncle lives outside of Denver.

GSixZero · Mar 14, 2007, 06:11 PM

I grew up outside of Denver so I see DIA a lot. It's a great airport. I have heard rumors that there's a huge underground base there but I'm skeptical.

Railroader · Mar 14, 2007, 06:24 PM

Here's a link with some of the rumors regarding Masons and weird mural paintings.

Also, the runways slightly resemble a swastika. I would hope that is pure coincidence.

centerchannel68 · Mar 14, 2007, 06:33 PM

...oooo nazi patterned runways, and the airport itself looks like KKK members....woooaahahhhhh

Rev-O · Mar 14, 2007, 06:57 PM

Originally Posted by GSixZero

I grew up outside of Denver so I see DIA a lot. It's a great airport. I have heard rumors that there's a huge underground base there but I'm skeptical.

I've heard of the Bunker underneath DIA as well. Maybe yes, maybe no. Ignoring the usual land deals and corruption and run of the mill stupidity that waltzes hand in hand with any government project this size, my personal point of contempt about DIA is about the marble floors. There is a place in Colorado named Marble Colorado that (you guessed it) produces a bunch of marble. So when they built DIA they imported Marble from Italy instead of supporting a local economy and show casing a local product. Idiots.

imitchellg5 · Mar 14, 2007, 07:02 PM

The shopping center: It is cool and expensive and you can buy anything from PCs to Ferraris (well actually Ferrari closed down last month) there.
Underground: I would not be suprised if there indeed is something military under there that has something to do with NORAD in Cheyenne Mountain in CS or Peterson AFB. It's nasty and dark down there (I've been down there myself with my dad). Lots of nasty stuff like trash, airplane parts, dripping oil from the "ceiling" big rats and also storage for who knows what.
Underground transit: Normal people can use this. There is a few walkways that run underneath the airport. You can see odd abstract art that is supposed to be cool. One of them looks a lot like the hallway leading to the bridge of General Grevious' flagship the Invisible Hand in Star Wars Epidsode III.
What locals think: Nobody knows why it is there and what all of the crap is for. However, around Christmas an orchestra plays under the cool roof and you can hear the sound from the far end of the terminal like it is right above you but there are no speakers.

Art Vandelay · Mar 14, 2007, 07:05 PM

Originally Posted by Jawbone54

As for DIA not being needed, it's the 5th busiest airport in the U.S. (10th in the world), according to Wikipedia.

He's referring to the fact that many believe that Stapleton International Airport, Denver's previous airport, did not need to be replaced by DIA.

Railroader · Mar 14, 2007, 07:29 PM

Originally Posted by Art Vandelay

He's referring to the fact that many believe that Stapleton International Airport, Denver's previous airport, did not need to be replaced by DIA.

Exactly. Though that is debatable apparently. Anyone with intimate info or opinions on this?

earthlings · Mar 14, 2007, 07:33 PM

Originally Posted by Art Vandelay

He's referring to the fact that many believe that Stapleton International Airport, Denver's previous airport, did not need to be replaced by DIA.

I remember Stapleton. It was closer to downtown. But Stapleton didn't have the room to add more runways. They could add on to DIA with more runways, etc.

imitchellg5 · Mar 14, 2007, 07:45 PM

Originally Posted by Railroader

Exactly. Though that is debatable apparently. Anyone with intimate info or opinions on this?

My dad says that Stapleton was a pretty messy airport. He also said that there was a lot of small accidents which might have led to it being closed. Also the city of Denver wanted an airport farther away from downtown so that Denver and it's suburbs wouldn't have to put up with any noise. A side effect of that is that it could have more room to grow. DIA has the most land of any airport in the world.

Rev-O · 08:00 PM

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

My dad says that Stapleton was a pretty messy airport. He also said that there was a lot of small accidents which might have led to it being closed. Also the city of Denver wanted an airport farther away from downtown so that Denver and it's suburbs wouldn't have to put up with any noise. A side effect of that is that it could have more room to grow. DIA has the most land of any airport in the world.

...also the city of Denver wanted an airport close to land that was owned by people who were in the selection commitee for the location of the airport.
Michael Fumento investigates: "Federico's Folly."
I didn't even bother to read this link entirely, it certainly is biased, but it popped up when I googled 'Pena Airport Land'. DIA is nice enough and a new airport was needed, but Colorado taxpayers got an abused sphincter in the deal.
Like I said, nice enough Airport tho.

earthlings · Mar 14, 2007, 08:11 PM

Landing from the west at Stapleton, was there a problems with the mountains in the way from airlines trying to land (the row of them landing with 1-2 miles apart or so)?

Jawbone54 · Mar 14, 2007, 08:14 PM

I don't think the mountains were close enough for that to be an issue.

earthlings · Mar 14, 2007, 08:26 PM

ok, I was just wondering.

SSharon · Mar 14, 2007, 08:41 PM

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

DIA has the most land of any airport in the world.

as I mentioned above it is not the largest in the world.

