On Jan. 1, No Smoking At Sea-Tac -- Area In One Terminal Is Exempt

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport will follow the lead of at least four other U.S. airports by banning smoking on Jan. 1, except for a special area in the international terminal.

Airport officials decided to invoke the ban after fielding a growing number of complaints about smokers.

The ban will close 12 smoking areas in the airport esplanade, as well as smoking areas in bars and restaurants.

"The social acceptance of smoking is changing quickly; people aren't putting up with it anymore," said Mike Ehl, the terminal operations manager. The policy is similar to airport-wide bans in Portland, Dallas, Minneapolis and San Francisco.

Port of Seattle commissioners will be briefed on the policy Dec. 14. While the change does not require their vote, the commissioners could request alterations to the policy.

The south satellite terminal, which services Asian and European flights, will continue to allow smoking in a new area that will be specially ventilated.

Ehl said the Port of Seattle, which operates Sea-Tac, does not want to alienate Asian and European passengers.

"As a pre-eminent gateway to the Pacific, we want to maintain as much of a marketing advantage as we can," said Ehl.

As the Thanksgiving holiday crush began descending on Sea-Tac this week, nonsmoking passengers and airport employees praised the upcoming ban, while smokers condemned it.

"That's absolutely great," said Carol Liedke, a waitress at

Jonathen's on the Alaska Airlines concourse.

She said she has been complaining for months about second-hand smoke in the bar.

Liedke said more passengers have used the bar as the only smoking refuge on the concourse as smoking areas have decreased. Earlier this year, the airport cut all smoking on concourses, except for the international terminal.

To Carl Mack, a frequent-flying businessman from Washington, D.C., who smokes, extending the ban to bars is yet another assault on his habit.

"This is becoming really irritating," he said. "Not being allowed to smoke in bars will be a drag."

Under the new policy, smokers will have to go outside or to the international terminal by subway.

"To make it inconvenient for the smoking customers of airlines is taking it a little too far," said Janet Kurz of Federal Way. "Sometimes I feel like an outcast."

Ehl said other airports have not reported many problems enforcing widespread bans, and he doesn't expect Sea-Tac to have problems.

"Even smokers are resigned to the fact that their position is a dwindling one, that they don't have much support from the public," he said.