FAA Tech Just Getting A Bit Of Exercise

Seeing a man on a bicycle is not normally a cause for concern, unless maybe he's riding it in a strange location... like near a runway at Boston's Logan International Airport.

A pilot became suspicious of the cyclist's presence and motives, and radioed air traffic control late Friday morning to report the man riding his bicycle on the airport grounds, the Boston Herald reported.

State Police summoned to the scene soon discovered that although his mode of transportation was out of the ordinary, there was nothing illegal about the man's presence on the airport.

The man was an FAA airway facilities technician who chose to ride a bike to get to a runway light maintenance area rather than drive an official vehicle, according to Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Arlene Salac.

"He was not out there in his vehicle. He was out there on a bicycle," Salac explained. "A pilot called the tower because it seemed unusual to them."

The FAA technician was not on the runway or a taxiway, which are areas that require security clearance, she said. A State police spokesman said the technician was on a perimeter road.

One runway was closed for about 20 minutes as a precautionary measure, which resulted in five flights being delayed, Salac said.

FMI: www.massport.com/logan, www.faa.gov