The King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia takes up some 81 square miles.
The second biggest airport in the world is Denver International, which takes up 53 square miles.
(taken from flightmapping.com)

imitchellg5 · Mar 14, 2007, 08:53 PM

Oh. Well a few years ago we got a brochure that said it was the largest in the world. It's probably changed since then. Nonetheless, it is still a huge airport in terms of land.

Doofy · Mar 14, 2007, 08:58 PM

Originally Posted by Rev-O

There is a place in Colorado named Marble Colorado that (you guessed it) produces a bunch of marble. So when they built DIA they imported Marble from Italy instead of supporting a local economy and show casing a local product. Idiots.

What a bunch of idiots. Everyone knows that the best marble is from Portugal, not Italy.

Doofy · Mar 14, 2007, 09:04 PM

Originally Posted by SSharon

as I mentioned above it is not the largest in the world.

The King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia takes up some 81 square miles.
The second biggest airport in the world is Denver International, which takes up 53 square miles.
(taken from flightmapping.com)

Wiki entry on Google Earth:

"Denver International Airport , often called DIA, is, by land size, the largest international airport in the United States, and the third largest international airport in the world, after only King Fahd International Airport, and Montreal-Mirabel International Airport. "

imitchellg5 · Mar 14, 2007, 09:09 PM

Clearly nobody knows what they are talking about.

Buckaroo · Mar 14, 2007, 09:18 PM

I lived in Denver for one year while stationed at Lowrey AFB back in 1977 or 78 (I don't recall). I drove by last summer, and it does not look anything like it use too.

Railroader · Mar 14, 2007, 09:57 PM

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

Clearly I don't know what I'm talking about.

Hate to do it, but ... fixed™.

chabig · Mar 14, 2007, 10:05 PM

Originally Posted by Art Vandelay

He's referring to the fact that many believe that Stapleton International Airport, Denver's previous airport, did not need to be replaced by DIA.

Stapleton definitely needed to be replaced. It was maxed out.

imitchellg5 · Mar 14, 2007, 10:27 PM

Originally Posted by Railroader

Hate to do it, but ... fixed™.

What about everyone else who says different airports have the most land? And I REPEAT it doesn't matter because the point still stands that DIA is a huge airport.

zro · Mar 14, 2007, 11:24 PM

Lived in the Denver area before it was built and have flown to it many times over the years since. I remember hearing that the move from Stapleton to DIA was the largest non-military convoy in history. Even if not, that was quite a feat.

Railroader · Mar 15, 2007, 01:26 AM

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

What about everyone else who says different airports have the most land? And I REPEAT it doesn't matter because the point still stands that DIA is a huge airport.

You have serious issues admitting when you have made a mistake don't you? It's easy. Type it with me... "It seems I was mistaken".

Do this, and you will gain the respect of a number of people on here, I assure you.

imitchellg5 · 05:07 PM

Do you think I'm lying when I say in 2001 according to a pamphlet that you could get in a hotel it said that DIA had the most land of any airport in the world? And everyone else said different airports were bigger. But I do in fact believe the fact still stands as well as my original point that DIA is a huge airport. Right? Correct. 3rd biggest or biggest, it still is big. But I digress.

Railroader · Mar 15, 2007, 06:25 PM

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

Do you think I'm lying when I say in 2001 according to a pamphlet that you could get in a hotel it said that DIA had the most land of any airport in the world? And everyone else said different airports were bigger. But I do in fact believe the fact still stands as well as my original point that DIA is a huge airport. Right? Correct. 3rd biggest or biggest, it still is big. But I digress.

No, you said:

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

DIA has the most land of any airport in the world.

Which has been quickly proven incorrect. And you're working off 6+ year old pamphlet?!?!

Be a man. Admit you're wrong, and move on.

earthlings · Mar 15, 2007, 07:41 PM

zro · Mar 15, 2007, 08:17 PM

Originally Posted by Railroader

No, you said:

Which has been quickly proven incorrect. And you're working off 6+ year old pamphlet?!?!

Be a man. Admit you're wrong, and move on.

Then he said:

Originally Posted by imitchellg5

Oh. Well a few years ago we got a brochure that said it was the largest in the world. It's probably changed since then. Nonetheless, it is still a huge airport in terms of land.

It's been admitted long before anyone harped about it. Move on.

Railroader · 11:17 PM

Originally Posted by zro

It's been admitted long before anyone harped about it. Move on.

EDIT: Never mind.

earthlings · Mar 16, 2007, 12:19 AM

Well anyways, DIA is a nice airport.

ghporter · Mar 16, 2007, 07:31 PM

Downtown airports are ALWAYS a pain. Take a look at Detroit City Airport-you can watch airplanes take off and land from above the airport in a number of office buildings. Need I remind anyone of how dangerous it is to fly a SMALL airplane downtown-as in a relatively recent crash of a sports figure and his instructor into a big building in New York? The ONLY thing I have against Austin/Bergstrom International Airport, which moved ALL air traffic out of near-downtown Austin, is that they tore down a bunch of buildings they didn't (in my opinion) need to when they converted Bergstrom AFB to a civilian airport.