We’ve sometimes seen stories of malicious people breaking into the secure area of an airport. However, a food delivery driver accidentally ending up on an airport taxiway is a new one for me…
Continue reading: DoorDash Driver Ends Up On Chicago O’Hare Taxiway… By Mistake?!?
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
AA was testing out its new "Dine on Demand" for premium economy passengers. ROI looked better for this idea than to repair crew lounges..
...And it’s then even stranger that the plane drove for miles before anyone caught onto something unusual going on...
Well, planes belong on taxiways and runways, don't they?
"And it’s then even stranger that the PLANE drove for miles before anyone caught onto something unusual going on."
I assume you mean car...
I think you mean 'car' in this sentence: "And it’s then even stranger that the plane drove for miles before anyone caught onto something unusual going on."
There's following your GPS's directions, and then there's this. Wow, just wow.
I feel like this isn't the first time this has happened...
DoorDasher probably thought "this is some great weed"
I wonder what the delivery address was... I bet it was some ramp agent.
I worked at an airport where there was one of those services that you could order online and they'd get your order and take it to you in any concourse (thus you could get food from another secure area). About 80% of its business was Southwest Airlines ramp agents ordering to their break room.... from the food court directly above them.
Gosh, I wish I was that doordash driver.
So what I learned from this is that, theoretically, it is possible to drive onto the tarmac at O'Hare...
To any security officials reading this, I just want to do some planespotting 🙂
My uncle once walked into the secure area of an air force base coming home from school (which was within the base walls, but in a separate part). He ended up on the runway, and had a ton of military vehicles surround him and take him down (he was 12 by the way). Thankfully, his uncle was a high ranking official in the military, so charges were dropped.
I will admit that at first glance it appears to have been an innocent mistake. True security (which in the USA is lacking, lol) requires this be seriously investigated. I have had many gig drivers that were not able to speak English and were likely foreign nationals. While nothing is an absolute, such circumstances would warrant further investigation.
"they of course approached him"
Approached? There are no less than 6 emergency vehicles around the car. Looks more like a full blown take down.
Many years ago, before 9/11, I did the same thing at a small Ohio airport by mistake but made a u turn and exited the same way.
How can you possibly enter the secured area? There are gates to enter, each of require SIDA badge verification (badge + code). You can't just take a 'wrong turn' and end up on a runway.
Something doesn't add up here.....
As someone who has used DoorDash for extra income, I can attest that not only does the algorithm in their map system make some incredibly terrible route choices but also if one tries to ignore bad directions or use a different map system than the DD native, the app will start to glitch and even crash. I've had the DD app crash my entire phone (force a re-start).
Not everyone has the luxury of having two screens available to them while using DoorDash (like an infotainment system in their car or an extra phone or tablet).
I had trouble when I first started using the app until I caught on - and I am a native English speaker with a college degree and no drug or alcohol habits.
Thankfully I only needed the extra income for a short period of time and got out before things got too crazy!
there is video someplace that shows how he got on the ramp.
I suspect someone's ORD security clearance will be revoked.
Kudos to United for attempting to mitigate their catering debacle.
(Kidding aside, Ben, will you have an article on that?)
"Don't worry, we can account for this when programming for automated ATC."
-Some putz who thinks we can predict every scenario imaginable, probably.
Before 9/11, I mistakenly entered a smaller Ohio airport apron by mistake. I exited the same way. I took a photo from the car while it was stopped under a jet but, in retrospect, shouldn't have done that because it would cast doubt on the story that it was accidental, even though it was.
I would pay good money to tour an airport in my car. Like a drive through safari but with planes. Maybe get an operations person to hop in the passenger seat to explain things and point out different planes
It is just unbelievable someone can unintentionally breach, with a motor vehicle, and without breaking or causing any damage to anything, the runaway and secure areas of one our biggest airports. Something is terrible wrong with airport security.
If the order was for an airport worker then much of the story becomes understandable; including that the driver didn't think it odd to be on the ramp.
Still leaves security question.
A checkpoint letting him in seems unlikely - did he go through an unmanned gate that is usually closed?
"Ah," but the tech-lovers say "the car would be automated too, and would not go wrong". Hmm!
If the car had been a Waymo, then on realising something was wrong it might have stopped in the middle of the runway.
I wonder if the driver is actually licensed or if they are renting the account.
betterbub, I am not doing an Arps by posting this …. however, I must tell you that I enjoy an airside tour of various international airports between 4-8 times per month. On the downside, I know little about passengers lounges or luggage halls.
….. Jchang, could the vehicle have been a Tesla Model with the advanced driver-assistance system turned on?
dOOR DASH DRIVER SHOULD BE GIVEN A VIOLATION TICKET
UNDER MISDEAOUR OR FELONY DEPENDING UPON HIS RESPONSE
DONT KNOW WHETHER HE DID IT KNOWINGLY THE CONSEQUENCES OF HIS ACTION OR UNKNOWINGLY. BEING AN EDUCATED PERSON AND A LICENSED DRIVER WITH KNOWLEDGE OF ENGLISH HE SHOULD NOT HAVE DONE SO . HE SHOULD BE PUNISHED AS PER THE VERDICT OF THE TRAFFIC COURT OF THE COUNTY/CITY OR FAA/DOT RULES WE NEVER KNOW IF HE WAS GIVEN INSTRUCTIONS BY ANY TERRORIST TO DO IT
ALL MATTERS SHOULD BE THOROUGHLY INVESTIGATED INTO THIS INCIDENT IT IS A A VERY SERIOUS MATTER
If I try to plow through the wired fence at teh airport in GTA V and drive around, the cops are on me within seconds.
Just amazing that the video game where everything goes has better security built in than an actual airport.
That's wild. I know there's some perimeter roads (inside the airport security perimeter but off the airport proper) that may seem like "real" roads, but if he's anywhere near taxiways or runways, that wouldn't even vaguely look like normal roadways, even to the most inexperienced driver.
My guess is he was confused / panicked and didn't know what to do. But being in that area and not knowing the rules is a recipe for near-disaster.
I'm definitely curious to find out how he got inside the security perimeter without anybody noticing.