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Just a few months ago, it seemed that the trend in airports was to remove power outlets from the terminal area, while simultaneously rolling out services like wi-fi, which, obviously, required electricity. Brilliant.

Thankfully, the trend seems to be reversing. Chris Elliott, in the NYT, reports that airports are wising up to the needs both business and leisure travelers who increasingly depend on electronics to make their time in the airport more livable.

Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport recently converted some of its pay phones into free laptop recharging stations. […] And Eppley Airfield, near Omaha, just wired its snack bar in the north boarding area with new sockets.

Or take Indianapolis, which has gone a step further and gotten a sponsor for their outlets.

Most airports are putting off the installation of sockets until they renovate their terminals, but the awareness of the problem is at least trickling through to airport managers.

But not every airport is on the traveler’s side. Consider the visual evidence, such as these sockets at SFO with locked covers. Obnoxious in their own right: charging stations like this one, which charges $2 per half hour for the privilege of plugging in. What do our $3 to $4.50 per segment landing fees get us, if not the chance to plug in for a few pennies of electricity?

For those looking for free airport power, let me once again plug (sorry) Jeff Sandquist’s Air Power Wiki, the user-built directory of free airport power sockets. Consult it before you spend $2 for a half hour of juice.

Related:
- Power sockets, sponsored by Chase
- New site roundup
- The mystery of the disappearing electrical outlet

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