[ExI] Google Air

[Mike Dougherty]

On Fri, Feb 8, 2013 at 8:30 PM, David Lubkin <lubkin at unreasonable.com> wrote:
> <http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2013/02/07/san-jose-official-backs-plan-for-new-google-airport/>
>
> Why is Google pursuing its own 29-acre private airport, with a 17,000 sq.
> ft. terminal, 30,000 sq. ft. office & retail building, 60,000 sq. ft.
> hanger, etc.?
> It's purportedly for their executives' private jets but I suspect there's
> something more ambitious in mind.
>
> One friend speculated it'll be "a private spaceport to service the moonbase
> they're going to build," but that seems like wishful thinking.

Isn't it logistics?  How else do you continue to recruit top talent if
you don't have your own airport?

I read an article about how tech companies have private bus lines
picking up their employees on routes around the city nearest HQ...
seems you can get to more people with an airport than you could with a
bus.

Or maybe they've decided to run their UAV program for
offroad.maps.google.com - instead of "street view" you'll have 'drone
mode' and with the deployment costs falling quicker than the drones
themselves, I expect we'll have real-time view of drone mode sooner
than anyone can plan on.  The revenue stream will come from
pay-per-view of places you might not otherwise have access,
pay-per-don't-view for celebs/etc to keep the first group out (yes,
that's called extortion), and pay-so-nobody-else-views (counter
measures to prevent competitors from employing the first two tactics)